Does Psychological Capital Increase Emotional-Cognitive Readiness for Scientific Collaborations? A Case Study

This research aims to examine the influence of social capital on the emotional-cognitive readiness of faculty members for scientific collaborations using Structural Equation Modeling, considering the importance of social capital and its dimensions in social interactions. This study is applied research that was conducted in a survey method. The statistical population includes all faculty members (709) of two universities of medical sciences in Iran: Hamadan and Kurdistan universities of medical sciences. The sample size of this study was 250 people who were selected using stratified random sampling. Data were collected using two standard questionnaires. Spearman correlation and Structural equation modeling (SEM) were used to test the research hypotheses using SPSS version 25 and PLS 3. The results showed a positive and significant relationship between the dimensions of psychological capital (self-efficacy, optimism, resilience, and hope) and cognitive-emotional readiness for scientific collaboration. Also, the results obtained from Structural Equation Modeling indicated the relative compatibility of the experimental model with the conceptual model of the research, which indicates the effect of psychological capital on cognitive-emotional readiness for scientific collaboration. This research can give university administrators insight into increasing scientific collaboration among faculty members. The factors affecting it should be identified and planned to strengthen them.