A possible silver lining of the COVID-19 crisis is that it may focus thinking in ways that could prove beneficial in the long run. A good example is scientific research.

In today’s Martin Center article, Anthony Hennen takes up that subject with an interview with Mikko Packalen, co-author of a recent paper on the problems with incentives for research. Packalen states:

On social media, your value is mainly measured by your follower count. Academics thus today have an increased incentive to say popular things and enter areas of investigation where there are already many others. These platforms also increase the incentive to pursue research topics that are currently the most newsworthy, as news coverage exposes you to more potential followers.

Therefore, pressure for popularity tempts scholars to pursue ideas that seem likely to get lots of hits. But those aren’t necessarily the most beneficial ones.

Packalen fears that we’re stagnating in scientific progress and concludes:

Given the stagnation, we should try new approaches both in terms of what career incentives we give to scientists and in terms of diversity of research approaches. Relying on the “science has just become harder” explanation for the stagnation is convenient as it absolves everyone — scientists, administrators, and analysts — alike from any blame for the slowdown. But we shouldn’t give up on trying to create a better future that easily.