Mapping communication and collaboration in heterogeneous research networks

The aim of this mainly methodological paper is to present an approach for researching the triple helix of university-industry-government relations as a heterogeneous and multi-layered communication network. The layers included are: the formal scholarly communication in academic journals, the communication network based on project collaborations, and finally the communication of information over the 'virtual' network of web links. The approach is applied on typical 'Mode 2' fields such as biotechnology, while using a variety of data sources. We present some of the initial findings, which indicate the different structures and functions of the three layers of communication.