An Intellectual Capital Approach to Explaining the Determinants of Scientific Productivity in the Field of Management

Abstract

This article analyses the determinants of management scholars' scientific productivity using the intellectual capital approach. The paper contributes to the literature with a broad analysis that considers the complex integration of the intellectual capital dimensions and their joint influence on scientific productivity. To do so, we conduct semi‐structured interviews with 15 academics working in research teams, selected based on their experience and research results in the field of management. Through the evidence provided by the expert academics and a systematized and taxonomic study of the literature, we develop a theoretical framework based on the conceptualization of academic intellectual capital and its effects on scientific productivity. In the second step of the empirical analysis, the paper studies the impact of dimensions of intellectual capital on scientific productivity, using data extracted from a sample of 162 management academics. The results of the study have interesting implications for both research team leaders and HR decision‐making within universities.