nep-sog New Economics Papers
on Sociology of Economics
Issue of 2023‒12‒04
four papers chosen by
Jonas Holmström, Axventure AB


  1. Writing Matters By Feld, Jan; Lines, Corinna; Ross, Libby
  2. Does Performance-based Public Funding Pay off? UK’s Research Excellence Framework (REF) and Research Productivity By Ajab Khan; Ali Sina Önder; Sercan Özcan
  3. Building a Broader and More Inclusive Research Community By Abigail Wozniak
  4. Building Mentorships and Camaraderie in Economics By Ellen R. McGrattan; Kathleen McKiernan; Emily Moschini; Ming Xu

  1. By: Feld, Jan (Victoria University of Wellington); Lines, Corinna (Write Limited in Wellington); Ross, Libby (Write Limited in Wellington)
    Abstract: For papers to have scientific impact, they need to impress our peers in their role as referees, journal editors, and members of conference committees. Does better writing help our papers make it past these gatekeepers? In this study, we estimate the effect of writing quality by comparing how 30 economists judge the quality of papers written by PhD students in economics. Each economist judged five papers in their original version and five different papers that had been language edited. No economist saw both versions of the same paper. Our results show that writing matters. Compared to the original versions, economists judge edited versions as higher quality; they are more likely to accept edited versions for a conference; and they believe that edited versions have a better chance of being accepted at a good journal.
    Keywords: academic writing, writing quality, economics, randomized experiment
    JEL: A10
    Date: 2023–11
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16571&r=sog
  2. By: Ajab Khan (University of Portsmouth); Ali Sina Önder (University of Portsmouth); Sercan Özcan (University of Portsmouth)
    Abstract: It is important to understand whether and in what ways performance-based public funds enhance universities’ research output. Using a synthetic difference-in-differences analysis and propensity score methods to compare research productivity differences between UK universities’ Economics and Business fields and their synthetic counterparts in the US during the REF period in contrast to the pre-REF period, we find a significant and consistent increase in peer-reviewed journal publications of UK universities since the introduction of REF in 2009. We further show that publication output per author declined as a result of increased collaboration while overall citations increased. Our findings further suggest that REF may have played a pivotal role in elevating research excellence in elite institutions.
    Keywords: Public funding; Research Productivity; Research Excellence Frameworks (REFs)
    JEL: O38 I23 H52
    Date: 2023–11–16
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pbs:ecofin:2023-08&r=sog
  3. By: Abigail Wozniak
    Abstract: In a Women in Economics podcast episode, the Minneapolis Fed’s Abigail Wozniak discussed efforts to make the Federal Reserve’s research community broader and more inclusive.
    Keywords: women in economics
    Date: 2022–07–12
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:l00001:94525&r=sog
  4. By: Ellen R. McGrattan; Kathleen McKiernan; Emily Moschini; Ming Xu
    Abstract: Ellen McGrattan, a professor at the University of Minnesota, discusses the profession with three former students who are now assistant professors.
    Keywords: women in economics; economics profession; collaboration
    Date: 2022–06–09
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:l00001:94356&r=sog

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