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Paper Tiger? Chinese Science and Home Bias in Citations

Author

Listed:
  • Shumin Qiu
  • Claudia Steinwender
  • Pierre Azoulay

Abstract

We investigate the phenomenon of home bias in scientific citations, where researchers disproportionately cite work from their own country. We develop a benchmark for expected citations based on the relative size of countries, defining home bias as deviations from this norm. Our findings reveal that China exhibits the largest home bias across all major countries and in nearly all scientific fields studied. This stands in contrast to the pattern of home bias for China’s trade in goods and services, where China does not stand out from most industrialized countries. After adjusting citation counts for home bias, we demonstrate that China’s apparent rise in citation rankings is overstated. Our adjusted ranking places China fourth globally, behind the US, the UK, and Germany, tempering the perception of China’s scientific dominance.

Suggested Citation

  • Shumin Qiu & Claudia Steinwender & Pierre Azoulay, 2025. "Paper Tiger? Chinese Science and Home Bias in Citations," CESifo Working Paper Series 11664, CESifo.
    • Handle: RePEc:ces:ceswps:_11664
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Qiu, Shumin & Steinwender, Claudia & Azoulay, Pierre, 2025. "Who stands on the shoulders of Chinese (Scientific) Giants? Evidence from chemistry," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 54(1).
    2. Dag W. Aksnes & Liv Langfeldt & Paul Wouters, 2019. "Citations, Citation Indicators, and Research Quality: An Overview of Basic Concepts and Theories," SAGE Open, , vol. 9(1), pages 21582440198, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    home bias; China; citations; economics of science; basic research; international spillovers;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I23 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Higher Education; Research Institutions
    • O30 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - General
    • O53 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - Asia including Middle East

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