TESIS

Doctoral Thesis
Academic Human Capital and

Research Performance
Félix Guerrero Alba
Departament of Business Management

Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y Empresariales
Universidad de Cádiz
Doctoral Thesis
Academic Human Capital and Research

Performance
Félix Guerrero Alba

Departament of Business Management
Supervisors:
PhD. Fernando Martín Alcázar
PhD. Gonzalo Sánchez Gardey
INDEX
INTRODUCTION
1. Aim and relevance of the research: Academic human capital
in the development of research activities 1
2. Objectives and research questions 13
3. Data and methodology 16
4. Structure of the Thesis 39
EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS
Paper 1: Academic human capital in universities: Definition and

proposal of a measurement scale 45
1. Introduction 48
2. Academic human capital: The KSA
framework 49
2.1. Knowledge 50
2.2. Skills and abilities 52
3. Empirical study 54
3.1 Qualitative stage:
scale design 54
3.2 Quantitative stage:
scale confirmation 57
3.2.1. Sample 57
3.2.1. Exploratory factor analysis 60
3.2.2. Confirmatory factor analysis 63
4. Discussion and conclusions 65
References 71
Paper 2: Identifying the determinants of individual scientific performance: a perspective
focused on AMO Theory 79
1. Introduction 82
2. Theorethica framework and hypothesis 83
2.1. Research abilities: Academic human capital
perspective 84
2.2. The moderating dimensions: motivation and
opportunity 87
3. Methodology. 93
3.1 Survey design 93
3.1.1. Sample description 94
4. Empirical analysis 97
4.1 Factor analysis 97
4.2 Regression analysis 101
4.3 Results 103
4.4 Discussion 107
5. Conclusions. 109
5.1. Limitations and diretions for future research 113
References 114
Appendix. 122
Paper 3: Exploratory analysis of the perception of academic researchers about

incentives: evidence from a Spanish public university 125
1. Introduction 128
2. Review of the literature: perception of incentives from
academic researchers 129
3. Empirical study 132
3.1 Qualitative stage:
Delphi panel 133
3.2 Quantitative stage: Exploratory factor analysis 136
3.2.1. Sample. 136
3.2.2. Exploratory factorial analysis. 137
4. Discussion and conclusions 139
References 145
CONCLUSIONS, LIMITATIONS, AND FUTURE LINES OF
RESEARCH
1. Principal conclusions derived from the proposed

objectives 157
2. Contributions and implications 170
3. Limitations 176
4. Future research lines 181
REFERENCES 195
FIGURES
INTRODUCTION
Figure 1.1. Methodological triangulation 23
EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS
Paper 1:
Figure 1 AHC: items and item loadings confirmatory 65
factor analysis
Paper 2:
Figure 1 Theoretical research model for researcher 86
abilities
Figure 2 Theoretical research model for researcher 89
motivation
Figure 3 Theoretical research model for 91
Figure 4 Theoretical research model for the 93
effectiveness of academic researchers
CONCLUSIONS, LIMITATIONS AND FUTURE LINES OF RESEARCH

Figure 3.1 Proposed theoretical model (multilevel 184
academic human capital in universities)
TABLES
INTRODUCTION
Table 1.1. Sample of academics from the university of Cádiz 19
Table 1.2. Sample of academics from Spanish universities 21
Table 1.3. Participant Delphi panel data 26
EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS
Paper 1:
Table 1 Descriptive statistics of the qualitative stage 55

Table 2 Initial scale extracted from Delphi panel. 57
Table 3 Descriptive statistics of the quantitative stage 58
Table 4 Correlation matrix of the AHC scale 59
Table 5 Exploratory factor analysis of the academic human capital 62
scale (n=1090)
Table 6 Correspondence between theoretical and factorial analysis 63
dimensions
Paper 2
Table 1 Descriptive statistics (n=471) 96

Table 2 Analysis of the main components (varimax rotation) of 98
researcher abilities (academic human capital) (n=471)
researcher motivation (n=471)
researcher opportunities (n=471)
Table 5 Fit indices for the unidimensional models of researcher 101
abilities (academic human capital), motivation and
opportunities dimensions
Table 6 Correspondence between theoretical and factorial analysis 102
dimensions
Table 7 Descriptive statistics and correlations 105
Table 8 Linear regression model results 106
Table 9 Correlations and correlations adjusted for potential common 123
method bias
Paper 3
Table 1 Descriptive statistics 134

Table 2 Scale about university research incentives drawn from the 135
panel of experts (Third round)
researcher incentives (n=259)
CONCLUSIONS, LIMITATIONS AND FUTURE LINES OF RESEARCH

Table 3.1. Correspondence between theoretical and factorial analysis 160
dimensions
Table 3.2. Correspondence between theoretical and factorial analysis 163
dimensions
Table 3.3. Factorial analysis dimensions and items of research 169
incentives
INTRODUCTION
INTRODUCTION
1. Aim and relevance of the research: Academic human

capital in the development of research activities
Universities are strategic actors in today’s society. These institutions
are considered major generators of knowledge. Approaches such as the
Triple Helix (Leyderdorff & Etzkowitz, 1998) or the models of knowledge
generation (Tian et al., 2009) have highlighted the role of universities in the
context of both knowledge generation and transmission to society (Bikard
et al., 2019; Lin, 2021). Thus, universities have experienced multiple
changes to achieve greater autonomy (Amaral et al., 2004), deepen
transparency (Hockfield, 2008), or obtain new sources of financing
(Newman, 2004; Piro et al., 2020) to have management tools available to
improve their performance. Universities are especially focused on the
specification of their strategic plans, research objectives, staff, and internal
functioning. Universities have therefore been required to provide
performance evaluations to better and more efficiently manage their
resources (Geuna & Martin, 2003; Hicks, 2012; Hicks & Katz, 2011). In
some research in the field, the stratification of science has been proposed to
encourage research activity in universities (Bak & Kim, 2019) with the aim
of concentrating resources in those most outstanding areas of the field.
Indeed, the importance of universities in designing appropriate
management measures serves as a basis for promoting the research activity
of academics (Alfawaire & Atan, 2021; Butt et al., 2020; Tseng et al.,
2020; Stensaker & Fumsali, 2017).
This thesis highlights the role of academic researchers as units of
analysis. The literature has questioned the profile of academic researchers
as a knowledge base for management without reaching an adequate
consensus on what characteristics drive the research activity itself. In
1
Introduction
essence, universities need to acquire, develop, and manage human capital

whose quality and composition allows the development of their teaching
and research functions in an efficient way (Leitner, 2004). For example,
numerous studies have analysed intellectual capital in universities,
highlighting the importance of human capital as a relevant intangible
resource in the generation of valuable physical and financial resources
(Bezhani, 2010; Ramírez-Córcoles et al., 2011; Secundo et al., 2016;
Siboni, 2013; Swanson & Holton, 2001). The literature in the field has
highlighted several approaches to conceptualising academic human capital,
which makes the issue particularly complex. Following Ballesteros-
Rodriguez et al. (2020b), research on academic human capital can be
organised into three main perspectives: 1) studies that analyse the effect of
unique academic attributes; 2) studies that focus on the examination of a set
of unobservable individual characteristics; and 3) research based on the
traditional theory of human capital or KSA (knowledge-skills-abilities).
Consequently, this diversity of approaches leads to a lack of consensus on
these specific measures of human capital in academic and research fields.
Further, the existing literature presents several different perspectives that
explain the link between human capital and performance in the academic
context, which has led to a lack of consensus on the specific characteristics
that affect research performance. Regarding the first group of analyses,
some research has highlighted different attributes, such as passion, research
management, and research skills applicable to research activity (Mayrath,
2008). Other studies have focused on a set of attributes in a more
systematic and integrated manner. For example, Pric (1996) concluded that
professional and social characteristics form the human capital of eminent
researchers who make a greater number of scientific contributions. Ulrich
and Dash (2013) grouped a set of 20 academic attributes into three
categories: a) scientific competences, such as learning capacity; b) project
and management skills, such as communication; and c) personal skills,
such as creativity, and motivation. Studies such as Mcnie et al. (2016)
2
Doctoral Thesis Félix Guerrero Alba
described the “hard” and “soft” skills required to carry out the research
function. Hard skills refer to specific research capacities, such as
hypothesis formulation or field-specific knowledge. Soft skills refer to the
general skills necessary for research, such as social skills and leadership.
The third approach is based on more traditional and classical theories of
human capital. One of the most used studies in this area is Bozeman et al.’s
(2001) model. This model of “scientific and technical human capital” is
described as “the sum of the links of the professional network of an
individual researcher, knowledge, and technical skills and widely defined
resources” (Bozeman et al., 2001, p. 636). This model considers aspects of
scientific social capital to complement academic human capital. The model
has been used in other investigations to explain the capacity and
development of the academic career of researchers (Corley et al., 2019;
Jonkers & Tijssen, 2008; Lin & Bozeman, 2006; Bozeman & Corley,
2004), as well as to address collaboration and transfer between university
and industry (Gaughan & Corley, 2010; Lin & Bozeman, 2006; Dietz &
Bozeman, 2005). The model contextualises the attributes that can affect
academic performance in a classic way without specifically clarifying
which of them are the most relevant. In this thesis, our vision of human
capital is based on the KSA dimension, based on the intrinsic
characteristics that affect the research results (Ballesteros et al., 2020;
Wright et al., 2014; Ployhart, 2014).
Regarding knowledge, as the first of the KSA dimensions, we can
observe that the literature has traditionally distinguished between tacit
knowledge, which refers to the theories, arguments, and assumptions of
academic disciplines (that is, knowing that), and explicit knowledge, which
is understood as knowledge of the research methodology and techniques
(know-how) (Bozeman et al., 2001). However, other disciplines, even those
that follow these approaches, have used different labels. Tacit knowledge
has been called “knowledge-how”, implicit, or procedural knowledge. For
explicit knowledge, some authors have used “knowledge-that”, declarative,
3
Introduction
or propositional knowledge (Sahdra & Thagard, 2003). Others, such as

Whitehill (1997), distinguished between “knowing how to do” to identify
tacit knowledge and “knowing what” for explicit knowledge. In the field of
universities, Lovitts (2005) classifies knowledge into two alternative and
complementary categories: formal knowledge, linked to “knowledge-that”
and informal or “knowledge-how”. Therefore, through the integration of
different arguments from the literature, to define knowledge as part of the
human capital of academic researchers, we will describe it as “the
significant information (Nonaka & Takeuchi, 1995), combined with
experience, the context, reflection, and interpretation (Davenport et al.,
1998), obtained through formal education (Ployhart & Moliterno, 2011),
from the analysis and reading of concrete theories and explanations, as well
as empirical results (Bozeman et al., 2001)”. According to this definition,
and following the predominant classification in the literature, we will
understand that academic knowledge is divided into two connected
dimensions: “knowledge-how” or tactical and “knowledge-that” or explicit.
First, we will mainly introduce what Lovitts (2005) called formal
knowledge, which refers to the theoretical body of a discipline—that is, the
theories and assumptions that compose it (Bozeman et al., 2001). Studies
such as those of Bozeman et al. (2001) and Ulrich and Dash (2013) labelled
it scientific knowledge. Lee et al. (2010) specified this attribute as
specialist knowledge of a topic and general knowledge of the area. Second,
we will consider applied or explicit knowledge as the language used in
scientific texts in a given field of knowledge (Prpic, 1996; Ulrich & Dash,
2013). Academic researchers must also possess the necessary training in
methodology and research techniques typical of the area (Bozeman et al.,
2001; Mooken & Sugden, 2014).
Thus, knowledge generation processes in universities occur both at
the individual level and in their research units, such as research groups or
research collaborations (Veer-Ramjeawon & Rowley, 2020). Thus, at the
organisational level, it has been justified that knowledge is created, shared,
4
enriched, extended, and rationalised through social or individual processes

(Nonaka & Toyama, 2003). The process through which organisations seek
to produce and acquire knowledge between implicit and explicit knowledge
is knowledge creation (Obeid & Rabea, 2016). New knowledge is created
through the interaction between implicit and explicit knowledge to ensure
different types of knowledge for future decision-making (Abualoush et al.,
2018; Obeid & Rabea, 2016; Zawaideh et al., 2018). Universities,
therefore, should encourage knowledge generation as the main output of
these institutions, both individually and in each of their core research units
(Sa et al., 2011; Safavi & Hakanson, 2018) or research collaborations
(Numprasertchai & Igel, 2005; Tan, 2016).
Regarding research skills and abilities—the other two dimensions of
the KSA—the literature is very sparse. Van der Heijden and Van der
Heijden (2006) proposed a clear differentiation in the organisational field,
describing skills as those individual and general attributes, such as
dynamism, motivation, communication skills, and teamwork, which are
usually acquired through formal education. However, abilities are
considered attributes that allow individuals to perform well in their specific
jobs and work environments. In the field of research, these attributes
include the identification of research topics, writing capacities, and
language proficiency. According to this typology, we can determine that
skills are general attributes of the individual himself, whereas abilities
pertain to performance in a particular job. Although both concepts are
theoretically differentiated, we observe that in the literature, there is also no
clear distinction about those attributes that can be classified as skills or
abilities. The research thus far does not offer a valid classification of
characteristics applicable to the field of academic researchers, which allows
us to clarify the specific composition of these two dimensions. Ulrich and
Dash (2013) distinguished between scientific abilities (ability to formulate
research questions or analytical skills), skills management teams and
projects (communication skills, languages, teamwork, etc.), and
5
Introduction
interpersonal skills (creativity, motivation, commitment, adaptability, etc.).

Thunnissen and Van Arensbergen (2015) categorised skills and abilities
into three categories: abilities (critical, open to feedback, tolerant to
criticism, reflective, and cooperation skills, etc.), intrapersonal
characteristics (motivation, perseverance, passion for science, and
ambition), and performance (international experience). More research has
paid special attention to one or a few personal attributes compared to an
integrated and synergistic set of skills and abilities. Authors such as
Neumman (2006), Mayrath (2008), and Duran-Bellonch and Ion (2014)
highlighted the need for academic researchers to have a vocation and
passion for their work, as well as a certain intrinsic interest in research
(Bentley & Kyvik, 2013). Another attribute that the literature highlights for
its effect on scientific productivity is the ability of researchers to be
creative (Marie, 2008; Whitelock et al., 2008). Others consider research
ethics as a necessary attribute to carry out research activity (Bell &
Bryman, 2007; De Vries et al., 2006; Kintisch, 2005). Other studies have
focused on cognitive abilities. For example, Bozeman et al. (2001) noted
that cognitive capacities, such as mathematical reasoning, memory, or the
ability to synthesise, although closely linked to the field of science, are
perfectly applicable to other work contexts. Marie (2008) pointed out that
research skills include the identification of research problems and the
ability to collect data and formulate hypotheses. Furthermore, Timmerman
et al. (2011) added to this list of cognitive abilities the ability to analyse
data and generate conclusions, which usually appear in more advanced
researchers. Mayrath (2008), Barnacle and Dall’Alba (2014), and
Thunnissen and Van Arensbergen (2015) indicated the ability of
researchers to write scientific texts, which other authors included as part of
communication skills, along with the ability to present research and its
results (Meerah et al., 2012).
These research skills and abilities make research activities valued by
universities and scientific journals. At the organisational level, the
6
development of these skills and abilities has led to increased organisational

performance (David et al., 2021; Ghilinchlee & Bayat, 2021; Xie & Li,
2021) and job satisfaction (Lee, 2021; Panda et al., 2021). Therefore, the
research domain also expects these skills as the development of new
research capabilities.
Thus, it is necessary to study the human capital of academics using the
KSA model mentioned above to understand the complex nature of research
activities. The complementarity between attributes and the design of a
measure that allows the human capital of academics should be accurately
assessed. Therefore, it is necessary to construct an integrative measure that
considers research activity at the individual level. This scale will make it
possible to describe human capital through its specific attributes as well as
the need to strengthen those that are not valued or evaluated by the
university for a good performance of research activity.
Universities, therefore, need to find an appropriate measure to test the
effectiveness of their researchers (Guarini et al., 2020; Rahmandad &
Vaklili, 2019; Kyvik, 2013). In this context, the search for determinants of
research performance is postulated as fundamental to the evaluation and
development of researchers. One of these approaches in the organisational
field is the ability-motivation-opportunity (AMO) framework (Appelbaum
et al., 2000). The AMO framework is an approach that aims to explain how
these elements affect organisational performance. In the university context,
few studies have addressed these variables from an integrative perspective
at the individual level of analysis. This approach could emphasise how
abilities, motivation, and opportunity affect the performance of academic
researchers. The research activity performance of academic researchers
could be explained through the three dimensions mentioned above: a) being
able to do so—that is, they have the knowledge, skills, and abilities
necessary to carry out the research activity; b) they are motivated to do
so—that is, because they want to and are adequately rewarded for their
behaviour; and c) their work environment provides the opportunities to
7
Introduction
carry out research—that is, they have the necessary support and pathways
to enable the desired behaviour. Regarding the first dimension, academic
human capital measured through the set of knowledge, skills, and abilities
(KSA) is essential for researchers to efficiently develop their research
activity. The distinction between these variables has been described in
depth in the previous paragraph by designing a measurement scale that
evaluates the human capital of academic researchers.
Concerning academic motivation, different investigations have
determined that motivation can be produced through the intrinsic and
extrinsic characteristics of academic researchers (Ballesteros et al., 2020c;
De Witte & Rogge, 2010; Sawitri & Creed, 2021; Sondari et al., 2016). The
main difference between both types of motivation is that extrinsic
motivation is mainly driven by economic rewards and promotional aspects,
whereas intrinsic motivation comes through the interests and values of the
person himself, because his work fully satisfies him (Albert et al., 2018;
Sondari et al., 2016). Therefore, the intrinsic motivation of researchers
allows them to obtain rewards from the individual himself through
recognition, pleasure, and effort to continue developing his activity
(Mayrath, 2008; Stubb et al., 2014). Van der et al. (2015) highlighted some
elements specific to favour the intrinsic motivation of the researcher, such
as the involvement of the work, the identification of the research as a part
of the researcher, and whether the place of work of the researcher is
challenging (Ma, 2019; Mayrath, 2008; Ryan, 2014; Ryan & Berbegal-
Mirabent, 2016; Stubb et al., 2014). Fox (1983) emphasised that
researchers have their own psychological characteristics that allow them to
continue carrying out their work, even in the absence of external rewards.
As Lovitts (2005) pointed out, researchers with the autonomy to define
their topic of interest in the research field will be more internally motivated
than those who cannot, since it affects the autonomy of the researcher to
develop it. These intrinsically motivated researchers will have a feeling of
satisfaction in being able to conduct their own investigations and achieve
8
greater results (Chen et al., 2006). We could consider other factors that
extrinsically motivate academic researchers, such as the promotion of
researchers (Backes-Gellner & Schillinghoff, 2004; Chen et al., 2006; Kim
& Bak, 2020; Lissoni et al., 2011; Tien, 2000, 2008) as well as obtaining
salary improvements (Chen et al., 2006; Edgar & Geare, 2013; Kim & Bak,
2020) or certain incentives to publish (Lu, 2021; Ma, 2019, Ryan, 2014).
As the previous arguments highlight, extrinsic motivation allows
researchers to behave in a certain way through external stimuli. The
relationship between extrinsic motivation and performance has received
little attention in the literature, although studies on certain incentives and
performance can serve as guides for the study. Importantly, researchers
respond to both intrinsic and extrinsic motivational perspectives. They have
to pursue their intrinsic motivations to be satisfied in their jobs, just as
universities must construct a system of incentives and promotions to
motivate their researchers in an extrinsic way. Designing appropriate
measures to encourage motivation, both intrinsic and extrinsic, could lead
to greater research results.
Regarding the third dimension, the research opportunity corresponds
to the resources offered by the university for the development of its
activities. Universities also need to provide researchers with certain inputs
(physical resources, financial resources, and scientific and support staff) to
properly conduct investigations (Agasisti et al., 2011; 2012; Khan &
Siriwardhane, 2021; Lee et al., 2021; Schuelke-Leech, 2013). Auranen and
Nieminen (2010) and Van der Weijden et al. (2008) considered certain
contingencies in research performance at the group level, highlighting the
need for certain material resources, such as equipment and job spaces, as
well as the human resources and information resources available to
students. Researchers within their own teams, in addition to their personal
characteristics, can adequately carry out their activities. Researchers need
financial resources as a basis for research (Lee, 2021; Lind, 2020). With
these resources, they can finance certain infrastructures, support personnel,
9
Introduction
and personnel in training, as well as computer programs, electronic

resources, and essential equipment for research. Financial resources are
limited and highly competitive, and are essential for research in the
academic field (Fadda et al., 2021; Hicks & Katz, 2011; Litwin, 2009).
Further, the availability of adequately trained personnel would be an
opportunity to obtain greater scientific contributions. Various studies have
analysed these effects (see, for example, Su, 2011), indicating that
postdoctoral training leads to a higher level of productivity. Furthermore,
Calma (2014) highlighted that one of the main challenges for research is
the construction of a critical mass of researchers, as well as the facilities
and resources that support it. The physical resources available to
investigate either through laboratories prepared for this purpose, or having
prepared equipment with access to databases will be essential to have the
opportunity to research (Chirstensen et al., 2020; Lee et al., 2021). More
experienced laboratories can accumulate higher levels of input, which can
influence their results (Lee et al., 2021; Schuelke-Leech, 2013). Physical
resources facilitate research activity based on experiments in the field of
science and access to previous research with existing databases. Wang et al.
(2006) emphasised that one of the facilitators of the productivity of
academic knowledge is access to information through libraries and
conferences, which promote new lines of research and the production of
new ideas. Studies such as those of Käpylä et al. (2010) identified the
management and use of ICT as the basis of scientific productivity. It would
be necessary to understand the effect of the types of motivation and
opportunity in the relationship between research abilities (human capital)
and performance, since they could improve or worsen it.
Further, research management processes have generated a great deal
of interest in the literature (Beerkens, 2013; Drake et al., 2019; Nguyen et
al., 2020; Nguyen & Van Gramberg, 2018; Piro et al., 2020; Veer-
Ramjeawon & Rowley, 2020). Such management variables have played a
preponderant role in the effectiveness of academic researchers (Beerkens,
10
2013; Nguyen & Van Gramberg, 2018; Piro et al., 2020). The design of
strategies in universities aimed at developing researchers’ human capital is
postulated to be an essential resource for scientific productivity (Webber,
2012). Although it cannot be said that there is consensus on the conclusions
of these studies (Albert et al., 2016), the general idea of the existence of a
relationship between scientific performance and human resources policies
(Nguyen & Van Gramberg, 2018; Pham-Thai et al., 2018) or certain
incentives that promote research (Xu et al., 2021) does seem to emerge.
The design of adequate incentives for research staff allows researchers to
be motivated to boost their research activities exponentially (Horta et al.,
2019; Kenny, 2017). However, authors such as Almubarak (2021) and
Martin-Sardesai and Guthrie (2018) pointed out that rather than the direct
effect of research policies on the level of scientific output, the effect comes
from the researcher’s perception of them. The literature in the field of
human resources highlights the existence of adequate synergies between
jobs and the incentives of the organisation itself. The researchers’
perception of research policies may be essential to obtain greater scientific
contributions by being more satisfied with their job than others. The
literature has not particularised on the type of psychological contract that is
established between the institution and its research staff. By enhancing this
bidirectional relationship, universities design their strategy and policies
with the aim of optimising the scientific performance of their staff,
considering their idiosyncratic particularities (Fumasoli & Lepori, 2011;
Leathwood & Read, 2013; Sá & Tamtik, 2012), as well as the resources to
fund research units (Piro et al., 2020; Benito et al., 2019), which is one of
the main challenges for the development of their scientific strategy (Link &
Müller, 2020). Studies such as those by Kenny (2017) and Horta et al.
(2019) have highlighted the importance for universities of designing a
policy system that promotes research autonomy, flexible professional
opportunities in academic work, and the simplification of administrative
procedures. Appropriate personnel management therefore promotes
11
Introduction
research careers and greatly supports the performance of academic

researchers (Alshaikhmubarak et al., 2020; Laudel & Gläser, 2008;
Sutherland, 2017). Thus, an enabling performance management approach,
based on learnings from management theory, and emphasising engagement,
communication, and staff development, is positively related to the well-
being of academics (Franco-Santos & Doherty, 2017). Researchers need to
understand that research activities are vital to the functioning of university
institutions (Beerkens, 2013; Kyvik, 2013; Pedro et al., 2019). However,
the literature suggests that researchers’ perceptions of university
management measures could be a relevant explanatory factor (Khvatova &
Dushina, 2017). However, little research has addressed researchers’
perceptions at the individual level (Rosewell & Ashwin, 2019; Delaney,
2001). Some studies have attempted to determine the effect of researchers’
perceptions on the management of universities themselves (Castro-Ceacero
& Ion, 2019; Khvatova & Dushina, 2017), research outputs (Bryce et al.,
2020), academic research integrity and behaviours (Huybers et al., 2020) or
engagement (Smeenk et al., 2006). However, most studies have not
sufficiently addressed the effects that perception has on the institutional
incentives that enable them to carry out research activities from an
integrative perspective. According to Bak and Kim (2019) and Jørgensen
and Hanssen (2018), incentives are necessary attributes for research
activity (Xu et al., 2021; Sandoval-Romero & Lariviere, 2020; Kwiek,
2018; Prakhov, 2019; Sandy & Shen, 2019), conditioning those impulses or
stimuli that promote research activity in some way (Ballester et al., 2019).
The incentive system has traditionally been related to the level of
researcher satisfaction (Albert et al., 2018), promoting the achievement of
adequate research results (Kyvik & Akness, 2015). Some seminal research
has focused on these incentives through researcher motivation (Moses,
1986). Academic researchers have traditionally been ‘self-motivated’ by
working in a stimulating environment that allows them to pursue their
research goals from an intrinsic perspective. Research positions are
12
becoming increasingly demanding and challenging over time. Another

important consideration in this context is that the design of research
incentives changes throughout an academic career. Kawaguchi et al. (2016)
suggested that appropriate incentives and job designs for more experienced
researchers increase their research output. Following researcher life-cycle
models, they proposed that the scientific publications of academic
researchers have declined over the years (Costas et al., 2010; Levin &
Stephan, 1991). This decline may be due to the deterioration of the
researcher’s own capabilities and the attenuation of added incentives, such
as promotion and/or attainment of a permanent position in the university.
Furthermore, the design of appropriate incentives will not be the same in
the early stages as at the end of the research career. A noteworthy study in
this area is that developed by Stroebe (2010), in which he concluded that
research output decreases due to the incentives themselves and the
shortening of the planning horizon for this group. Some authors have
shown that long-term contracts can have a negative effect on promotion
opportunities (Harney et al., 2014) and research output (Lafuente &
Berbegal-Mirabent, 2017) due to the disappearance of extrinsic incentives.
It is thus assumed that by stabilising their positions in universities,
researchers will be less motivated to make scientific contributions.
Having described the research field of the present thesis, we propose
the objectives that we want to achieve with the different research works
that compose it.
2. Objectives and research questions

