Bridging the Gap: Evidence from the Return Migration of African Scientists.

This article examines who benefits from associating with a broker in innovation networks, focusing on a specific type of broker known as a core/periphery bridge—an actor connecting central (core) and peripheral members of a network. Using the return migration of American-trained African HIV researchers supported by the National Institute of Health Fogarty International Center AIDS International Training and Research Program (FIC AITRP) as a quasi-experimental setting, the study finds that nonmigrant African scientists affiliated with institutions receiving these returnees increase their publication output, particularly those without prior connections to top global institutions. The results suggest that brokers can sponsor less advantaged peripheral actors by facilitating access to central knowledge and connections, thereby reducing inequality within the network. The study also highlights that the benefits of brokerage depend on the neighbors' prior network advantage and institutional context, with stronger effects observed in less central and more internally collaborative institutions.