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The important thing is not to win, it is to take part: What if scientists benefit from participating in research grant competitions?

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  • Ayoubi, Charles
  • Pezzoni, Michele
  • Visentin, Fabiana

Abstract

“The important thing is not to win, it is to take part,” this famous saying by Pierre de Coubertin asserts that the value athletes draw from Olympic games lies in their participation in the event and not in the gold they collect during it. We find similar evidence for scientists involved in grant competitions. Relying on unique data from a Swiss funding program, we find that scientists taking part in a research grant competition boost their number of publications and average impact factor while extending their knowledge base and their collaboration network regardless of the result of the competition. Receiving the funds increases the probability of co-authoring with co-applicants but has no additional impact on the individual productivity.

Suggested Citation

  • Ayoubi, Charles & Pezzoni, Michele & Visentin, Fabiana, 2019. "The important thing is not to win, it is to take part: What if scientists benefit from participating in research grant competitions?," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(1), pages 84-97.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:respol:v:48:y:2019:i:1:p:84-97
    DOI: 10.1016/j.respol.2018.07.021
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Competitive grants; Public funding evaluation; Scientific productivity; Scientific collaboration; Learning;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I23 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Higher Education; Research Institutions
    • O38 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Government Policy

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