The Reverse Matthew Effect: Consequences of Retraction in Scientific Teams

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Jin, Ginger Zhe; Jones, Benjamin; Lu, Susan Feng; Uzzi, Brian
• 署名单位: University System of Maryland; University of Maryland College Park; National Bureau of Economic Research; Northwestern University; Purdue University System; Purdue University
• 刊物名称: REVIEW OF ECONOMICS AND STATISTICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0034-6535
• DOI: 10.1162/rest_a_00780
• 发表日期: 2019-07
• 页码: 492-506
• 关键词: Moral hazard; incentives; reputation; KNOWLEDGE

摘要

Teamwork pervades modern production, yet teamwork can make individual roles difficult to ascertain. The Matthew effect suggests that communities reward eminent team members for great outcomes at the expense of less eminent team members. We study this phenomenon in reverse, investigating credit sharing after damaging events. Our context is article retractions in the sciences. We find that retractions impose little citation penalty on the prior work of eminent coauthors, but less eminent coauthors experience substantial citation declines, especially when teamed with eminent authors. These findings suggest a reverse Matthew effect for team-produced negative events. A Bayesian model provides a candidate interpretation.