A Taste for Science? PhD Scientists’ Academic Orientation and Self-Selection into Research Careers in Industry

Recent research on industrial and academic science draws on the notion that academically trained scientists have a strong ―taste for science‖. However, little attention has been paid to potential heterogeneity in researchers’ taste for science and to potential selection effects into careers in industry versus academia. Using survey data from over 400 science and engineering PhD students, we examine the extent to which PhD students’ taste for science (e.g., desire for independence, publishing, peer recognition, and interest in basic research) and other individual characteristics predict preferences for research careers in industry versus academia. Our results suggest that PhD students who prefer industrial employment show a weaker taste for science, a greater concern for salary and access to resources, and a stronger interest in downstream work compared to PhD students who prefer an academic career. Our findings have important implications for innovation research as well as for managers and policy makers. We acknowledge valuable comments from Jonathon Cummings, Jason Doherty, Erika Färnstrand Damsgaard, Maryann Feldman, Mary Fox, Dietmar Harhoff, Mary Napier, Paula Stephan, Long Vo and Wei Zhang. We also thank two anonymous reviewers and Research Policy editor Lee Fleming for helpful comments. Henry Sauermann acknowledges support from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.