Why are academics of science more productive than those of social science? Evidence from Indonesia

Purpose This paper aims to examine factors influencing the productivity in research and publication between science and social science. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative approach with interviews for 40 academics in four public universities in Indonesia was applied to get an in-depth understanding of the issues. Findings The results of this study demonstrated that individual factors instead of institutional factors that contributed to the productivity of academics in science as compared to academics in social science. Originality/value Despite there were influential effects of institutions in which the socializing process of internalizing the values, norms and scientific roles under the auspice of qualified supervisors or advisors, there seemed to be an individual capacity that comes in between. The implications of this study are discussed in the article.