The main objective of this thesis is to achieve a better understanding
of the relationship between human capital and the performance of
university researchers. Further, it aims to analyse the moderating role of
research motivation and opportunity, as well as certain institutional
variables of universities that favour research activity.
13
Introduction
Although human capital has generated great interest in the academy, a

greater understanding of the topic applied in the academic context is still
required. This thesis examines the attributes required for research activities
and how they can affect the performance of the investigation. The thesis
proposes a conceptual framework derived from an examination of the
literature on academic human capital, the attributes that build the KSA
framework of academic researchers, the AMO approach (with A as human
capital), and the extent of their effects on the performance of the research
activity. In this area, our research proposes the existence of a direct
relationship between academic human capital and performance, as well as
motivation and opportunity, as moderating variables that favour this direct
relationship. Further, contextual variables and how universities manage
researchers’ human capital should improve their performance.
Specifically, the objectives of this thesis, which are addressed in the
empirical works, can be summarised as follows:
a) Conceptualise and construct a scale for measuring human capital in

an academic context
Human capital has been conceptualised as the attributes that enhance
organisational performance (Ployhart et al., 2014; Wright, 2021; Wright &
McMahan, 2011). However, only a few studies have analysed human
capital in an integrative way in the field of academic research. Research in
the field has dealt with specific aspects or attributes of the field without
going so far as to analyse those that can influence academic human capital
in an integrative way.
Therefore, the previous discussion reveals two research questions: 1)
What are the attributes of human capital that drive the research activity of
researchers? 2) To what extent does this scale provide valuable information
for management researchers to be useful for application in universities?
Consequently, this thesis aims to propose and validate a specific scale
designed to measure the human capital of academic researchers.
14
b) Analyse the determinants of academic performance from the AMO

approach
Academic human capital is an asset that helps universities generate
sustainable competitive advantages. The AMO approach has determined
that the three dimensions that make it up are basic to organisational
performance. This thesis aims to address the importance of these three
dimensions in the field of academic research. Our research is supported by
studies on the direct relationship between human capital and performance
(Ployhart et al., 2014; Wright, 2021; Wright & McMahan, 2011). We
propose that motivation and opportunity exert a moderating effect on this
relationship. Various investigations in the field of management have
proposed synergistic effects between the variables of the AMO approach
(Bello-Pintado, 2015; Kim et al., 2015). However, our research provides a
new approach in a research context as well as in the establishment of the
potential relationships between the mentioned variables.
The following research questions are addressed in this thesis: 1) What
are the attributes of human capital, motivation, and opportunity that make
up the research activity? 2) To what extent does human capital influence
the performance of academic researchers? 3) Does the motivation of
academic researchers improve the effect of human capital and
performance? 4) Does the opportunity for academic researchers improve
the effect of human capital and performance? To address these questions,
we analysed a moderating relationship between the variables of motivation
and opportunity research and its effect on the relationship directly between
research abilities (academic human capital) and research performance.
c) Analyse the effect of the perception of incentives on research activity

Research policies have been considered fundamental in the scientific
literature (Pham-Thai et al., 2018). However, in organisations, rather than
the policies of human resources, are the perceptions of workers who have
15
Introduction
propelled the performance thereof (Almubarak, 2021; Martin-Sardesai &

Guthrie, 2018). This thesis aims to respond to the importance of these
perceptions in the scientific field. Our research is supported by studies on
academics’ incentives (Xu et al., 2021) and on academics’ financing
(Aagard et al., 2015; Hicks, 2012; Piro et al., 2020). This research proposes
an integrative approach to incentives that can provide greater results for
both researchers and their research groups.
Therefore, from this research, the following research questions arise
that must be addressed: 1) How do academic researchers perceive the set of
incentives for research? 2) How does this perception of incentives
influence research results? 3) What incentives best explain the research
results? 4) What incentives best explain the motivation of researchers to
continue promoting academic research? 5) Are current management
measures effective in acquiring the resources needed for research
activities?
The study aims to describe the incentives that act as drivers of
research activity. It also aims to provide a set of incentives that serve as a
management basis for academic researchers during their academic careers.
These perceived research incentives act as a specific and integrated
measure that enables universities to implement them strategically in a
targeted way to boost research activity.
3. Data and methodology

To carry out the empirical research contained in this thesis, two
databases on academics were constructed: one at a national level, and another a
database of academics at the University of Cadiz. Further, diverse
methodologies, both qualitative and quantitative, were used to test the
hypotheses established in the empirical analysis.
This section describes the data collection procedure and methodology
applied in the empirical analysis of the three contributions provided in the
doctoral thesis. The databases used to contrast the objectives defined in the
16
thesis are briefly explained using qualitative and quantitative methodologies.

The combination of more than one research method contributes to a better
interpretation and understanding of the results obtained (Denzin, 2017;
Hussein, 2009). Qualitative data were obtained from the opinions of a group of
experts in the field. The quantitative methodologies used in each of the
contributions covered by this doctoral thesis are described and include: I)
exploratory factor analysis, II) confirmatory factor analysis, and III) multiple
linear regression models.
Data
Database 1: Academics at the University of Cádiz
Regarding the first source of data, a questionnaire was designed as
part of a broader study that aimed to study academic intellectual capital,
leadership issues, research motivation, timeliness of available and strategic
resources, research incentives, and other demographic issues in the context of
the University of Cadiz. Although the questionnaire was comprehensive, this
thesis did not analyse all the dimensions of intellectual capital; it only focused
on the study of the human capital dimension and therefore only used the items
related to this dimension, as well as those related to the AMO approach and
research incentives.
The questionnaire was constructed as follows: The questionnaire
items were extracted from the literature and from the Delphi methodology
(which will be explained in more detail in the section on methodologies). This
group of 62 experts allowed us to elaborate and agree on the necessary items
for the questionnaire. The questionnaire was then tested with a sample of
researchers from the University of Cadiz. The database of academics from the
University of Cadiz and 62 experts of Delphi methodology were used as a pre-
test for any question that was not understood or that could establish response
bias, as well as for the composition and structure of the questionnaire itself.
The aim of this questionnaire was to validate the questionnaire itself to serve as
a basis for the next national database. All suggestions were incorporated into
17
Introduction
the final version of the questionnaire. At the end of this testing procedure, 22
items related to academic human capital, 6 items related to academic
motivation, 8 items related to research opportunities, and 14 items related to
incentives perceived by academics as drivers of research activity were obtained
for the purpose of this thesis. The questionnaire asked academics to assess the
significance of the measurement items using a 5-point Likert scale (1 strongly
disagree to 5 strongly agree) and to answer a set of supplementary questions
about the functioning of research activity in their research group, as well as the
management of the university itself. Further, each respondent was required to
provide demographic variables to be used as control variables in the different
studies of this thesis, such as areas of knowledge, six-year periods, gender, and
rank, among others.
The designed questionnaire was sent by email to the vice rector of
research for distribution to the academics of the university itself. In this
process, several reminders were sent to potential participants to increase the
sample size. The final sample size of the questionnaire was 425 academics at
the University of Cadiz. Table 1.1. describes the main demographic variables
of the sample.
18
Table 1.1. Sample of academics from the University of Cadiz

VARIABLE %
Field of study Art & Humanities 21.10%
(n = 425) Sciences 33.60%
Health Sciences 11.80%
Law & Social Sciences 24.40%
Engineering & Architecture 9.00%
Academic Full Professor (Catedráticos) 17.4%
rank Professors (Titulares de universidad) 46.60%
(n = 425) Associate Professors (Contratado Doctores) 22.90%
Assistant Professor (Ayudante doctores) 2.40%
Postdoctoral PhD 3.80%
PhD Student 7.10%
Six-year 0 36.20%
research 1 19.70%
periods 2 17.50%
(sexenios de 3 14,00%
investigación) 4 9,10%
(n = 425) 5 3,40%
Gender Female 39.90%
(n = 425) Male 60.80%
Database 2: Academics at Spanish universities

This second database was created to study the variables dealt with in
the previous database from a national perspective. The survey was distributed
to academics at different Spanish universities belonging to all areas classified
as scientific activities by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Technology. To
collect information, a link to the questionnaire was sent by e-mail to the vice-
rectors of research and the department directors of all Spanish universities for
further distribution. The questionnaire was sent with a cover letter describing
the aim of our research project, emphasising the declaration of confidentiality
of the answers. The fieldwork was carried out from January 2017 to October
19
Introduction
2017. As was the case with the sample of academics at the University of Cadiz,
we followed up with several reminders (May and September) to increase the
response rate of our study population. The final sample size of the
questionnaire was 2223 academics (response rate 6.25%) (Table 1.2). The
questionnaire asked academics to assess the significance of the measurement
items using a 5-point Likert scale (1 strongly disagree to 5 strongly agree) and
to answer a set of supplementary questions on group structure and
management.
Further, to obtain the outcome variable, we developed a separate
database that collected the performance of the academics. We collected the
scientific output of each of the academics who had identified themselves by
name or ORCID code in the questionnaire. We obtained scientific output in the
form of publications from the SCOPUS database. This database contains both
the research output of academics and some measures of researcher quality, for
example, the H-index, as well as over various periods (output in the last 5 and
10 years). These measures provide a good outcome variable for the academic
productivity of our sample. However, H-index is not without limitations
(Bihari et al., 2021; Ding et al., 2020; Iglesias & Pecharroman, 2007). For this
reason, the variable of research efficiency, data envelopment analysis (DEA),
was also included in the database. This measure has been used in the literature
to understand efficiency among universities (Abbott & Doucouliagos, 2003;
Altamirano-Corro & Peniche-Vera, 2014; Avkiran, 2001; Ghimire et al., 2021;
Leitner et al., 2007; Sagarra et al., 2017), university departments (Aziz et al.,
2013), and academics (Abramo et al., 2011). The DEA measure constructed in
our research is the researcher’s H-index as a numerator and the years of
researcher experience from an individual perspective as the denominator of the
efficiency measure. With this measure, the aim was to measure efficiency
among academics at a given point in their research careers.
20
Table 1.2. Sample of academics from Spanish universities

VARIABLE %
(n = 2223) Sciences 24.40%
Academic rank Full Professor (Catedráticos) 17.50%
(n = 2223) Professors (Titulares de universidad) 41.70%
Associate Professors (Contratado 13.10%
Doctores) 5.70%
Assistant Professor (Ayudante doctores) 2.80%
Postdoctoral PhD 7.60%
PhD Student 9.50%
Lecturer 2.10
Others
Six-year 0 36.90%
research periods 1 13.80%
(sexenios de 2 16.20%
investigación) 3 15.30%
(n = 2223) 4 10.80%
5 5.10%
6 1.80%
(n = 2223) Male 58.50%
Methodology
To achieve the set research aims, we opted for a mixed analysis in the
design of the research methodology using both quantitative and qualitative
techniques. Studies such as Henwood (2004) have proposed that mutually
exclusive quantitative and qualitative methodological approaches only restrict
21
Introduction
the rigour of the research, as polarising the use of methodological perspectives

limits the search for new ways of achieving or reinventing new forms of
knowledge. The use of qualitative and quantitative methodologies together is
essential for explaining complex realities in the social sciences. As Turner et
al. (2017) and Hernández-Sampieri et al. (2014) indicated, methodological
validity will not lie in the use of one research method or another but will be
conditioned by the quality of the data, the analyses developed, or the
interpretation and conclusions reached by using a methodological perspective
for a specific purpose and in a specific setting. The mixed approach (Figure
1.1) is related to what is known in the methodological literature in the social
sciences as the triangulation or convergent validation of the findings or results
reached in fieldwork (Jick, 1979). Triangulation is the combination of two or
more theoretical or methodological perspectives in the study of a particular
phenomenon (Denzin, 1989). The main rationale of methodological
triangulation suggests that a hypothesis tested and verified by confronting
different methodological perspectives achieves a higher degree of validity than
if it results from a single technique (Cowman, 1993). Social science scholars
argue that the use of a single methodological approach to test propositions
studying a particular social phenomenon can lead to methodological biases in
the data itself or in the researchers’ interpretations (Denzin, 2017; Oppermann,
2000; Smith, 1975). Therefore, quantitative and qualitative methodological
techniques are, as we have previously indicated, perfectly complementary
(Jick, 1979), and combining these techniques allows us to achieve more valid
and rigorous results when crossing and contrasting data. Furthermore, using a
strategy of methodological triangulation allows for more precise answers to
research questions by offering different techniques for generalising results, the
precision of control and measurement of measurement, and the authenticity of
the research context itself (McGrath, 1995). Thus, the weaknesses of one
technique can be complemented by other techniques for the generalisation of
the studied model.
22
Figure 1.1. Methodological triangulation
Methodologica Triangulation
Quantitative
Qualitative
Methodology
Methodology
(EFA,CFA,Multiple Linear
(Delphi Panel)
Regression Models)
Research Objectives
In our research, we applied methodological triangulation through the

use of the Delphi technique as a qualitative methodology and other quantitative
methodological techniques, such as exploratory and confirmatory factor
analysis, as well as multiple regression analysis, which we will describe later.
Qualitative Methodology (Delphi Panel)

Qualitative methodology is designed with the aim of posing questions
that favour a reconstruction of reality as it is perceived and observed by certain
subjects that make up a defined social system (Hernández-Sampieri et al.,
2014). Qualitative techniques have been widely recognised in the literature as
methods for generating new knowledge and evidence that are aimed at
understanding complex issues (Kvale, 2007; Rodríguez-Gómez et al., 1999).
Therefore, in our study, we resorted to these techniques, as it was necessary to
obtain information about the processes surrounding human capital in the field
of scientific research, as well as other dimensions in academia (motivation,
opportunity, incentives, resources needed for research, etc.). This methodology
is necessary in this type of research to clarify the attributes that are important
for the measurement and analysis of the topic to be addressed. Qualitative
methodology allows the researcher to conceptualise or describe facts based on
23
Introduction
non-numerical data collection, with the aim of answering the research

questions. According to Flick (2007), qualitative methods accommodate a set
of research approaches and practices that can be classified according to the
information they provide. We identified (1) methods based on obtaining verbal
evidence, which could be found in qualitative techniques such as interviews or
focus or discussion groups, where information is analysed through
transcription methods; (2) methods focused on making specific descriptions
from observed facts, such as ethnography or observation. In this case,
information is generated from notes developed in case studies or memos that
have been collected from specific observations of groups or processes in their
natural habitat; (3) methods based on transforming and obtaining data through
the analysis of documents contained in texts or photographs; and (4) methods
focused on coding and analysing data, such as conversations generated in a
focus group, or testimonies from interviews. Our research used the first of the
aforementioned methods types, involving expert groups on complex and
unobservable issues in the field of academic research.
This methodology can be classified using the same approach proposed
by Flick (2007), in which the aim is to obtain verbal evidence from expert
subjects. Specifically, the Delphi technique is developed through a structured
and iterative process in which a sample of experts in the field anonymously
share their opinions with the rest of the experts on the issue to be analysed until
consensus is reached (Landeta, 1999; Okoli & Pawlowski, 2004).
Two aspects are essential in this type of analysis (Landeta, 1999;
Okoli & Pawlowski, 2004). First, the issue to be analysed must be set out in a
way that provokes debate and allows a consensus to be reached among experts.
The issues to be addressed in this case were the attributes of human capital,
research motivation and opportunity, research incentives, and determinants of
research performance. To inspire the discussion, a document was designed
consisting of eight open-ended questions covering all aspects of the issues
related to the object of study. The second key element is the identification of
experts who should participate in the panel. In this case, the panel was
24
composed of the principal investigators of the active research groups at the

University of Cadiz. In the selection of the panel members, we followed the
recommendations of Okoli and Pawlowski (2004), who tried to avoid the
response bias and subjectivity problems derived from this type of technique.
To establish a criterion that would allow us to obtain an objective and diverse
sample, we selected leaders of scientific teams that met two conditions: (I)
were recognised by the Spanish National Plan for Scientific Research,
Development and Technological Innovation (National R&D&I Plan), and (II)
had active and continuous research activity, according to their performance
records. Once the database was established, we contacted the leaders of these
scientific teams by telephone: (I) to inform them about the purpose of the
research, (II) to request their active participation, and (III) to communicate the
expected date of sending the study questions telematically. For the present
methodology, 62 valid responses were obtained from research team leaders
from different scientific areas (Table 1.3).
Based on an analysis of the information obtained from the Delphi
panel experts, a final questionnaire was designed. This instrument served as the
basis for the second phase of the study to analyse the validity of the proposed
scale. In the different phases of the data collection process of the experts’
comments, changes were made to the instructions and/or procedures of the
statements to improve the clarity of the questions and the subsequent validity
of the data. By synthesising the opinions after each round, we tried to reach a
consensus within the expert panel, consistent with the objectives of the Delphi
technique (Landeta, 1999; Okoli & Pawlowski, 2004). Therefore, after three
rounds of discussion, we obtained 50 indicators and concretised them into a
research questionnaire, following the design recommendations of Hinkin
(1998).
25
Introduction
Table 1.3. Participant Delphi panel data
VARIABLE %
(n = 62) Sciences 27.42%
Academic rank Full Professor (Catedráticos) 66.13%
(n = 62) Professors (Titulares de universidad) 33.87%
(n = 62) Male 77.42%
Quantitative Methodology
To achieve the research objectives, multivariate techniques common
to this type of research were applied in the development of the empirical
section (Aguinis et al., 2009). Quantitative methodology makes it possible to
obtain relevant information from a sample and to test the research hypotheses
set out in the theoretical review. These techniques are based on measurement
and statistical methods to identify and establish patterns of behaviour. In our
study, as we will describe below, based on the research objectives set out, we
highlighted the exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses through which the
study of variables and underlying constructs was carried out. We also analysed
multiple regressions to determine the causal relationship between the variables
studied.
A) Exploratory factor analysis

The first step of our analysis was to identify an optimal factor structure
using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) techniques. The determination of the
factor structure provided a theoretical understanding of how items from the
different dimensions were grouped together to create one or multiple constructs
26
within the instrument. Given that we did not rely on validated scales in the
literature and no previous studies, we had to check and confirm the construct
validity. To do so, it is useful to start with an exploration of the factor structure
using EFA techniques (Tabachnick & Fidell, 2013). According to the literature,
regardless of how effectively the researcher considers that the item generation
has replicated the theoretical latent variables, it is advisable that the initial and
preliminary validation of an instrument involve empirical assessment of the
underlying factor structure, which in particular would be an EFA (Cabrera-
Nguyen, 2010; Hurley et al., 1997; Rentz et al., 2002; Worthington &
Whittaker, 2006; Yong & Pearce, 2013). However, although an EFA is useful
for determining the dimensionality of an instrument, it only provides evidence
of a theoretical factor structure. With the EFA, the researcher has no prior
information about the number of factors. Thus, EFA is a data reduction
technique and is useful in preliminary analysis when there is an absence of a
specific theory about the relationships of the manifest variables and the
underlying constructs.
Therefore, we applied an EFA to the data obtained from the
questionnaires to identify and eliminate unrelated elements. We used IBM
SPSS 21 software to perform the analysis. The efficiency of the factorisation of
the original variables analysed and the joint significance of the model were
assessed using the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) test and Bartlett’s test of
sphericity. To determine the number of extracted factors, we chose the latent
root criterion (Hair et al., 2006). In this method, particular values (eigenvalues)
are ordered by size, and values equal to unity (1) or greater are retained.
Similarly, a factor solution that accounted for at least 60% of the total variance
was considered satisfactory (Hair et al., 2006). Items that loaded insufficiently
on a factor were removed if (1) different items measured similar realities, or
(2) they did not have strong theoretical or qualitative relevance as indicators of
human capital.
The method for factor extraction was principal component analysis
(PCA). It is true that PCA has had multiple detractors, as some current studies
27
Introduction
in the literature argue that it does not represent a real factor analysis (Costello
& Osborne, 2005; Hair et al., 2010; Steiger, 2004). However, a review of the
literature revealed no consensus on this issue. We found studies suggesting the
restricted use of PCA in favour of a true factor extraction analysis method,
such as maximum likelihood or principal axis factorisation (PAF) (Bentler &
Kano, 1990; Floyd & Widaman, 1995; Mulaik, 1990; Snook & Gorsuch, 1989;
Velicer & Jackson, 1990; Widaman, 1993). By contrast, other authors disagree
and point out that there is no difference between PCA and any of the other
techniques for factor extraction, or even that the application of PCA is
preferable (Arrindell & van der Ende, 1985; Guadagnoli & Velicer, 1988;
Steiger, 1990; Velicer & Jackson, 1990). Fabrigar et al. (1999) suggested that
the relative usefulness of each method depends on the intentions of the
researchers and the distribution of the observed data. Pett et al. (2003) even
pointed to PCA as a good method of extracting factors to obtain preliminary
results if this does not represent the fundamental analysis of the study.
First, under these arguments, it is important to note that in our study,
PCA does not represent the fundamental analysis by which we
comprehensively examine the underlying structure or relationships between
variables. For this, we performed a subsequent confirmatory factor analysis. In
fact, this same procedure has been followed in relevant publications in the
field, such as Way et al. (2015), who used a PCA to subsequently give
consistency to the results through a confirmatory factor analysis. Therefore, we
can consider that the initial exploratory analysis aims to reduce the number of
variables that are highly related to a smaller number of principal components
that account for most of the variance in the observed variables. As indicated in
the literature, it is common to proceed with a subsequent analysis to verify the
underlying structure among the variables that the PCA initially proposes
(Tracey & Tews, 2005; Reio & Shuck, 2015). Therefore, through the
confirmatory factor analysis that we subsequently conducted, we proceeded to
assess the underlying factor structure of the set of variables as well as to detect
and assess the unidimensionality of the theoretical constructs.
28
However, to confirm our decision, in the development of our analyses,

different extraction methods and decision rules were tested and used
simultaneously. PCA, principal axis factorisation, and maximum likelihood
tend to be common extraction strategies that are highly accepted and used in
the social sciences (Conway & Huffcutt, 2003; Onwuegbuzie & Daniel, 2003;
Pett et al., 2003). According to Costello and Osborne (2005), in general,
maximum likelihood and principal axis factorisation provide the best results,
depending on whether the data are normally distributed or significantly non-
normal, respectively. Considering the nature of the Likert scales and the
multivariate non-normal distribution of the variables, the extraction method
that best suited our data a priori was principal axis factorisation (Fabrigar et al.,
1999). The results obtained through this extraction method were similar to
those obtained through PCA. Other methods less used in our field, such as
unweighted least squares, were also tested to obtain similar factor solutions and
factor groups. Therefore, given that the results obtained after testing different
methods were not significantly different and that the factorial solution that
made the most theoretical sense was the one reached in the PCA, we decided to
use this method of factor extraction. As reflected in the literature, there is some
explanation for the similar factorial results obtained in our research. The
discrepancies between the solutions provided by PCA and other factor analysis
methods seem clearer when the number of variables for factor identification is
insufficient, the sample size is small, and the factor loadings are low (Velicer
& Jackson, 1990; Thompson, 2004; Rietveld & Van Hout, 1993). Achieving
stable and replicable solutions is possible as long as factor loadings are high
(>0.6) (Fabrigar et al., 1999; Fidell, 2013; Field, 2000; MacCallum et al., 1999;
MacCallum et al., 2001; Tabachnick & Thompson, 2004). However, as
Osborne and Costello (2004) pointed out, in empirical social science research,
strong factor loadings can be considered loading values greater than 0.5. In our
work, in addition to the fact that we had a large number of variables, the factor
loadings were consistent and significantly high. Therefore, the loading patterns
were remarkably similar across the different extraction and rotation techniques.
29
Introduction
Moreover, the confirmatory factor analysis supported the results of the

