At the Origins of Learning: Absorbing Knowledge Flows from within the Team

Empirical studies document a positive effect of collaboration on team productivity. However, little has been done to assess how knowledge flows among team members. Our study addresses this issue by exploring unique rich data on a Swiss funding program promoting research team collaboration. We find that being involved in an established collaboration and team size foster the probability of an individual learning from the other team members. We also find that team members with limited experience are more likely to learn from experienced peers. Moreover, there is an inverted U-shaped effect of cognitive distance on the probability of learning from other team members.