Economic indicators and research productivity of Turkish economists: the role of currency crisis

Purpose The aim of this research is to examine the influence of economic growth and currency crisis on research productivity. Design/methodology/approach The research analyzes the data of 548 Turkish academics in faculties of economic and administrative sciences in Turkish universities by using polled OLS, binary logistic regression, two-stage least squares (2SLS) and the difference-in-differences regression models. Findings The findings indicate that researchers in universities located in regions with higher economic growth and lower risk of poverty have higher research productivity. In addition, the results show that currency crisis has no significant influence on research performance. Practical implications The results of this study provide signals for policymakers about the importance of policies that support research activities and mitigate the pressures on research funding during financial crises. The significance of these policies also increases in regions with lower economic development and growth. Originality/value To author's knowledge, this research is the first to investigate the influence of currency crisis on research productivity.