Scientific Labour Market Research Articles

On How to Improve the Training and Certification of Scientific Staff

ABSTRACT Only highly qualified personnel, especially scientists and specialists, can develop new technologies and solve the complex challenges of a rapidly changing world. The article describes the current state of scientific higher education in Russia, identifies several salient functions of the education system (e.g., awarding degrees, providing scholarships, forming dissertation councils), and considers how these functions can be performed with greater efficiency in order to improve higher education and science. To increase the efficiency of graduate programs in Russia, the Higher Education Commission should be allowed to propose priority areas of scientific research, to assess Russia’s demand for scientists, and to influence scientific education according to the identified priorities. The network of postgraduate and doctoral programs, as well as the formation of dissertation councils, should be revised at the legislative level to better utilize existing resources and direct scientific progress. In addition, it is necessary to improve the public administration of science, to restructure the network of postgraduate and doctoral programs, and to provide government funds for the training of scientific personnel that are demanded by the scientific labor market.

An Inside Look: Modeling Heterogeneity in the Organization of Scientific Work

Prior studies of academic science have largely focused on researchers in life sciences or engineering. However, while academic researchers often work under similar institutions, norms, and incentives, they vary greatly in how they organize their research efforts across different scientific domains. This heterogeneity, in turn, has important implications for innovation policy, the relationship between industry and academia, the scientific labor market, and the perceived deficit in the relevance of social sciences and humanities research. To understand this heterogeneity, we model scientists as publication-maximizing agents, identifying two distinct organizational patterns that are optimal under different parameters. When the net productivity of research staff (e.g., PhD students and postdocs) is positive, the funded research model with an entrepreneurial scientist and a large team dominates. When the costs of research staff exceed their productivity benefits, the hands-on research approach is optimal. The model implies significant heterogeneity across the two modes of organizing in research funding, supply of scientific workforce, team size, publication output, and stratification patterns over time. Exploratory empirical analysis finds consistent patterns of time allocation and publication in a prior survey of faculty in U.S. universities. Using data from an original survey, we also find causal effects consistent with the model’s prediction on how negative shocks to research staff—due to visa or health problems, for example—differentially impact research output under the two modes of organization.

Explaining Heterogeneity in the Organization of Scientific Work

Prior studies of academic science have largely focused on researchers in life sciences or engineering. However, while academic researchers often work under similar institutions, norms, and incentives, they vary greatly in how they organize their research efforts across different scientific domains. This heterogeneity, in turn, has important implications for innovation policy, the relationship between industry and academia, the scientific labor market, and the perceived deficit in the relevance of social sciences and humanities research. To understand this heterogeneity, we model scientists as publication-maximizing agents, identifying two distinct organizational patterns that are optimal under different parameters. When the net productivity of research staff (e.g., PhD students and postdocs) is positive, the funded research model with an entrepreneurial scientist and a large team dominates. When the costs of research staff exceed their productivity benefits, the hands-on research approach is optimal. The model implies significant heterogeneity across the two modes of organizing in research funding, supply of scientific workforce, team size, publication output, and stratification patterns over time. Exploratory empirical analysis finds consistent patterns of time allocation and publication in a prior survey of faculty in U.S. universities. Using data from an original survey, we also find causal effects consistent with the model’s prediction on how negative shocks to research staff—due to visa or health problems, for example—differentially impact research output under the two modes of organization.

Synchronous international scientific mobility in the space of affiliations: evidence from Russia.

The article presents a survey of Russian researchers’ synchronous international scientific mobility as an element of the global system of scientific labor market. Synchronous international scientific mobility is a simultaneous holding of scientific positions in institutions located in different countries. The study explores bibliometric data from the Web of Science Core Collection and socio-economic indicators for 56 countries. In order to examine international scientific mobility, we use a method of affiliations. The paper introduces a model of synchronous international scientific mobility. It enables to specify country’s involvement in the international division of scientific labor. Synchronous international scientific mobility is a modern form of the international division of labor in science. It encompasses various forms of part-time, temporary and remote employment of scientists. The analysis reveals the distribution of Russian authors in the space of affiliations, and directions of upward/downward international scientific mobility. The bibliometric characteristics of mobile authors are isomorphic to those of receiver country authors. Synchronous international scientific mobility of Russian authors is determined by differences in scientific impacts between receiver and donor countries.

