Working Paper: NBER ID: w23130
Authors: Raymond Fisman; Jing Shi; Yongxiang Wang; Rong Xu
Abstract: We study favoritism via hometown ties, a common source of favor exchange in China, in fellow selection of the Chinese Academies of Sciences and Engineering. Hometown ties to fellow selection committee members increase candidates' election probability by 39 percent, coming entirely from the selection stage involving an in-person meeting. Elected hometown-connected candidates are half as likely to have a high-impact publication as elected fellows without connections. CAS/CAE membership increases the probability of university leadership appointments and is associated with a US$9.5 million increase in annual funding for fellows' institutions, indicating that hometown favoritism has potentially large effects on resource allocation.
Keywords: favoritism; hometown ties; Chinese Academy of Sciences; scientific research; resource allocation
JEL Codes: J71; O3; P16
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Hometown ties (Y80) | Election outcomes (K16) |
| Hometown ties (Y80) | Second stage selection process (C52) |
| Prohibiting hometown ties (Z28) | Increase in elected fellows with significant research contributions (O39) |
| CAS and CAE membership (F53) | Likelihood of obtaining university leadership positions (I23) |
| CAS and CAE membership (F53) | Funding for institutions employing fellows (I23) |