When international academic conferences go virtual

This study investigates the extent to which international academic conferences changes format to virtual when faced by sudden Covid-19 related immobility. Data on 587 conferences in the fields of business, economics, information technology, management and other social sciences that were planned to be held between March and August 2020 are retrieved from authorised conference listings. Approximately 28% of the conferences changed to virtual format during the period of time studied. Probit estimations reveal that the probability of changing format to virtual increases with the country of location (United States), planning horizon and the available quality of broadband infrastructure in the scheduled conference country. However, the role of planning horizon differs across fields and location of the conference. The probability of virtual conferences is highest in the United States and for academic conferences in the field of information technology.

Automated summary

This study found that approximately 28% of international academic conferences switched to virtual format due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. The probability of conferences going virtual is influenced by the country of location, planning horizon, and broadband infrastructure quality, with the highest likelihood in the United States and in the field of information technology.