Cooperation for Publication? An Analysis of Co-authorship Patterns in Leading Accounting Journals

Abstract This paper examines patterns, antecedents, and effects of (international) cooperation in accounting academia based on 7105 papers published in 15 leading accounting journals. In particular, we investigate the dissemination of different forms of cooperation, identify author characteristics that are related to the propensity of cooperation and analyze whether cooperation is associated with research performance (in terms of research impact and output). We find that scholars from Asian countries tend to be more heavily involved in international cooperation than researchers from most European countries and the USA. A Ph.D. from a leading school, a scholar's previous publication experience and a past appointment as editor or editorial board member are positively associated with the propensity for cooperation, while a researcher's current affiliation has only limited impact. Surprisingly, our findings show that cooperation is not related to a greater research impact as measured by citation numbers per paper. Finally, we find a significant negative relationship between a scholar's share of co-authored papers and his or her research output in leading accounting journals as measured by the weighted numbers of papers per author.

[1]  V. Beattie,et al.  A new method for ranking academic journals in accounting and finance , 2005 .

[2]  S. Carmona,et al.  A profile of European accounting research: evidence from leading research journals , 1999 .

[3]  Kam C. Chan,et al.  A ranking of accounting research output in the European region , 2006 .

[4]  Kam C. Chan,et al.  Accounting research in the Asia–Pacific region: an update , 2013 .

[5]  Concha Bielza,et al.  Relationship among research collaboration, number of documents and number of citations: a case study in Spanish computer science production in 2000–2009 , 2013, Scientometrics.

[6]  L. Brown,et al.  Ranking Journals Using Social Science Research Network Downloads , 2002 .

[7]  C. J. Wolfe,et al.  Concentration in Publishing at Top-Tier Business Journals: Evidence and Potential Explanations , 2007 .

[8]  Tibor Braun,et al.  International collaboration in the sciences 1981–1985 , 1990, Scientometrics.

[9]  David Smith,et al.  A Review of Australian Management Accounting Research: 1980-2009 , 2011 .

[10]  Sandy Q. Qu,et al.  Research the American Way: The Role of US Elites in Disseminating and Legitimizing Canadian Academic Accounting Research , 2009 .

[11]  Apostolos Ballas,et al.  Exploring Diversity in Accounting Through Faculty Journal Perceptions , 2003 .

[12]  A. Lowe,et al.  Evidence and Implications of Multiple Paradigms in Accounting Knowledge Production , 2008 .

[13]  David D. Van Fleet,et al.  Scholarly achievement and accounting journal editorial board membership , 2009 .

[14]  S. Mark Young,et al.  Management Accounting: A Bibliographic Study , 2006 .

[15]  Vivien Beattie,et al.  Moving the financial accounting research front forward: the UK contribution , 2005 .

[16]  Kam C. Chan,et al.  Global Ranking of Accounting Programmes and the Elite Effect in Accounting Research , 2007 .

[17]  R. Scapens,et al.  Performance Management in Universities: Effects of the Transition to More Quantitative Measurement Systems , 2012 .

[18]  L. Brown,et al.  Influential Accounting Articles, Individuals, Ph.D. Granting Institutions and Faculties: A Citational Analysis , 1996 .

[19]  Kam C. Chan,et al.  Accounting Journal Rankings, Authorship Patterns and the Author Affiliation Index , 2012 .

[20]  Richard K. Fleischman,et al.  Co-authorship in accounting history: advantages and pitfalls , 2009 .

[21]  Joseph Engelberg,et al.  Networks and Productivity: Causal Evidence from Editor Rotations , 2012 .

[22]  Research orientation without regrets , 2015 .

[23]  B. Malsch,et al.  Journal ranking effects on junior academics: Identity fragmentation and politicization , 2015 .

[24]  Thomas G. Calderon,et al.  Examining accounting departments' rankings of the quality of accounting journals , 2006 .

[25]  G. V. Campenhout,et al.  Article Contribution and Subsequent Citation Rates: Evidence from European Accounting Review , 2010 .

[26]  Alfred Wagenhofer.  Management Accounting Research in German‐Speaking Countries , 2006 .

[27]  Kenneth A. Merchant,et al.  Paradigms in accounting research: A view from North America , 2010 .

[28]  Massimo Franceschet,et al.  The effect of scholar collaboration on impact and quality of academic papers , 2010, J. Informetrics.

[29]  Joanne Locke,et al.  Perceptions of journal quality and research paradigm: results of a web-based survey of British accounting academics , 2005 .

[30]  Chaomei Chen,et al.  How are collaboration and productivity correlated at various career stages of scientists? , 2014, Scientometrics.

[31]  M. Jones,et al.  International Publishing Patterns: An Investigation of Leading UK and Us Accounting and Finance Journals , 2005 .

[32]  Ben Wooliscroft,et al.  Measuring the impact of accounting journals using Google Scholar and the g-index , 2009 .

[33]  Bruce J. McConomy,et al.  Productivity in 'Top-Ten' Academic Accounting Journals by Researchers at Canadian Universities , 2003 .

[34]  Eldon Y. Li,et al.  Co-authorship networks and research impact: A social capital perspective , 2013 .

[35]  Wim A. Van der Stede,et al.  The most influential journals in academic accounting , 2006 .

[36]  L. Parker.  Developing research journals and qualitative inquiry: the role of the editorial board , 2007 .

[37]  Imad A. Moosa,et al.  The Demise of the ARC Journal Ranking Scheme: An Ex Post Analysis of the Accounting and Finance Journals , 2011 .

[38]  Rodrigo Costas,et al.  Heterogeneity of collaboration and its relationship with research impact in a biomedical field , 2013, Scientometrics.

[39]  M. Kocher,et al.  Patterns of co-authorship among economics departments in the USA , 2004 .

[40]  Terri L. Herron,et al.  Faculty Perceptions of Journals: Quality and Publishing Feasibility , 2004 .

[41]  Simon Hussain.  Accounting journals and the ABS quality ratings , 2010 .

[42]  David H. Sinason,et al.  Pitfalls of Using Citation Indices for Making Academic Accounting Promotion, Tenure, Teaching Load, and Merit Pay Decisions , 2011 .

[43]  M. Jones,et al.  Still flickering at the margins of existence? Publishing patterns and themes in accounting and finance research over the last two decades , 2007 .

[44]  K. Lukka,et al.  Is accounting a global or a local discipline? evidence from major research journals , 1996 .

[45]  Kam C. Chan,et al.  Ranking accounting journals using dissertation citation analysis: A research note , 2009 .

[46]  Francisco J. Acedo,et al.  Co-Authorship in Management and Organizational Studies: An Empirical and Network Analysis , 2006 .

[47]  Roger H. Hermanson,et al.  Co-Authoring in Refereed Journals: Views of Accounting Faculty and Department Chairs , 1998 .