exploratory analysis using PCA as the extraction method; thus, it is likely that
these similarities indicate that the scale has a strong factor structure.
One of the elements that characterise exploratory factor analysis is the
rotation method chosen to provide a factorial solution. The ultimate aim of
applying rotation techniques to the solution is to select one that offers the
greatest simplicity in the interpretation of the results obtained (Hair et al.,
2006). In our research, before establishing the orthogonal method (Varimax) as
the rotation technique, several tests were carried out with different rotation
strategies. A review of the literature in the context of scale validation shows
that most works use rotation techniques to extract factors (components) to aid
their interpretation (Reio & Shuck, 2015; Ruscio & Roche, 2012). The
criterion traditionally used to opt for one of the two existing rotation strategies
(orthogonal or oblique) is the researcher’s hypothetical estimation of the
independence or correlation between the supposed factors. Specifically, the
orthogonal rotation method is used in the case of factor independence, while
oblique rotation techniques admit the possible correlation of factors (Fabrigar
et al., 1999; Lloret-Segura et al., 2014; Nunnally, 1978; Reio & Shuck, 2015;
Ruscio & Roche, 2012; Treiblmaier & Filzmoser, 2010). In our work, we
initially estimated that the different factors of each variable were not highly
interrelated. However, to examine possible differences in the results and to
dispel doubts about the estimates regarding the possible intercorrelation or not
between factors, we also checked the use of other oblique rotation methods.
According to these studies, if a priori the construct does not show a clear
correlation between factors or a presumed independent factor structure, the
results will show this orthogonality. If we allow the correlations between
factors to be an oblique approximation, the correlations we obtain will be low.
Lastly, these studies insist that if the correlations obtained are not consistently
high, the analysis should be repeated using an orthogonal solution. Moreover,
if a situation arises in which both solutions are similar, taking into account the
parsimony criterion, it is advisable to admit the orthogonal solution (Ferrando
30
& Anguiano-Carrasco, 2010). Therefore, the analyses were repeated to obtain

an oblique solution (Oblimin). First, the solutions obtained with oblique
rotation were similar (the same percentage of variance was explained). Second,
as expected, no consistent intercorrelation was obtained, and the orthogonality
was reflected in the results obtained. Therefore, following the indications
reviewed in the literature (Fabrigar et al., 1999; Finch, 2006; Henson &
Roberts, 2006; Lloret-Segura et al., 2014; Matsunaga, 2010; Park et al., 2002),
and following the parsimony criterion (Ferrando & Anguiano-Carrasco, 2010),
we accepted the initial orthogonal solution (Varimax). It is important to note
that the rotated solution is fundamentally aimed at achieving the greatest
simplicity and interpretability. As argued by Sass and Schmitt (2010), no
definitive answer can be concluded regarding which rotation criterion produces
the “best” solution. We cannot conclude that there is a consistent criterion for
correct or incorrect rotations. However, it is important to note that the choice of
one method or another method can lead to errors in the construction of theories
(Schmitt & Sass, 2011). Therefore, it is very important to choose a rotation
criterion that provides the easiest results to interpret (Asparouhov & Muthén,
2009). Ultimately, the selection of the method that is most appropriate in terms
of the theoretical meaning of the solution should be made by the researcher
(Browne, 2001; Sass & Schmitt, 2010). That is, the researcher must test the
different factorial solutions following the alternative rotation techniques, and
depending on the results achieved, choose as the best rotation method the one
that shows the factorial solution with the greatest theoretical interpretability
and simplicity (Browne, 2001; Sass & Schmitt, 2010). Following this premise,
after performing the recommended checks, it was also possible to conclude that
the solution that made the most theoretical sense and provided the best
interpretation of the data was the orthogonal solution (Varimax).
B) Confirmatory factor analysis

The second step was to confirm the structure using confirmatory factor
analysis (CFA) methodology. This process determines the internal correlations
31
Introduction
between the items and the behaviour of the dimensions in an integrated

manner. The literature recommends that EFA should be followed by CFA to
evaluate and refine the resulting scales (Farooq, 2016; Gerbing & Anderson,
1988; Lloret-Segura et al., 2014). CFA methods, which use a separate sample,
should be used to support factor structure and provide additional evidence of
construct validity (Cabrera-Nguyen, 2010; Fabrigar & Wegener, 2012;
Worthington & Whittaker, 2006). Therefore, following the usual
recommendations in the literature, CFA was conducted using the responses of
a randomly selected half of the sample so that the results of the EFA were
subsequently confirmed through CFA with the other half of the sample
(Brown, 2014; Lloret-Segura et al., 2014; Nimon et al., 2011).
As previously noted, we relied on the results of the EFA to specify the
factor models used in the CFA. This analysis was used to assess the construct
validity and reliability of subjective measurement instruments and to verify the
goodness of fit of measurement scales (Brown, 2014; Hair et al., 2006). The
sociometric properties of the measurement scale and construct validation were
assessed following the most accepted practice in the literature (Anderson &
Gerbing, 1988; De Vellis, 2003; Hinkin, 1998; Rogers & Wright, 1998).
Specifically, the methodology followed by the most relevant publications in the
field was replicated using the structural equation technique (SEM) as a tool to
validate scales (Chiva et al., 2007; Crucke & Decramer, 2016; Farooq, 2016;
Tracey & Tews, 2005; Way et al., 2015). These analyses were carried out
through structural equations using the statistical software EQS 6.1 for
Windows. The use of SEM is appropriate for the conceptualisation of academic
human capital and AMO dimensions, as it allows for the inclusion of latent
variables that are not directly observable (Mueller 1997; Kline 2015). As
suggested by Chin (1998), these techniques aim to respond to the emerging
need to introduce psychometric variables that are not directly observable in
econometric estimations. Thus, structural equations allow for the modelling of
multiple links between latent variables that are indirectly inferred from a set of
indicators that are directly observable. The development and validation of a
32
construct through SEM has been widely used and accepted by multiple relevant
works in our field (Alegre et al., 2006; Alegre et al., 2009; Chiva et al., 2007;
Crucke & Decramer, 2016; Tracey & Tews, 2005; Way et al., 2015; Yu & Hsu,
2013). This method also provides correlations between factors or dimensions
(Anderson & Gerbing, 1988; Yu & Hsu, 2013). Such analysis allows the
researcher, based on theory, to establish a priori the number of latent variables,
and the relationships between these and the variables that are observable (Hair
et al., 2010).
To carry out the analysis, we constructed a second-order model for each
human capital and AMO dimension with formative indicators through
structural equation modelling. The model for determining a measurement scale
can be formative or reflective. A formative indicator differs from a reflective
indicator in that the former affects the latent variable, whereas in the latter, the
latent variable produces an effect on the indicator. Formative constructs are a
composite of multiple measures (MacCallum & Browne, 1993). Unlike
reflective measures, where a change in the construct affects the underlying
measures, formative constructs work differently—changes in the formative
measures cause changes in the underlying construct (Jarvis et al., 2003). The
indicators that determine a construct are called causal or formative indicators.
Constructs formed by these causal indicators together with a disturbance term
are called formative constructs or composite variables (MacCallum & Browne,
1993). In our research, we postulate this type of formative construct because if
any item or construct of academic human capital were removed, it would
become meaningless as a variable or would not form the construct under study.
For example, if we removed one dimension of human capital (knowledge,
skills, and abilities), the construct would lose explanatory power and could not
be interpreted in its entirety. Therefore, considering the nature of the Likert
scales and the multivariate non-normal distribution of the variables, we used
the elliptical least squares (ELS) estimator (Brown, 2014). In designing our
study, we considered the relationship between the measures and the constructs
to be a formative model.
33
Introduction
Moreover, the fit of each model was assessed by examining

conventional fit indices (Brown, 2014; Kline, 2015). Therefore, indicators such
as the standardised root mean square residual (SRMR), root mean square
error of approximation (RMSEA), comparative fit index (CFI), goodness-of-fit
statistic (GFI), and Tucker-Lewis index (TLI) were used. We also report the
chi-square test statistics divided by the degrees of freedom (c /df) (Hair et al.,
2
2006). To assess model fit, we relied on the guidelines on cut-off values

described by Hair et al. (2006) and Kline (2015). For the c /df ratio, 2
Schumacker and Lomax (2004) suggested a value below 5. For the SRMR,
Hair et al. (2006) argued that values below 0.08 indicate a good fit with the
data. For the RMSEA, Brown (2014) suggested a cut-off value of 0.06, that the
range of 0.8–0.1 indicates a mediocre fit, and that models with RMSEA greater
than 0.1 should be rejected. For the CFI, GFI, and TLI, different authors
indicate that values in the range 0.9–0.95 indicate an acceptable fit, with values
closer to 1.0 indicating a good fit (Brown, 2014; Hair et al., 2006). To assess
convergent validity, the factor loadings provided evidence of adequate
convergence of constructs. Convergent validity is accepted when factor
loadings are greater than 0.5 and t-coefficients are significant (p <0.001)
(Kline, 2015). Lastly, we assessed the internal consistency or reliability of the
scales using Cronbach’s alpha values (Hair et al., 2006; Kline, 2015).
Cronbach’s alpha values above 0.6 were considered acceptable in the social
sciences, according to Hair et al. (2006).
Further, based on the accepted literature on scale development and
construct validation (Hinkin, 1998; DeVellis, 2003), we proceeded to verify the
(i) dimensionality, (ii) validity, and (iii) reliability of the scale. The
dimensionality of the scale ensures that the factor structure used to conceive
the latent variable is correct. A good fit of the measurement model would
support the proposed factor structure (Yu & Hsu, 2013). Therefore, a second-
order CFA was conducted to confirm dimensionality. The loadings of the
measurement items on the first-order factors and the loadings on the first- and
second-order factors were all significant at p <0.001. All estimated parameters
34
were statistically significant, and factor loadings were reasonably high,

obtaining values well above the minimum recommended values (Hair et al.,
2010; Tippins & Sohi, 2003). Therefore, the proposed dimensionality of the
three dimensions of human capital (knowledge, skills, and abilities) and AMO
(abilities, motivation, and opportunities) was supported by the correct fit of the
second-order factor model. The root mean square residual (RMR) was close to
0, and the goodness of fit index (GFI) was above the recommended minimum
of 0.9. The Bentler–Bonett normative fit index (BBNFI) exceeded the
recommended acceptance threshold of 0.9. The normed chi squared (NC) fell
between 1 and 2, indicating an excellent parsimonious fit. The comparative fit
index (CFI) exceeded the recommended value of 0.9 for all three measurement
models, indicating a good model fit and confirmation of the scale’s
dimensionality. Validity ensures that the scale satisfactorily measures what it is
intended to measure. The convergent validity of a concept implies that the
measure used has a high correlation with other measures that assess the same
concept (Churchill, 1979). CFA was used to establish convergent validity by
confirming that all scale items loaded significantly on their hypothesised
construct factors (Anderson & Gerbing, 1988). Convergent validity is accepted
when factor loadings are greater than 0.4, and t-coefficients are significant, that
is, greater than 1.96. We also considered the Bentler–Bonett coefficient, which
should be higher than 0.9 (Hair et al., 2010). Furthermore, a measurement scale
is considered to have content validity if its items are representative of the
construct it intends to measure, and are easy to answer (Bearden & Netemeyer,
1999, p. 4). Consequently, the generation of the dimensions and items that
make up the measurement scale of the dimensions of academic human capital
and AMO are based on previous theoretical arguments, such as the qualitative
evidence obtained through the Delphi panel. By pre-testing with different
academic experts, we ensured that the items and indicators were clear and
understandable. Therefore, we determined that the proposed scale comprised
the integrative nature of the studied topic.
35
Introduction
Lastly, reliability is an indication of the degree to which a measure is

free of random error and therefore produces consistent results. This property
could be thought of as the difference between the true variance and the
variance of the observed variable. For a comprehensive reliability assessment,
we used Cronbach’s alpha coefficients. The Cronbach’s alpha coefficients in
our studies were satisfactory, as they were higher than 0.7 (Hair et al., 2010,
2006; Kline, 2015; Nunnally, 1978).
C) Multiple linear regression models

The empirical research attempts to explain how research performance is
affected by academic human capital by exploring the potential moderating role
of research motivation and opportunities. Therefore, to establish the possible
relationships that occurred between the dependent variable and the different
independent variables in the studies, we used multiple linear regression
analysis.
Multiple linear regression analysis is closer to complex phenomena
than simple ones, since it explains these facts through a series of variables that
participate in their concretion. Through this analysis, we can identify the
different causal elements (independent variables) that explain a dependent
variable, compare different causal models simultaneously, or approximately
predict the behaviour or values of a variable (Cohen et al., 2014). As in the
cases described above, we used IBM SPSS 21 to estimate the parameters of the
equations that make up the linear regression model. To obtain the regression
coefficients, we followed the least squares criterion (Hayes, 2013), which
involves minimising the sum of the squares of the residuals. Thus, the
regression line defined is the one closest to the observed point cloud and,
hence, the one that best symbolises the observed points. To reduce potential
bias and contextual differences between the dependent variables, it was
decided to create a generalised linear model with the variable “university”.
This regression analysis involves clustering the standard errors according to a
variable that categorises their relationships. We performed this analysis to
36
understand the reasons for the existence of problems in the sample due to
differences in the data according to the universities from which they originated.
We believe that neither academic human capital nor motivation should differ at
the university level. Although universities can foster the development of
academic human capital and motivation, these dimensions are intrinsic aspects
of the academic him/herself. However, academics’ opportunities could
certainly be affected by their universities, which suggests that the available
resources may be more substantial in some universities than in others. This
regression model is considered more cautious because it considers this type of
standard error clustered by university. In this sense, we can conclude that
standard errors are not a problem in our study. To explain the model and
reduce possible omitted variable bias (OVB), we used academic career
seniority as a control variable due to its contrasting potential effect on
scientific productivity (Amara et al., 2020; Mwesigwa et al., 2020).
Furthermore, as mentioned above, the direct relationship between human
capital and performance was incorporated into the model, thereby including the
indirect or moderating variables of motivation and research opportunity in the
final model.
To assess the goodness of fit of the data to the linear multiple

regression model, we used statistics widely accepted in the literature (Cohen et
al., 2014; Hayes, 2013). For example, we assessed the (1) multiple correlation
coefficient R, which measures the magnitude of the relationship between a set
of independent variables and the dependent variable. Following standard
procedures, the variable with the highest partial correlation, in this case, the
human capital of the academic, was introduced into the model. To this end, the
partial correlation matrix was initially calculated, observing the
interrelationship between the independent variables and their relationships with
the dependent variable. To identify biases caused by multicollinearity
problems, we also checked that the correlation between the independent
variables was not very high. Other indicators were also considered, such as the
37
Introduction
(2) coefficient of determination (R2), which measures the percentage of
variability of the dependent variable that can be explained by the independent

variables that make up the regression model. The increase in this indicator in
reference to the independent variables added to the model may be an indicator
that shows the estimated predictive importance of this new independent
variable. Furthermore, (3) standard errors of prediction were also evaluated,
which indicate the part corresponding to the variability of the dependent
variable that cannot be explained by the regression model. Therefore, the
higher the levels of the coefficient of determination, the smaller the errors.
The goodness of fit of the regression model was also assessed through
(4) analysis of variance. It is possible to assess the validity of the regression
model for estimating the dependent variable. The analysis of variance
(ANOVA) was carried out using the ANOVA provided by the F statistic. This
statistic is used to test whether the slope of the regression line is null (Ho)—
that is, whether the variables are uncorrelated in each of the models that make
up the multiple linear regression. If in this statistical test the p-value is less than
the significance level (0.05), the null hypothesis is rejected. This indicates that
the findings obtained in our sample can be generalised to the population
context to which our sample belongs. Lastly, we considered the (5) analysis of
the residuals, which are considered to be the estimation of the errors.
Sometimes, there may be a certain correlation between the two variables,
despite the fact that this relationship is strongly non-linear in nature. Therefore,
the residuals were evaluated to check whether the linear regression model and
goodness of fit were adequate. For the model to be adequate, the distribution of
the variable representing the residuals must be normal, but the residuals must
also be independent and uncorrelated. To assess these conditions, the plot of
the typed residuals was checked to determine how the residuals were
distributed. If most of the points lie on the diagonal without being scattered,
there are not many residuals, indicating a worse fit. Importantly, the Durbin–
Watson statistic that assesses the degree of autocorrelation between the
38
residuals in the model was also tested. If the residuals are independent, the
observed value of one variable should not be affected by the observed values of
the same variable in other subjects. Values of this statistic close to 2 indicate
that the residuals are uncorrelated, which shows a better goodness of fit for the
regression model. However, values close to 4 suggest that they are negatively
autocorrelated, and if they are close to 0, they are positively autocorrelated.
4. Structure and content of the thesis

This thesis presents an empirical analysis across three papers. The
empirical analysis contains an explanation of the methodology used in the
research and the results obtained. The hypotheses established in the proposed
model are contrasted.
In the first of the empirical studies, to develop and validate a tool to
measure human capital in the academic context, the stages established in the
literature for the validation of measurement scales were developed. The
literature review provided an overview of previous research efforts to measure
academic human capital. This review revealed that there was a lack of tools or
instruments to evaluate this construct in a purely scientific research context.
Studies in the field have not described in an integrated way the specific
attributes that make up academic human capital. This lack of tools in the
literature is even more evident when we search for the specific measurement
and management of the human capital of researchers in different fields of
knowledge. Therefore, to build an initial set of indicators, we needed to resort
to the generic literature that addressed human capital in the organisational
context (Ployhart et al., 2014; Wright, 2021; Wright & McMahan, 2011),
which describes the existence of three dimensions of human capital:
knowledge, skills, and abilities. Given this lack of theoretical support, we
decided to combine the deductive approach of the literature review with
additional inductive evidence (Hinkin, 1998). Thus, the proposed scale
39
Introduction
contributes by conceptualising new variables that could be used to deepen and

broaden the study of the determinants of research performance. The
contextualisation of the human capital approach can also help to assess the
value of intangibles, offering an external reporting tool, making universities’
social contributions more visible to public and private stakeholders, and
justifying the efforts made by societies in the generation of academic
knowledge.
In the second of the empirical studies, we analysed the relationship
that exists between each of the dimensions of human capital and the level of
scientific productivity of the researcher, using academic motivation and the
opportunity of the availability of resources as moderating variables. The
present study aims to analyse the AMO approach in the field of university
research. To test our hypotheses, we used multiple regression analysis. The
extracted factors in the measurement analysis were introduced into multiple
regression models as interaction terms to test the hypotheses established in the
previous section. The contributions of this paper also offer interesting
implications for both academics and research institutions because they provide
evidence of the internal behaviour of academic researchers and how they affect
academic performance. The conceptualisation of AMO by the researcher also
offers a management tool by providing a self-assessment instrument in the
academic context. These findings contribute to drawing a general image of
how individual and collective attributes improve the research performance
extracted from them. Thus, the results of the study also have interesting
implications for both research team leaders and decision-making within
universities, and the proposal of policies that manage the research.
In the third of the empirical studies, we analysed the relationship that
exists between researchers’ perceptions of research incentives that allow
greater scientific productivity as well as their motivation. The present study
attempted to analyse the perceptions of suitable incentives at the research
university. To reduce the number of items, an EFA was carried out. After the
EFA, we obtained a total of four incentives that were perceived as fundamental
40
to the research activity. The contributions of this paper also offer interesting
implications for both academics and research institutions because they provide
evidence of the incentives of academic researchers and their perceptions in the
field of academic research. The conceptualisation of incentives by academic
researchers offers a management tool by providing an instrument for
measuring and assessing the incentives that drive the research results and the
motivation of researchers. These findings help to draw a clear, general picture
of how the specific attributes of research incentives drive research results in
some way.
Lastly, general conclusions are drawn to highlight potential conceptual
and empirical limitations that have been identified throughout the study. The
results obtained in the quantitative analysis (first, second, and third empirical
studies) should be considered in light of a series of limitations that allow us to
better understand the significance of the conclusions drawn, as well as to
qualify certain aspects of the investigation. Among the conclusions that can be
drawn are that universities, as well as their academics, need to be analysed in
depth. Academics need to be understood to promote measures that boost their
performance. The findings support the idea that the human capital management
of academics and their motivations must be considered for the contributions of
science, and the opportunities offered by the university to support research.
Among the conclusions drawn, we can highlight that academics’ perceptions of
researchers contribute to the satisfaction and impulse of research. We conclude
this work with the proposal of a series of future research ideas that will allow
us to deepen and continue with the opened research line. In this section, we
propose future studies that mainly pertain to certain criteria, such as the use of
different study variables that can provide new contributions, the use of a single
respondent, and the use of different research methodologies to corroborate the
results. These future investigations will allow us to further explore new
contributions and analyse more complex and deeper questions in this field of
study.
41
EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS
Paper 1
Academic human capital in universities: Definition and

proposal of a measurement scale
* García-Carbonell, N., Guerrero-Alba, F., Martín-Alcázar, F., & Sánchez.Gardey, G:

