Abstract
Varied empirical studies show that the average output (measured in various ways) of a scientific or technical research group is directly proportional to its size (also measured in various ways), when the size and output are measured independently. Hence groups of different sizes have the same average output per unit of size. There is no reliable evidence for the existence of a size or a range of sizes for a research group that maximizes output per unit of size. Present theoretical explanations for the proportionality between size and output are largely inadequate or untested. Similarly, among reported results on group age and output, the only consistency so far is that age, measured as years since the founding or first functioning of the group, is uncorrelated with output per capita. Again, there is no evidence for the existence of an age or a range of ages for a research group that is optimal.
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This paper was prepared for the conference on “Generational Dynamics and Innovation in Basic Science,” June 1–2, 1989, organized byKarl Urlich Mayer, and held at the Max-Planck-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der Wissenschaften, Schloß Ringberg, Tegernsee, B. R. D. (West Germany). A German translation of this article has been published in theMitteilungen der Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, Heft 3/90.
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Cohen, J.E. Size, age and productivity of scientific and technical research groups. Scientometrics 20, 395–416 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02019761
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02019761