Investigating the scientific impact of academic engagement: universities, firms, and dual-affiliated researchers in engineering sciences

This article examines an underexplored aspect of academic engagement: the scientific impact of university – firm collaborations and the role of dual-affiliated knowledge brokers. Focusing on science-based technology fields that combine basic and applied research, we analyse 8,455 publications by 184 electrical engineering professors at Sweden’s five leading engineering universities (2000–2018) and measure impact using citation counts. We distinguish academic-only publications from those listing at least one firm affiliation and systematically test whether dual-affiliations further shape impact. Publications with industry are more highly cited than those from academic-only collaborations. The advantage is stronger when dual-affiliated professors, with appointments in both academia and industry, are part of the author team. We suggest this reflects the integration of complementary expertise and topic choices that connect theory with practice. The study contributes to research on academic engagement and the economics of science by clarifying when industry collaboration, especially involving dual-affiliated professors, raises scientific impact.