Institutionalizing the internationalization of science in Azerbaijani higher education: A mixed-methods analysis of policies, institutional strategies, and bibliometric performance

This article examines an underexplored dimension of science internationalization: its institutionalization within non-core academic systems. Focusing on Azerbaijan, a context largely absent from existing literature, the study investigates how national policies, university strategies, and researcher practices interact to shape international research engagement, employing a mixed-methods research design that combines qualitative content analysis of relevant policy and institutional documents with quantitative bibliometric assessment and exploratory OLS regression analysis. Data from 26 Azerbaijani universities (2019–2024) were triangulated using Scopus and SciVal indicators, alongside ordinary least squares (OLS) regression to explore the relationship between collaboration metrics and citation impact. The findings reveal a fragmented landscape. While a few institutions exhibit strong international collaboration and above-average field-weighted citation impact, most remain weakly integrated into global research networks. Regression results reveal heterogeneous associations between international collaboration and research impact, challenging the conventional assumption that internationalization is inherently beneficial for citation performance. By applying an integrated, multi-level methodology to a national system at the periphery of global science, the study contributes to a more differentiated understanding of how research internationalization unfolds in emerging academic environments.