Research Performance Of Universities Research Articles

Research Performance of University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad: A Scientometric Study

Research Performance of University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad: A Scientometric Study

An Empirical Study on Scientific Research Performance of Universities in Different Regions of China Based on PCA and Malmquist Index Method

This paper uses principal component analysis (PCA) and entropy method to construct the evaluation index system of the scientific research performance of universities in 31 provinces and cities in China. Based on the traditional DEA model, the development trend of the scientific research performance of the research objects from 2015 to 2019 is dynamically evaluated by the Malmquist index method. The results show that the scientific research performance of universities in various regions of China is not ideal, and the level of scientific research performance is declining. The total factor productivity of scientific research in the central and western regions is much higher than that in the eastern region. The main factor that hinders the improvement of scientific research performance is the efficiency of technological progress. Finally, aiming at the existing problems, some feasible suggestions are put forward to further improve the input-output efficiency of scientific research in universities.

Exploring the Reliability of Research Indicators Reported by Romanian Universities in 2019

"The paper focuses on the aggregate data published by the National Council for Higher Education Financing regarding the research section of the quality indicators reported by Romanian public universities in 2019 and used for the allocation of the performance-based additional funding. The research section includes 4 indicators, which amount to 46% of the additional funding, i.e. to an average of about 10% of the total institutional funding from the public budget. The data are reported by the Romanian universities each odd year since 2015, and for the first time in 2020 national rankings for most indicators and some national averages have been made public. The data is extremely valuable for a diagnosis of the Romanian higher education system and for highlighting the performance of various universities. Therefore, the accuracy of these data is crucial. The authors of this paper acknowledge the efforts of the National Council for Higher Education Financing and of its staff provided by the Executive Unit for Financing Higher Education, Research, Development and Innovation to check the data reported by the universities, but also the limits of the current verification process. The paper uses statistical methods to identify outliers and investigates the rankings for a selection of fields of science, by using three among the four research indicators. Thus, it discusses some of the more blatant reporting anomalies which contradict the pre-existing conceptions regarding the comparative performance of universities. While the statistical findings do not support the suspicions of systematic attempts of over-reporting the research outcomes at university-level, they still outline several persisting errors. These errors highlight the need to strengthen the verification process, which will require additional resources; the authors suggest that enhanced transparency and organised cross-verification among universities can significantly improve the outcome, and help providing a significant set of reliable public data on the research performance of the Romanian universities."

Substantiality: A Construct Indicating Research Excellence to Measure University Research Performance

Abstract Purpose The adequacy of research performance of universities or research institutes have often been evaluated and understood in two axes: “quantity” (i.e. size or volume) and “quality” (i.e. what we define here as a measure of excellence that is considered theoretically independent of size or volume, such as clarity in diamond grading). The purpose of this article is, however, to introduce a third construct named “substantiality” (“ATSUMI” in Japanese) of research performance and to demonstrate its importance in evaluating/understanding research universities. Design/methodology/approach We take a two-step approach to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed construct by showing that (1) some characteristics of research universities are not well captured by the conventional constructs (“quantity” and “quality”)-based indicators, and (2) the “substantiality” indicators can capture them. Furthermore, by suggesting that “substantiality” indicators appear linked to the reputation that appeared in university reputation rankings by simple statistical analysis, we reveal additional benefits of the construct. Findings We propose a new construct named “substantiality” for measuring research performance. We show that indicators based on “substantiality” can capture important characteristics of research institutes. “Substantiality” indicators demonstrate their “predictive powers” on research reputation. Research limitations The concept of “substantiality” originated from IGO game; therefore the ease/difficulty of accepting the concept is culturally dependent. In other words, while it is easily accepted by people from Japan and other East Asian countries and regions, it might be difficult for researchers from other cultural regions to accept it. Practical implications There is no simple solution to the challenge of evaluating research universities’ research performance. It is vital to combine different types of indicators to understand the excellence of research institutes. Substantiality indicators could be part of such a combination of indicators. Originality/value The authors propose a new construct named substantiality for measuring research performance. They show that indicators based on this construct can capture the important characteristics of research institutes.

Excellence seekers, pragmatists, or sceptics: Ways of applying performance‐based research funding systems at new universities and university colleges in Sweden

AbstractThe Swedish system of research funding has undergone major changes, while competitive funding schemes gradually have gained popularity, at the expense of institutional block grants. In recent years, there has been a strong drive to improve research performance in universities as a result of governmental desires, resulting in performance‐based research funding systems (PRFS) being introduced to distribute block grants. The study on which this article reports sought to understand the development of increased government intent to steer resources for research, by investigating the behaviour of universities and university colleges in Sweden in terms of internal organisation and distribution of funding. The article investigates the structure of and motives for applying PRFS at seven new universities and university colleges through a document and interview study. We identified three categories of higher education institutions: the excellence seekers, the pragmatists and the sceptics. Universities rhetorically signal compliance with governmental propositions to distribute funding according to performance measures, but their actions are limited. Thus, national incentives, models and measures influence decisions at lower institutional levels in a rather modest way.

