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The evolution of the scientific productivity of highly productive economist

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  • Carrasco, Raquel
  • Ruiz-Castillo, Javier

Abstract

This paper studies the evolution of research productivity of a sample of economists working in the best 81 departments in the world in 2007. The main novelty is that, in so far as a productivity distribution can be identified with an income distribution, we measure productivity mobility in a dynamic context using an indicator inspired in an income mobility index suggested by Fields (2010) for a two-period world. Productivity is measured in terms of the number of publications in each of four classes, weighted according to a rather elitist scheme. We study the evolution of average productivity, productivity inequality, the extent of rank reversals, and productivity mobility for seven cohorts, as well as the population as a whole. We offer new evidence confirming previous results about the heterogeneity of the evolution of productivity for top and other researchers. However, the major result is that –contrary to what was expected– for our sample of very highly productive scholars the effect of rank reversals between the two periods on overall productivity mobility offsets the effect of an increase in productivity inequality from the first to the second period in the youngest five out of seven cohorts

Suggested Citation

  • Carrasco, Raquel & Ruiz-Castillo, Javier, 2012. "The evolution of the scientific productivity of highly productive economist," UC3M Working papers. Economics we1216, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Departamento de Economía.
    • Handle: RePEc:cte:werepe:we1216
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Perianes-Rodríguez, Antonio & Ruiz-Castillo, Javier, 2014. "Within and across department variability in individual productivity : the case of economics," UC3M Working papers. Economics we1404, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Departamento de Economía.
    2. José Alberto Molina & Alfredo Ferrer & David Iñiguez & Alejandro Rivero & Gonzalo Ruiz & Alfonso Tarancón, 2020. "Network analysis to measure academic performance in economics," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 58(3), pages 995-1018, March.
    3. Marek Kwiek, 2018. "High research productivity in vertically undifferentiated higher education systems: Who are the top performers?," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 115(1), pages 415-462, April.
    4. Albarrán, Pedro & Carrasco, Raquel & Ruiz-Castillo, Javier, 2015. "The effect of spatial mobility and other factors on academic productivity : some evidence from a set of highly productive economists," UC3M Working papers. Economics we1415, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Departamento de Economía.
    5. 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.
    6. Fabio Zagonari, 2019. "Scientific Production and Productivity for Characterizing an Author’s Publication History: Simple and Nested Gini’s and Hirsch’s Indexes Combined," Publications, MDPI, Open Access Journal, vol. 7(2), pages 1-1, May.
    7. José Alberto Molina & Alberto Alcolea & Alfredo Ferrer & Alberto Alcolea & David Iñiguez & Alejandro Rivero & Gonzalo Ruiz & Alfonso Tarancón, 2016. "Co-authorship and Academic Productivity in Economics: Interaction Maps from the Complex Networks Approach," Boston College Working Papers in Economics 914, Boston College Department of Economics.
    8. David L. Anderson & John Tressler, 2017. "Researcher rank stability across alternative output measurement schemes in the context of a time limited research evaluation: the New Zealand case," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 49(45), pages 4542-4553, September.
    9. Antonio Perianes-Rodriguez & Javier Ruiz-Castillo, 2015. "Within- and between-department variability in individual productivity: the case of economics," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 102(2), pages 1497-1520, February.
    10. Pedro Albarrán & Raquel Carrasco & Javier Ruiz-Castillo, 2017. "Geographic mobility and research productivity in a selection of top world economics departments," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 111(1), pages 241-265, April.
    11. Raquel Carrasco & Javier Ruiz-Castillo, 2019. "Spatial mobility in elite academic institutions in economics: the case of Spain," SERIEs: Journal of the Spanish Economic Association, Springer;Spanish Economic Association, vol. 10(2), pages 141-172, June.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Research productivity;

    JEL classification:

    • A11 - General Economics and Teaching - - General Economics - - - Role of Economics; Role of Economists
    • A12 - General Economics and Teaching - - General Economics - - - Relation of Economics to Other Disciplines
    • B41 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - Economic Methodology - - - Economic Methodology
    • D63 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement
    • I32 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Measurement and Analysis of Poverty

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