In the NEWS A ROUNDUP OF NEWS AND INFORMATION FROM OUR COMMUNITY

In the NEWS A ROUNDUP OF NEWS AND INFORMATION FROM OUR COMMUNITY

Addressing the “gender gap” in the managerial labour market

PurposeThis paper aims to investigate the “gender management gap” in the scientific labour market in the North East of England. The paper seeks to compare and contrast employment, ownership, management structure and capacity between men and women in the Science, Engineering and Technology (SET) sector.Design/methodology/approachThe empirical investigation is based on a survey of 60 SET‐based small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs), operating in the North East of England.FindingsThe results show that women are particularly under‐represented in managerial and senior positions of scientific nature in the private sector in the North East of England. The “glass ceiling” effect appears to be widespread.Research limitations/implicationsThere are very limited empirical data and research on the nature and level of participation of women in the scientific managerial labour market at firm level in the UK. There is a need for more rigorous research at firm and regional levels to examine the cumulative effects of underlying factors that prevent women from progression, beyond the “glass ceiling”, in the scientific labour market.Practical implicationsThis paper builds upon a research project funded by the ESRC Science in Society Programme. The key findings have resulted in a subsequent award from the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Impact Grants to establish the “North East Role Model Platform for Innovative Women” in the light of the Science City Initiative.Originality/valueThe “gender management gap” in the scientific labour market in the North East of England has not, empirically, been investigated before and appears to be a highly neglected area of public policy and research.

The Singularity of the German Doctorate as a Signal for Managerial Talent: Causes, Consequences and Future Developments

The paper focuses on signaling options for managerial talent under different higher education regimes. The educational paths in a sample of top managers of the 100 largest publicly traded companies in the U.S., France and Germany are consistent with our theoretical conjectures. For the singular role of the German doctorate, the traditional chair system in doctoral education and training is essential. The effects of higher education reforms are discussed. In Germany the doctorate is a powerful signal for managerial talent. Future signaling options are closely tied to German higher education reform. Key words: Doctoral Education, Signaling, Managerial Talent, German Higher Education, Higher Education Reform 1. Introduction Comparative international studies of top management careers routinely point to the unparalleled percentage of doctoral degree holders among German top managers (e.g. Hartmann 2000). Moreover, empirical studies devoted to the analysis of career perspectives among German university graduates report superior career opportunities for candidates holding a doctoral degree not only in universities and research institutes but also in public administration, politics and in the private sector. The German doctorate is highly valued among employers in various industries (Enders/Bornmann 2001; Baldauf 1998). These findings indicate that the traditional German doctoral education was not exclusively directed at the scientific labor market. Unlike the Ph.D. in the U.S. and the doctorates in many other countries, the German doctoral degree has obviously not been perceived by the labor market as a specialized indicator for research abilities in a certain scientific field. In order to serve as an 'accelerator' for a management career in business and public administration, the German doctoral degree must have been rather understood as an indicator for a more general form of human capital. For reasons of simplicity we will speak of 'managerial talent' when we refer to this kind of general human capital, which enhances the productivity of a candidate in many different employments. The interpretation of the traditional German doctorate as an indicator for managerial talent raises different puzzles: First, which economic mechanisms produce this singular property of the German doctorate as compared to doctoral degrees in other countries? Second, which economic mechanisms substitute for this property of the German doctorate in other countries and third, will this specific property of the German doctorate prevail considering the recent changes and reforms in German higher education? The general role of indicators for human capital has been extensively studied. Employers cannot assess the productivity of potential employees without cost. With time, employers may learn more about the workers' true productivity and subsequently modify the provided employment conditions. However, in many professional services and for higher job levels in general, the productivity of a worker may never become fully observable because labor output depends on multiple and complex exogenous variables. Consequently, employers frequently face a substantial risk of adverse selection in their employment decisions. The negative effects of information asymmetries between employees and employers are not only borne by the latter. Employees are equally concerned, since wages and career options reflect average qualities rather than the applicants' individual endowment. Individuals with an above-average talent have strong incentives to reduce information asymmetries and to actively communicate their superior potential. As Arrow (1973) pointed out higher education, among other things, may function as a filter in this context. Certifying that individuals have 'passed' through specific filter devices, educational credentials could serve as signals for certain aspects of human capital that employers may find valuable. …