TÜBİTAK Araştırma Geliştirme ve Proje Desteklerinin Akademik Araştırma Faaliyetlerine Olan Etkisi

Universities, through providing research, publications and innovations in the scientific field, provide significant contributions to the national research and development (R&D) system. That is why most governments are keen to support scientific research activities directly or indirectly. In this regard, this paper aims to analyze the impact of R&D supports of TÜBİTAK (The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey) on the research performance of universities in Turkey. The study comparatively investigates the efficiency of the research fundings in different university types, public and private. As an empirical model, a panel data analysis spanning 2013 to 2018 period has been used for the top 10 public and top 11 private universities. Our findings prove that national research grants of TUBITAK have a significant and positive impact on academic research only when the highest-ranking universities are analyzed; otherwise, the impact is insignificant. Secondly, for the large sample analysis, we found that public universities used research funds more efficiently compared to private universities. Furthermore, our findings prove that teaching load does not necessarily risk the research capacity of a university.

The Evaluation Method of University Research Performance and Disciplinary Development Potential

The Evaluation Method of University Research Performance and Disciplinary Development Potential

Measuring research performance of Iraqi universities using Scopus data

This study investigates the research performance of the Iraqi public and private universities using the Scopus citation database. The investigation consists of three stages. The first stage includes the registration of these universities in the database. The second represents the process of merging the multiple accounts of each university. The two stages have been completed within one year (from start to end of 2017), which result in a significant improvement in the research performance, in term of number of published articles (Pu), number of citations (C) and h index. Analysis of the improved h index obtained from the Scopus site, reveals a clear bias towards large universities, due to neglecting the number of researchers (NS) in calculating the h index. In the third stage, two new empirical equations are suggested for measuring research performance of universities. The first proposed equation predicts a modified h index as a function of Pu, C, and NS and implements to Iraqi universities and selected universities from other countries. The second proposed equation is a combination of three sub-indicators, namely: citations per article, articles per researcher, and percentage of non-cited articles. Discussion of results indicates that the developed equations eliminate the bias of the large universities over the small ones and highlight some useful recommendations for the universities to enhance their ranking in scientific performance.

Faculty retention in regional medical schools in Iran: a qualitative content analysis

Background and purposeRecruitment and retention of competent faculty members are important in maintaining and improving the quality of education and research performance of universities. The aim of the present study was to find out the faculty members’ views, experiences, and attitudes to identify the reasons for faculty attrition and retention in regional medical schools in Iran.MethodsIn this qualitative study, we used a content analysis method. The participants included 12 faculty members who had been transferred to type I universities, four faculty members who had applied for transfer, four with more than 10 years of experience and working in the type 3 universities with no intention to be transferred. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews, which were conducted either face-to-face or via phone calls. The interview was developed for this study (Supplementary file). To measure the trustworthiness of the data, we evaluated four components of credibility, transferability, dependability, and conformability, as proposed by Lincoln and Guba.ResultsThe findings were classified into three categories and 14 subcategories. The first category was “retention facilitators” including four subcategories of facilitated communication, proximity to major universities, gaining experience, and support by authorities. The second category was “retention threats” including six subcategories of social infrastructure, individual dimension, occupation dimension, economic dimension, sense of respect, and executive management. The third category was “retention strategies” which included four subcategories of recruitment and promotion processes, inter-university collaboration with type I universities, facilitation of the scientific growth, and fulfilment of the safety needs.ConclusionSeveral factors play a role in the faculty members’ retention in regional medical schools in Iran. Authorities can create a more positive environment by devising a suitable reward system, supporting academic activities, and increasing the level of faculty autonomy practically to develop a sense of belonging among them and reduce the intention to be transferred among their human resources.

Academic Leadership and University Performance: Do Russian Universities Improve after They Head by Top Researchers?

