Does Interdisciplinary Research Lead to Higher Faculty Performance? Evidence from an Accelerated Research University in China

Yu, Li1; Yan, Yue2; Li, Mingjun3

2022-11-01

10.3390/su142113977

SUSTAINABILITY   Impact Factor & Quartile

2071-1050

The current trend of building accelerated research universities in China that explore the pursuit of interdisciplinary research (IDR) approach to yield academic excellence and innovation through institutional reforms is aspiring to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Employing data from faculty Curriculum Vitae and bibliometric records from a pilot accelerated research university in China, this study provides a case study to empirically quantify the impact of interdisciplinary research on 490 faculty's performance, including research productivity, impact, and prestige. Results show that faculty involved in interdisciplinary research outperform their non-interdisciplinary counterparts in terms of research productivity, impact, and prestige. The degree of interdisciplinary as measured by subject categories is positively associated with faculty research performance. However, there are heterogeneous effects across faculty subgroups since faculty in applied-oriented disciplines reap more benefits while young faculty may suffer. Additionally, this study finds that faculty individual interdisciplinary research behavior can be affected by school-level concentration and dispersion of the degree of interdisciplinarity, which suggests the existence of peer effects.

interdisciplinary research (IDR) accelerated research university research collaboration faculty performance

SCI ; SSCI

English

First ; Corresponding

Education Science Planning Project of Guangdong Province: Research Productivity Evaluation and Promotion for High-level Higher Education Clusters in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area[2019GXJK059] ; National Natural Science Foundation of China[71904055]

Science & Technology - Other Topics ; Environmental Sciences & Ecology

Green & Sustainable Science & Technology ; Environmental Sciences ; Environmental Studies

WOS:000881438500001

MDPI

Web of Science

1.Southern Univ Sci & Technol, Ctr Higher Educ Res, Shenzhen 518055, Peoples R China
2.Jiangsu Univ Sci & Technol, Business Sch Zhangjiagang Campus, Zhenjiang 215600, Jiangsu, Peoples R China
3.South China Univ Technol, Inst Publ Policy, Guangzhou 510641, Guangdong, Peoples R China

Yu, Li,Yan, Yue,Li, Mingjun. Does Interdisciplinary Research Lead to Higher Faculty Performance? Evidence from an Accelerated Research University in China[J]. SUSTAINABILITY,2022,14(21).

Yu, Li,Yan, Yue,&Li, Mingjun.(2022).Does Interdisciplinary Research Lead to Higher Faculty Performance? Evidence from an Accelerated Research University in China.SUSTAINABILITY,14(21).

Yu, Li,et al."Does Interdisciplinary Research Lead to Higher Faculty Performance? Evidence from an Accelerated Research University in China".SUSTAINABILITY 14.21(2022).