Publish or Perish

1. Publish or Perish Russian perspective

2. Publish and Perish ? • Two examples supporting this view Sheets of paper covered with words pile up in archives sadder than cemeteries, because no one ever visits them, not even on All Souls' Day. Culture is perishing in overproduction, in an avalanche of words, in the madness of quantity … billions of words spewed out by our universities Milan Kundera.The Unbearable Lightness of Being, 1984

3. What We Are Looking For? • The reader and acknowledgement? • Money and stability? • Joy of writing and publishing the manuscript? • Fun of work to survive in competitive environment • Compulsive scribbling that starts as social and evolves into psychological syndrome

4. What We Are Looking For? • Of choosing to be an academic (to do both teaching and research) • Are we talking about pure monetary benefits? • Are we taking about domestic incentives only? • Of making the choice: more teaching or more research)? • Of making the choice: to be domestic or international?

5. What We Are Looking For? • Where lie major differences with international approach? • Persistent well rooted features that will not change overnight • Could two systems be accommodated in personal research career? • Can we speak about relevant strategies?

6. To what extent it relates to other post communist countries?

7. How Current State of Events Emerged ?

8. Soviet Research System • Academy of Sciences • High Education (University) Science • Industrial Science • Factory Science

9. Soviet Research System(HR) • Academy of Sciences • High Education (University) Science • Industrial Science • Factory Science 60% of academic degree holders

10. Soviet Research System(Co-specialized Assets) • Academy of Sciences • High Education (University) Science • Industrial Science • Factory Science

11. Soviet Research System(Research Incentives for University Science) Academy of Sciences • High Education (University) Science Industrial Science Factory Science We do not focus on separate research organizations

12. Research Incentives for the Soviet University Science • Publications are crucial: • to move up the career ladderthrough degree and title applications • to retain jobtwo-tiered research degree and teaching title system

13. Research Incentives for the Soviet University Science Publications • To move up the career ladder (mandatory) • through degree and title applications • Two-tiered hierarchy of research degrees • Candidate of Sciences (papers) • Doctor of Sciences (book and papers (pre-candidate publications expire))

14. Research Incentives for the Soviet University Science Publications • To move up career ladder (mandatory) • Two-tiered teaching title system • Dotzent (“half professor”) (candidate degree + papers + text books/study manuals etc.) • Professor (full professor) (doctor degree + papers + text books/study manuals etc.) Does it conform to the UK system?

15. Research Incentives for the Soviet University Science • Publications • To retain job(strongly recommended) • Dotzent (papers + text books/study manuals etc.) • Professor (papers + books + text books/study manuals) • Business research contracts (hozdogovora) and government finance (gosbudget) • To retain job(important) • Important source of income And what about refereed journals?

16. And What About Refereed Journals? They existed (and still exist) and valued BUT • There were no universities ratings • Editors (members of the board) actually took decision to accept paper • Institutional journals And what about money?

17. Research Incentives for the Soviet University ScienceOpportunity costs to be an academic • Importance for career (promotion and retention)(1960s -1980s) • Dotzent’s salary - 320 roubles • Average salary aprx. 127 roubles – 1975, 195 roubles – 1986 (*) • bus driver (1980s) – 320-400 roubles, • chief director in large organization (actually) (1980s)- up to 700 roubles + exclusive non-monetary benefits • Professor’s salary (450 roubles, chair + 50) + some exclusive non-monetary benefits (before mid 1970s) (*) Source: «CCCР в цифрах 1975», «Народное хозяйство СССР в 1986»

18. Research Incentives for the Soviet University ScienceOpportunity costs to be academic • Business research contracts and government finance • Up to half of the salary

19. What happened next …

20. Research Incentives Erosion in the Late 1980s – Beginning 1990s Two-tiered research degree system • Candidate of Sciences (business journals and down to local daily newspapers, non-refereed journals, working papers as marketing niche targeted degree applicants) • Doctor of Sciences (book and papers (see above) could been awarded without thesis (based on research report) And two-tiered hierarchy of titles …

21. Research Incentives Erosion in the Late 1980s – Beginning 1990s Two-tiered teaching title system • Dotzent (could be givenwithout candidate degree + papers + text books/study manuals etc.) • Professor (could be given without doctor decree so called “Cold professor”)

22. Research Incentives for Russian University Science Countermeasures Positive measures • Papers: • to discontinue counting newspaper publications for degree applications • to discontinue counting short publications for title applicants and doubtful ones …

23. Research Incentives for Russian University Science Countermeasures • Papers: to offset decrease in quality by increase in quantity (inflation of publications) • Requirements vary between organizations and councils • example: candidate degree applicant from a national republic has published for 4 years 220 pages in AEC equivalent

24. Research Incentives for Russian University Science Countermeasures • Papers: introduction of so called VAK list – list of journals which are authorized to publish papers needed for doctor of sciences application • Example of an attempt coping with new challenges using old means Be not confused! List of VAK does not mean refereed journals • And what about books …

25. Research Incentives for Russian University Science • Books: the same as with papers • Books continue to be appreciated higher than papers for academic career (e.g. “cold professors” positions and position retention) • Easy money from not exacting text books readers primarily students and … sometimes their professors Quick compilation of cheap, often low quality products

26. This Is the Book And what about money?

27. Research Incentives for Russian University Science • Where money comes from ? In reverse order …

28. Research Incentives for Russian University Science • No longer business contracts • Government finance • Marginal/Important What options we have: • Individual grants (National foundations, regional) • offensive amount • cross-subsidization is often • Non-competitive state budget finance • Marginal for ordinary researchers (fraction of base salary) • Financing for research teams via competition • kickbacks/cross-subsidization are typical • equals up to salary typically less • what about research quality Science Versus Imitation

29. Research Incentives for Russian University Science • Importance for career (promotion and retention) • Professor’s remuneration in St.Petersburg University of Economics and Finance - 11000 roubles, ($380), average salary in St.Petersburg – 9300 roubles ($320), with bus driver’s salary being 15000 (aprx. $520) • University graduate in international consultancy firm - in 2 years $3400 (100000 roubles), Russian CFO in foreign company (Moscow) average salary – aprx. $8000 (232000 roubles) + package

30. Two Major Points of Difference • Lower incentives/level of competition • Press of bare quantity (printed pages) vs. yoke of quality/quantity (refereed journals)

31. Some Strategic Implications The first strategy: passive The second strategy: outward oriented The third strategy: of active accommodation or combined strategy

32. Some Strategic Implications The third strategy: of active accommodation or combined strategy To control two exposures: • Internal: international publications are labor intensive but could be not much appreciated in accessing your performance in domestic university for degree and title application • External: domestic quantitative approach could undermine ability to compete internationally

33. Some Strategic Implications The third strategy: of active accommodation or combined strategy Is it feasible? If to turn basic shortage of the system into your personal advantage • Positive side of minor importance of domestic refereed journals • If researcher avoids compulsive scribbling (important for the first strategy as well)

34. Some Strategic Implications If researcher avoids compulsive scribbling. Is it avoidable? • Good research first • Leverage of good research results in a number of publications rather then baking fast academic food • Restrain “to be the first in the race” (Modesty)

35. Some Strategic Implications Restrain to be the first in the race: • only minimum required number of publications actually counts for successful degree application • then target: • International refereed journals • domestic journals with ambitious editors that reader-oriented Examples supporting the view

36. Conclusive Remarks: Opportunity Costs of Research and Teaching • Of sacrificing research for teaching and vise versa (case of foreign EMBA program in Russia) • Does the dilemma exists for research and teaching in macroeconomics in your university?