Abstract
We analyze and document various qualities of peer-reviewed journal publications listed in the EconLit database between 1980 and 2014. At least one author of the publication had to graduate from a North American economics PhD program between 1970 and 2009. We find that the share of single-author papers diminishes over time, and North American PhDs engage more in coauthored publications. While two-author papers are published on average more than three-author papers during 1980-1999, this switches after 2000. We also find that author teams containing at least one author who is a graduate of a top thirty department publish significantly more compared with other author teams. All-female and mixed-gender author teams publish significantly less compared with all-male author teams between 1980-1999, but we find no significant difference after 2000. The shares in the different fields in total publications show little variation in three decades. While male authors are over-represented in micro and macroeconomics, female authors are over-represented in labor and development economics. Some fields, such as microeconomics, econometrics, and experimental economics, are published in high quality journals, whereas macroeconomics, public economics, industrial organization, finance, health and urban economics, and development economics are published in journals that have lower quality weights than the average journal. Labor economics and economic history are published significantly better after 2000.
Highlights
North American universities produce a signi cant number of economics PhD graduates; the average size of a graduating cohort each year has been slightly more than one thousand students since the late 1980s
We provide a descriptive analysis of various qualities of peer-reviewed journal publications of graduates of North American economics PhD programs between 1980 and 2014
Such cohort sizes may be comparable to those in other competing markets, North American PhD students have a higher quality publication record on average compared with their peers in other countries or regions
Summary
North American universities produce a signi cant number of economics PhD graduates; the average size of a graduating cohort each year has been slightly more than one thousand students since the late 1980s. Such cohort sizes may be comparable to those in other competing markets, North American PhD students have a higher quality publication record on average compared with their peers in other countries or regions.. The aim of this paper is to deliver detailed descriptive evidence on publication patterns of graduates of North American economics departments’ PhD programs, which we refer to as North American PhDs throughout this paper. We employ complete publication records from the EconLit between 1980 and 2014 for the population of North American PhDs who graduated between 1970
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