Minimizing disincentives for collaborative research

While collaborative research partnerships offer a number of advantages, the disincentives to collaboration which are present in the academic environment can be daunting and can result in failure unless they are explicitly and proactively addressed. Based on successful models of collaboration and a review of the literature, four disincentives to collaboration-increased requirements for time and communication, lack of clarity regarding leadership, need to share resources and revenue, and the problem of partners who do not fulfill their commitments-are discussed and strategies to minimize these disincentives are presented.