scholarly journals Research groups: how big should they be?

Author(s):  
Isabelle Cook ◽  
Sam Grange ◽  
Adam Eyre-Walker

We have investigated the relationship between research group size and productivity in the life sciences in the United Kingdom using data from 398 principle investigators (PIs). We show that the number of publications increases linearly with group size, but that the slope is modest relative to the intercept, and that the relationship explains little of the variance in productivity. A comparison of the slope and intercept suggests that PIs contribute on average 5-times more productivity than an average group member and using multiple regression we estimate that post-doctoral researchers are approximately 3–times more productive than PhD students. We also find that the impact factor and the number of citations are both non-linearly related to group size such that there is a maximum. However, the relationships explain little of the variance and the curvatures are shallow so the impact factor and the number of citations do not greatly depend upon group size. The intercept is large relative to curvature suggesting that the PI is largely responsible for the impact factor and the number of citations from their group. Surprisingly we find this non-linear relationship for post-docs, but for PhD students we observe a slight but significant decrease in the impact factor. The results have important implications for the funding of research. Given a set number of Pis there is no evidence of diminishing returns in terms of the number of papers published and only a very weak cost to very large groups in terms of where those papers are published and the number of citations they receive. However, the results do suggest that it might be more productive to invest in new permanent members of faculty rather than additional post-docs and PhD students.

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isabelle Cook ◽  
Sam Grange ◽  
Adam Eyre-Walker

We have investigated the relationship between research group size and productivity in the life sciences in the United Kingdom using data from 398 principle investigators (PIs). We show that the number of publications increases linearly with group size, but that the slope is modest relative to the intercept, and that the relationship explains little of the variance in productivity. A comparison of the slope and intercept suggests that PIs contribute on average 5-times more productivity than an average group member and using multiple regression we estimate that post-doctoral researchers are approximately 3–times more productive than PhD students. We also find that the impact factor and the number of citations are both non-linearly related to group size such that there is a maximum. However, the relationships explain little of the variance and the curvatures are shallow so the impact factor and the number of citations do not greatly depend upon group size. The intercept is large relative to curvature suggesting that the PI is largely responsible for the impact factor and the number of citations from their group. Surprisingly we find this non-linear relationship for post-docs, but for PhD students we observe a slight but significant decrease in the impact factor. The results have important implications for the funding of research. Given a set number of Pis there is no evidence of diminishing returns in terms of the number of papers published and only a very weak cost to very large groups in terms of where those papers are published and the number of citations they receive. However, the results do suggest that it might be more productive to invest in new permanent members of faculty rather than additional post-docs and PhD students.


2010 ◽  
Vol 106 (3) ◽  
pp. 891-900 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nick Haslam ◽  
Peter Koval

The citation impact of a comprehensive sample of articles published in social and personality psychology journals in 1998 was evaluated. Potential predictors of the 10-yr. citation impact of 1,580 articles from 37 journals were investigated, including number of authors, number of references, journal impact factor, author nationality, and article length, using linear regression. The impact factor of the journal in which articles appeared was the primary predictor of the citations that they accrued, accounting for 30% of the total variance. Articles with greater length, more references, and more authors were cited relatively often, although the citation advantage of longer articles was not proportionate to their length. A citation advantage was also enjoyed by authors from the United States of America, Canada, and the United Kingdom. 37% of the variance in the total number of citations was accounted for by the study variables.


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 108
Author(s):  
Juliana Osmani

The relationship between organization and environment, based on the need to gather information and find resources, is increasingly characterized by a high level of uncertainty. Uncertainty means that managers do not have enough information and time to anticipate changes and make good decisions. More and more managers make decisions about new problems or situations. The level of risk increases, as well as the degree of complexity that the decision maker has to face. Under these conditions, organizations are moving towards the use of groups. The main purpose of the current research is to identify what are the most important benefits and limits of the group referring to its size, taking into analysis the banking institutions. For the current study is adopted the quantitative research and for the data collection is used the questionnaire. A total of 344 questionnaire are distributed. 80 percent of the participants agree that group size affects the quality of the decisions made and most of them prefer small groups. Also, most of them believe that within large groups are more conflicts, the relationships between members are more formal, the attention and individual commitment are lower than in small groups, the consensus is difficult, decisions can be made only through a voting process and there are no delays in decision-making, but coordination problems are not necessarily higher than within small groups.


Author(s):  
Brynne D. Ovalle ◽  
Rahul Chakraborty

This article has two purposes: (a) to examine the relationship between intercultural power relations and the widespread practice of accent discrimination and (b) to underscore the ramifications of accent discrimination both for the individual and for global society as a whole. First, authors review social theory regarding language and group identity construction, and then go on to integrate more current studies linking accent bias to sociocultural variables. Authors discuss three examples of intercultural accent discrimination in order to illustrate how this link manifests itself in the broader context of international relations (i.e., how accent discrimination is generated in situations of unequal power) and, using a review of current research, assess the consequences of accent discrimination for the individual. Finally, the article highlights the impact that linguistic discrimination is having on linguistic diversity globally, partially using data from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and partially by offering a potential context for interpreting the emergence of practices that seek to reduce or modify speaker accents.


Author(s):  
Guoliang Yang ◽  
Zhihua Wang ◽  
Weijiong Wu

Little is known about the relationship between social comparison orientation and mental health, especially in the psychological capital context. We proposed a theoretical model to examine the impact of ability- and opinion-based social comparison orientation on mental health using data from 304 undergraduates. We also examined the mediating effect of the four psychological capital components of hope, self-efficacy, resilience, and optimism in the relationship between social comparison orientation and mental health. Results show that an ability (vs. opinion) social comparison orientation was negatively (vs. positively) related to the psychological capital components. Further, the resilience and optimism components of psychological capital fully mediated the social comparison orientation–mental health relationship. Our findings indicate that psychological capital should be considered in the promotion of mental health, and that the two social comparison orientation types have opposite effects on psychological capital.


2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 412-428
Author(s):  
Hilla Peretz ◽  
Michael J. Morley

ABSTRACTWe offer a preliminary examination of whether national and organizational level contexts amplify or reduce the effects of de-globalization on the performance of MNCs. Theoretically, we borrow ideas from both event system theory and institutional fit to propose a model explicating key dimensions of the relationship between de-globalization, national and organizational context, and MNC performance. We then test our ideas using data assembled from 283 MNCs in 20 countries. We find that while de-globalization has a negative effect on MNC performance, national and organizational level contextual endowments do moderate this relationship. We discuss some implications of our findings and highlight attendant limitations.


2021 ◽  
pp. 194855062097802
Author(s):  
Todd K. Hartman ◽  
Thomas V. A. Stocks ◽  
Ryan McKay ◽  
Jilly Gibson-Miller ◽  
Liat Levita ◽  
...  

Research has demonstrated that situational factors such as perceived threats to the social order activate latent authoritarianism. The deadly COVID-19 pandemic presents a rare opportunity to test whether existential threat stemming from an indiscriminate virus moderates the relationship between authoritarianism and political attitudes toward the nation and out-groups. Using data from two large nationally representative samples of adults in the United Kingdom ( N = 2,025) and Republic of Ireland ( N = 1,041) collected during the initial phases of strict lockdown measures in both countries, we find that the associations between right-wing authoritarianism (RWA) and (1) nationalism and (2) anti-immigrant attitudes are conditional on levels of perceived threat. As anxiety about the COVID-19 pandemic increases, so too does the effect of RWA on those political outcomes. Thus, it appears that existential threats to humanity from the COVID-19 pandemic moderate expressions of authoritarianism in society.


Atmosphere ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 446
Author(s):  
Akinori Fukunaga ◽  
Takaharu Sato ◽  
Kazuki Fujita ◽  
Daisuke Yamada ◽  
Shinya Ishida ◽  
...  

To clarify the relationship between changes in photochemical oxidants’ (Ox) concentrations and their precursors in Kawasaki, a series of analyses were conducted using data on Ox, their precursors, nitrogen oxides (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and meteorology that had been monitored throughout the city of Kawasaki for 30 years from 1990 to 2019. The trend in air temperature was upward, wind speed was downward, and solar radiation was upward, indicating an increasing trend in meteorological factors in which Ox concentrations tend to be higher. Between 1990 and 2013, the annual average Ox increased throughout Kawasaki and remained flat after that. The three-year moving average of the daily peak increased until 2015, and after that, it exhibited a slight decline. The amount of generated Ox is another important indicator. To evaluate this, a new indicator, the daytime production of photochemical oxidant (DPOx), was proposed. DPOx is defined by daytime averaged Ox concentrations less the previous day’s nighttime averaged Ox concentrations. The trend in DPOx from April to October has been decreasing since around 2006, and it was found that this indicator reflects the impact of reducing emissions of NOx and VOCs in Kawasaki.


2021 ◽  
pp. 105566562110196
Author(s):  
Alex Davies ◽  
Amy Davies ◽  
Yvonne Wren ◽  
Scott Deacon ◽  
Alistair R.M. Cobb ◽  
...  

Objective: The mainstay of palatal repair in the United Kingdom is the intravelar veloplasty (IVVP). It is not always possible to align the oral mucosa in the midline to achieve tension-free repair. The addition of lateral relieving incisions may aid transposition of the oral mucosa to allow closure. The aim of this study was to explore cleft features that may predispose to a requirement for relieving incisions in order to allow palate closure. Design: We performed a national multiinstitutional retrospective study using data from the UK Cleft Collective cohort study. Patients: The study sample consisted of 474 patients who had undergone IVVP at the time of palatal closure across all 16 of the UK cleft units. Results: We found strong evidence for the requirement for relieving incisions in patients with an increased degree of clefting per the Veau classification ( P < .001), increasing palatal soft-edge width ( P < .001) and moderate evidence of an associated use in patients with Pierre Robin sequence ( P = .015). Insufficient data were available to explore the relationship between intertuberosity distance and the presence of fistula formation with the use of relieving incisions. Conclusions: The results of this study identify cleft features that increase the likelihood for requiring lateral relieving incisions to allow palatal closure. The degree to which the addition of relieving incisions to IVVP affects maxillary growth and speech outcomes is unknown. Further study is required to answer this important question.


2022 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 0-0

With the rapid development of information technology, information security has been gaining attention. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has issued international standards and technical reports related to information security, which are gradually being adopted by enterprises. This study analyzes the relationship between information security certification (ISO 27001) and corporate financial performance using data from Chinese publicly listed companies. The study focusses on the impact of corporate decisions such as whether to obtain certification, how long to hold certification, and whether to publicize information regarding certification. The results show that there is a positive correlation between ISO 27001 and financial performance. Moreover, the positive impact of ISO 27001 on financial performance gradually increases with time. In addition, choosing not to publicize ISO 27001 certification can negatively affect enterprise performance.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document