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Scope Note
In October of 2020, 45,348 researchers at domestic, NIH-funded institutions and 224 research leaders from the top 1,000 NIH-funded domestic institutions responded to an NIH COVID-19 Impact on Extramural Research Survey, which aimed to gauge the impact of COVID-19 on the research community. At a high-level, survey findings emphasized the impact of COVID-19 on the career trajectory, mental health, and research productivity of extramural researchers:
- 55% of respondents said the pandemic will have a negative impact on their career trajectory
- 68% of respondents said societal/political events negatively affected their mental health, more than other factor
- 78% of respondents reported lower levels of productivity since the pandemic began
Career Trajectory
- 61% of lab-based researchers agreed that the pandemic will harm their career trajectory
- Asian respondents were more likely than other groups to anticipate a negative career trajectory (65%), with a decline in research activities and lab-based research driving opinions
- Black or African American respondents were least likely to anticipate a negative career trajectory (39%), with relatively fewer lab researchers and more public health researchers driving a more optimistic outlook
A Closer Look
- The strongest predictor of a negative career trajectory perception is researchers’ ability to apply for grants
Top career stages that anticipate negatively impacted career trajectories due to COVID-19:
- Postdoctoral Fellow/ Resident
- Faculty (0-6 Years)
- Faculty (7-14 Years)
Mental Health
- 42% of respondents said their mental/physical health had a substantially negative impact on productivity.
- Women and respondents identifying as “other” genders were consistently more negatively impacted than men across top factors affecting mental health
- Early career investigators were consistently more negatively impacted across top factors affecting mental health
- Asian researchers cited visa considerations as negatively affecting their mental health at twice the rate than the average
Top factors that negatively impacted researchers’ mental health include:
- Societal and/or political events
- Physical and/or social isolation
- Disruption of promotion/ tenure timeline
Note
Survey findings indicated mental and physical health is the #1 factor negatively impacting the
productivity of
early career investigators, Hispanics, and African American respondents
Research Productivity
- Early-(80%) and mid-career investigators (81%) reported lower levels of productivity due to COVID-19, with faculty members reporting a more negative impact than non-faculty researchers
- 53% of Hispanic respondants indicated their mental/physical health has negatively impacted research productivity since the pandemic began
The Bottom Line
- The less institutional support provided to researchers leads to a greater impact on productivity
Top factors that negatively impacted researchers’ overall productivity include:
- 53% Virtual instead of in-person interactions with trainees, mentors, or supervisors
- 50% Cancellation of in-person regional, national, and/or international conferences
- 49% Changes in laboratory and/or animal facility access
At a Glance: COVID-19 Impacts on Extramural Institutions
- 83% of respondents indicated that COVID-19 had a moderate or major impact on overall research productivity at their institution
- 41% of respondents said it is likely the financial repercussions of COVID-19 will jeopardize their institution’s ability to maintain research functions
- 2 in 3 respondents were very or extremely concerned about the pandemic’s impact on the financial status of their institution
- 77% of Doctorate-granting universities reported as very or extremely concerned
- 33% of Independent research institutions reported as very or extremely concerned