Crisis and the Trajectory of Science: Evidence from the 2014 Ebola Outbreak

When crises such as disease outbreaks occur in low-income countries, the global response can influence the output of researchers in the most affected locations. This paper investigates the impact of the 2014 West African Ebola epidemic on publication outcomes of endemic country scientists. Driven by collaborations with high-income country scientists in Ebola publications, endemic country scientists with relevant experience increase their publication output. However, the productivity of scientists without relevant experience falls, driving a reduction in non-Ebola publications. Any benefits arising from increased visibility during the epidemic does not appear to spill over to non-Ebola or Africa-led research in the long run.

Automated summary

This paper investigates the impact of the 2014 West African Ebola epidemic on the publication outcomes of endemic country scientists. It finds that collaboration with high-income country scientists increases the publication output of endemic country scientists with relevant experience in Ebola publications, while scientists without relevant experience see a reduction in their non-Ebola publications. However, increased visibility during the epidemic does not lead to long-term benefits for non-Ebola or Africa-led research.