Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/185328 
Year of Publication: 
2018
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 11868
Publisher: 
Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
This paper examines the relationship between placement of publications in Top Five (T5) journals and receipt of tenure in academic economics departments. Analyzing the job histories of tenure-track economists hired by the top 35 U.S. economics departments, we find that T5 publications have a powerful influence on tenure decisions and rates of transition to tenure. A survey of the perceptions of young economists supports the formal statistical analysis. Pursuit of T5 publications has become the obsession of the next generation of economists. However, the T5 screen is far from reliable. A substantial share of influential publications appear in non-T5 outlets. Reliance on the T5 to screen talent incentivizes careerism over creativity. <br><br> The appendices for this paper are available here: <br><a href="https://hceconomics.uchicago.edu/file-upload/appendices-publishing-and-promotion-economics-tyranny-top-five" target="_blank">https://hceconomics.uchicago.edu/file-upload/appendices-publishing-and-promotion-economics-tyranny-top-five</a>
Subjects: 
tenure and promotion practices
career concerns
economics publishing
citations
JEL: 
A14
I23
J44
O31
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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