Working Paper: CEPR ID: DP17805
Authors: Shumin Qiu; Claudia Steinwender; Pierre Azoulay
Abstract: China’s rise in science has the potential to push forward the knowledge frontier, but mere production of knowledge does not guarantee that others are able to build on it. We ask whetherchemistry research originating from China offers broad shoulders for follow-on scientists to stand on. We show that even after carefully controlling for the quality of Chinese research, Chinese scientists’ articles receive on average 28% fewer citations from US researchers, relative to scientists from other countries. Only Chinese researchers with unusually deep networks in the US can overcome, at least in part, the citation discount.
Keywords: Research and Development; International Spillovers; Economics of Science; Citations; Patent Citations
JEL Codes: I23; O30; O53
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Chinese-authored articles (A31) | fewer citations from US researchers (A14) |
| Chinese-authored articles (A31) | citation discount (Y60) |
| US coauthors (Y70) | citation likelihood of Chinese articles (C80) |
| subfield of research (C93) | citation likelihood of Chinese articles (C80) |
| Chinese researchers abroad (F22) | citation discount (Y60) |