Finance seminar - Dr Marina Gertsberg - Melbourne University

A seminar by Dr Marina Gertsberg from University of Melbourne

Title: Editor Visits and Publication Success

Abstract: Publishing in elite journals determines tenure outcomes: a single top-five publication increases the rate of receiving tenure by 80%. Given the geographic concentration of editorial power and high stakes of publication success, understanding whether brief face-to-face meetings with editors at departmental seminars affect publication decisions matters for fairness and efficiency in academic careers. We test whether face-to-face meetings with journal editors at departmental seminars increase publication probability for assistant professors. We exploit quasi-experimental variation from seminar rotation policies, which create mechanical fluctuations in when editors visit specific schools. Using these rotation-based restrictions as an instrument for editor visits, we analyze seminar records across top finance departments linked with publication outcomes for 651 assistant professors at top 100 institutions. We find no evidence that editor visits increase publication probability. Effects are near zero across two-, three-, and four-year horizons. Our estimates have sufficient precision to rule out publication effects larger than 20% of the baseline rate at the three- and four-year horizons. The null result is robust across alternative specifications and holds for all subgroups examined (faculty gender, university rank, editor activity). The rotation instrument strongly predicts editor visits, confirming our null finding reflects genuine absence of effects rather than statistical noise. These findings establish a boundary condition for network effects in academic publishing: professional connections may help career outcomes through sustained relationships, but not through brief encounters.

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