(2021). Academic human capital in universities: Definition and proposal of a
measurement scale, Science and Public Policy, 48(6), 877-888.
Academic human capital in universities: Definition and proposal of a
measurement scale
Abstract
Academic human capital (AHC) is a key element in the explanation of scientific

productivity. However, few studies have analysed this topic in the academic context,
and their conclusions about composition and measurement remain ambiguous. This
study proposes a measurement scale to assess AHC, following a systemic procedure
composed of two steps: qualitative and quantitative phases. First, the Delphi technique
was applied to reach a consensus on the AHC factors, resulting in a scale of 22 items.
Secondly, exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to determine
the underlying factorial structure of the scale, using a sample of 2,223 researchers in
Spanish universities. The results provided a five-dimensional structure of AHC,
measuring the knowledge and abilities required to perform research activities, as well
as skills related to the organization of scientific processes, alertness to research
opportunities, and the openness to provide and receive criticism. This study poses
interesting challenges for knowledge management in universities.
Keywords: human capital, academic research, university, scale development
47
Paper 1: Academic human capital in universities: Definition and proposal of a
measurement scale
1. Introduction
In the last decade, European universities have experienced a sustainably steady growth
in their academic staff, close to 12 per cent per year, and an increase in investment of
around 12.21 per cent in Gross domestic product (GDP) (Pruvot et al. 2017). However,
universities have not always reached the desired levels of research productivity,
suggesting the existence of certain inefficiencies in their management research policies
(Bandola-Gill, 2019; Fussy, 2018; Edgar & Geare, 2013). The design of strategies
oriented at generating, disseminating, and transferring knowledge to society is
particularly relevant for universities (Dang et al. 2019; Yeo 2018; Almeida et al. 2019;
Berbegal-Mirabent et al. 2013). This study considers academic human capital (AHC) to
be a strategic resource (Thienput et al. 2015). Therefore, universities should reorient
their recruitment policies by looking for academic staff who fit their academic goals. To
this end, universities must be able to identify the right attributes that interest them and
then assess them.
The literature on AHC is, to a very extent, disperse and disconnected. As a result, there
are varied approaches to the conceptualization of AHC, making the topic particularly
complex. Few studies have proposed a systematic classification of the works in the area
(Ballesteros-Rodríguez et al. 2020). Consequently, such a diversity of approaches leads
to a lack of consensus on the attributes conforming to the concept and on those specific
measures of human capital in academia as well. In fact, there is no explicit measure that
contains, in an integrated manner, the dimensions of AHC to explain their effects on
scientific productivity.
Therefore, the objective of this study is to propose and validate a measurement

instrument that enables the assessment of human capital in academic staff. Despite the
existence of studies focused on examining intellectual capital in the academic context
(de Frutos-Belizón et al. 2019), the present research aims to go a step further, deepening
the analysis of AHC from an individual perspective. To do so, we applied the traditional
and widely accepted knowledge-skills-abilities (KSA) framework. The proposed
measurement scale offers a self-assessment or evaluation to be applied to the university
48
context, which can be effective in shaping decision-making in the academic research

process.
Due to the particularities of this research, to design the mentioned scale and to ensure its
validity and quality, we followed a systemic procedure composed of two steps (Hinkin
1998; DeVellis 2003): qualitative and quantitative phases. First, the qualitative research,
including the design and content validity of the human capital questionnaire, was
conducted. The questionnaire was designed using the consensus opinion of an expert
panel about relevant issues for measuring human capital in the academic research. The
questionnaire was composed of 22 items related to the KSA framework in the research
context.
Second, the quantitative phase was performed via exploratory and confirmatory
analysis. In the first step, an exploratory analysis was performed to generate factors
from the set of 22 items constituting the factor structure of the model. Then, a
confirmatory factorial analysis was performed to confirm the psychometric properties of
the scale.
The contribution of this paper is twofold: 1) the measurement scale, which is based on
the panel of experts, is developed to provide specific human capital attributes in the
academic context; and 2) a set of relevant managerial implications because the proposed
scale may be particularly useful by providing guidelines to manage and strengthen AHC
from an integrative perspective and therefore improve researchers’ scientific
productivity.
This paper is structured as follows: (1) we review the existing literature on human
capital in the academic context; (2) we describe the empirical analysis, including the
design of the questionnaire to measure human capital in the academic context, the
sample, and scale validity; and (3) we discuss the findings and limitations of the study.
2. Academic human capital: The KSA framework
Although general human capital theories have conceptualized and studied the construct
from multiple theoretical perspectives (Fulmer & Ployhart 2014), the differentiation
49
measurement scale
between knowledge, skills, and abilities (Becker 1962; Schultz 1963) is the most
frequently used way of defining human capital at the individual level (Nyberg et al.
2014). This classification assumes that the three dimensions build different aspects of
human capital with different effects on the results (Fleishman & Reilly 1992). One of
the most relevant contribution of this framework is that AHC components have a
synergistic behaviour between them (Bartram and Roe, 2005; Nonaka and Von Krogh,
2009). The complementarities-synergistic factors of human capital enhance the value
that can be derived from a given stock (Ployhart et al., 2014; Wright et al., 2014; Ennen
& Ritchter 2010). In the research context, this approach is especially interesting in
clarifying the combination of attributes of academic researchers that are necessary to
develop efficient research and how the complement of these attributes adds value to the
research activity. Drawing on this approach, we will begin clarifying and defining each
of the AHC dimensions, with the objective of delineating the attributes that define
knowledge, skills, and abilities in the academic research context.
2.1. Knowledge
Despite the relevance of knowledge as a crucial resource for innovation and economic
success, it is one of the most unclear concepts in the management literature (Meyer &
Sugiyama 2007). As the literature points out, ‘knowledge’ has been conceptualized
from a variety of perspectives in different disciplines. Consequently, there is not a
broadly accepted definition for it, leading to an imprecise and vague understanding of
the concept (Alvesson & Kärreman 2001).
One of the first attempts to define ‘knowledge’ was from a philosophical perspective,
describing knowledge as a ‘justified true belief’, where ‘truth’ is a required feature of
knowledge to distinguish it from errors (Meyer & Sugiyama, 2007:18). However, to
delimit the concept to the management context, a more pragmatic definition is needed
(Gourlay, 2006a).
Accordingly, Nonaka et al. (2000) introduced and adapted Polanyi’s (1966) ideas to the
management discipline. In particular, Nonaka et al.’s definition differentiated technical
from cognitive tacit knowledge to give Polanyi’s concepts a more practical perspective
(Gourlay, 2006a). Thus, the traditional and most commonly used notion of knowledge
50
in management and organizational studies understands knowledge as a “certain justified

belief” (Nonaka et al. 2000: 7). This definition distinguishes between the objective “true
belief” and subjective “justified belief” aspects of the concept. On the one hand, the
objective part understands knowledge as a representative object of the world,
independent of human perceptions. This knowledge exists in a wide variety of forms
and locations (Hedlund, 1994). On the other hand, the subjective dimension of
knowledge depends on human experience, through which people individually develop
meanings and concepts from social relations, losing their universal and objective
character (Nonaka et al. 2000; Sabherwal & Becerra-Fernández 2003).
Regarding the conceptualization of knowledge in the present study, in addition to
Nonaka and colleagues’ considerations of knowledge in the management literature, we
assumed that, in the university context, knowledge should also integrate different
aspects. In particular, as part of the AHC concept, knowledge will imply not only a
certain justified belief and meaningful information (Nonaka et al. 2000; Nonaka &
Takeuchi 1995), but also experience, context, reflection, and interpretation (Davenport
et al. 1998), obtained through formal education (Ployhart & Moliterno 2011), analysis
and reading of specific theories and explications, and empirical results (Bozeman et al.
2001).
The second particular issue around knowledge delimitation is clarifying the types of
knowledge that may exist. Despite it is possible to find some different labels in the
literature to refer to kind of knowledge, there seems to be wide acceptance of the
distinction between two fundamental and connected types of knowledge: tacit and
explicit (Hautala 2011; Gourlay 2006a). Tacit knowledge–also known as scientific
knowledge (Bozeman et al. 2001; Ulrich & Dash 2013)–is embedded in procedures,
routines, actions, or ideas and can, therefore, be shared in a systematic way through
language, dates, specifications, and manuals (Griffith & Sawyer 2010; Gourlay 2006b;
Nonaka et al. 2000). Other approaches have used different labels for the same concept;
tacit knowledge has been called knowledge-how, implicit, or procedural knowledge.
Explicit knowledge has also been termed knowledge-that, declarative, or propositional
knowledge (Sahdra & Thagard 2003). Others, such as Whitehill (1997), used know-how
to identify tacit knowledge and know-what for explicit. In the university context, Lovitts
(2005) classified knowledge into two complementary categories: formal knowledge,
which is linked to the knowledge-that, and informal knowledge or knowledge-how. The
51
measurement scale
first suggests that the academic researcher has acquired a broad and deep knowledge of
their discipline. The second proposes that informal knowledge is procedural in nature
and involves possessing scripts, metaphors, and semantic qualifiers in specialist
languages. Informal knowledge draws on practical intelligence and is about knowing
how.
Following the mentioned classification, we introduce tacit and explicit knowledge using
the labels knowledge-how and knowledge-that, respectively. We refer to knowledge-how
(tacit knowledge) as the theoretical body of a discipline, the theories and assumptions
that compose it (Bozeman et al. 2001), and specialist knowledge in a topic, combined
with general knowledge in the subject area (Lee et al. 2010).
To define knowledge-that (explicit knowledge), we consider that applied or explicit

knowledge would be related to the language used in the scientific text of a certain field
of knowledge (Prpic, 1996; Ulrich & Dash, 2013; Gilmore et al. 2006; Jönsson, 2006).
And, additionally, as a complement to this, academic researchers should also have the
necessary knowledge in the methodology and research techniques used in the area
(Bozeman et al. 2001; Mooken & Sugden, 2014).
2.2.Skills and Abilities

The literature on skills and abilities in the academic context is disconnected and lacking
consistent conclusions. Consequently, there is an intense debate about the differences
between the both concepts. To avoid ambiguity, we base this section on Van der Heijde
and Van der Heijden’s (2006) proposal to differentiate skills and abilities conceptually.
Therefore, skills as those individual capabilities related to the execution of tasks have a
generic character and mostly reflect what has been learned through formal education
(Ployhart & Moliterno 2011).
On the other hand, abilities are defined as the potential of individuals for the adequate
performance of the different tasks that form a certain profession (Lindberg & Rantatalo
2015), acquired by experience in the workplace. These abilities rest on the knowledge,
skills, and attitudes of individuals (Bartram & Roe 2005). In contrast to skills, abilities
are applicable to a specific workplace, creating an interaction between the individual
52
and that particular workplace (Ellström & Kock, 2008). According to Van der Heijde
and Van der Heijden’s (2006), when referring to skills, the focus is on the general
character of an attribute to be applied in diverse work environments (i.e. proactiveness
or team working). By contrast, abilities are research context-focused; that is, they are
related to attributes that are common and relevant to do research (i.e. ability to integrate
theoretical frameworks, ability to critically discuss findings, etc.)
Although they are theoretically considered to be different concepts (Fleishman &

Reilly, 1992), empirical evidence is not yet clear (Nyberg et al. 2014). Most studies in
the academic context focus on single or a few disconnected attributes that can be
grouped into two main lines of work: 1) cognitive abilities and other skills, closely
linked to the research activity, and 2) behavioural attributes, with a wider character and
applicable not only to the research context, but also to many other work environments.
The first group includes studies on cognitive abilities such as mathematical reasoning
(Bozeman et al. 2001); research skills such as data collection, identification research
problem, and creativity (Marie, 2008); cognitive abilities such as conclusion drawing
(Timmerman et al. 2011); and ability to communicate skills (Mayrath, 2008; Barnacle
& Dall’Allba, 2014; Thunnissen & Van Arensbergen, 2015; Wang et al. 2006).
Second, another set of studies pays particular attention to behavioural attributes such as
researcher’s motivation (Ryan & Berbegal-Mirabent, 2016), vocation, and passion
(Neumann, 2006; Mayrath, 2008) for their work, as well as some intrinsic interest in
research (Bentley & Kyvik, 2013) or unethical behaviours (Grant et al. 2018) such as
duplications of studies (Bell & Bryman, 2007), data manipulation (Kintisch, 2005) or
plagiarism (De Vries et al. 2006).
By contrast, only a few studies offer a comprehensive classification of the attributes

applicable to the academic field to allow clarification of the specific composition of
research skills and abilities (Durette et al. 2016; McNie et al. 2016). The works of
Ulrich and Dash (2013) and Thunnissen and Van Arensbergen (2015) are notable
exceptions. Ulrich and Dash (2013) distinguished between research abilities (ability to
formulate a research issue, capability for analysis), team, and project management skills
(communication skills, languages, teamwork, etc.), and interpersonal skills (creativity,
motivation, commitment, adaptability, etc.). Thunnissen and Van Arensbergen (2015)
classified skills and abilities into three categories: abilities (critical, open to feedback,
53
measurement scale
tolerant to criticism, reflective, cooperation skills), intrapersonal characteristics

(motivation, perseverance, passion for science, ambition), and performance
(international experience). These studies, although interesting, only present analyses of
different researchers’ abilities, skills, and other attributes linked to research activity,
leading to partial conclusions.
The former theoretical review allows us to reach the main conclusions to reinforce the
contribution of our study. First, most of the studies focus on analysing one or a few
isolated attributes, so what neither describes and tests a comprehensive profile of
academic abilities and skills as well as nor clearly distinguishes (Nyberg et al., 2014)
and, second, there is a need for clarification around the differences between skills and
abilities, empirically speaking.
Thus, a broader approach is necessary to analyse how these elements are complemented
and integrated with knowledge to generate synergistic effects that improve researchers’
capability to perform research activities.
3. Empirical study
3.1. Qualitative stage: Scale design

Drawing on the distinction between knowledge, skills, and abilities (Ployhart &
Moliterno, 2011), we developed a scale to measure AHC with a first qualitative step,
designed to get a deeper look at the construct and define an initial set of items.
To do so, we used the Delphi technique to reach a consensus among specialists on the
factors that build AHC. The Delphi technique encompasses a structured, iterative
process in which experts share their anonymous opinions in subsequent phases
(Landeta, 2006; Schmidt, 1997). Our objective was to identify relevant indicators to
assess AHC, motivating in-depth discussions of the emerging and unexplored
dimensions of the construct. The experts received a form consisting of eight open-ended
questions about intellectual capital in academia and other questions about research
activity (group functioning, research policies, resources, and results). As the literature
widely recognized, the intellectual capital construct includes three different dimensions:
54
human capital, social capital, and structural capital (Roos et al., 1997). The present
study only pays particular attention to the human capital dimension because of its focus
on the micro/individual level of analysis.
Examples of the designed questions are: “In your opinion, what knowledge, skills, and
abilities should a researcher have to develop his/her research activity efficiently?”; In
the research, what role, if any, do the relationships that a researcher establishes with
other researcher–both within our university and outside it (research networks, personal
relationships with researchers from other universities, scientific meetings, etc.)? How
important are they? Do they include researchers from other areas of knowledge?” .
The Delphi panel contained 62 scholars who led research groups at Spanish universities.
They were chosen because of their knowledge and contrasting experience in the
development and management of scientific processes, as well as project and research
team management. Different areas of knowledge were represented in the panel to avoid
biases of response and the subjectivity problems derived from this type of technique
(Okoli & Pawlowski, 2004). Descriptive statistics for the qualitative stage are shown in
Table 1.
Table 1: Descriptive statistics of the qualitative stage

Variable Descriptive statistics %
Gender Female 22.58
(n=62) Male 77.42
66.13
Academic rank Full professor 33.87
(n=62) Professor
32.26
Field of knowledge Arts and humanities 27.42
(n=62) Sciences 14.52
Health sciences 9.68
Social sciences and Legal sciences 16.13
Engineering and Architecture
Several rounds of discussion were needed to reach consensus. In the first two rounds, an
open question accompanying all the statements asked the respondents to include as
much information as they considered relevant. In this first phase, according to the
purpose of this study, the experts were specifically asked about AHC, and they sent
their responses to the following question via email: “In your opinion, what knowledge,
55
measurement scale
skills, and abilities should a researcher have to develop his/her research activity
efficiently?”. The information was collected, analysed, and discussed by our research
team. In this first phase, 40 AHC attributes were obtained.
In the second phase, a new document, including the 40 AHC attributes obtained in the
first round, was sent to the experts to be confirmed. In this phase, the experts chose
those attributes that they considered relevant to define AHC. In addition, this document
includes a section to collect experts’ suggestions, clarifications, or questions of interest.
The received information and suggestions were analysed, which allowed us to design a
questionnaire about not only AHC but also its effects on scientific results.
In the last round, the questionnaire was refined, and experts were asked about the final
version of the items. The required consensus was obtained in 22 items. All items were
integrated in a Likert-type survey with a 5-point response format (1 = completely
disagree and 5 = completely agree). It was completed with questions about the
respondent’s demographic profile. Prior to the survey, a pre-test was conducted among
a group of researchers to discard any incidents in the design and drafting of each one of
the items. We then developed procedures to control for possible biases based on
recommended studies, such as Conway and Lance (2010) and Podsakoff et al. (2003),
and concluded that common method bias (CMB) may not be a serious concern. In
particular, we reduced the ambiguous and unclear items, vague concepts, and complex
wordings during the expert panel and survey design stages to minimize the CMB
problems. Moreover, we submitted our questionnaire for a pre-test to explain each item
and clarify the questionnaire design, again reducing the CMB problems. Table 2
provides an overview of the accepted items and the classification of their dimensions of
AHC. This instrument represents the first step in the scale development process and
serves as a starting point for subsequent confirmatory analyses.
56
Table 2: Initial scale extracted from Delphi panel.
Item
HC1 I have the theoretical training necessary to research in my
scientific field
HC2 I have the necessary training in research methodologies and
techniques
HC3 I know the most relevant publications in my scientific field
HC4 I have the required capacity to obtain and manage the
information necessary for research
HC5 I master the language usually used in journals/books and in
scientific meetings in my academic field
HC6 I am able to identify research topics in my research context
HC7 I can relate the observed facts to the results obtained, and draw
conclusions
HC8 I can autonomously develop research
HC9 I know how to conduct research (thesis, research projects, etc.)
HC10 I can present and discuss my research results
HC11 I have the ability to interact fluently with other researchers
HC12 I am able to adapt to changes in my research context
HC13 I consider myself a self-critical person
HC14 I consider myself a person with the ability to accept criticism
from others
HC15 I consider myself an organized person
HC16 I consider myself an observer
HC17 I consider myself a person motivated by research
HC18 I consider myself a creative person
HC19 I consider myself a persevering person
HC20 I consider myself an altruistic person
HC21 I consider myself a person with initiative
HC22 I consider myself a disciplined person
3.2.Quantitative stage: Scale confirmation
3.2.1. Sample
Data used to test scale design were collected though a self-administered online
questionnaire delivered to Spanish academic researchers in all the different fields of
knowledge. To identify and contact potential respondents, we contacted the vice rector
for the researcher to send the questionnaires. The Vice-rector for Research at our
university emailed Vice-rectors for Research at other Spanish public universities to
57
measurement scale
explain our research and to request the collaboration of their academics to respond the
survey. We have included a cover letter that briefly explained the purpose of the study.
The email specified that the survey should be responded to those researchers who had
research results in previous years or had research activity among their functions. Each
item was measured using Likert scales ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly
agree). To guarantee anonymity, no personal identifying information was requested
from respondents. As regards the statistical method, we carried out the Harman one-
factor test. Several factors emerged from this analysis, suggesting that CMB does not
significantly affect the empirical analysis (Podsakoff et al. 2003). After analysing the
data and eliminating all incomplete cases, we counted 2223 usable questionnaires
(response rate of 6,25%). Descriptive statistics and correlations for the whole sample are
shown in Tables 3 and 4.
Table 3: Descriptive statistics of quantitative stage.
Variable Descriptive statistics %

Gender Female 41.50
(n=2080) Male 58.50
Academic Rank Full professor 17.50
(n=2061) Professor 41.70
Associate professor 13.10
Assistant professor 5.70
Postdoctoral PhD 2.80
PhD Student 7.60
Lecturer 9.50
Others 2.10
Field of knowledge Arts and Humanities 21.10
(n=1964) Sciences 24.40
Health sciences 12.70
Social sciences and Legal sciences 23.30
Engineering and Architecture 18.50
58
Table 4: Correlation matrix of the AHC scale.
Variable M DT 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22
HC1 4.49 .705 1

**
.684 1
HC2 4.24 .823
** **
HC3 4.35 .791 .521 .546 1

** ** **
HC4 4.43 .724 .569 .627 .608 1
** ** ** **
HC5 4.10 .953 .332 .371 .386 .435 1

** ** ** ** **
.516 .476 .512 .526 .302 1
HC6 2.36 1.348
** ** ** ** ** **
HC7 3.75 1.287 .555 .513 .502 .558 .322 .693 1

** ** ** ** ** ** **
.494 .489 .449 .538 .296 .574 .630 1
HC8 4.46 .693
** ** ** ** ** ** ** **
HC9 4.54 .630 .467 .461 .465 .490 .266 .533 .551 .675 1
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **
.477 .482 .490 .544 .357 .574 .645 .589 .628 1
HC10 4.32 .934
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **
.437 .423 .450 .484 .384 .505 .558 .481 .512 .656 1
HC11 4.21 1.067
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **
HC12 4.51 .689 .392 .444 .438 .471 .321 .476 .531 .450 .434 .568 .657 1
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **
HC13 4.31 .841 .170 .161 .158 .185 .126 .210 .221 .137 .103 .193 .150 .200 1
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **
HC14 4.29 .781 .188 .209 .173 .188 .115 .211 .238 .168 .178 .235 .229 .308 .473 1
** ** ** ** * ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **
HC15 4.33 .705 .107 .112 .155 .131 .044 .152 .164 .097 .108 .181 .203 .223 .192 .165 1
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **
.204 .185 .198 .217 .120 .298 .295 .220 .226 .245 .244 .269 .266 .183 .287 1
HC16 4.11 .751
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **
HC17 3.99 .939 .275 .292 .351 .353 .220 .345 .334 .328 .325 .322 .327 .348 .131 .180 .143 .277 1
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **
.224 .237 .234 .258 .155 .352 .345 .306 .289 .312 .283 .313 .194 .187 .117 .399 .348 1
HC18 4.32 .715
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **
HC19 4.25 .903 .156 .187 .203 .224 .103 .221 .233 .203 .180 .235 .243 .262 .227 .198 .416 .251 .350 .248 1
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **
.112 .128 .131 .118 .038 .186 .186 .138 .144 .203 .190 .197 .229 .261 .138 .217 .161 .221 .195 1
HC20 3.98 .864
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **
HC21 4.38 .762 .239 .255 .287 .292 .159 .401 .365 .332 .322 .367 .366 .381 .204 .204 .220 .388 .408 .526 .377 .301 1
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **
.135 .148 .175 .183 .068 .156 .186 .155 .130 .209 .205 .217 .204 .180 .631 .228 .209 .117 .525 .192 .277 1
HC22 4.13 .824
59
measurement scale
Exploratory factor analyses (EFA) and confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) were
combined to analyse and test the scale structure. We applied the two-step process
proposed by Lloret-Segura et al. (2014) and Anderson and Gerbing (1988). The sample
was therefore subdivided into two equal subsamples using a random procedure. EFA
using SPSS was applied to the first part of the sample to analyse the structure of the
underlying items. In the second step, this structure was tested by CFA, which was
developed over the second subsample using EQS structural equation modelling (Bentler
1995).
3.2.1.1.Exploratory factor analysis

The aim of this phase in the research process was twofold: to identify overarching AHC
factors and compare them with the theoretical description of the construct; and to
validate the developed survey instrument. The analysis was developed using the main
components method of extraction, resulting later in the varimax rotated solution. EFA
allowed us to reach the first goal, while the internal consistency of the remaining scale
was assessed using Cronbach’s alpha.
The EFA was developed on the whole set of items in the initial scale of the AHC
(knowledge, abilities, skills) (Dziuban & Shirkey, 1974). Likewise, a Bartlett test
showed a level of significance below 0.05, confirming that the factorial model obtained
would be adequate to explain the data. The decision on the number of factors to be
accepted was based on an examination of the sedimentation chart (Catell, 1966) and the
eigenvalues, which should be greater than one (Kaiser, 1974). The sample size in this
phase (n = 1090) allowed high variance levels in the data, facilitating factor extraction
and interpretation.
The results for the EFA showed that AHC could be reliably measured through the initial
set of items (a = .893), although the internal composition of the construct indicates its
multidimensional nature. Five different factors were finally extracted, as depicted on
table 5. The structure of the scale corroborated the initial description of the construct
based on the results of the Delphi panel. The first factor, composed of seven items,
60
measured research ability (a = .884), while the second factor, with five items, related to
research knowledge (a = .816). The first factor–research ability–consists of seven items
related to the research-specific context abilities of researchers. Among these items, it is
possible to find the ability to communicate research findings, relationships with
colleagues, and research management. These elements allow the researcher to carry out
the investigation and to progress adequately in his/her academic career.
The second factor—research knowledge—consists of five items related to the

researcher’s level of theoretical training and methodology, his/her ability to find and
manage the information from the publications relevant to his/her knowledge field, and
knowledge of the scientific publications within the research area.
The third factor grouped four items measuring alertness skill (a = .704), the fourth one,
with three items, was labelled work organization skill (a = .762), while the last one,
also composed of three items, reflected researchers’ criticism skills (a = .609). The third
factor, alertness skill, consists of four items related to the researcher’s creativeness,
initiative, and motivation to conduct research. The fourth factor–work organization
skill–consists of three items related to constancy, discipline, and organization in the
research workplace. Lastly, the fifth factor–criticism skills– comprises other three items
that measure the extent to which the researcher accepts criticism and reviews of his/her
work as a research function.
Table 6 shows the relationship between the theoretical and factorial analysis
dimensions.
61
measurement scale
Table 5: Exploratory factor analysis of the academic human capital scale (n = 1090)
Component
Item 1 2 3 4 5
HC10 I can present and discuss my research results .787
HC11 I have the ability to interact fluently with other
.749
researchers
HC7 I can relate the observed facts to the results
.710
obtained, and draw conclusions
HC9 I know how to conduct research (thesis, research
.654
projects, etc.)
HC12 I am able to adapt to changes in my research
.631
context
HC8 I can autonomously develop research .609
HC6 I am able to identify research topics in my research
.587
context
HC2 I have the necessary training in research
.716
methodologies and techniques
HC4 I have the required capacity to obtain and manage
.713
the information necessary for research
HC3 I know the most relevant publications in my
.699
scientific field
HC1 I have the theoretical training necessary to research
.673
in my scientific field
HC5 I master the language usually used in journals/books
.559
and in scientific meetings in my academic field
HC18 I consider myself a creative person .756
HC21 I consider myself a person with initiative .719
HC17 I consider myself a person motivated by research .629
HC16 I consider myself an observer .542
HC22 I consider myself a disciplined person .870
HC15 I consider myself an organized person .832
HC19 I consider myself a persevering person .656
HC13 I consider myself a self-critical person .799
HC14 I consider myself a person with the ability to
.755
accept criticism from others
HC20 I consider myself an altruistic person .505
Eigenvalue 4.00 3.35 2.29 2.09 1.74
4 1 6 0 2
Variance explained by the factor 18.2 15.2 10.4 9.50 7.91
02 34 38 1 7
Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin .911
Bartlett test
Approximate Chi-Square: 8860.117
Degrees of freedom: 231
Significance level: .000
62
Table 6: Correspondence between theoretical and factorial analysis dimensions
KSA Theoretical Factorial analysis Concepts