Studies that have examined organizations’ productivity and their leaders have found a rather weak relationship between a leader’s personal characteristics and organizational output. Similar empirical studies have also been conducted in relation to universities and rather contradictory results have been found. In this study, I take a theoretical approach to quantify the effects of top leadership on university research performance. I assume that top leaders may influence university research productivity, but this influence should be visible. I theorize two types of university leader: the “strategic manager” who seeks to reallocate resources to make it of use for the whole university and the “politician” who reallocates resources to benefit certain research areas, especially the one they specialize in. It is hypothesized that 1) if a leader is a strategic manager, an increase in overall university research productivity would be observed; and 2) if a leader is a politician, there will be an increase in university performance in the research field in which the leader specializes. Using an extensive sample of Russian universities, it is demonstrated that while there is no observable relationship between overall university research productivity and the university leader’s academic excellence, there is a positive influence by university leader’s academic productivity on the research performance of his/her specific research field. This study finds evidence that leaders qua “politicians” can have a profound effect on their respective research areas’ productivity.

The effect of Russian University Excellence Initiative on publications and collaboration patterns

Abstract The Russian University Excellence Initiative (Project 5−100) was initiated by the Government in 2013 to strengthen the positions of leading Russian universities at the global academic market (passive into active). We estimate the effect of this project on university publication activity with a special focus on the changes in the research output structure expressed in changes of quality and collaboration patterns. To do so, we use an econometric analysis of longitudinal data applying a linear growth model with mixed effects, with different characteristics of the research output as dependent variables. The dynamics of research collaborations were examined through university affiliations. We demonstrate that there is a significant positive effect of Project 5−100 on quantitative university research performance. That is, participating universities demonstrate a substantial, steady increase in publications measured in total numbers and per capita. We also show that the project has had a positive effect on publications in highest and lowest quality journals as well as on multi-authored publications. Participating universities have increased the number of publications (especially in high-quality journals) written in co-authorship with other organizations.

Selective research funding policy and catching up the ladder in university research performance in Malaysia

This paper examines the post selective policy consequences on the university research performance, specifically between research universities (RUs) and non‐research universities (non‐RUs). The evidence shows significant achievement in scientific publications and patenting activities, due to additional funding allocation. Nevertheless, the overall efficiency performance is still low because of lack of efficiency in innovation efficiency and, starting 2010, in value creation efficiency. Non‐RUs are catching up in efficiency gains and have greater efficiency on value creation. This suggests that non‐RUs have concentrated on the revenue generation whereas RUs have picked the easier target, research publications and patenting activities, to justify funding.

Towards a Framework for Evaluating the Research Performance of Chinese Double First-Class Universities

The study focuses on the research performance of Double First-Class (DFC) universities in China. A theoretical framework based on economic theory and the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method for a novel evaluation model is proposed. The model is performed on a sample of 41 participant DFC universities in China. Using data collected from these universities, it was found that there is no consistency between performance ranking, input ranking, and output ranking, with the best ranked universities far from the most efficient. These findings provide empirical evidence of DFC universities’ research performance situation and suggest strategies that the government can use to propel their sustainable development.

Managing individual knowledge creation with demographic faultlines: A case of university laboratories

ABSTRACT Knowledge generated in university laboratories is a crucial resource for enhancing the research performance of universities, the very site for scientific discoveries and technological innovation. Since knowledge is created through interpersonal interactions, the demographic composition of university laboratories is critically linked to knowledge creation by individual researchers and the management of such knowledge creation processes. This research examines the demographic faultlines within university laboratories representing the compositional diversity of laboratory members and their impacts on knowledge creation within the laboratory setting. In particular, we designed a cross-level analysis to examine the relationship between team-level demographic faultlines in university laboratories and individual-level members’ creation of explicit and tacit knowledge. Our results based on a sample of 300 members from 46 labs at a research-oriented university reveal complex relationships among demographic composition, type of knowledge created through laboratory interactions, and other factors. It turns out that demographic faultlines are negatively related to individual explicit knowledge, whereas they show an inverted U-shaped relationship with individual tacit knowledge. Our findings suggest much more contextual impacts of the configuration of laboratory members on individual knowledge creation in university laboratories than studied so far.

Assessment of Educational Management Research Performance of Universities in North-Eastern Nigeria

Assessment of Educational Management Research Performance of Universities in North-Eastern Nigeria

Feline followers and “umbrella carriers”: Department Chairs’ influence on faculty job satisfaction and quit intentions

Management quality at the department level is central to research and teaching performance in universities. This paper investigates the influence of department Chairs (hybrid middle managers) on faculty job satisfaction, satisfaction with job characteristics, and intentions to leave. Using UK and Swedish data, we provide the first evidence that faculty who rate their Chairs as being distinguished researchers report higher overall job satisfaction, satisfaction with job characteristics, and lower quit intentions. The perceived research strength of the Chair has the single largest statistical influence on faculty job satisfaction. This result holds after controlling for a large number of other influences and after employing a range of methods to correct for issues such as a potential single-rater bias. Although the primary contribution of this paper is empirical, we build on the expert leadership literature, appeal to social identity theory, and utilise the newly established concept of “umbrella carrier”: we suggest that Chairs who are strong researchers may shelter subordinate faculty from excessive managerial spillovers, and protect academics’ research time, thereby creating more favourable job characteristics. The paper's results highlight the benefits of good management in universities at a time when job satisfaction is in decline.

