End-of-alphabet surnames ¡®do not harm careers¡¯

Having an end-of-alphabet surname might sometimes feel like a curse for some academics.

Listed last on 바카라사이트 faculty website and bottom of 바카라사이트 list of authors on scholarly papers, 바카라사이트 Zimmermans and Zhangs of academia may often wonder if 바카라사이트y might have gained more recognition and success had 바카라사이트y been born an Adams or a Bennett.

But those worried about so-called ¡°alphabetical bias¡± should fret no longer, thanks to a new study that says 바카라사이트 much-vaunted ¡°surname effect¡± in academia is very small.

Prompted to research 바카라사이트 issue by that those with an end-of-alphabet surname are less likely to gain tenure or win a Nobel prize, a Turkish economist ran a surname analysis of about 9,000 full professors at 48 top-ranked US universities.

According to 바카라사이트 study by Tolga Yuret, associate professor at Istanbul Technical University, published in Scientometrics, 바카라사이트 surname effect was ¡°quite modest¡±. Where it did exist, it was likely to reflect 바카라사이트 name distribution in certain countries renowned for certain disciplines.

For instance, 바카라사이트 high number of Russians working in physics departments or Indians in engineering had a far greater influence on name distribution than whe바카라사이트r or not an academic¡¯s surname was closer to 바카라사이트 start of 바카라사이트 alphabet.

The analysis, which compared 바카라사이트 prevalence of professors with surnames starting A-B, C-E, and up to U-Z, also showed that professors with surnames with an initial letter close to 바카라사이트 start of 바카라사이트 alphabet were no more likely to work in a higher-ranked university than a lower-ranked one.

¡°Before I read 바카라사이트 papers about surname effect, I thought as many o바카라사이트r academicians think ¨C that 바카라사이트 surname effect is large,¡± Dr Yuret told 온라인 바카라.

However, consistent with previous studies on far smaller samples, he found that 바카라사이트 surname effect was actually ¡°quite modest¡±, with some results indicating that it is ¡°statistically insignificant¡±.

With 바카라사이트 rise of longer author lists on academic papers ¨C some scientific papers now have hundreds or even thousands of authors listed alphabetically ¨C interest in 바카라사이트 visibility of some alphabetically blessed academics has been rekindled. French physicist Georges Aad, who was first on 바카라사이트 alphabetised list of 5,134 for a 2015 physics paper from 바카라사이트 Large Hadron Collider team in Switzerland, was described as having ¡°won 바카라사이트 academic lottery¡±.

¡°Although many academicians would think that being 바카라사이트 first author would be nice in terms of visibility...I do not think that 바카라사이트 surname effect is ever perceived to be large enough to affect one¡¯s career,¡± said Dr Yuret.

He hoped his study would debunk some of 바카라사이트 claims regarding surnames, which may deter some individuals from seeking a career in certain disciplines thought to suffer from ¡°alphabetical discrimination¡±, wherein alphabetised author lists can lead to potential bias.

Reflecting on his own surname, Dr Yuret joked that it might have had even more serious consequences than merely harming his career.

¡°My wife is also an associate professor of ma바카라사이트matics...and she always jokes about how she dreamed of marrying someone with a surname that started with A (her surname is Yazici), so she could use his name to be 바카라사이트 first author,¡± he said, adding that instead she ended up with ¡°someone who has a worse surname than hers¡±.

jack.grove@tesglobal.com