Framework Dimensions dimensions /Items
Knowledge-how Elements related to the researchers’
(tacit) theoretical and methodological
understanding, researchers’ English (or
other predominant languages in the field
Research Knowledge
K of research) language domain,
(HC2, HC4, HC3, HC1,
Knowledge-that researchers’ comprehension to find,
HC5)
(explicit) manage information from relevant
publications in their field of research and
know relevant publications in the
scientific field.
Composed of attributes related to the
Alertness Skills
researcher’s creative perception, initiative
(HC18, HC21, HC17,
and motivation to carry out the research
HC16)
activity.
Composed of attributes related to the
S Research skills Work organization Skills
constancy, discipline and organization in
(HC22, HC15, HC19)
the research workplace.
Composed of those attributes related to
Criticism Skills (HC13, extent the researcher accepts criticism and
HC14, HC20) reviews of his work as research function.
Composed of research-specific context

abilities of researchers (observe facts and
Research ability identify research topics, discuss research
A Research abilities
(HC10, HC11, HC7, results, interact with other researchers,
HC9, HC12, HC8, HC6) know how conduct and autonomously
develop research and adapt to changes in
the research context.
3.2.1.2. Confirmatory factor analysis

The measurement model extracted from the previous stages was finally tested using
CFA. This technique complements previous scale development procedures not only by
providing an alternative measure of internal consistency but also by assessing the extent
to which the scale is externally consistent (Sethi & King 1994). Drawing on the results
of the EFA, the scale was specified as a second-order model, which was tested by
applying CFA to the second subsample of 1133 academic researchers. The objective
was to verify the relevance of the five factors extracted and the extent to which they
loaded onto a second-order factor measuring AHC. A previous analysis of the dataset
showed that it did not follow either univariate or multivariate normality, which led us to
avoid the application of maximum likelihood estimation methods (Bentler, 2006). The
value for Mardia’s coefficient (159.4297) and the analysis of items’ asymmetry and
kurtosis suggested that the data followed an elliptical distribution, so following Bentler
63
measurement scale
(2006), we opted to estimate the model using an ordinary least squares method. Figure 1
provides an overview of the CFA results of the AHC model.
We first analysed the convergent validity of each factor building the AHC construct.
Model estimation confirmed that factor loadings were significant at 5 per cent, with
values generally over 0.5. Standard errors showed acceptable levels. Therefore, these
results show the appropriate convergent validity of the constructs. Moreover, the results
indicate that the five factors are relevant to measure AHC. We confirmed discriminant
validity through the average variance extracted measure, which exceeded the 0.50 level
in all cases (Bagozzi, Yi & Phillips 1991). This index also met the second condition
proposed by Hulland (1999) by showing levels above the squared correlations between
constructs. Lastly, to assess composite reliability, we calculated the Rho coefficient,
which reached a value of 0.930 (Nunnally & Bernstein 1994).
To analyse the overall model fit, we first used the chi-square statistic. The test provided
a significant result at a 0.05 threshold (c = 922.020; N = 1133; df = 204; sig. =
2
0.00000). Byrne (1998) suggested that the chi-square is usually influenced by data non-
normality, model complexity, and sample size, which indicates that there is a “lack of
fit” between the sample and the covariance matrices. In accordance with the
recommendations of Hu and Bentler (1999), we complemented model fit evaluation
with alternative criteria to provide a deeper assessment: (1) comparative fit index (CFI),
to evaluate model fit against a null model; (2) the goodness of fit index (GFI); (3) the
adjusted goodness of fit index (AGFI); and (4) the root mean square error of
approximation (RMSEA), which provides an adjustment for both sample size and
degrees of freedom. General guidelines for the interpretation of good fit were used,
accepting values for CFI, GFI and AGFI greater than 0.90 and RMSEA less than 0.08.
As shown in Figure 1, these fit indexes showed good fit levels, confirming that AHC
can be consistently measured as a second-order construct composed of the five proposed
factors.
The fit indices showed a good fit. We checked the internal consistency of the scales
used to measure these indicators by calculating Cronbach’s alpha, obtaining 0.906.
Therefore, the results indicate that the indicators of (1) research ability, (2) research
64
knowledge, (3) alertness skills, (4) work organization skills, and (5) criticism skills are
relevant for measuring AHC.
Figure 1: AHC: items and item loadings confirmatory factor analysis
Fit indexes: Chi-square (x2) = 922.020; Goodness-of-fit index (GFI) = 0.982; Adjusted
goodness-of-fit index (AGFI) = 0.977; Root mean square residual (RMR) = 0.036; Standardized
root mean square residual (SRMR) = 0.052; Root mean square error of approximation
(RMSEA) = 0.060; Normed fit Index (NFI) = 0.957; Non-normed fit index (NNFI) = 0.962;
Comparative fit index (CFI) = 0.966; Akaike Information Criterion (AIC) = 514.020; Consistent
Akaike Information Criterion (CAIC) = –686.832
4. Discussion and conclusions
The present research conceptualizes AHC, providing a specific tool to measure it. We
confirmed that the measurement instruments developed in this study meet the
psychometric requirements of dimensionality, validity, and reliability. The estimation of
measurement models corroborated that the traditional differentiation between
knowledge, skills, and abilities (Ployhart & Moliterno, 2011) was also relevant in the
65
measurement scale
academic field, although with some interesting particularities. However, our results
showed that AHC reality is more complex, as we expected. Instead of the three classical
KSA dimensions, our empirical analyses confirmed the need to differentiate between
five factors that measure additional dimensions of AHC. The first factor grouped all the
items related to scholars’ research abilities, identifying relevant aspects as topic
selection abilities, conclusion drawing, communicational abilities, adaptability, and the
capability to develop collaborative research projects. In addition, research ability, by its
very nature, can be obtained when a PhD is achieved, as described by Durette et al.
(2016). However, these research abilities will be refined thorough the research career.
The second factor measured the research knowledge dimension of the construct,
including the comprehension of the theoretical underpinnings of the field and the
understanding of contemporary literature. The analysis also confirmed the need to
complement this knowledge with a sound command of the research methodologies and
techniques used in the field. Regarding researcher’s knowledge, our scale supports the
proposals of other studies, such as Bozeman et al. (2001). New contributions and
research lines allow researchers to create new scientific knowledge. In this sense,
theoretical, and methodological knowledge led us to study more complex and profound
aspects of research topics as well as to contribute new knowledge in each of the
scientific fields.
One of the most interesting results is that research skills are grouped into three different
components, which implies a new classification for the extant literature. This tool has
shown that research skills have a different composition in the academic field compared
to the organizational context. These specific attributes of research skills highlight the
need to deploy alertness skills, work organization skills, and criticism skills from an
integrative way to develop the research activity. First, the results highlighted the need to
measure scholars’ alertness skills to assess their openness to external stimuli that could
inspire innovative research lines. However, as the results also suggested, these
creativity-related skills must be complemented with other rational attributes of
organizational capabilities and perseverance (work organization skills). As it is
conceived nowadays, scientific progress is highly dependent on the peer review system,
which relies on a process of continuous constructive criticism (criticism skills).
Regarding the researcher’s skills, our results supported the proposals of other studies,
66
such as Thunnissen and Van Arensbergen (2015), regarding the study of an integrative
classification of different skills and attributes, and Marie (2008) or Ryan and Berbegal-
Mirabent (2016) in relation to propose specific research skills.
The results from EFA and CFA indicate that AHC can be conceptualized as a second-
order construct compound by the five proposed factors. This construct showed good
levels of validity and reliability, and it was confirmed to be stable across different
samples. This instrument provides a generic framework to organize diverse results
about how the KSA framework is applied to research activity. More specifically, it may
help to explain why the identified individual attributes are considered relevant to
explain research performance, because extant studies have not specifically determined
the related KSA in the academic context yet.
From a different point of view, it should be noted that the applied KSA framework
allows for the study of the synergistic effect between AHC dimensions. Thus, the
proposed scale may help explain how the relationships between specific research skills
(alertness skills, work skills, criticism skills), as well as between them and research
abilities and research knowledge, determine scientific productivity. The development of
these synergistic effects between the dimensions of AHC could be conditioned by
differences in scientific performance in different research fields. In this sense,
universities could use this list of attributes to guide academic careers.
The measurement scale proposed in this study could be interesting not only for future
research in the field but also as a tool to be used at different levels. From individual
research perspective, this measurement tool can serve as an adequate instrument to
establish a guide for researchers to define how their careers should be developed in the
near future, complementing subjective and more objective scales (research results or
SciVal metrics). The tool provides direct information about aspects that are particularly
difficult to be measured as human capital attributes. The scale should be understood as a
complementary tool to support specific process in the academic context. For instance,
researchers may identify limitations in certain KSA attributes to plan their future
training.
67
measurement scale
A different implication of the scale is that it could foster and improve self-criticism of
the researchers, making them more conscious and being more objective in terms of their
training limitations at each stage of their careers. In this sense, this scale development is
highly relevant, not only for senior researchers to know whom to encourage to take an
academic career track, but also for junior researchers to be able to decide in what
trainings to invest. In a similar vein, this tool could help academic researchers conduct a
self-evaluation of their AHC to be compared with other team members or even
researchers in the same knowledge area.
Universities may offer certain measures of human capital attributes considering mean
values or ranges to be achieved in order to improve their human capital profile. In this
case, the researchers would carry out a self-assessment to check if they are average or,
by contrast, need to improve any of attributes. Once the researcher profiles are
measured, they can be compared with their research group or area of knowledge to
detect those KSA attributes they lack. Therefore, this measure of self-evaluation would
allow, to a greater extent, knowing how to establish improvements for both researchers
who are in the starting stages of their academic careers, as well as for those who can
evaluate their attributes for hiring purposes at university.
This tool would also be useful in academic research teams and for principal
investigators, as strategic agents, to manage their research staff. From this perspective,
principal investigators should enhance the synergies derived from researchers’ human
capital. This consists of mutual reciprocity between KSA components. For example, the
methodological knowledge of academic researchers could be complemented by
observed facts and another member of the team may draw conclusions.
The complementarities of KSA could also be highlighted between dimensions of AHC.

For example, different members of a research team could identify research topics, while
others members could be considered a motivated or creative researcher to develop the
research. In this regard, principal investigators could strategically manage the KSA
attributes of academic researchers to improve team results. In this context, the principal
investigator would promote and guide KSA attributes and the academic careers of their
team members. More specifically, it would reveal the informal structure of the research
68
group itself regarding AHC attributes, for example, by detecting whether a researcher is
well connected to AHC complementarities among group members. Therefore, the
principal investigator can support the development and promotion by improving the
AHC of their team members. A better understanding of the AHC composition of
academic researchers would allow measures to build an AHC at the group level.
This measurement scale also provides the universities with an important input of
information to support the design of practices related to the promotion of researchers.
This scale could be used as a supplementary way of assessing potential promotions and
conducting evaluations of academic researchers (Kwiek, 2018). Therefore, this
measurement tool could be an interesting input of information in decision-making at the
research management level of the institutional perspective (de Frutos-Belizon et al.
2019). The measurement scale would help universities to know and be more focused on
the specific academic attributes needed to perform better. Thus, universities would be
able to design research strategies that are more coherent with their internal and
academic needs (Cocos and Lepori, 2020; Morris, 2003). Job descriptions also provide
an understanding of the specific KSA that are required to perform in the research role
successfully. In fact, universities could use this to design their talent management
initiatives (Van den Brink et al. 2013). In this vein, universities could propose a
research profile that can be used to evaluate researchers’ careers in an objective and
equal way, following a clear list of attributes. The scale development may be used as a
guiding framework for developing an evaluation instrument for academic researchers.
Ideally, such an instrument would comprise the integrative attributes of knowledge,
skills, and abilities specifically required for research activity. The researcher profile
would allow us to analyse the nature of the teaching and research staff, as well as to
propose a fair distribution between university activities (White et al. 2012).
Similarly, the scale could be used as a report to justify the research funding received to
improve the configuration of the AHC and the needs of academic research groups
(Scholtez et al. 2021; Lind, 2020). In this context, the proposed scale would be used to
add information about specific AHC attributes to clarify fund allocation at the
university level, in particular, differentiating between areas of knowledge or emergent
research groups. Therefore, scale could be applied in those research contexts where it is
69
measurement scale
not possible to efficiently distribute research funds, considering, for example, different
performance in diverse knowledge areas. The funds received from research projects or
research grants condition AHC improvements obtained through research training (Kishi,
2020).
Universities may also publish AHC configurations based on the KSA framework to
facilitate comparative analyses between researchers at universities or between
universities. These configurations of AHC may help universities to focus on the specific
needs of researchers rather than proposing homogeneous research policies. In
conclusion, this instrument could provide a list of AHC attributes to promote the
strategic value of researchers. Moreover, it would be useful to support decision-making
to achieve research excellence in universities. Universities can increase their AHC by
attracting highly skilled academic researchers. This measurement of the KSA provides
many of the valuable tools necessary to create human capital and to fulfil the research
mission of universities.
Despite its contributions, this study has some limitations that should be addressed in
future research. To confirm the validity of the AHC scale, more data are required. The
scale was developed on a sample of Spanish academics, so it should be tested on
different sample populations to verify the extent to which the measurement instrument
can be reliably used in other national contexts. Future research may also establish
discriminant validity by exploring alternative measures of similar constructs. A future
line of research may also focus on examining the synergist effect between KSA
dimensions. Their effects and implications on scientific results may be particularly
interesting. Although mentioned in different sections of the article, it could not be
deepened because it exceeded the scope of the study. Furthermore, the relationship
between AHC scores and research performance has yet to be established. Longitudinal
studies based on the proposed scale could be particularly interesting in this sense,
contributing to the ongoing debate about the determinants of research performance.
Funding
This study was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitively under
Grant ECO2014-56580-R; the Andalusian Government (Spain) under Grant P12-SEJ-
70
1810; the Andalusian Government (Spain) under Grant P12-SEJ- 1618; and Research
Projects University of Cadiz under Grant PR2016-018.
Conflict of interest statement. None declared.
Note:
Authors are ordered alphabetically and have contributed equally to this paper.
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Paper 2
Identifying the determinants of individual scientific

performance: a perspective focused on AMO theory
* Guerrero-Alba, F., Martín-Alcázar, F., & Sánchez.Gardey, G: (2021). Identifying the

determinants of individual scientific performance: a perspective focused on AMO
theory, Intangible Capital, 17(2), 124-147.
Identifying the determinants of individual scientific performance: a
perspective focused on AMO theory
Purpose: The aim of this study is to empirically analyse how motivation and
the opportunity to investigate enhance the direct relation between the
researcher’s human capital and individual scientific performance.
Design/methodology/approach: Following recent investigations of strategic
human capital and the abilities-motivation-opportunity (AMO) theory, we
propose a double quantitative-qualitative methodology to identify the
determinants of individual scientific performance.
Findings: Applying regression analysis to a sample of 471 Spanish academic
researchers, we confirm the moderating role of a researcher’s motivation and
opportunities.
Originality/value: Drawing on the empirical evidence obtained, this work
discusses the relevant determinants of scientific productivity, providing
practical recommendations for research management and policy making.
Keywords: Academic Human capital, researcher, AMO theory, DEA,

individual scientific performance.
JEL codes: M10; M12; J24; O15.
81
Paper 2: Identifying the determinants of individual scientific performance: a
1. Introduction
While direct funding from the government remains the predominant source of
university research funding, in recent decades, it has been losing prominence in
favour of external funds (Auranen and Nieminen, 2010). It is generally
assumed that academic research productivity and efficiency are linked to
external competitive incentives by fundraising (Gonzalez-Brambilia and
Veloso, 2007). Since scientific productivity determines the allocation of funds
and drives success in academic careers, the researchers have tried to identify
those factors that could help to explain individual research performance. Some
studies have analysed factors such as gender (Turner and Mairesse, 2003), age
(Rorstad and Aknes, 2015; Wollersheim et al., 2015), education (Buchmueller
et al. 1999) or individual membership in highly productive academic cohorts
(Kwiek, 2016), with mixed results (Gonzalez-Bambrilia and Veloso, 2007).
The application of approaches that contextualize the determinants of academic

researcher performance becomes necessary to design more efficient research
management policies (Diem and Wolter, 2013; Hedjazi and Behravan, 2011;
Bazeley, 2010; Dundar and Lewis, 1998). In this context, abilities-motivation-
opportunity (AMO) theory has emerged as a suitable approach to evaluate
employee performance by differentiating between its key factors (Marin-
Garcia and Martinez Tomas,2016; Jiang et al., 2012). AMO theory considers
that individual performance depends not only on individuals’ abilities and job-
related motivation, but also on the opportunities offered by their universities
and immediate surrounding environment (sectorial technology centres,
business foundations, research and development institutes, etc.).AMO theory
has been applied by a large number of papers in the organizational context
(Van Waeyenber & Decramer, 2018; Benet-Zepf et al., 2018; Bos-Nehles et
al., 2013); however, to our knowledge, there are few studies in the educational
context (Bouwmans et al., 2019; Runhaar, 2017; Wollersheim et al., 2015), and
82
none of them explore these variables in the academic research context. Some
studies indicate a developing understanding of how context impacts these
relationships (Johns, 2017). In summary, the behaviour of the AMO variables
according to field of research could offer new perspectives to university
managers.
This AMO theory-based study contributes to the literature to better understand

the factors that explain individual scientific performance in the context of
academic institutions. Based on a review of the existing literature and
application of a double quantitative-qualitative methodology, a set of AMO
elements was defined and analysed. The study is organized as follows. After
this introduction, we review the literature and propose a model where
individual scientific performance is linked to the three AMO elements by
defining three hypotheses. We propose a double quantitative-qualitative
methodology to identify the determinants of individual scientific performance.
Then, the process of data gathering and analysis, based on a sample of 471
Spanish researchers, is explained in detail. Accordingly, four regression
models have been developed with the goal of contrasting the proposed
hypotheses. The last section explains the conclusions and limitations of this
study and identifies possible future lines of research.
2. Theoretical framework and hypotheses
Researchers have put great effort into analysing the link between individual
employee effort and individual performance (Wright & McMahan, 2011). In
this context, AMO theory suggests that an individual´s discretionary effort is
conditioned by the ability, motivation and opportunity to participate
(Appelbaum et al., 2000). The role of these elements in individual performance
has been explored by authors such as Beltrán-Martín & Bou-Llusar (2018) and
Wang & Xu (2017). However, it is necessary to further investigate their
83
relevance in different organizational contexts (Van Waeyenber & Decramer,

2018; Knies & Leisink, 2014). In the next sections, we explore the impact of
AMO elements in the research academic context, with the objective of defining
hypotheses for the relationships specified in the proposed AMO models. Only
research ability, we argue, has an independent, direct, and positive effect on
scientific performance, and this effect could be positively or negatively
influenced by motivation and opportunity. Researcher ability is defined as the
research knowledge, skills and abilities of academic researchers necessary for
scientific performance. Researcher motivation represents the desire and
willingness to scientific performance. Finally, researchers’ abilities are
involved in decisions that impact scientific performance when they are given
the opportunity to do so. In the next sections, we review what is known about
researchers’ abilities, motivation and opportunities.
2.1. Research abilities: Academic human capital perspective
The literature has identified the first dimension of the AMO approach as
human capital, defined as the set of knowledge, skills and abilities (KSA) that
enables an individual to carry out a particular activity in a specific context
(Kim et al., 2015; Jiang et al., 2012). The scientific literature has not reached a
consensus on which human capital-specific attributes enable academics to
carry out research activities (Durette et al., 2016; McNie et al., 2016;
Thunnissen & Van Arensbergen, 2015).
Generally, knowledge has been classified by researchers into two types: tacit
and explicit (Nonaka & Takeuchi, 1995). Tacit knowledge refers to formal
knowledge associated with the procedures, routines or ideas acquired through
specific training received during academic studies (Horta & Santos, 2016; Su,
2011). This individual-based knowledge is generated as an implicit
combination of the acquired cognitive models, experiences, points of view,
84
intuition, etc., that enables individuals to understand the nature of a research

topic within a specific field. Therefore, it is composed of both the fundamental
theories and assumptions of a specific discipline (Bozeman et al., 2001;
Lovitts, 2005), as well as the essential and specific elements of a particular
research line (Lee et al., 2010).
Second, existing studies considered explicit knowledge as the knowledge

stored in various knowledge repositories, such as books, research dissertations,
academic journals, and databases, which are available to future researchers
(Rowley, 2000; Tiam et al., 2009; Prpić, 1996). In this case, such knowledge is
perfectly coded in a systematized language that can be easily transmissible
between academic researchers.
The literature does not show a clear differentiation between scientific skills and
scientific abilities. Some authors have characterized scientific skills as general
personal attributes applicable to different types of jobs, such as vocation to
work (Bentley & Kyvik, 2013), creativity (Marie, 2008) or professional ethics
(Bell & Bryman, 2007). From this point of view, academic skills can be
understood as those individual capabilities related to the execution of a single
task. Conversely, scientific abilities are composed of job attributes more
specific to research, such as the capacity to identify research topics (Ulrich &
Dash, 2013), the capacity to communicate research outcomes (Thunnissen &
Van Arensbergen, 2015) or the capacity to formulate hypotheses and collect
data (Marie, 2008). In this sense, scientific abilities are defined as individual
capabilities that foster adequate research performance.
Figure 1 summarizes this conceptualization of research abilities.
85
Figure 1: Theoretical research model for researcher abilities.
Theoretical Knowledge
Explicit Knowledge
Research abilities –
Scientific Skills Academic Human capital
Scientific abilities
Different studies have confirmed the positive influence of human capital on

performance (Wright et al., 2014; Harris et al., 2012; Coff & Kryscynski,
2011). For this purpose, they have argued that the stock of aggregated human
capital helps to generate sustainable competitive advantages (Ployhart &
Moliterno, 2011). According to the above arguments, it seems clear that human
capital is essential for research. Based on the above, we propose the following
hypothesis to determine the composition of human capital in the academic
field:
Hypothesis 1: There is a direct and positive relationship between a

researcher’s abilities (academic human capital) and individual scientific
performance.
Hypothesis 1a: There is a direct and positive relationship between

theoretical knowledge and individual scientific performance.
86
Hypothesis 1b: There is a direct and positive relationship between

explicit knowledge and individual scientific performance.
Hypothesis 1c: There is a direct and positive relationship between

scientific skills and individual scientific performance.
Hypothesis 1d: There is a direct and positive relationship between

scientific abilities and individual scientific performance.
This direct relation between human capital and individual scientific

performance will be used as a starting point to examine the effect of the other
two AMO theory dimensions: motivation and opportunity. These two
dimensions are studied as moderating variables of the main and direct relation.
The moderation effects will be explained in the next section.
2.2. The moderating dimensions: motivation and opportunity
Human capital (Ability) is a necessary condition for a researcher to carry out

his or her activity. An additional element is required, which is the will to
conduct research. Motivation is the trigger that activates researchers’ human
capital (Bos-Nehles et al., 2013). Motivation is defined as the desire and the
amount of effort that people are willing to put into a particular activity
(Mitchell, 1982). Individual motivation, or absence of it, can inhibit, encourage
or compensate for the knowledge and/or abilities of an individual (MacDuffie,
1995). Within the academic field, this factor encourages the researcher to
explore, understand and propose his or her own ideas in the scientific field,
thereby generating new knowledge (Bland et al., 2005).
87
The literature on motivation has identified two classic types of motivation:

internal or intrinsic motivation and external or extrinsic motivation
(Wollersheim et al., 2015; Deemer et al., 2010). Intrinsic motivation is related
to the level of involvement and identification of the individual with his/her job.
It is thereby determined by the extent to which the researcher considers his or
her research activity to be relevant, stimulating and challenging (Van der
Weijden et al., 2015). Extrinsic motivation, on the other hand, is associated
with individual interests and values that enable the design of reward and
promotion systems linked as much to the development of the activity as to
personal acknowledgement (Peng & Gao, 2019). For researchers, the literature
considers a set of mechanisms such as academic career promotion (Tien,
2008), salary increases or teaching workload reduction based on academic
performance (Lissoni et al., 2011).
In the university sector, studies have analysed the joint effects of researchers’
intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and reported inconclusive conclusions
(Janger & Nowotny, 2016; Hardre & Kollmann, 2012). Some studies, such as
those by Shmatko and Volkova (2017) or Kwiek (2016), concluded that
intrinsic motivation has a more positive contribution than extrinsic motivation
because of the resulting satisfaction associated with carrying out research
activity. Fox (1983) found that researchers´ intrinsic motivation may
compensate for the absence of external motivation. As Lovitts (2005) pointed
out, those researchers who have enough autonomy to define and carry out their
research projects are more internally motivated because of the satisfaction of
developing research studies that are actually appealing to them (Chen et al.,
2006).
Considering previous arguments, we expect that intrinsic and extrinsic

motivation contribute to the satisfaction, professional prestige and reward of
researchers. In short, we summarize researcher motivation in figure 2.
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Figure 2: Theoretical research model for researcher motivation.
Intrinsic motivation
Researcher Motivation
Extrinsic motivation
Thus, we propose the following hypotheses in the research context:
Hypothesis 2: The positive effect of a researcher’s abilities (academic human

capital) on individual scientific performance increases as the researcher’s
motivation increases.
Hypothesis 2a: The positive effect of a researcher’s abilities (academic
human capital) on individual scientific performance increases as the
researcher’s intrinsic motivation increases.
Hypothesis 2b: The positive effect of a researcher’s abilities (academic
researcher’s extrinsic motivation increases.
Existing research points out that even when employees have the ability and
motivation to perform their jobs, there might be no effect on performance if the
organization does not provide the necessary resources (Lepak et al., 2006;
Jiang et al., 2012). An opportunity represents the contextual mechanisms that
encourage action, such as the work environment and organizational facilities
(Boxall & Purcell, 2003; Siemsen et al., 2008). This dimension includes those
elements that facilitate or restrict job execution, such as the particular
configuration of the environment surrounding the employee (Blumberg &
Pringle, 1982). The literature has identified three basic categories of resources
for research: financial funds, availability of qualified human resources, and
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physical and digital resources (Agasisti et al., 2011; 2012; Schuelke-Leech,

