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The imaginary carrot: no correlation between raising funds and research productivity in geosciences

Author

Listed:
  • Gregoire Mariethoz

    (University of Lausanne)

  • Frédéric Herman

    (University of Lausanne)

  • Amelie Dreiss

    (University of Lausanne)

Abstract

The ability of researchers to raise funding is central to academic achievement. However, whether success in obtaining research funds correlates with the productivity, quality or impact of a researcher is debated. Here we analyse 10 years of grant funding by the Swiss National Science Foundation in Earth and Environmental Sciences, and compare it to the publication record of the researchers who were awarded the funds. No significant statistical correlation can be established between the publication or citation record of a researcher and the amount of money this researcher obtains in grant funding. These results imply that researchers successful in raising funds are not necessarily in a position to be more productive or produce more impactful publications. Those results should be considered for deciding whether to use grant funding as a criterion for career advancement procedures.

Suggested Citation

  • Gregoire Mariethoz & Frédéric Herman & Amelie Dreiss, 2021. "The imaginary carrot: no correlation between raising funds and research productivity in geosciences," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 126(3), pages 2401-2407, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:scient:v:126:y:2021:i:3:d:10.1007_s11192-020-03855-1
    DOI: 10.1007/s11192-020-03855-1
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Henry Laverde-Rojas & Juan C. Correa, 2019. "Can scientific productivity impact the economic complexity of countries?," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 120(1), pages 267-282, July.
    2. John P. A. Ioannidis, 2011. "Fund people not projects," Nature, Nature, vol. 477(7366), pages 529-531, September.
    3. Kevin Gross & Carl T Bergstrom, 2019. "Contest models highlight inherent inefficiencies of scientific funding competitions," PLOS Biology, Public Library of Science, vol. 17(1), pages 1-15, January.
    4. David Adam, 2019. "Science funders gamble on grant lotteries," Nature, Nature, vol. 575(7784), pages 574-575, November.
    5. Jacob, Brian A. & Lefgren, Lars, 2011. "The impact of research grant funding on scientific productivity," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(9), pages 1168-1177.
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    Cited by:

    1. Corsini, Alberto & Pezzoni, Michele, 2023. "Does grant funding foster research impact? Evidence from France," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 17(4).
    2. Rachel Heyard & Tobias Philipp & Hanna Hottenrott, 2021. "Imaginary carrot or effective fertiliser? A rejoinder on funding and productivity," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 126(11), pages 9333-9338, November.
    3. Gregoire Mariethoz & Frédéric Herman & Amelie Dreiss, 2021. "Reply to the comment by Heyard et al. titled “Imaginary carrot or effective fertiliser? A rejoinder on funding and productivity”," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 126(11), pages 9339-9342, November.
    4. Alberto Corsini & Michele Pezzoni, 2022. "Does grant funding foster research impact? Evidence from France," SciencePo Working papers Main hal-03912647, HAL.
    5. Gideon Baffoe & Keith Kintrea, 2022. "Towards Understanding the Landscapes of Neighbourhood Research: An Insight from Bibliometric Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(5), pages 1-16, March.
    6. Alberto Corsini & Michele Pezzoni, 2022. "Does grant funding foster research impact? Evidence from France," Working Papers hal-03912647, HAL.

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