Academic Research Competitiveness: Theorizing and Operationalizing a New Research Evaluation Framework

An important product of this study is the development of a multidimensional framework for academic research competitiveness. The framework goes beyond the usual consideration of grant dollars the primary indicator of competitiveness, as it articulates the context and multiple factors that contribute to enhanced capacity to acquire resources in a competitive environment. The examples of the NSF EPSCoR and NSF CoPes programs illustrate these embedded complexities, laying the ground work for the development of improved metrics that account for the complex and varied contexts in which scientific research takes place.