International Science Affiliation (ISA) Survey: FAQs

1. Who is conducting the survey?
2. How was I selected for the survey?
3. What issues are covered by the survey?
4. How is the survey being conducted?
5. Are the responses confidential?
6. How can I opt out of the survey?
7. I can't access the survey. What can I do?
8. What is your ethics policy?
9. How can I follow the results of the survey?
10. I am part time should I be included in the survey?
11. I am Emeritus or Retired should I complete the survey?
12. I am currently without employment should I complete the survey?

1. Who is conducting the survey?

The survey was conducted by researchers at Technische Universität München (TUM), University of Cambridge and the University of Tokyo:

Prof. Dr. Hanna Hottenrott, TUM School of Management, Technische Universität München, Germany
hanna.hottenrott@tum.de

Dr. Cornelia Lawson, University of Bath School of Management & University of Cambridge, UK
c.lawson@bath.ac.uk

Prof. Sotaro Shibayama, University of Tokyo, Science Technology and Innovation Governance Program
shibayama@zzz.rcast.u-tokyo.ac.jp

The research is supported by the German Science Foundation (DFG) and the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS). A report on the results of this survey is available, free of charge, here.

2. How was I selected for the survey?

Your name was drawn from a random sample of over 15,000 published journal articles in five disciplines (biology, chemistry, engineering, history, economics and management). We selected authors working at universities or research institutes in Germany, Japan and the UK to participate in the survey.

If you are PhD student or currently without a main employer we are still interested in your response. If you are retired but still involved in research on a full- or part-time basis we would still like you to participate. We are also interested if you only work part-time at a university or research institute.

3. What issues are covered by the survey?

The survey is designed to investigate career arrangements and research practises of academic researchers. We are aiming to capture a wide range of career paths and interactions, from research funding, workloads and employer relationships to research collaborations.

In addition, we are aiming to capture ethical issues related to academic career arrangements and research practices. The survey includes an open comment section to capture any additional insights, notes of caution or further comments from respondents about their experience of working in academic research.

4. How is the survey being conducted?

Individual academics are being sent an e-mail invitation by International Science Affiliations (ISA) Survey inviting them to take part in the survey. You will have the option to manually opt-out by clicking on the “opt-out” link in the invitation email. In total you will receive a maximum of three e-mails from us. The survey is being conducted using the online survey software LimeSurvey hosted at the Technische Universität München. Further, in some cases we may also contact you by phone.

5. Are the responses confidential?

Yes - your answers will be treated in the strictest confidence. They will be kept in anonymised form and used for research purposes only. Published findings will only be presented in aggregate form so that no individual response can be identified.

6. How can I opt out of the survey?

If you do not wish to take part, you can opt out of the survey by following the opt-out link at the end of the invitation email. You can also contact our project team at any stage, using the e-mail address science-survey@wi.tum.de, to let us know that you do not wish to take part. We will then remove you from the contacts list at the earliest possible opportunity.

7. I can't access the survey. What can I do?

If you experience any problems in accessing the survey link, please contact our project team at science-survey@wi.tum.de.

8. What is your ethics policy?

We have followed best practice procedures in relation to ethical issues involved in conducting a large-scale web-based survey. In particular:

9. How can I follow the results of the survey?

A summary report of the results based on the survey findings are available, free of charge, on the project website.

10. I am part-time should I be included in the survey?

Yes you should be included so please complete the survey. When asked in the survey to allocate your time between teaching, research etc. please calculate those activities as shares of your part time activity so that they sum to 100%.

11. I am Emeritus or Retired should I complete the survey?

If you are still active in research then please complete the survey. The survey includes a question at the start which allows you to state your retired status.

12. I am currently without employment should I complete the survey?

If you are still active in research then please complete the survey. The survey includes a question at the start which allows you to state your employment status as ‘currently not in employment’.



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