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The chaperone effect in scientific publishing

Author

Listed:
  • Vedran Sekara

    (Department of Applied Mathematics and Computer Science, Technical University of Denmark, DK-2800 Kongens Lyngby, Denmark)

  • Pierre Deville

    (Department of Applied Mathematics, Université Catholique de Louvain, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium; Center for Complex Network Research, Northeastern University, Boston, MA 02115)

  • Sebastian E. Ahnert

    (Theory of Condensed Matter, Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB3 0HE, United Kingdom)

  • Albert-László Barabási

    (Center for Complex Network Research, Northeastern University, Boston, MA 02115; Center for Network Science, Central European University, 1051 Budapest, Hungary; Department of Mathematics, Central European University, 1051 Budapest, Hungary; Center for Cancer Systems Biology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA 02115; Channing Division of Network Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115)

  • Roberta Sinatra

    (Center for Complex Network Research, Northeastern University, Boston, MA 02115; Center for Network Science, Central European University, 1051 Budapest, Hungary; Department of Mathematics, Central European University, 1051 Budapest, Hungary; Complexity Science Hub, 1080 Vienna, Austria; Data Science Laboratory, ISI Foundation, 10126 Torino, Italy)

  • Sune Lehmann

    (Department of Applied Mathematics and Computer Science, Technical University of Denmark, DK-2800 Kongens Lyngby, Denmark; The Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark)

Abstract

Experience plays a critical role in crafting high-impact scientific work. This is particularly evident in top multidisciplinary journals, where a scientist is unlikely to appear as senior author if he or she has not previously published within the same journal. Here, we develop a quantitative understanding of author order by quantifying this “chaperone effect,” capturing how scientists transition into senior status within a particular publication venue. We illustrate that the chaperone effect has a different magnitude for journals in different branches of science, being more pronounced in medical and biological sciences and weaker in natural sciences. Finally, we show that in the case of high-impact venues, the chaperone effect has significant implications, specifically resulting in a higher average impact relative to papers authored by new principal investigators (PIs). Our findings shed light on the role played by experience in publishing within specific scientific journals, on the paths toward acquiring the necessary experience and expertise, and on the skills required to publish in prestigious venues.

Suggested Citation

  • Vedran Sekara & Pierre Deville & Sebastian E. Ahnert & Albert-László Barabási & Roberta Sinatra & Sune Lehmann, 2018. "The chaperone effect in scientific publishing," Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 115(50), pages 12603-12607, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nas:journl:v:115:y:2018:p:12603-12607
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Broström, Anders, 2019. "Academic breeding grounds: Home department conditions and early career performance of academic researchers," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(7), pages 1647-1665.
    2. Yajie Zhang & Qiang Yu, 2020. "What is the best article publishing strategy for early career scientists?," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 122(1), pages 397-408, January.
    3. Staša Milojević, 2020. "Nature, Science, and PNAS: disciplinary profiles and impact," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 123(3), pages 1301-1315, June.
    4. Chaocheng He & Jiang Wu & Qingpeng Zhang, 2020. "Research leadership flow determinants and the role of proximity in research collaborations," Journal of the Association for Information Science & Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 71(11), pages 1341-1356, November.
    5. Battiston, Pietro & Sacco, Pier Luigi & Stanca, Luca, 2022. "Cover effects on citations uncovered: Evidence from Nature," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 16(2).
    6. Kwon, Eunrang & Yun, Jinhyuk & Kang, Jeong-han, 2023. "The effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on gendered research productivity and its correlates," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 17(1).
    7. Chaocheng He & Jiang Wu & Qingpeng Zhang, 2021. "Characterizing research leadership on geographically weighted collaboration network," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 126(5), pages 4005-4037, May.
    8. Shang, Jing & Zeng, Mingbin & Zhang, Gupeng, 2022. "Investigating the mentorship effect on the academic success of young scientists: An empirical study of the 985 project universities of China," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 16(2).
    9. Zhu, Wanying & Jin, Ching & Ma, Yifang & Xu, Cong, 2023. "Earlier recognition of scientific excellence enhances future achievements and promotes persistence," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 17(2).
    10. Juan C. Correa & Henry Laverde-Rojas & Julian Tejada & Fernando Marmolejo-Ramos, 2022. "The Sci-Hub effect on papers’ citations," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 127(1), pages 99-126, January.
    11. Andrea Fronzetti Colladon & Ciriaco Andrea D’Angelo & Peter A. Gloor, 2020. "Predicting the future success of scientific publications through social network and semantic analysis," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 124(1), pages 357-377, July.
    12. Chaocheng He & Jiang Wu & Qingpeng Zhang, 2022. "Proximity‐aware research leadership recommendation in research collaboration via deep neural networks," Journal of the Association for Information Science & Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 73(1), pages 70-89, January.
    13. He, Chaocheng & Liu, Fuzhen & Dong, Ke & Wu, Jiang & Zhang, Qingpeng, 2023. "Research on the formation mechanism of research leadership relations: An exponential random graph model analysis approach," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 17(2).

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