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Seeing Past Parallel Play: Survey Measures of Collaboration in Disaster Situations
Author(s) -
Robinson Scott E.,
Gaddis Benjamin S.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
policy studies journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.773
H-Index - 69
eISSN - 1541-0072
pISSN - 0190-292X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1541-0072.2012.00452.x
Subject(s) - optimal distinctiveness theory , respondent , key (lock) , measure (data warehouse) , public relations , survey data collection , component (thermodynamics) , computer science , business , political science , knowledge management , data science , psychology , computer security , social psychology , data mining , statistics , physics , mathematics , law , thermodynamics
The literature on the management of policy networks has expanded greatly in the past decade. In spite of this attention, no consensus has emerged on how to measure collaboration or even what constitutes collaboration. This article uses data from a postdisaster survey to compare some existing approaches to measuring collaboration. We analyze various survey‐based measures ranging from respondent‐defined collaboration to activity‐based or contact‐based measures. We recommend that scholars consider opportunity costs as a key component in differentiating between significant collaboration and basic coordination (or “parallel play”). Based on this opportunity cost approach, we consider the distinctiveness of disaster collaboration.