Template-type: ReDIF-Paper 1.0
Author-Name: Wang, Lili
Author-Email: wang@merit.unu.edu
Author-Workplace-Name: UNU-MERIT
Author-Name: Wang, Xianwen
Author-Email: xianwenwang@dlut.edu.cn
Author-Workplace-Name: Dalian University of Technology
Author-Name: Piro, Fredrik Niclas
Author-Email: fredrik.piro@nifu.no
Author-Workplace-Name: Nordic Institute for Studies in Innovation, Research and Education
Author-Name: Philipsen, Niels
Author-Email: n.j.philipsen@law.eur.nl
Author-Workplace-Name: RILE, Erasmus University Rotterdam, and METRO, Maastricht University
Title: The effect of public funding on scientific performance: A comparison between 
	 China and the EU
Abstract: Public funding is believed to play an important role in the development 
	 of science and technology. However, whether public funding actually 
	 helps to increase scientific output (i.e. publications) remains a matter 
	 of debate. By analysing a dataset of co-publications between China and 
	 the EU and a dataset of joint project collaborations in European 
	 Framework Programmes for Research and Innovation (FP7 & H2020), we 
	 investigate whether different public funding agencies have different 
	 goals in their research policy. Our results support the hypotheses that 
	 funded research output represents the intentions of funding sponsors and 
	 a high level of public funding does not necessarily lead to high 
	 scientific output. Our results show that FP7/H2020 funded projects do 
	 not have a positive contribution to the output of joint publications 
	 between China and the EU. Interestingly, cooperation in the form of 
	 jointly writing proposals to these EU programmes, especially when they 
	 are not granted by the European Commission, can contribute significantly 
	 to joint scientific publications at a later stage. This applies in 
	 particular to cases where funding from China is involved. Our findings 
	 highlight the key role that funding agencies play in influencing 
	 research performance. While the Chinese government is interested in 
	 pursuing a high number of publications, the EU cares more about the 
	 social impact and indirect effect, which is hard to measure in the short 
	 term.
Classification-JEL: F02, H52, O20, O38, O52, O53
Keywords: Public funding, research evaluation, scientific output, international
	 collaboration, China, EU member states
Series: UNU-MERIT Working Papers
Creation-Date: 20191108
Number: 2019-045
File-URL: https://unu-merit.nl/publications/wppdf/2019/wp2019-045.pdf
File-Format: application/pdf
File-Size: 275 Kb
Handle: RePEc:unm:unumer:2019045