Scholarly activity among economists at liberal arts colleges: A life cycle analysis

Abstract

The authors of this article introduce a database of scholarship among liberal arts college (LAC) economists. Capturing publications across the life cycle, the data speak to questions unexplored in existing work and point to answers often contrary to popular wisdom. First, limited evidence of a rising tenure bar is found. Moreover, while some claim that LAC macroeconomists face particular publication hurdles, the authors observe similar levels of scholarship across the micro/macro divide. Finally, authors of publications outside ECONLIT are not interdisciplinary specialists. Rather, LAC economists who produce the greatest amount of work in indexed venues also make the largest contributions outside the discipline’s traditional boundaries.

Keywords:

• Economics
• liberal arts colleges
• scholarship
• tenure and promotion

JEL CODES:

• A22
• I23
• J40

Acknowledgments

The authors thank Jackson Wahl for exceptional research assistance and Robert Lemke, Deborah DeGraff, Andrew Jalil, and participants in the Carleton College Economics Seminar for thoughtful feedback.

Disclosure statement

The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Carleton College.