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Determinants of Research Production at Top Universities

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  • Quentin Max David

Abstract

In this paper, I analyze the determinants of research production by higher education institutionsin the United States. I use four measures to build an index of top-level academic researchproduction. I show that it is important to account for the presence of outliers in both dimensions(x and y axes), and that most top-ranked institutions can be considered outliers. I find thatuniversity income, the share of income devoted to research expenses, and faculty size significantlyincrease the ability of an institution to produce top-level academic research. I also show that therelationship between average professor quality (proxied by salary) and the production of researchis U-shaped, with a significant share of institutions located on the decreasing part of the curve.

Suggested Citation

  • Quentin Max David, 2013. "Determinants of Research Production at Top Universities," Working Papers TIMES² 2014-007, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    • Handle: RePEc:ict:wpaper:2013/157280
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    1. Jacqmin, Julien & Lefebvre, Mathieu, 2016. "Does sector-specific experience matter? The case of European higher education ministers," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 45(5), pages 987-998.
    2. David Emanuel Andersson & Åke E. Andersson & Björn Hårsman & Xiyi Yang, 2020. "The geography of science in 12 European countries: a NUTS2-level analysis," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 124(2), pages 1099-1125, August.
    3. Julien Jacqmin & Mathieu Lefebvre, 2021. "Fiscal decentralization and the performance of higher education institutions: the case of Europe," Empirica, Springer;Austrian Institute for Economic Research;Austrian Economic Association, vol. 48(3), pages 743-758, August.

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