[U23-P04] The Effect of COVID-19 on AGU Journal Authors by Gender and Geographical Location
Keywords:COVID-19, Gender, Demographics, Articles, Journals, American Geophysical Union (AGU)
AGU’s commitment to building and supporting a diverse group of Earth and space scientists impels us to monitor the data we have on our constituents. When the COVID-19 pandemic forced institutions to close their physical spaces, many researchers and professors were forced to work from home. Media outlets and individuals wondered if women specifically would be shouldering the childcare and/or homeschooling responsibilities decreasing the time they had to for professional and research duties. AGU has been monitoring the effect that the stay-at-home orders have had on our journal authors by analyzing our monthly submission data. We focused specifically on gender, age, and geographical region of individuals submitting manuscripts (“corresponding author”). We found that there have been no statistically significant monthly fluctuations in the number of women across all age groups submitting articles in 2020 and compared to their monthly submissions of 2018 and 2019. We did see some decrease in submissions in February from certain countries but as of May 2020, most countries have returned to their normal submission rates. We do see that submissions of revised manuscripts, which may require access to physical spaces and/or equipment and collaboration with co-authors, decreased among both male and female corresponding authors from February through April. The relative stability of new submissions from various groups may indicate a few things: 1) that stay-at-home orders may afford some more time to submit an article while others less, 2) article submission itself is a relatively simple and straightforward task if the research, analysis, and writing is complete, and 3) we may see decreased submissions later in the year or next year if there is a sustained lack of access to research subjects/materials and analytical tools.