2013). Financial funds, although showing noticeable differences by the field of
knowledge, have traditionally been considered one the main resources for
research (Hicks, 2012). Some studies propose that the concentration of
financial funds allows greater research results to be achieved (Lariviére et al.,
2010; Zucker et al., 2007).
The literature has also explored the availability of qualified human resources in
the research context. Some authors have proposed that individual research
productivity is conditioned by the researcher life cycle (Gonzalez-Bambrila
and Veloso, 2007). Such studies suggest that scientific production is highly
concentrated within only a few senior researchers (Kwick, 2016). Nonetheless,
inasmuch as scientific research activities are currently mainly a question of
collaboration within a team, the availability of qualified human resources
appears to be a question of balance in team composition. If senior researchers
are responsible for providing the human and material resources needed to
foster research activity (Carayol & Matt, 2004; Delamont et al., 1997), junior
researchers should support research activities, allowing senior researchers to
improve the team's intellectual resources, which leads to new knowledge and
skills in scientific performance (White et al, 2012). Furthermore, an
experienced researcher is key to improving the psychosocial working
conditions of PhD students, increasing the number of successful PhD
candidates and research group performance (Levecque et al., 2017; Nguyen,
2016; Curtin et al., 2016). Last, senior researchers must ensure that support
staff help academic researchers focus on research activity and increase their
time devoted to research (Mudrak et al., 2018; Nguyen, 2016; Barham et al.,
2014).
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Finally, academic research requires the availability of physical resources

(space, infrastructure and equipment) as well as the availability of digital
resources (databases, scientific and statistical software) (Schuelke-Leech,
2013). Access to specialized equipment and academic knowledge, among other
resources, facilitates scientific productivity (Wang et al., 2006). Within this
context, studies such as Käpylä et al. (2010) identify the management and use
of ICT as facilitators of scientific productivity as they enable access to the
databases necessary for literature reviews. However, this finding contrasts with
those of other studies, such as the results reported by Agasisti et al. (2011),
which were not consistent when contrasting the effect of infrastructure and the
research efficiency of different departments.
In short, we summarize the conceptualization of research opportunities in

figure 3.
Figure 3: Theoretical research model for researcher opportunities.
Financial Resources
Human resources Researcher opportunity
Physical Resources
Digital Resources
The literature review suggests that opportunity conditions the relationship

between academic human capital (researcher abilities) and individual scientific
performance. Different classic frameworks, such as the job-demands-control
model, have considered the multiplicative effects between the abilities and
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opportunities dimensions (Karasek, 1979). Consequently, our model suggests

that opportunities are necessary to promote researchers´ abilities and scientific
performance. Therefore, we propose the following hypotheses:
Hypothesis 3: The positive effect of a researchers´ abilities (academic human

capital) on individual scientific performance is higher as the researcher´s
opportunities increase.
Hypothesis 3a: The positive effect of a researcher’s abilities (academic
availability of financial resources increases.
Hypothesis 3b: The positive effect of a researcher’s abilities (academic
availability of qualified human resources increases.
Hypothesis 3c: The positive effect of a researcher’s abilities (academic
availability of physical resources increases.
Hypothesis 3d: The positive effect of a researcher’s abilities (academic
availability of digital resources increases.
Figure 4 shows the theoretical model proposed based on the AMO approach
for the academic context.
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Figure 4: Theoretical research model for the effectiveness of academic

researchers.
Researcher motivation
(intrinsic or extrinsic)
Researcher abilities Individual Scientific

(Academic Human performance
capital)
Researcher opportunities
(financial resources, human resources,
physical and digital resources)
Own elaboration
3. Methodology
3.1. Survey design
Since the literature does not offer a validated measurement scale, we

considered designing and validating a scale adapted to the research field. For
this purpose, a qualitative process was developed based on expert opinion and
the Delphi methodology (Landeta, 1999). This methodology offers a
systematic and iterative procedure that aims to achieve expert consensus.
Experts are informed about the opinions of others with the purpose of reaching
consensus (Landeta, 1999). Our expert panel was composed of principal
investigators (PIs) from the Plan Andaluz de Investigación (Andalusian
Research Plan). They were chosen because of their knowledge and varied
experience in the development and management of scientific processes, as well
as project and research team management. Experts were selected from the
different scientific fields of study to avoid response bias and subjectivity issues
resulting from this type of technique (Okoli & Pawlowski, 2004). The final
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expert panel was composed of 62 PIs (20 in arts and humanities, 18 in

sciences, 8 in health sciences, 6 in law and social sciences and 10 in
engineering and architecture). The distribution according to field of study
suggests that the studied variables will be similar to those seen in other Spanish
universities due to their nature. Also, the criteria used in the Andalusian
Research Plan are the same the criteria used in other Spanish universities to
define the research groups and their evaluation. In summary, the selected
experts have similar characteristics to the research groups from other Spanish
universities. Eight open questions were presented to the PIs in order to reach an
expert consensus. After three rounds of discussion, the PIs reached consensus.
Thirty-six items were identified: 22 items for measuring human capital
(abilities), 6 for motivation, and 8 for opportunity. From these, we designed a
questionnaire with 36 items on a 5-point Likert scale (1= completely disagree
and 5= completely agree), including demographic questions on gender, age,
length of academic career, number of six-year period of research positively
assessed-sexenio-, academic rank, field of study, and university. Then, a pre-
test was conducted among a group of researchers to eliminate any issues in the
design and drafting of each item. Prior to the survey, we reduced the
ambiguous and unclear items, vague concepts, and complex wording during
the expert panel and survey design stages to minimize common method bias
(CMB).
3.1.1. Sample description
Data were gathered through an online survey aimed at researchers from

Spanish universities. The fieldwork took place from January–October 2017.
The survey was submitted to the research vice-rectorate of Spanish public
universities with the request to distribute them among researchers, and a total
of 2223 responses were obtained. Considering the nature of our model and
dataset, we paid particular attention to controlling for CMB. We developed
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procedures to control for possible biases based on the recommended studies,

such as Conway and Lance (2010) and Podsakoff et al. (2003), which allowed
us to conclude that CMB was not a serious concern. From the Harman one-
factor test, several factors emerged from each AMO dimension, suggesting that
CMB did not significantly affect the empirical analysis (Podsakoff et al.,
2003). On the other hand, we studied the partial correlation adjustment in the
sample obtained. We defined one marker variable to compare the correlation
matrix of the factor variable and correlations adjusted following the indications
of Lindell and Whitney (2001) (see Appendix). Our results showed that only
one of the significant correlations became non-significant after adjustment.
These results demonstrate that CMB did not significantly influence the
analyses.
To define the final sample, we kept only individuals who identified themselves
by name or ORCID code and who had a permanent position at the university
(full professors-“catedráticos”, professors-“titulares de universidad” and
associate professors- “contratado doctores”). The identification of respondents
was necessary to analyse their academic results. Since the identification of
researchers could induce social desirability bias in their responses, we placed
the items used for identification at the end of the questionnaire.
The final sample consisted of a total of 471 valid responses (21,19%), which
provided valid and reliable measures of the dimensions treated in the present
study. Table 1 presents the sample descriptive statistics.
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Table 1: Descriptive statistics (n= 471)
Variable Descriptive Statistics
Gender Male: 65%

Female: 35%
Age >65 years: 4.8%
56-65 years: 26.5%
46-55 years: 49.1%
36-45 years: 19%
< 35years: 0.8%
Length of academic career >20 years: 67.3%
16-20 years: 17.2%
11-15 years: 10.2%
5-10 years:4.7%
< 5years: 0.6%
Number of six-year period of research 6: 3.0%
positively assessed 5:10.4%
(sexenio) 4: 20.3%
3: 22.4%
2: 20.7%
1: 15.8%
0: 7.5%
Academic rank Full Professors (catedráticos): 31.8%
Professors (titulares de universidad): 50.5%
Associate Professors (contratado doctores): 17.6%
Field of study Art & Humanities: 15.1%
Sciences: 37.7%
Health Sciences: 8.1%
Law & Social Sciences: 23%
Engineering & Architecture: 16.2%
University University of Oviedo: 9.6%
University of Valladolid: 8.5%
University of Politécnica de Madrid: 7.9%
University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria: 7%
University of Málaga: 6,8%
University of Complutense de Madrid: 5.3%
University of Sevilla: 4.5%
University of Alcalá: 3.8%
University of Alicante: 3.8%
University of León: 3.4%
University of Zaragoza: 3.4%
University of Cantabria: 3%
University of Barcelona: 2,8%
University of Granada: 2.8%
University of La Laguna: 2.5%
University of Politécnica de Valencia: 2.5%
University of Vigo: 2.3%
University of Autónoma de Madrid: 2.1%
University of Coruña: 1.9%
University of País Vasco: 1.9%
University of Valencia: 1.9%
University of Vic:1.7%
University of Politécnica de Cataluña: 1.5%
University of Autónoma de Barcelona: 1.3%
University of Burgos: 1.3%
University of Córdoba: 1.3%
University of Girona: 1.3%
University of Almería: 0.6%
University of Politécnica de Cartagena:0.6%
University of Rey Juan Carlos: 0.6%
University of Salamanca:0.6%
University of Carlos III: 0.4%
University of Pompeu Fabra: 0.4%
University of Castilla La Mancha: 0.2%
University of IE University: 0.2%
University of Ramón Llull: 0.2%
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4. Empirical analysis
4.1. Factor Analysis
First, a factor analysis was conducted to identify the implicit dimensions of the
three model components in the data: abilities, motivation and opportunity. The
analysis was based on the main components method of extraction, resulting
later in a varimax rotated solution. Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin and Bartlett’s
sphericity tests were performed in the three factor analyses. The decision
regarding the number of factors was based on the scree test (Cattell, 1966) and
on the eigenvalue selection criterion being superior to the unit (Kaiser, 1974).
Those items that did not load adequately on their factor were eliminated, and
the test was repeated.
Researcher Abilities (Academic Human Capital)

For the first dimension (academic human capital), five factors were obtained
(table 2). The item “I master the language usually used in journals/books and
in scientific meetings in my academic field” was eliminated from the analysis
since it loaded insufficiently onto one factor. The first factor consisted of seven
items linked to elements associated with the implementation of research
activity. Among these items are the ability to communicate research findings,
relationship with colleagues and research management. These elements allow a
researcher to carry out his or her research and continue to progress adequately
in his or her academic career. For this reason, we labelled it “Research
abilities”. The second factor consisted of four items related to the researcher´s
level of theoretical training and methodology, his or her ability to find and
manage information from publications relevant to his or her field of
knowledge, and knowledge of the scientific publications within the research
area. Consequently, we labelled it “Scientific knowledge”. The third factor
consisted of four items related to the researcher´s creative perception and his or
her initiative in carrying out research activity, so we labelled it “Proactive
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creativity”. The fourth factor consisted of three items related to constancy,

discipline and organization in the workplace, labelled “Research accuracy”.
Finally, the fifth factor consisted of three other items that measured to what
extent the researcher accepts criticism and reviews of his or her work. We
labelled this factor “skill of accepting criticism”.
Table 2: Analysis of the main components (varimax rotation) of

researcher abilities (academic human capital) (n=471)
Items Components
1 2 3 4 5
I know how to present and communicate my research .831
findings
I am able to fluently relate to other researchers .770
I know how to manage research activities (thesis, .739
research projects, etc.)
I know how to link observations with test results and .703
arrive at conclusions
I am able to carry out research on my own .675
I am able to adapt to changes within my research .653
context
I am able to identify research themes within my .635
research context
I have the necessary training in research methodologies .732
and techniques
I have the necessary theoretical training to conduct .723
research within my scientific field
I know the most relevant publications within my .716
scientific field
I have the required skill to obtain and manage the .677
information necessary for research
I am a creative researcher .797
I am a researcher who takes initiative .718
I am a resilient researcher .626
I am a researcher with observation skills .522
I am a disciplined researcher .873
I am an organized researcher .838
I am a persevering researcher .687
I am a researcher who accept criticism .817
I am a self-critical researcher .729
I am an altruistic researcher .526
Eigenvalues 7.042 2.251 1.370 1.338 1.091
Explained variance 33.54 10.72 6.52 6.37 5.19
Cronbach’ alpha .884
Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of Sampling Adequacy:
.896
Bartlett’s Test of Sphericity:
Approx. Chi-Square: 4010.596
gl: 210
Significance: .000
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Researcher motivation
For the second dimension (motivation), two factors were obtained (table 3).
The item “I research for my own personal prestige” was eliminated from the
analysis since it loaded insufficiently onto one factor. The first factor consisted
of those items related to the researcher´s external aspects, such as promotion or
achievement of research merits. The second factor consisted of incentives
associated with the internal satisfaction of carrying out research activity.
Hence, the first factor was labelled “Extrinsic Motivation”, and the second
factor was labelled “Intrinsic Motivation”.

researcher motivation (n= 471)
Components
Item 1 2
I conduct research to obtain research merits .857
I conduct research to obtain financial rewards .754
I conduct research to obtain promotions .741
Research is part of my work .871
I conduct research for my own personal satisfaction .843
Eigenvalue 2.010 1.372
Explained variance 40.19 27.44
Cronbach’s alpha .617
Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of Sampling .599
Adequacy:
Bartlett’s Test of Sphericity
gl: 10
Significance: .000
Researcher opportunities
The third dimension (opportunity) consisted of eight items grouped into two
factors (table 4). The first factor includes items that explain the availability of
financial and human resources, while the second factor includes items related
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to the availability of information resources. Therefore, the first one was

labelled “Availability of financial and human resources”, and the second one
was labelled “Availability of information resources”.

researcher opportunities (n= 471)
Components
Item 1 2
Availability of financial resources .751
Availability of experienced researchers .694
Availability of researchers in training .635
Availability of equipment .578
Availability of technical staff .533
Availability: Database access .760
Availability of software .613
Availability of literature resources .591
Eigenvalue 2.609 1.205
Explained variance 32.616 15.061
Cronbach’s alpha .690
Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of Sampling
Adequacy: .741
Bartlett’s Test of Sphericity
gl: 28
Significance: .000
Additionally, we conducted the AMO dimension test using EQS structural

equation modelling (Bentler, 1995) as proof of nomological validity. To test
the dimensionality of the academic AMO scale, we first examined the
unidimensionality of each component by assessing the fit indices, parameter
validity, and statistical significance of single-factor confirmatory factor
analyses (CFA). For this, we used all the AMO dimensions for the expert panel
and exploratory factor analysis. Our study considered the AMO dimensions as
a reflective construct. Table 5 presents the fit indices for each construct
(researchers abilities-academic human capital, motivation, and opportunities).
Fit indices were also used to verify the unidimensionality of the three scales
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because they fell within the commonly accepted limits. Therefore, each of the
AMO dimensions formed a second-order construct.
Table 5: Fit indices for the unidimensional models of researcher abilities

(academic human capital), motivation and opportunities dimensions.
Model BBNNFI CFI IFI RMSEA GFI AGFI
Researcher abilities .949 .955 .955 .061 .964 .955

(Academic human capital)
Researcher Motivation .918 .975 .976 .065 .998 .991
Researcher Opportunities .920 .949 .951 .068 .982 .964
Notes: Bentler-Bonnett Non-Normed Fit index (BBNNFI); Comparative fit index (CFI),
Incremental Fit Index (IFI); the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA); the
goodness of fit index (GFI); the adjusted goodness of fit index (AGFI).
4.2. Regression analysis

Independent variables:
The five factors associated with researcher´s abilities (academic human
capital), the two factors associated with motivation and the two factors
associated with opportunity were all used as independent variables. Table 6
identifies the correspondence between the hypothesis and factorial analysis. As
can be observed in the factorial analysis, the researcher´s motivation is the
same between the theoretical dimension and factorial analysis, considering
extrinsic and intrinsic motivation. However, the researcher´s abilities and
opportunities showed some differences. In the researcher´s abilities, we
observed academic human capital, such as the KSA framework, as having three
dimensions, while factorial analysis has been established with five dimensions.
Surprisingly, research skills differed in three different dimensions: proactive
creativity, research accuracy and skill of accepting criticism. Likewise, the
knowledge dimension was integrated into a single factor. Similarly, in the
opportunity dimension, the availability of financial resources and availability
of qualified human resources were integrated into a single factor, and the
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availability of physical resources and digital resources were also integrated

into a single factor.
Table 6: Correspondence between theoretical and factorial analysis

dimensions
Theoretical Dimensions Factorial analysis dimensions

Theoretical knowledge Scientific Knowledge
Explicit knowledge
Scientific skills Proactive creativity

Research accuracy
Skill of accepting criticism
Scientific abilities Research abilities
Intrinsic Motivation Intrinsic Motivation
Extrinsic Motivation Extrinsic Motivation
Availability of financial resources Availability of financial and human

resources
Availability of qualified human resources
Availability of physical resources Availability of information resources

Availability of digital resources
Dependent variables:
Research performance is the dependent variable of the proposed model. From
the researcher’s name or ORCID code, we obtained the H-index of researchers
in the Scopus database. The H-index (Hirsch, 2005) is generally used to
measure research impact and quality, as it is not sensitive to the number of
published documents, which happens with impact factor, thereby improving
the assessment of a researcher´s general impact (Egghe, 2008). Since the H-
index presents some serious methodology restrictions, mainly related to
distribution issues (Iglesias & Pecharroman, 2007), we opted for to data
envelopment analysis (DEA) to define an H-based efficiency frontier. DEA is a
nonparametric linear-programming technique that compares multiple inputs
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and outputs of each sample researcher to the reference of optimal researchers

(Amara et al., 2020; Cook et al., 2019). The efficiency measure is equivalent to
the radial distance from the optimal frontier production (Papadimitriou &
Johnes, 2018; Sagarra et al., 2017). This frontier is obtained through the scores
of each output category that is produced by the most efficient sample
researcher (Kumar and Thakur, 2019). In this study, we constructed this
indicator based on the H-index, considering this measurement relative to a
researcher’s number of active years. This measure therefore makes it possible
to compare researchers at different categories in their academic careers in
comparison with other absolute indicators, such as the H index or productivity
itself. This means that the DEA is more suitable as a dependent variable.
Control variables:
In line with similar studies, we decided to use length of academic career as a
control variable to reduce the potential omitted bias variables in the empirical
analysis (Leahey et al., 2017; Bäker, 2015).
4.3.Results
With the purpose of contrasting the proposed hypotheses, four regression
models have been developed using SPSS (version 21). Table 7 presents the
correlation matrix of those variables used in the models together with their
descriptive statistics. Table 8 presents the regression model results. Models 1
and 2 include the effect of the control variable and the researcher´s human
capital variable on individual scientific performance. The direct effects in
Model 2 confirm that human capital has a positive and significant influence on
individual scientific performance. More specifically, our results indicate that
research abilities (p < 0.01) and scientific knowledge (p < 0.05) affect
scientific performance. Our results do not indicate that research accuracy (p >
0.10) and skill of accepting criticism (p > 0.10) have a direct effect on
individual scientific performance. However, the test results indicate certain
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negative and significant relationships between proactive creativity and

individual scientific performance (p < 0.10). This result confirms hypotheses
1a, 1b and 1d but rejects hypothesis 1c.
Models 3 and 4 incorporate the moderating effects as defined in the model:

motivation (model 3) and opportunity (model 4). As indicated by the results
(model 3), extrinsic motivation moderated the linkage between research
abilities (p<0.01) and research knowledge (p<0.01) with individual scientific
performance. In the case of intrinsic motivation, the moderation effects impact
research abilities (p<0.05) is negative. While this moderation relation between
intrinsic motivation and proactive creativity (p<0.01), research accuracy
(p<0.01) and skill of accepting criticism (p<0.01) is positive. A significant
change in R (0.411), after the interaction variable was added to the model,
2
substantiates the moderating effect (refer to model 3). Consequently,

hypotheses 2a and 2b could be partially accepted. In accordance with H3, the
researcher´s opportunity moderated the linkage between academic human
capital-research abilities and scientific performance. In this case, the
moderating effect of availability of economic and human resources occurred
for researcher abilities (p < 0.01), scientific knowledge (p < 0.01) and research
accuracy (p < 0.10). The moderating effect of availability of information
resources arose for only two human capital dimensions: research abilities (p <
0.01) and skill of accepting criticism (p < 0.01). As indicated, a relative change
in R (0.108), after the interaction variable was added to the model, explains the
2
moderating effect (refer to model 4). These findings partially confirm

hypotheses 3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d.
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Table 7: Descriptive statistics and correlations.
Variable M DT 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
1 Research abilities 0 1 1
2 Scientific knowledge 0 1 .000 1
3 Proactive creativity 0 1 .000 .000 1
4 Research accuracy 0 1 .000 .000 .000 1
5 Skill of accepting criticism 0 1 .000 .000 .000 .000 1
6 Extrinsic motivation 0 1 -.005 -.019 -.054 .064 -.006 1
7 Intrinsic motivation 0 1 .314** .225** .340** -.039 -.066 .000 1
8 Availability of human and financial 0 1 .044 .040 .000 -.075 .011 .037 .090 1
resources
9 Availability of information 0 1 -.025 .036 .120* .045 .086 .072 .027 .000 1
resources
10 DEA .420 .139 .299** .101* -.069 .001 -.018 -.077 .069 .223** .121* 1
11 Length of academic career 4.459 .900 .098* .133** .032 .082 .013 -.131** .017 -.027 .071 .125* 1
105
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Table 8: Linear regression model results.
Variables Model 1 Model 2 Model 3 Model 4
Constant .337** (.034) .358** (.034) .387** (.026) .353** (.029)
Length of academic career .015* (.007) .011 (.007) .004 (.006) .011+ (.007)
Research abilities .052** (.005) .059** (.005) .052** (.005)
Scientific knowledge 0.19* (.008) .014* (007) .018* (.007)
Proactive creativity -.013+ (.007) .002 (.005) -.016* (.007)
Research accuracy .001 (.008) .001 (.005) .000 (.007)
Skill of accepting criticism -.003 (.009) .001 (.004) -.007 (.009)
Extrinsic motivation x Research abilities .034** (.005)
Extrinsic motivation x Scientific knowledge .048** (.009)
Extrinsic motivation x Proactive creativity -.001 (.005)
Extrinsic motivation x Research accuracy -.001 (.005)
Extrinsic motivation x Skill of accepting criticism .005 (006)
Intrinsic motivation x Research abilities -.009* (.004)
Intrinsic motivation x Scientific knowledge -.003 (.004)
Intrinsic motivation x Proactive creativity .045** (.004)
Intrinsic motivation x Research accuracy .037** (.004)
Intrinsic motivation x Skill of accepting criticism .043** (.004)
Availability of economic and human resources x Research abilities .048** (.007)
Availability of economic and human resources x Scientific knowledge .036** (.009)
Availability of economic and human resources x Proactive creativity .000 (.008)
Availability of economic and human resources x Research accuracy .014+ (.008)
Availability of economic and human resources x Skill of accepting criticism .011 (.007)
Availability of information resources x Research abilities .027** (.008)
Availability of information resources x Scientific knowledge .003 (.007)
Availability of information resources x Proactive creativity -.008 (.006)
Availability of information resources x Research accuracy .010 (.006)
Availability of information resources x Skill of accepting criticism .022** (.007)
Model F 4,222 * 27.261** 48.202** 11.356**
2
Model R .015 .183 .594 .291
2
Increase R - .168 .411 .108
Notes: n=471.: Dependent variable: DEA
2
The table presents the non-standardized beta coefficients, the standardized errors clustered are found between brackets, and the change in R
indicates the comparison with the previous model.
+ p < .10; * p< .05; ** p < .01
4.4. Discussion
The literature considers that human capital has a positive and significant
influence on individual performance. Studies such Mcnie et al. (2016) argue
that both “hard skills” and “soft skills” are necessary for research performance.
Hard skills are those capabilities that allow an individual to formulate
hypotheses, develop research protocols, undertake research, and publish
articles. On the other hand, soft skills are the capabilities of academic
researchers that focus on behaviour and relationships. Therefore, we would
consider research abilities and scientific knowledge as “hard skills” and regard
proactive creativity, research accuracy and skill of accepting criticism as “soft
skills”. In fact, our data suggest that scientific knowledge and research abilities
are the essence of academic human capital, as described by studies such
Bozeman et al. (2001) and Durette et al. (2016). In addition, our results do not
show that research accuracy and skill of accepting criticism had a direct effect
on individual scientific performance. However, the test results indicate certain
negative and significant relationships between proactive creativity and
individual scientific performance. These findings are partially unexpected
because theoretically, all human capital factors should contribute significantly
and positively to individual scientific performance. One possible explanation is
that researchers have very innovative and creative proposals that hinder
publication in scientific journals, hence undermining performance. This
relationship needs to be investigated further to confirm its existence as well as
significance.
Similarly, we have shown that the explanatory model improves when it

includes the researcher’s motivation and opportunity as moderating variables.
In view of the results, we can confirm that researcher motivation contributes as
a moderating variable rather than the researcher opportunity dimensions (R = 2
0.411 vs R = 0.108). According to our model in relation to the researcher´s