Comparison of research performance of Italian and Norwegian professors and universities

Abstract This is the first ever attempt of application in a country other than Italy of the output-to-input indicator FSS, to assess and compare the research performance of professors and universities, within and between countries. A special attention has been devoted to the presentation of the methodology developed to set up a common field classification scheme of professors, and to overcome the limited availability of comparable input data. Results of the comparison between countries, carried out in the 2011–2015 period, show similar average performances of professors, but noticeable differences in the distributions, whereby Norwegian professors are more concentrated in the tails. Norway shows notable higher performance in Mathematics and Earth and Space Sciences, while Italy in Biomedical Research and Engineering.

Comparative Analysis of Research Performance of Medical Universities Based on Qualitative and Quantitative Scientometric Indicators

Evaluation of the research status of the academic institution provides it with the possibility of accurate research policymaking. Scientometric indicators are important tools for evaluating scientific activities of individuals, groups, and institutions. The current research aims to analysis the research performance of medical universities in Northern Iran based on quantitative and qualitative scientometric indicators. In this cross-sectional descriptive study, the Scopus-indexed scientific documents provided by medical universities in the Northern Iran have been studied in terms of number of publications, number of citations, average number of Citations per Publication (C/P), Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI), scientific collaborations, the number of in top 10% citation percentile, and the number of publications in top 10% journal percentile according to CiteScore, Source Normalized Impact per Paper (SNIP), and SCImagoJournal Rank (SJR) indicators during a five years period. According to the findings, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences has gained the highest position in terms of the number of publications and citations, number of publications with international and national collaborations, and academic-industrial collaborations., while Golestan University of Medical Sciences has gained a higher position in terms of scientific outputs in top 10% citation percentile and journal percentile, CiteScore, SNIP, SJR and C/P. In terms of the FWCI indicator, Golestan University of Medical Sciences has achieved the highest value. Considering academic status and research capabilities of medical universities in the Northern Iran, increasing academic-industrial collaboration, expanding academic collaboration with superior universities and institutions around the world can be effective in increasing the quality of research and upgrading academic ranks of universities at national, regional and international levels. © 2019Tehran University of Medical Sciences. All rights reserved. Acta MedIran 2019;57(7):448-455.

ОЦІНЮВАННЯ ДОСЛІДНИЦЬКОЇ ДІЯЛЬНОСТІ АКАДЕМІЧНОГО ПЕРСОНАЛУ: ЗАРУБІЖНИЙ ДОСВІД

The problem of evaluating the university faculty research performance in the European Higher Education Area and in the European Research Area is enlightened in the paper. It is emphasized that under the transition to open science and open access and increasing digitalization, that has emerged in the higher education system due to the global COVID-19 pandemic, the problem of academic staff research performance evaluation and their career attractiveness needs to be reconsidered. The article analyses the key principles of evaluating researchers and their professional development; they are enlightened in the basic regulations of the European Commission, European University Association and European Research Area, and in the Hong Kong Principles as a part of the Open Science and Open Access Initiative. The issue of using almetrics in evaluating research outputs is actualized; it provides the «visibility» of the researcher not only for the scientific or educational community, but also for society as a whole. This expands the scope of usual indicators of research performance and provides a comprehensive and more objective measurement of researchers’ excellence. The structure of research performance evaluation is given; it should be based on an integrated approach, taking into account the peer-review, quantitative and qualitative measurements, and include all the components of university staff research activity, i.e. the scientific creativity potential and its research outputs, research supervision, young scientists’ mentoring, national and international cooperation, performing administrative duties, research dissemination, and mobility.

Is there an association between Vice‐Chancellors’ compensation and external performance measures?

AbstractWe provide evidence on the pay for performance relation between Australian university Vice Chancellors’ compensation and independent measures of university teaching, research and other performance indicators provided by external ranking bodies. Our results show limited association between university rankings and Vice Chancellors’ compensation, but confirm that Vice Chancellors’ compensation is predominantly driven by size measures based on the different components of revenue. Further, we find that few universities offer performance‐based bonus payments. Our results are robust with respect to a number of sensitivity tests.