The role of culture in multi-industry collaboration: collaborative lock-in across regional innovation systems

Purpose This study aims to investigate why some regions with high collaboration intensity experience persistently low innovation performance; a phenomenon we term the collaboration paradox. We introduce and empirically examine the concept of collaborative lock-in to explain how culturally embedded collaboration patterns systematically constrain innovation outcomes despite intensive collaborative activity. Design/methodology/approach Integrating regional innovation systems theory, institutional theory, and force-field theory, we develop a multi-level framework proposing seven mechanisms of collaborative lock-in. We adopt a sequential mixed-method design. This includes a systematic literature review, a regional survey of 16 multi-industry actors in Kymenlaakso (Finland, a region with high collaboration but low R&D investment), and 12 qualitative interviews with key innovation system actors. Findings Results reveal a systematic force-field gradient: as collaboration moves from internal through dyadic external to network configurations, restraining forces (perceived risk, coordination costs) amplify while relational drivers (trust and familiarity) decline. This produces an aspiration-enactment gap: actors normatively endorse openness but behaviorally revert to familiar partners. Seven empirically validated mechanisms sustain lock-in, including trust-through-familiarity and self-reinforcing feedback where low-novelty outcomes validate risk-averse schemas. Originality/value This study conceptualizes collaborative lock-in as a distinct form of regional lock-in focused on relational routines and partner selection schemas. It offers a mechanism-based account of how cultural schemas translate into collaboration decisions, explaining the persistence of suboptimal collaboration equilibria. For policy, findings suggest interventions must recalibrate the perceived balance of forces at the novelty threshold, through risk-sharing mechanisms and trust-brokering infrastructure, rather than merely promoting collaboration volume.