2
107
motivation, individual scientific performance is a product of an interaction

between the researcher’s intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and his or her
abilities (academic human capital), as indicated in studies such as Janger and
Nowotny (2016). Our results seem to indicate that extrinsic motivation
encourages “hard skills” (research abilities and scientific knowledge), while
intrinsic motivation stimulates “soft skills” (proactive creativity, research
accuracy and skill of accepting criticism). Specifically, improvement in
contractual conditions and financial rewards relevant to extrinsic motivation
increases the effect of research ability and scientific knowledge on individual
scientific performance. On the other hand, intrinsic motivation strengthens the
effect of research skills (proactive creativity, research accuracy and skill of
accepting criticism) on individual scientific performance. However, the
moderation effect of intrinsic motivation between research abilities on
individual scientific performance is negative. One reason could be the sample
chosen, which included only individuals with permanent positions. The results
indicate that academic researchers have adequate research abilities, and they do
not particularly benefit from being intrinsically motivated to perform research.
Therefore, further study is necessary to confirm these findings. In short, we can
confirm that academic researchers have the same intrinsic and extrinsic
motivations as other employees in different organizations.
In relation to researcher opportunities, our results support the proposals of

other studies, such as Van der Weijden et al. (2008) and Sutherland (2017). As
expected, universities providing economic and human resources reinforce the
relationships between their researchers´ abilities (academic human capital) and
scientific performance. More specifically, the availability of economic and
human resources enhances the effect of “hard skills” (research abilities and
scientific knowledge) and one of the dimensions of “soft skills” (research
accuracy). The same effect is not supported for the availability of information
except for one dimension of “hard skill” (research abilities) and the last
108
dimension of “soft skills” (skill of accepting criticism). One reason for this
result could be, as previously stated, the sample used. Economic and human
resources allow academic researchers to continue acquiring knowledge,
abilities and greater discipline to achieve higher scientific performance. In the
case of information resources, the results seem to indicate that they are not
very necessary to publish for academic researchers who have obtained a
tenured position. Information resources enable researchers to accept criticism
as they observe the research of their peers.
5. CONCLUSIONS
The aim of this study was to identify the factors that determine individual
academics’ scientific performance. From a theoretical perspective, we looked
to examine the applicability of the AMO model in an academic context. We
applied this model to explore how motivation and opportunity affect
researchers’ abilities (their academic human capital). Although several studies
indicate that AMO theory is an appropriate framework for explaining
individual performance (Bos-Nehles et al., 2013), few have considered the
research academic context. Nevertheless, the dimensions proposed by AMO
theory have helped identify the specific factors that have a significant impact
on individual scientific performance. We therefore offer a novel model, based
on the AMO framework, that explains whether research abilities improve in the
presence of different types of research motivations and opportunities. In a
mixed methodology study, our proposed hypotheses were widely supported.
Theoretically, the reported research contributed toward the existing breadth of
knowledge on the factors that influence academic researchers in terms of their
abilities, motivations, and opportunities in their field. We believe that our focus
on motivation and opportunity for research can be used to explain performance
improvements in a given individual researcher’s abilities.
109
More specifically, these research findings contribute to the literature in several

different ways. First, the proposed model, based on AMO theory, has helped
thoroughly explain the relationship between the prescribed dimensions and
individual scientific performance. AMO theory offers a better understanding of
this phenomenon and of the interrelationships between researchers’ abilities
(academic human capital), motivation, and opportunities. It is worth noting
that, despite the evident contextual differences, researchers seem to respond to
concerns in ways that are similar to workers in different organizational
contexts (Szulc et al., 2021; Szulc & Smith, 2021). Academic researchers, like
other workers, develop a series of abilities and motivations that allow them to
achieve certain returns in their jobs. Likewise, the opportunities offered by
their organizations and environments allow them to make improvements, as
shown in this study. Additionally, our study contributes to identifying specific
variables within the academic context: five that are academic human capital-
based (research abilities, scientific knowledge, proactive creativity, research
accuracy, and skill of accepting criticism), two that are research motivation-
based (extrinsic and intrinsic motivation) and that are two research
opportunity-based (availability of economic and human resources and
availability of information resources). These elements are essential for the
successful academic activity of university researchers. The different research
units (universities, research groups, and researchers) can utilize these attributes
in order to encourage research activity. In complex jobs like conducting
research, a comprehensive list of AMO attributes could be especially useful in
analysing one’s position in order to clarify what is needed to successfully
perform. Secondly, the tests indicated that researchers’ abilities (academic
human capital) have a positive influence on individual scientific performance.
The positive influence of human capital on research activity implies that
researchers must acquire, maintain, and develop a set of specific competencies
to appropriately carry out research activity; these results, as expected, are
consistent with the academic human capital literature (Bozeman et al., 2001).
110
Surprisingly, our results reflect a certain negative relationship between

proactive creativity and performance, perhaps because the research process and
lines of research groups somewhat limit the “gaps” in the different research
topics or innovative proposals that are generally not sought after in scientific
journals. According to our results, academic researchers have both an extrinsic
motivation that encourages hard skills (research abilities and scientific
knowledge), and an intrinsic motivation that stimulates soft skills (proactive
creativity, research accuracy, and skill of accepting criticism). This study
therefore supports previous conclusions in the literature regarding the
connection between intrinsic and extrinsic researcher motivation in the
academic context (Janger & Nowotny, 2016; Wollersheim et al., 2015). In fact,
the theoretical discussion describes a two-way relationship between these two
motivation dimensions on scientific performance (Peng & Gao, 2019).
Additionally, researchers’ opportunities are particularly relevant in the
academic context. Although opportunities for researchers to engage in
scientific activity have been explored previously, this study highlights the
necessity of going beyond description by employing inferential statistics to
examine the relationships between research abilities and scientific
performance; our participants exhibited a greater availability of economic and
human resources than of information resources. According to our results,
economic and human resources must be available to support researchers’ hard
skills (research abilities and scientific knowledge) and certain one dimension
of “soft skills” (research accuracy). However, our data indicated the
availability of information resources in terms of only one dimension of “hard
skills” (research abilities) and the last dimension of “soft skills” (skill of
accepting criticism). Therefore, we can conclude that researchers’ motivation
and opportunities stimulate their ability to achieve greater scientific
performance.
111
From a practical perspective, this study has a number of implications that may
be relevant for university managers and PIs who strive to advance the quality
and effectiveness of academic human capital (researchers’ abilities), foster
researchers’ motivation, and offer the opportunities required for conducting
research. The conceptual model presented here can help universities develop a
comprehensive approach to abilities, motivation, and opportunity enhancement
practices tailored to the specific needs of researchers in the given workplace.
More specifically, adequate policies for hiring new academic researchers,
training, researcher evaluations, and academic rewards (Thunnissen & Van
Arensbergen, 2015; Ayaita et al., 2019) could impact the development of
researchers’ abilities and motivation. Thus, university managers must promote
adequate human resource management policies that improve the ability and
motivation of academic researchers; these are both directly and indirectly
related to research performance, suggesting that universities retain and
generate high levels of performance of researchers focusing on the potential
relationships that drive them. Also, universities who provide researchers with
the necessary resources (financial, human, and information), are likely to
enable them to improve their research performance. Since research
collaborations are commonly positively associated with development and
performance outcomes (Lee and Bozeman, 2005), cooperation between new
researchers and support staff can both facilitate the creation of new research
abilities and provide a more holistic view of job satisfaction, for example. A
second practical implication of the AMO framework can be seen in its
usefulness as an external reporting tool. The AMO framework could be utilized
at the university level to better allocate resources and foster academic
motivation. University leaders could therefore use this study to develop ability-
motivation-and opportunity enhancing strategies and methods to help
researchers improve individual scientific performance; Andreeva and Sergeeva
(2016) and Beltran-Martín and Bou-Llusar (2018) showed examples of this in
the organizational context.
112
5.1. Limitations and directions for future research

Our study has a number of limitations that offer potential directions for future
research. First, the analysis of the complex relationships between the examined
factors requires a longitudinal investigation in order to correctly identify the
dynamics existing between the different elements of the model. Moreover, the
findings suggest that the results may be affected by specific characteristics
within a given field of study. Further analyses should be performed to study
which characteristics of a field are the most relevant, as they may eventually
influence the results. Secondly, we need to acknowledge the sample’s national
character; this study should be replicated at an international level considering
the differences in each AMO variable that might be affected by contextual
variables. Finally, another limitation of the study could be mitigated by
separating the results according to university regional context, field of study, or
academic rank; these results could illuminate differences between these
variables, primarily in terms of the availability of resources.
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the

research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding and Acknowledgments:
Authors are ordered alphabetically and have contributed equally to this paper.
This study was supported by:
1.- the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitively under Grant
ECO2014-56580-R;
2.- the Andalusian Government (Spain) under Grant P12-SEJ-1810;
3.-the Andalusian Government (Spain) under Grant P12-SEJ-1618; and
4.-Research Projects University of Cadiz under Grant PR2016-018.
113
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‘human’back into strategic human resource management. Human Resource
Management Journal, 21(2),93-104.
Zucker, L.G, Darby, M.R, Furner, J, Liu, R.C, & Ma, H. (2007). Minerva unbound:
knowledge stocks, knowledge flows and new knowledge production. Research
Policy, 36, 850–863.
Appendix:
122
Table 9: Correlations and correlations adjusted for potential common method bias
Variables 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
1 Research abilities 1 -.022 -.022 -.022 -.022 -.028 .299** .022 -.048 .283**
2 Scientific knowledge .000 1 -.022 -.022 -.022 -.042 .208** .018 .014 .081
3 Proactive creativity .000 .000 1 -.022 -.022 -.078 .325** -.022 .100* -.093
4 Research accuracy .000 .000 .000 1 -.022 .043 -.062 -.099 .024 -.021
5 Skill of accepting criticism .000 .000 .000 .000 1 -.029 -.090 -.011 .065 -.041
6 Extrinsic motivation -.005 -.019 -.054 .064 -.006 1 -.022 .015 .051 -.101
7 Intrinsic motivation .314** .225** .340** -.039 -.066 .000 1 -.115 .005 .048
8 Availability of human and financial .044 .040 .000 -.075 .011 .037 .090 1 -.022 .206**
resources
9 Availability of information resources -.025 .036 .120* .045 .086 .072 .027 .000 1 .101*
10 DEA .299** .101* -.069 .001 -.018 -.077 .069 .223** .121* 1
Marker Variable -.113* -.146** .044 -.060 -.054 .029 -.101 -.107* .022 -.086
123
Paper 3
Exploratory analysis of the perception of academic

researchers about incentives: evidence from a spanish public
university
* Guerrero- Alba, F., Martín-Alcázar, F., & Sánchez.Gardey, G: Exploratory analysis of

the perception of academic researchers about incentives: evidence from a spanish
public university, under review in Higher Education Policy and Management.
Exploratory analysis of the perception of academic researchers about
incentives: evidence from a Spanish public university
Abstract
The perception of academic researchers on management instruments has
generated significant controversy in the literature. Studies have highlighted that
these perceptions affect research performance more than management itself.
This work addresses this issue by proposing a subjective measurement that
explains research incentives in a public university. The study was conducted
using a mixed-methodology approach. To initially identify the research
incentives, a Delphi study was developed through the inclusion of 62 experts.
Based on the Delphi results, to contrast the internal composition of the research
incentive system, 259 academic researchers from a Spanish university were
subjected to an exploratory factor analysis. The results revealed four potential
incentives that were perceived by the researchers. The analysis of these factors
contributes to the debate about the way in which academic managers can
promote the design of effective incentives that could be assumed and accepted
by researchers.
Keywords: perception; incentives; academic researchers; university; factorial

analysis
127
Paper 3: Exploratory analysis of the perception of academic researchers
about incentives: evidence from a Spanish public university
1. Introduction
Over recent decades, studies focusing on the management of universities have

become increasingly relevant. Research policy in universities has been
transformed in recent years due to changes in research management, the
complexity of the policy goals, and the introduction of new management
measures (Castro-Ceacero & Ion, 2019). Facing a reduction of funds for
research, universities have had to continue adapting to maintain the production
of academic research (Civera et al., 2020). As a result, the management of
universities has become an element of great interest for institutions,
universities, and research groups (Lepori et al., 2016). Several studies have
concluded that there is a positive effect of research policies on levels of
scientific productivity from both an individual and a group perspective
(Wollersheim et al., 2015). Thus, some studies have focused on the acquisition
of research competencies (Nguyen, 2016; Thienphut et al., 2015); the
attraction, retention, and development of researchers (Xia et al., 2020); or the
design of incentives (Thienphut et al., 2015; Kyvik & Aksnes, 2015). Although
there is no consensus in the conclusions of these studies (Albert et al. 2016),
there is a general idea of the existence of a relationship between scientific
performance and the incentives that universities propose to their researchers
(Pham- Thai et al., 2018). In this sense, authors such as Almubarak (2021) or
Martin-Sardesai and Guthrie (2008) pointed out that, rather than the direct
effect of research policies on the level of scientific performance, the effect of
management incentives is highly dependent on the researcher’s perception.
Surprisingly, despite the importance that university academic research has in
the global context of R&D activities, there are few studies that have fully
elucidated the elements that promote research in the field of academic research
(Castro-Ceacero & Ion, 2019). Further, it must be borne in mind that the
scientific fields of the universities are very different from each other. For these
reasons, it is necessary to find an appropriate measure of incentives for the
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research community at universities in an integrative and individualistic way.

To this end, researchers’ perceptions of these incentives could be crucial for
their research management at universities.
The objective of this research was to explore the perceptions of researchers

about the incentives that affect their own research activity. This study was
developed in two phases: a qualitative phase, in which the measures of the
different incentives were defined, and a quantitative phase, in which the effect
of the perception of these incentives was studied. The study has a dual
contribution to the previous literature by (a) proposing a subjective tool that
allows us to measure the perceptions about research incentives and (b)
describing the potential effects of these perceptions in research activity from an
integrative perspective.
Considering this double objective, the study is structured into four sections.
After this introduction, we present a review of the literature on incentives for
the management of research activity and the researcher’s perceptions about
them. In the third section, the data collection is detailed and scientific
incentives are identified. Finally, the fourth section discusses the results,
conclusions, and limitations of the study, paying special attention to the
possible implications that can be developed from our findings.
2. Review of the literature: perception of incentives from academic

researchers.
The complexity of research activity requires the design of specific research
policies in universities to promote research productivity (Xia et al., 2020;
Naeem et al., 2019). Following Bak and Kim (2019) and Jørgensen and
Hanssen (2018), this study attempts to identify incentives that have an impact
on the development of research activity. Incentives are an important part of
research careers since they promote the development and recognition of
scientific activity. Considering the particularities of the university research
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context, we adopted a configurational perspective (Martín-Alcázar et al.,

2005). This perspective allowed us to clarify the mix of management
instruments necessary for incentive research and how the complementarities of
these policies add value to the research activity (Xu et al., 2021; Abell &
Becker, 2021). Drawing on this approach, we begin exploring the nature of
research incentives, with the objective of delineating the elements that
configure incentives in the academic research context.
Several studies have described the particularities of incentive systems in the

academy, characterizing them as stimuli aimed at conditioning research
activity by universities (Xu et al., 2021; Sandoval-Romero & Lariviere, 2020).
Traditionally, incentive systems have been related to the level of satisfaction
(Albert et al., 2018) or motivation of researchers (Hendriks & Sousa, 2008),
acting as stimulus that affects scientific activity (Kyvik & Akness, 2015).
However, studies have proposed that the effects of research incentives change
throughout the academic career. Kawaguchi et al. (2016) suggested that
appropriate incentives and job designs for researchers with more experience
increase their research results. Following the life cycle models of researchers,
scholars have proposed that scientific publications by academic researchers
decrease over the years (Levin & Stephan, 1991). Studies, such that of Stroebe
(2010), have concluded that research production decreases in part due to the
incentives themselves and the shortening of the planning horizon of academic
careers. From this perspective, some studies have shown that long-term
contracts can have a negative effect on promotion opportunities and research
performance due to the disappearance of extrinsic incentives (Lafuente &
Berbegal-Mirabent, 2017). Thus, it is assumed that, by stabilising their position
in universities, researchers will decrease their motivation for research activity.
However, the literature pays special attention to academic careers and
promotion (Barrow & Grant, 2019; Sadiq et al., 2019) as a means of
stimulating the academic researcher. The design of the promotion system
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should explicitly and objectively collect recognition of the research merits of

academic researchers (Pietilä, 2019).
Another aspect to be considered by universities should be training as an
incentive for academic researchers. Training incentives produce new forms for
the transmission of new abilities (Nguyen, 2016; Svetlik & Lalic, 2016) and
certain attitudes towards research (Kyvik & Aksnes, 2015), and they generate a
certain commitment to the university (Martin- Sardesai & Guthrie, 2008). In
this sense, Bashir and Long (2015) showed a positive relationship between
training-related variables, such as availability of training, motivation to learn,
co-worker support for training, supervisor support for training, and benefits of
training, with affective and normative commitments. However, other research
has highlighted that an excess of training could negatively affect the research
results of universities (Fernández-López et al., 2018). Therefore, it is necessary
to focus on research training that encourages researchers to acquire certain
abilities necessary for research activity.
Another aspect that has generated great controversy to encourage research

activity is the availability of resources. A positive perception of the availability
of resources by academic researchers provides the necessary stimulus for
research activity. In this context, academic researchers who perceive these
resources as incentives would provide better research results than those who do
not perceive them as such. These resources, especially financial resources,
guarantee the provision of infrastructure, support staff, and equipment, as well
as access to databases (Benito et al., 2019; Kyvik & Aksnes, 2015). Some
studies defend the convenience of establishing allocation mechanisms that
favour the concentration of public financial resources in those universities with
better research results (Cropper & Cowton, 2021; Lariviére et al., 2010). This
mechanism is reflected at the individual level, so that more productive
researchers, who have a greater number of publications and citations, obtain
greater resources, resulting in a cyclical effect that places them in a better
position to compete in accessing new resources (Lariviére et al., 2010). For this
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reason, universities have an additional incentive to stimulate and encourage

excellence in research activity in terms of research results, since it affects the
institution’s ability to access financial resources. However, the system has been
questioned in this regard because it presents different incentives at the
individual and institutional levels. Despite the potential benefits of the
availability of resources, the incentives perceived by the researchers do not
always contribute to the strategic objectives of the university’s scientific policy
(Maisano et al., 2020). Similarly, other studies have highlighted that the effects
of these incentives are not significant on the quantity and quality of research
carried out by academic staff at universities (Loomes et al., 2019; Jørgensen &
Hanssen, 2018). Therefore, by systematizing the previous literature, we can
conclude that incentives are necessary, but not sufficient, for research activity
from an integrative perspective.
Studies have pointed out that the perception of researchers about university
management policies could be a relevant explanatory factor of scientific
productivity (Khvatova & Dushina, 2017). Nevertheless, very few studies have
addressed the perception of researchers at the individual level (Woelert et al.,
2021; Rosewell & Ashwin, 2019). Some studies have analysed the effect of the
researchers’ perception on the research results (Bryce et al., 2020), the integrity
and conduct of academic research (Huybers et al., 2020), or their commitment
(Smeenk et al., 2006). However, studies have not addressed in sufficient depth
the effects that institutional incentives have on research activity in an
integrative way. Therefore, this study proposes an exploratory measure,
following a qualitative and quantitative methodology, of the incentives of
research activity.
3. Empirical study
This empirical study proposes the design of a measurement tool that describes
university research incentives. In the literature, there is no specific measure of
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incentives for research activity that applies to all scientific fields in

universities. As previously observed, the literature does not provide theoretical
support for the definition of a specific set of items for assessing the research
incentives of the individual perspective. In this context, the methodological
literature recommends, for the definition of its own tools, the triangulation of
qualitative and quantitative methods (Hinkin, 1998). The combination of
research methods contributes to a more complete interpretation and
understanding of the results obtained (Jick, 1979). Firstly, a qualitative analysis
oriented towards the development of the measures was proposed. We
developed a Delphi panel (Landeta, 2006), which allowed the identification of
the research incentive attributes. After reaching the required consensus, the
Delphi panel made it possible to identify the items and measures of the
perceptions that were later used in the quantitative phase of the study. Based on
the results of this first inductive process, an exploratory factor analysis was
carried out to determine the internal structure of the research incentive system.
3.1. Qualitative stage: delphi panel

The Delphi panel is a technique that can be particularly useful to investigate
issues that are not sufficiently addressed in the literature based on expert
consensus (Landeta, 2006; Okoli & Pawlowski, 2004). This method is based
on a series of open questions that are sent in successive rounds to a panel of
experts together with the answers obtained in the previous round until the
consensus of the panel is reached. To avoid response biases and the
subjectivity problems derived from this type of technique, the
recommendations of Okoli and Pawlowski (2004) were followed for the
drafting of the questions. Through the different questions, the experts were
required to define the incentives, stimuli, and actions that are perceived as
drivers of research results in their scientific field. In the development of the
Delphi panel, it was necessary to pay special attention to the identification of
the group of experts participating in the panel. For this study, the panel
consisted of a group of Spanish research team leaders who were experts in
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different scientific fields. Their research experience and the fact that they cover
all scientific domains offered guarantees of a wide knowledge basis to explore
the object of study. Table 1 presents the descriptive statistics of the 62
principal investigators selected in this phase of analysis.
Table 1: Descriptive statistics.
Variable Descriptive Statistics % Qualitative % Quantitative

phase phase
Gender Female 22.58 29.70
Male 77.42 70.30
Academic Full Professor (Catedráticos) 66.13 28.30
Rank Professors (titulares de universidad) 33.87 60.60
Associate Professors (contratado - 11.20
doctores)
Field of study Art & Humanities 32.26 22.50
Sciences 27.42 40.70
Health Sciences 14.52 12.40
Law & Social Sciences 9.68 18.30
Engineering & Architecture 16.13 6.20
Several rounds of discussion were needed to reach consensus. In the first two
rounds, an open question accompanying all the statements asked the
respondents to include as much information as they considered relevant. In this
first phase, according to the purpose of this study, the experts were specifically
asked about incentives, and they sent their responses to the following question
via email: ‘In your opinion, what are the policies and actions that you think the
university should activate to improve research results in your scientific field?’.
The information was collected, analysed, and discussed by the authors to
highlight all the attributes provided by the experts at each stage of the Delphi
panel. In this first phase, 54 incentive attributes were obtained. In the second
phase, a new document, including the incentives attributes obtained in the first
round, was sent to the experts for confirmation. In this phase, the experts chose
those attributes that they considered relevant to define the incentives. This
document also included a section to collect experts’ suggestions, clarifications,
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or questions of interest. The information and suggestions received were

analysed, allowing us to design a questionnaire about incentives and their
effects on scientific results. Considering this information, the statements could
be weighted and prioritized. After three rounds of discussion, a consensus was
reached on 14 items that describe the actions that the universities should
implement to encourage academic research (Table 2). These items constituted
the questionnaire used in the next phase of the study, which focused on
institutional incentives of research activity. This second stage of the study
represented the first step in the measurement development process and served
as a starting point for subsequent validation of the instrument.
Table 2: Scale about university research incentives drawn from the panel
of experts (Third round)
Items
In his/her opinion, to encourage research and improve the research results obtained, the university
should ...
RI1 Promote those lines of research in which university is strong
RI2 Establish an objective, reliable and equitable system to measure research
RI3 Increase the endowment of pre-doctoral contracts
RI4 Increase the endowment of postdoctoral contracts
RI5 Increase financial resources
RI6 Differentiate between staff with a teaching and research profile
RI7 Promote and support the presentation of research projects in European calls
RI8 Encourage participation in public calls for research funding
RI9 Give administrative support for the preparation and presentation of projects in public calls
RI10 Establish a policy to attract students with better abilities, defining mechanisms for their
incorporation into the university *
RI11 Promote the updating and recycling of researchers
RI12 Train researchers in research methodology
RI13 Improve the dissemination, national and international, of the research carried out at the
university
RI14 Promote and finance research stays for academic researchers
* Item eliminated in the factorial analysis process
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3.2. Quantitative stage: exploratory factorial analysis

