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The effect of academic inbreeding on scientific effectiveness

Author

Listed:
  • Ozlem Inanc

    (Işık University)

  • Onur Tuncer

    (Istanbul Technical University)

Abstract

In academia, the term “inbreeding” refers to a situation wherein PhDs are employed in the very same institution that trained them during their doctoral studies. Academic inbreeding has a negative perception on the account that it damages both scientific effectiveness and productivity. In this article, the effect of inbreeding on scientific effectiveness is investigated through a case study. This problem is addressed by utilizing Hirsch index as a reliable metric of an academic’s scientific productivity. Utilizing the dataset, constructed with academic performance indicators of individuals from the Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering Departments, of the Turkish Technical Universities, we demonstrate that academic inbreeding has a negative impact on apparent scientific effectiveness through a negative binomial model. This model appears to be the most suitable one for the dataset which is a type of count data. We report chi-square statistics and likelihood ratio test for the parameter alpha. According to the chi-square statistics the model is significant as a whole. The incidence rate ratio for the variable “inbreeding” is estimated to be 0.11 and this ratio tells that, holding all the other factors constant, for the inbred faculty, the h-index is about 89% lower when compared to the non-inbred faculty. Furthermore, there exists negative and statistically significant correlation with an individual’s productivity and the percentage of inbred faculty members at the very same department. Excessive practice of inbreeding adversely affects the overall productivity. Decision makers are urged to limit this practice to a minimum in order to foster a vibrant research environment. Furthermore, it is also found that scientific productivity of an individual decreases towards the end of his scientific career.

Suggested Citation

  • Ozlem Inanc & Onur Tuncer, 2011. "The effect of academic inbreeding on scientific effectiveness," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 88(3), pages 885-898, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:scient:v:88:y:2011:i:3:d:10.1007_s11192-011-0415-9
    DOI: 10.1007/s11192-011-0415-9
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Olga Gorelova & Andrey Lovakov, 2016. "Academic Inbreeding and Research Productivity Of Russian Faculty Members," HSE Working papers WP BRP 32/EDU/2016, National Research University Higher School of Economics.
    3. Stelios Katranidis & Theodore Panagiotidis & Costas Zontanos, 2017. "Economists, Research Performance and National Inbreeding: North Versus South," Economic Notes, Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA, vol. 46(1), pages 145-163, February.
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    5. Vadim N. Gureyev & Nikolay A. Mazov & Denis V. Kosyakov & Andrey E. Guskov, 2020. "Review and analysis of publications on scientific mobility: assessment of influence, motivation, and trends," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 124(2), pages 1599-1630, August.
    6. Celis, Sergio & Kim, Jeongeun, 2018. "The making of homophilic networks in international research collaborations: A global perspective from Chilean and Korean engineering," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(3), pages 573-582.
    7. Russell Smyth & Vinod Mishra, 2014. "Academic inbreeding and research productivity and impact in Australian law schools," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 98(1), pages 583-618, January.
    8. Engin Karadag & S. Koza Ciftci, 2022. "Deepening the Effects of the Academic Inbreeding: Its Impact on Individual and Institutional Research Productivity," Research in Higher Education, Springer;Association for Institutional Research, vol. 63(6), pages 1015-1036, September.
    9. Stelios Katranidis & Theodore Panagiotidis & Kostas Zontanos, 2022. "A note on the relative productivity drivers of economists: a probit/logit approach for six European countries," Economic Change and Restructuring, Springer, vol. 55(4), pages 2171-2178, November.
    10. Horta, Hugo & Yudkevich, Maria, 2016. "The role of academic inbreeding in developing higher education systems: Challenges and possible solutions," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 113(PB), pages 363-372.
    11. Borenstein, Denis & Perlin, Marcelo S. & Imasato, Takeyoshi, 2022. "The Academic Inbreeding Controversy: Analysis and Evidence from Brazil," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 16(2).
    12. Marek Kosmulski, 2015. "Careers of young Polish chemists," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 102(2), pages 1455-1465, February.
    13. Luís Filipe Miranda Grochocki & Andrea Felippe Cabello, 2023. "Research collaboration networks in maturing academic environments," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 128(4), pages 2535-2556, April.
    14. Shibayama, Sotaro & Baba, Yasunori, 2015. "Impact-oriented science policies and scientific publication practices: The case of life sciences in Japan," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 44(4), pages 936-950.
    15. Tolga Yuret, 2018. "Path to success: an analysis of US educated elite academics in the United States," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 117(1), pages 105-121, October.
    16. Grochocki, Luís Filipe de Miranda & Cabello, Andrea Felippe, 2022. "Academic endogamy or immobility? The impact on scholarly productivity in a developing country," International Journal of Educational Development, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).

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