The “gender gap” in the scientific labour market

PurposeThis paper seeks to address a key issue, yet a neglected area of local policy and research i.e. the “gender gap” in the labour market in the scientific‐based SMEs in the UK. The paper seeks to compare and contrast the employment and management structure, as well as participation in research and development (R&D) between female and male. It further aims to explore the educational background and the personal and professional barriers that prevent women from progression in scientific management and R&D related occupations.Design/methodology/approachThe empirical investigation is based on a sample of 45 female employees working in science, engineering and technology (SET)‐related positions and 48 SET‐related companies. Data were collected through the empirical survey of SMEs and semi structured “face‐to‐face” interviews with female employees.FindingsThe study concluded that there was no evidence of specific SET‐related barriers preventing career progression amongst women. The major barriers to progression were related to work‐life balance issues such as dependent children as well as non‐gender‐related issues such as insufficient resources for training, lack of opportunities for career advancement and lack of encouragement from management, which are more likely to be SME‐related issues.Practical implicationsThe paper suggests that current programmes and initiatives to encourage people to enter SET occupations may eventually increase participation in that workforce but will not necessarily increase numbers of women in managerial and highly technical positions because of the continuing conflict over work‐life balance decisions such as having a family, or because of management and SME‐related issues such as insufficient resources.Originality/valueThe findings are based on original and unique databases, assembled over the past two years, funded by the ESRC Science in Society Programme and the Higher Education European Social Fund National. The “gender gap” in the labour market in scientific‐based SMEs in the UK, combing data of companies and employees, has not, empirically, been investigated before.

Not Your Father's Postdoc

In today's scientific labor market, just doing good science is no longer enough. Postdocs need realistic expectations, good information, and an entrepreneurial attitude toward their careers.

Knowledge‐complexes and the locus of technological change: the biotechnology sector in Oxfordshire

Summary The case of the biotechnology industry in Oxfordshire is used to examine localism as a means of underpinning the technological trajectory of an industry (Storper 1992). Oxfordshire has a rapidly developing cluster of biotechnology firms. Its position as a focal point of technological change derives from the combination of world‐class scientific research in its research institutions and its firms, a scientific labour market and an emerging infrastructure, including a soft infrastructure: networks, culture and innovation centres, which together are shaping this particular development path.

The Contribution of National Laboratories to the European Scientific Labour Market

This article deals with the ways in which differing government policies in relation to national laboratories affect training, employment and culture within the research establishment and consequently the preparedness of respective countries to deal with future skills needs in private and public sector science. Helen Lawton Smith bases her discussion around a study which tested the hypothesis that political decisions in the UK over the past few years regarding the role of national laboratories have inhibited the country's capacity to meet the labour resource needs of the science base. The study included an empirical investigation of nine national laboratories in Belgium, France and the UK. In light of the findings from this comparative analysis, she suggests that moves towards the commercialization of UK national laboratories have had a number of adverse effects on the potential supply of skills to both public and private sectors.

The scientific labour market in Europe

The United Kingdom, almost alone among European countries, does not have internationalization as an integral part of its education and training policy.

Immigrant Professionals in the United States: Discrimination in the Scientific Labor Market

Immigrant Professionals in the United States: Discrimination in the Scientific Labor Market

Book Review: Immigrant Professionals in the United States: Discrimination in the Scientific Labor Market

Book Review: Immigrant Professionals in the United States: Discrimination in the Scientific Labor Market

Immigrant Professionals in the United States: Discrimination in the Scientific Labor Market.

Immigrant Professionals in the United States: Discrimination in the Scientific Labor Market.