Research Centers

The Industry Studies Association welcomes ties with academic research centers that share its commitment to scholarly research that benefits from deep industry knowledge and engagement with industry practitioners. Many of the research centers affiliated with the Industry Studies Association were originally established under the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation’s Industry Studies Program. The first Sloan Industry Center, the International Motor Vehicle Program at MIT, was established in 1990, and the Sloan Foundation’s program eventually grew to include a total of 26 Centers at 19 universities across the United States.

Each Sloan Industry Center consists of a multidisciplinary group of faculty members and students who study many aspects of a single industry or engage in cross-industry analysis. In the industry studies tradition, research conducted at these Centers employs a wide variety of both quantitative and qualitative research methods. Across research interests and disciplines, the researchers involved in these Centers make the kind of personal investment of time that is necessary to learn about the market and firm institutions in the industry or industries they study, and this often involves maintaining close contact with practitioners in the industry. All research centers now affiliated with the Industry Studies Association share these characteristics.

A complete list of research centers with ties to the Industry Studies Association is given below, along with links to each research center's website. Alternately, look for an industry of interest among those listed in the side bar, and you will navigate directly to the research center that specializes in that industry.

If your research center is interested in applying for affiliation with the Industry Studies Association, click here for more information and access to an application form.