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16:30 | Applied Micro Research Seminar
SITE, Stockholm School of Economics, Sweden
Abstract: How do grants impact scientific productivity? I estimate the impact of a large-scale grant program, funded by financier George Soros, that provided individual and team-based grants to thousands of scientists following the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the end of public funding for Soviet science. I match scientists to their publications and locations using the Thomson Reuters ISI Web of Science database and create a unique scientist-level panel dataset. Using quasi-experimental methods facilitated by the grant eligibility criteria, I show that the individual grants more than doubled researcher publications and induced scientists to remain in the science sector. The team grant also increased publications, suggesting an important role for complementarities in team production of research. My findings show that grants significantly increase scientific productivity in a market in which there are few alternate research funding opportunities. The results suggest that policy levers can play an important role in the adjustment process of labor markets after sharp economic changes; in this case, a relatively small amount of funding can maintain participation in the science sector and can impact "brain drain".
Full Text: “Saving Soviet Science: The Impact of Grants When Government R&D Funding Disappears”
