SCIENCE PARKS AND UNIVERSITY-INDUSTRY INTERACTION - GEOGRAPHICAL PROXIMITY BETWEEN THE AGENTS AS A DRIVING-FORCE

This paper concerns the links established between industry and univers ity, and the expectation that science parks will strengthen their link ages. It concentrates on the analysis of these links through a case st udy of a single British science park. It focuses on the argument, exte nsively used by advocates of the science park mechanism, that geograph ical proximity between universities and firms will facilitate and stre ngthen the links between these partners. The fieldwork is based on per sonal interviews conducted through questionnaires addressed to (i) the park management; (ii) a sample of firms located on the park; and (iii ) a sample of host university researchers. The study examines a wide r ange of possible links in three broad categories concerned with (i) in formal links, (ii) human resources links and (iii) formal links. Throu gh a comparative analysis provided by data related to links establishe d with other universities (from the firms' side) and other firms (fron t the researchers' point of view), it is shown that geographical proxi mity between the partners is not an important influence - or a driving force - on the existence or strength of links, at least for those rel ated to the reseal-ch activity (formal category of links), established between university and industry. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd.