Perceptions of Scholars in the Field of Economics on Co-Authorship Associations: Evidence from an International Survey.
Scholars (n = 580) from 69 countries who had contributed articles in the field of Economics during the year 2015 participated in a survey that gauged their perceptions of various aspects of co-authorship, including its benefits, motivations, working relationships, order of authorship and association preferences. Among the main findings, significant differences emerged in the proportion of co-authored papers based on age, gender and number of years the researchers had spent in their present institution. Female scholars had a greater proportion of co-authored papers than male scholars. Respondents considered improved quality of paper, contribution of mutual expertise, and division of labor as the biggest benefits of and motivation for co-authorship. Contrary to common perceptions that Economics researchers used a predominantly alphabetical order of authorship, our study found that a considerable percentage of respondents (34.5%) had practiced an order of authorship based on the significance of the authors' contribution to the work. The relative importance of tasks differed significantly according to whether researchers co-authored as mentors or co-authored as colleagues. Lastly, researchers were found to associate, to varying degrees, with other researchers based on socio-academic parameters, such as nationality, ethnicity, gender, professional position and friendship. The study indicates that Economics authors perceive co-authorship as a rewarding endeavor. Nonetheless, the level of contribution and even the choice of association itself as a co-author depends to a great extent on the type of working relationship and socio-academic factors.
Asia-Europe Institute, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, 50603, Malaysia.
Sameer
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6425-278X
S
Kumar
Institute of Mathematical Studies, Faculty of Science, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, 50603, Malaysia.
Kuru
K
Ratnavelu
D000328:Adult; D001319:Authorship; D002755:Choice Behavior; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D003710:Demography; D004467:Economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005178:Faculty; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D038622:Internationality; D008297:Male; D008611:Mentors; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D010465:Perception; D010506:Periodicals as Topic / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012108:Research Personnel; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires