About the Project

The aim of this research study was to shed light on the peer review process and gauge the impacts of editorial decisions on researchers. We hope that the results will spark fruitful discussions and potentially lead to improvements in the publication process. For these results to be useful, we need the participation of as many researchers as possible.

Survey details

• Sent survey to ~50,000 economists

• Email distribution ran from April 26, 2021 to July 26, 2021

• 1,336 respondents completed the survey

• Obtained informed consent as per IRB approval (see FAQs page).

• Survey took about 10 minutes to complete.

• Incentives: Distributed 10 prizes valued at $50 each, in the form of the winner's choice of a gift card or a donation in your name to a charity of your choice.

Survey flow

• Welcome and consent

• Priming questions (job characteristics, submission preferences, research expectations, etc.)

• [Randomization – 3x2 design] Decision letter and 5-6 short questions about reactions

• Demographic questions

Experimental randomization: Measure differences in reactions to a hypothetical editorial decision letter

• Main exogenous variation in the editor decision: Weak R&R vs. reject & resubmit (RJR) vs. flat reject (FR)

• Secondary exogenous variation: number of previous rejections for the given submission (0 or 1)

• 3x2 design