To define the incentive system, an exploratory factor analysis was carried out
with the aim of contrasting the internal composition of the construct and
determining its constitutive dimensions. The following subsection describes the
sample and the exploratory factor analysis used in the study.
3.2.1. Sample
The population of our study was academic researchers from a general Spanish
public university. The university studied has about 1,700 professors, belonging
to 46 departments. It currently offers a total of 44 undergraduate degrees, 53
master’s degrees, and 19 doctoral programmes for about 20,000 students. The
academic researchers of the university, as collected from the Scival database
(Scopus), had a total of 5,241 publications in the last 5 years, obtaining an
increase of 57.1% in the number of publications in that period. With these
indicators, the university can be considered medium-sized in the Spanish
context. For the purposes of this study, it is necessary to consider that all
Spanish public universities are subject to the same regulation regarding the
hiring and promotion of academic researchers. However, some universities
have certain internal functioning dynamics that allow them to decide on the
management of their personnel, distribution of funding, or the commitment of
strategic research groups in their universities. The selection of a single
university has made it possible, in this sense, to homogenize the perception of
researchers by isolating the effect of the university’s own incentive system.
To identify and reach potential respondents, we contacted the vice-rector for

research and heads of the departments to distribute the questionnaires to the
researchers. The email included a cover letter that explained the purpose of the
study and a form with the 14 items collected from the previous Delphi process.
All items were measured using Likert scales with a range from 1 (totally
136
disagree) to 5 (completely agree). A total of 425 valid completed

questionnaires were obtained. Considering the objectives of the study, we
ensured that the respondents had sufficient information about the university
research incentives and university management research mechanisms.
Therefore, we considered academic researchers who had at least one positively
assessed six-year period of research (sexenio) in recognition of their research
career. The “sexenios” are the main tool for incentivizing and evaluating
research activity in Spanish universities. Table 1 shows a synthetic
characterization of the sample of the quantitative phase through descriptive
statistics.
3.2.2. Exploratory factorial analysis

To explore the dimensionality of the research incentive system construct, we
conducted an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) using the principal components
method and applied a VARIMAX rotation in SPSS (version 21). We initially
conducted the Kaiser Meyer Olkin sample adequacy test to verify that the
factor analysis could be applied to the data extracted from the sample, based on
the criteria described by Dziuban and Shirkey (1974). The Bartlertt sphericity
test was carried out to confirm the adequacy of the factorial model to explain
the data.
The results for the EFA showed that research incentives could be reliably
measured through the initial set of items (α=.826), although the internal
composition of the construct indicated its multidimensional nature. Four
different factors were finally extracted, as depicted in Table 3. The item
“Establish a policy to attract students with better abilities, defining
mechanisms for their incorporation into the university” was eliminated from
the analysis since it loaded insufficiently onto one factor. The structure of the
scale corroborated the initial description of the construct based on the results of
the Delphi panel.
137
The first factor, Perception of incentives for training (α=.764), consisted of

four items related to the training and updating of researchers. The second
factor, Perception of incentives for staffing research at the university (α=.816),
included three items related to the staffing and financial resources for scientific
research. The third factor, Perception of the university’s support for
competitive funding calls (α=.792), grouped three items related to the
researchers’ perception of their participation in public calls for funding.
Finally, the fourth factor, Perception of the strategic focus of the university
(α=.530), comprised three other items related to strategic perspective of
research policy in university regarding the definition of its strategic objectives
and the general lines of its own research plans. Although we observed that the
Cronbach’s alpha was relatively low for this fourth factor, in the early phases
of research or exploratory studies, an internal consistency value of 0.6 or 0.5
may be considered sufficient (Nunnally, 1978). Thus, we decided to leave this
fourth factor because its items explained part of the scale obtained.
138
Table 3: Analysis of the main components (varimax rotation) of research

incentives (n = 259)
Variable: In his/her opinion, to encourage research Component

and improve the research results obtained, the
university should…
Item 1 2 3 4
RI11 .743
RI12 .742
RI13 .708
RI14 .695
RI3 .865
RI4 .850
RI5 .749
RI8 .797
RI9 .751
RI7 .698
RI2 .736
RI1 .682
RI6 .682
Eigenvalue 4.663 1.534 1.399 1.063
Explained variance 19.595 17.587 15.859 13.564
Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of .809
Sampling Adequacy
Bartlett´s Test of Sphericity
Approx. Chi-Cuadrado:1071.939
gl:78
Significance: .000
4. Discussion and conclusions

This study described institutional incentives that promote the academic career
of researchers in all scientific fields. From the organizational perspective,
different studies have shown that perceptions have a remarkable impact on the
behaviour of employees, differing in many cases from the practices promoted
by the manager (Van Beurden et al., 2021). From a university research view,
this includes the set of incentives to stimulate its research activity (Nguyen et
al., 2020; Drake et al., 2019). One of the questions raised in the literature is
whether these institutional incentives are applied efficiently and generate the
desired effects among academic researchers and university managers (Wan et
al., 2007). However, as mentioned above, despite the current literature, there
139
are still many unexplored aspects in the description of the incentives by which
academic institutions stimulate their researchers. Further, no studies explain
how individual researchers perceive the incentives. Therefore, there is a need
to promote a typology of research incentives, which is essential to
understanding the complex nature of academic researchers and other
reasonable attributes for a successful academic career.
The results of this study contribute to the literature in different ways. The
preliminary model sheds light on the explanation of the incentives that
researchers perceive in an integrative way for the set of knowledge areas of
universities. Our results identify fourteen attributes for the design of adequate
incentives. This set of attributes can provide the basis for understanding the
elements that researchers need for research activity. These measures are a
starting point to identify the policies that are most valued by the research staff.
A surprising finding was that the expert panel did not include attributes related
to the compensation and promotion of researchers, which are considered
essential in the research field in universities (Barrow & Grant, 2019; Sadiq et
al., 2019). A possible reason could be that Spanish academic researchers know
that these institutional aspects are nationally regulated, limiting the autonomy
of individual universities in this regard. Another contribution of the study is
that on the part of the university’s part, we found the non-existence of the
academic researcher’s interests as an incentive for research activity. In this
sense, universities should propose different incentives that promote appropriate
attitudes and behaviours to obtain greater results (Kyvik & Aksnes, 2015).
However, researchers seem to have, according to our results, a certain
institutional independence being mainly motivated by their research groups or
by collaborations with other researchers. In general, the expert panel suggested
that there was no singular form of management to promote researchers’
activity, since research incentives should aim to support an open, ethical,
equitable, and autonomous research culture that fosters the results of academic
140
researchers (Castro-Ceacero & Ion, 2019). Therefore, it is necessary to study

the intrinsic nature of researchers’ incentives to understand their behaviour in
scientific research. One of these stimuli can be recognition, status, or the job
satisfaction provided the university to researchers when they belong to the
institution, as highlighted by Albert et al. (2018). As the study by Ballestar et
al. (2019) concluded, the most effective stimuli or incentives will be those that
promote research activity on the job itself. From this perspective, universities
should value and support academics as thinkers, researchers, scholars, and
educators rather than mere producers of research results.
From our data, we were able to analyse the internal relationships between the
fourteen elements highlighted by the experts. The results offered four research
incentives: “the perception of incentives for training”, “the perception of the
incentives for staffing research at the university”, “the perception of the
university’s support for competitive funding calls”, and “the perception of the
strategic focus of the university”.
The perception of incentives for training confirmed the training process as a

key element for researchers who want to be productive in their research
careers, in line with other studies, such as those by Xia et al. (2020) and
Alshaikhmubarak et al. (2020). Generally, the best-trained researchers have
more resources to conduct research in their scientific fields. However,
universities must be particularly careful in the design of training activities, as
some studies have indicated that excessive training could decrease research
capacities (Fernández-López et al., 2018). One of the possible explanations for
this observation lies in the training plans that do not satisfy the training needs
of university academic research, mainly focused on teaching skills, leaving
research training to be handled by the research groups. In this aspect, research
groups focus on aspects such as methodological training, literature search,
preparation of articles, or participation in specific conferences in the learning
process of academic researchers. Thus, we should consider the formal training
141
developed by the university compared to the informal training implemented by

the research groups to support its researchers as a success measure.
Second, we propose the importance of the factor “the perception of the

incentives for staffing research at the university”. These results confirm the
value for researchers of obtaining resources and especially the recruitment of
new research staff, both predoctoral and postdoctoral, as had already been
proposed in previous studies, such as Kyvik and Aksnes (2015) or Herschberg
et al. (2018). Researchers who perceive that their universities provide new
personnel to their research groups have better conditions for research activity.
Several studies have analysed the design of new research strategies based on
the development of professional networks, which can favour the production of
new knowledge in academia (Seibert et al., 2017). From this perspective,
experienced researchers form informal commitments with new researchers to
encourage the “pooling” of scientific knowledge and, thus, the development of
new research among them. In this collaboration, expert researchers contribute
their research experience, while early researchers provide self-motivating
characteristics, such as enthusiasm, passion, and commitment, which
encourages the development of research activity.
The third factor, “the perception of the university’s support for competitive
funding calls”, highlighted how the university supports its researchers in better
conditions to apply for funding calls (e.g. with administrative support, more
information on calls, or specific training on project design to increase the
success rate). Institutional support also gives academic researchers an incentive
to pursue specific research topics and influences the trend of scientific research
and the funds to conduct it (Kishi, 2020). Some studies have highlighted the
lack of institutional support as a problem regarding research identity in
universities (Dugas et al., 2020). In essence, researchers must seek new
funding formulas to support their research in their universities (Berbegal-
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Mirabent et al., 2013). In summary, the results seem to indicate that academic
researchers perceive that support from the university in terms of funding calls
is vital to obtaining higher returns on research activity (Santini et al., 2021).
The distribution of financing should be guaranteed by a significant part of the
basic financing based on the research results and the strategic objectives of the
institution.
Finally, our data proposed “the perception of the strategic focus of the
university” as an element for stimulating the promotion of academic research.
Universities should establish research priorities in different scientific fields, as
well as in the acquisition of resources and strategic decision-making (Dowsett,
2020). In this area, the internal functioning of the research groups should be
taken into consideration in strategic collaborations (Celis & Kim, 2018) and
researchers’ strategic vision (Luukknoen & Thomas, 2016) to favour the
autonomy of the research groups and universities.
Together, these four factors could provide the basis for incentive system
implementation in a university context from point of view of academic
researcher. Their adequate consideration could produce improvements in the
satisfaction of academic researchers and clarify the direction universities
should follow to promote academic research.
From a practical perspective, our study could have several practical

implications of interest to university managers and principal investigators of
research groups. The identification of the perception of incentives provides the
basis for the definition of management systems for universities, as well as tools
for the evaluation and monitoring of research capacities and scientific
performance. These factors could improve the commitment and feeling of
belonging to the university, so that researchers would be motivated in the
research activity and universities could strengthen the bonds between them.
These career incentives are particularly complex so person centred approaches
143
allow to know the composition of factors that enhance academic career

success. A second practical implication could be the management of incentives
designed should be focused on each stage of the academic career (Levin &
Stephan, 1991). Universities should manage knowledge competencies as a
process, not as permanent conditions in order to offer an incentive system
coherent to the stage of the academic career. From this perspective, universities
should plan and implement an incentive system that is based on research
performance.
In addition, University managers can use rewards to influence attitude and

behaviour to improve research results in each of the academic stages. The
incorporation of new researchers may require that universities and research
groups plan specific training programmes that may create an adequate work
environment that encourages informal learning and synergies among the
researchers. Universities should also propose strategies and policies to boost
confidence among researchers to carry out their research activity. This may
involve selecting highly experimented researchers with novice researchers to
conduct training them to a large extent to promote research groups. A third
practical implication could be the use of the model as an instrument to guide
the definition of scientific strategies in universities, focusing on those
incentives that are perceived among researchers as generators of better research
results and satisfactory performance of their scientific activity. Also, the
involvement of the researchers in the strategic process would probably make an
important difference in research culture, both regarding the understanding of
institutional orientation encouraging academic researchers to feel part of their
institutions (Xu et al., 2021). Similarly, the universities could design research
profiles that allow differentiating such culture as a strategic line from the rest
of universities.
144
It is necessary to acknowledge some of the study’s limitations that condition

the scope of the conclusions and that may inspire future lines of research in this
area. We believe it necessary to incorporate in future models the influence of
variables that describe appropriate behaviours or attitudes as possible
moderating variables of the perception of research incentives. Second, the
characteristics of university institutions suggest that scientific activity has both
individual and group conditioning factors, as well as organizational level; thus,
to continue advancing in the understanding of these effects, it would be
necessary to propose a multilevel model. The analysis of the complex
relationships between the analysed factors requires a cross-sectional
investigation that delves into the interrelationship between the different
dimensions of the system, adopting a configurational perspective. Another
limitation of the present study is the characteristics of the sample itself. The
replication of the analysis in other university contexts would allow an analysis
of the differences in the perception of incentives, which may be affected by
conditions derived from the national university system and by those in other
international research university models. Such an analysis could establish the
differential effects of incentives among universities, as well as the
understanding of the configurations from an international perspective. Finally,
the use of “sexenio” in our analysis could also be a limitation of the study since
researchers who have not obtained one may need other research incentives.
Therefore, a future line of research could be aimed at understanding the
incentives of this subgroup of academic researchers, who are usually in the
early stages of their academic careers.
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CONCLUSIONS, LIMITATIONS, AND FUTURE
LINES OF RESEARCH
CONCLUSIONS, LIMITATIONS, AND
FUTURE LINES OF RESEARCH
With the development of the present doctoral thesis, an attempt has

been made to advance the knowledge of the processes of management of
academic researchers in the university context. In general, we can conclude
that universities must encourage the development of academics and other
researchers contributing to society’s development. In a knowledge-intensive
society, the university is a key institution characterised by autonomy and
responsibility, having to deal with many changes in recent decades (Highman,
2020). Universities, as with any other organisation, should achieve efficiency
levels in developing their activities. Regarding the efficiency of universities,
there are considerable differences in academics’ performance. Research
performance varies over time due to the management and strategies followed
by each university. Therefore, it is difficult to establish an appropriate measure
for managing the performance of academics. In short, our thesis focuses on the
management of university research and academic performance from an
individual perspective (academic researchers). The achievement of this
scientific objective is a significant contribution both to the development of the
literature within the framework of human capital and to the understanding of
the determinants that condition research performance in the context of a
university.
We focused on identifying and relating various elements that generate
human capital that could affect research productivity. As noted in the
introduction, the growing importance of the research process and management
has meant a substantial change in the role that universities and research
organisations develop in society as agents responsible for generating and
transmitting knowledge. The theoretical approach offered by human capital
theory (Ployhart, 2021; Wright, 2021; Wright & McMahan, 2011) allowed us
155
Conclusions, limitations, and future lines of research
to deepen the dynamics of scientific knowledge generation based on the

intangible assets that researchers possess. The analysis of academic human
capital allowed us to analyse the most internal dimensions of academic
researchers, describing the nature of their main intangible assets. To
characterise them, a distinction was made between the dimensions of human
capital described in the literature as the KSA framework. In the research
context, this approach is especially interesting in clarifying the combination of
attributes of academic researchers that are necessary to develop efficient
research and how the complement of these attributes adds value to the research
activity. Therefore, before developing the empirical analysis in this thesis, we
started by concreting the variables for the specific case and identifying the
description of the elements. To conceptualise human capital in an academic
context, we returned to the evidence offered by the expert’s academics.
Subsequently, we focused on analysing the role that the dimensions of
academic human capital play in the processes of generating scientific
knowledge and the performance of the researchers. Therefore, the estimation of
measurement models corroborated that the traditional differentiation between
knowledge, skills, and abilities (Ployhart & Moliterno 2011) was also relevant
in the academic field, although with some interesting particularities.
However, as clarified since the introduction of this thesis, the very
development of the research and the exploratory study that identified the lack
of specific research on this topic led us to propose a model showing that some
research is too broad to develop within the objectives of a doctoral thesis.
Therefore, it is important to consider this thesis as the beginning of an incipient
strand of research that offers us the opportunity to develop future works that
contemplate broader objectives. This is something that we will subsequently
develop in future strands of research, in which specific developments are
proposed that address all of the initially proposed objectives. However, in the
empirical section of this thesis, we focused on achieving research objectives
156
Thesis Doctoral Félix Guerrero Alba
that were within the limits of a doctoral thesis. Specifically, we focused on

specifying (1) the definition of human capital constructs and validation of the
scale of measurement in an academic context, (2) the empirical model that
describes the causal relationships between the dimensions of the AMO
framework and research performance, and (3) the perceptions of academic
researchers about research incentives.
We draw certain conclusions and contributions from our findings, as
presented below.
1. Principal conclusions derived from the proposed objectives
a) Conceptualise and construct a scale for measuring human capital

in the academic context
a.1) Assess academic human capital

The empirical definition of the concept of human capital cannot be
constructed in an abstract way, but it should be contextualised based on the
particularities of the unit on which it is applied. We found that human capital
has singularities in its differential elements in the organisational context.
Although organisations have increasingly made efforts to identify, measure,
and manage human capital (Ployhart, 2021; Wright & McMahan, 2011), there
is still a lack in the literature with regard to its management and reporting in
academic institutions (Beerkens, 2013; Horta & Santos, 2020; Sousa &
Hendriks, 2008). The application and contextualisation of this approach at this
level of analysis represents a significant novelty because studies have paid
attention only to the analysis of specific attributes in scientific activity and
their effect on scientific productivity (Barnacle & Dall’Alba, 2014; Seibert et
al., 2017; Ulrich & Dash, 2013; White et al., 2012;). They have not
systematised the study of these attributes in an integrated way, nor have they
provided comprehensive theoretical support for the construct of human capital
in the context of academic researchers. Therefore, one of the implications is to
157
understand in detail the behaviour of academic human capital from an

integrative perspective as an emerging strand of research.
a.2) Elaborate on the elements and dimensions of academic

human capital
Having clarified the complex nature of human capital and the context
at hand, we specify the elements and dimensions that constitute academic
human capital. We deepen the study of the more internal dimensions that
constitute the research process in the context of academic researchers as well
as of the nature of its intangible assets from an integrative perspective.
Initially, in the literature, we identified studies that address the attributes of
academic human capital. We believe that to synthesise these attributes, we can
take into consideration the classical dimensions of the KSA framework that are
so well accepted in the organisational context.
According to the results of our studies, academic human capital is

composed of five different factors (research capacity, research knowledge,
alertness, work organisation capacity, and ability to assume criticism).
However, our results show that the reality of academic human capital is more
complex from a theoretical and empirical point of view. We conclude that
academic human capital behaves as a complex construct, given that each item
contributes value to each of the elements that comprise it. That is, if we
eliminate one factor or item of human capital, the construct changes
completely. In this sense, the specific items of the scale accurately provide the
specific variables necessary for academic research, such as theoretical and
methodological understanding, observing facts and identifying research topics,
discussing research results, interacting with other researchers, knowing how to
conduct and autonomously develop research, and adapting to changes in the
research context. Another aspect that has been highlighted in the context of
158
academic human capital is that there is no clear clarification between research

skills and abilities. Our study clarifies skills into three broad dimensions, where
they are general attributes, and abilities are more specific to the job itself.
To clarify human capital attribute classification and its labels, we have

added Table 3.1, which shows the correspondence between the theoretical
framework (KSA) and the results of our study. To assign labels, we paid
particular attention to the nature and composition of each factor, attempting to
propose coherent labels.
159
Table 3.1: Correspondence between theoretical and factorial analysis

dimensions
KSA Theoretical Factorial analysis Concepts
Framework Dimensions dimensions
Knowledge-how Elements related to researchers’

(tacit) theoretical and methodological
understanding, researchers’ English (or
other predominant languages in the field
of research) language domain,
K Research Knowledge
researchers’ comprehension to find,
Knowledge-that
manage information from relevant
(explicit)
publications in their field of research and
know relevant publications in the
scientific field.

Alertness Skills the researcher’s creative perception,
initiative, and motivation to carry out the
research activity.

S Research skills Work organisation Skills the constancy, discipline and organisation
in the research workplace.

extent the researcher accepts criticism
Assume Criticism Skills
and reviews of his work as research
function.
Composed of those research-specific

context abilities of researchers (observe
facts and identify research topics, discuss
A Research abilities Research ability research results, interact with other
researchers, know how conduct and
autonomously develop research and
adapt to changes in the research context.
160
a.3) Elucidate complementarities of dimensions of academic

human capital
In this regard, we have clarified the explanations given regarding the
complementarities between different dimensions of human capital. We use this
argumentation to explain the importance of using the knowledge, skills, and
abilities (KSA) framework as the basis upon which we build our theoretical
discussion. As explained in this thesis, this framework offers an integrative
view of human capital, considering how the interrelationships between human
capital dimensions can influence performance and competitive advantage.
Complementarities exist when one resource enhances the effectiveness of other
resources (Brymer & Hitt, 2019). The vast majority of these strategically
relevant complementarities within human capital involve individuals (or
groups) interacting with a host of other individuals and groups.
Although the study of such complementarities exceeds the scope of

the article, it is especially interesting to know more about how these constructs
combine to influence each other.
b) Analyse the determinants of academic performance using the AMO

approach
b.1) Analyse the AMO approach in a different context than that of

academic research
The application of approaches that contextualise the determinants of
academic researcher performance becomes necessary to design more efficient
research management policies (Bazeley, 2010; Diem & Wolter, 2013; Dundar
& Lewis, 1998 Hedjazi & Behravan, 2011). In this context, the AMO
framework has emerged as a suitable approach for evaluating employee
performance by differentiating among its key factors (Marin-Garcia and
Martinez Tomas, 2016; Jiang et al., 2012). The literature on the AMO
framework still has several “gaps” in the management context (Benet-Zepf et
161
al., 2018; Bos-Nehles et al., 2013; Hauff et al., 2021; Knies & Leisink, 2014;
Jiang et al., 2012; Salas-Vallina et al., 2021; Van Waeyenber & Decramer,
2018), and its impact on employees remains unclear (Pak et al., 2019). The
AMO framework considers that individual performance depends not only on
individuals’ abilities and job-related motivation but also on the opportunities
offered by their universities. However, only a few studies have analysed these
variables from an integrated perspective in the academic research context.
We have therefore concluded that the AMO framework has the same
effects in the field of academic research as in other organisational contexts. We
respond to these demands, as the contextualisation of the AMO framework
involves the identification and conceptualisation of new constructs that allow
for deepening the analysis of research performance. By nature, human capital
has been used to define performance in organisations (Ployhart, 2021; Wright,
2021; Wright & McMahan, 2011). However, this framework considers other
dimensions, such as motivation and opportunities to generate greater value.
Therefore, our study allows us to understand the relationships between the
variables of the AMO approach from an integrative perspective.
b.2) Specify the elements and dimensions of AMO in an academic

context
Interest in the AMO approach in recent years has led to the need to
establish the elements of each dimension. To propose specific elements, we
propose a scale of specific dimensions in the academic environment. Following
our study, we have provided the existing relationships in the AMO framework
in the academic environment in Table 3.2. In complex jobs, such as conducting
research, a comprehensive list of AMO attributes could be especially useful in
analysing one’s position to clarify what is needed to perform successfully.
162
These elements have allowed us to develop further analyses, as described

below.
Table 3.2: Correspondence between theoretical and factorial analysis

dimensions
AMO Theoretical Factorial analysis

framework dimensions dimensions
Theoretical knowledge
Scientific Knowledge
Explicit knowledge
Proactive creativity
A Research accuracy
Scientific skills
Skill of accepting
criticism
Scientific abilities Research abilities
Intrinsic Motivation Intrinsic Motivation
M
Extrinsic Motivation Extrinsic Motivation
Availability of financial
resources Availability of financial
Availability of qualified and human resources
O human resources
Availability of physical
resources Availability of
Availability of digital information resources
resources
b.3) Analyse the moderating effect of research motivations and

opportunities on human capital and performance.
In our study, the objective was to determine the behaviour of these
variables in the research university context and examine the effects of
motivation and opportunity on the direct relationship between abilities
163
(academic human capital) and research performance. We therefore offer a

novel model based on the AMO framework that explains whether research
abilities improve in the presence of different types of research motivations and
opportunities.
First, we observed the existence of a direct relationship between human

capital and academic performance. The positive influence of human capital on
research activity implies that researchers should develop a set of specific
competencies to appropriately carry out research activity. These results, as
expected, are consistent with the academic human capital literature (Bozeman
et al., 2001). However, our results also reflect a certain negative relationship
between proactive creativity and performance, perhaps because the research
process and lines of research groups somewhat limit the “gaps” in the different
research topics or innovative proposals that are generally not sought after in
scientific journals. This certain seemingly negative relationship needs to be
studied in more detail to see why the relationship is inverse.
Considering the moderating dimensions, academic researchers have

both an extrinsic motivation that encourages hard skills (research abilities and
scientific knowledge), and an intrinsic motivation that stimulates soft skills
(proactive creativity, research accuracy, and the skill of accepting criticism).
These conclusions are supported by other studies by Janger and Nowotny
(2016), Wollersheim et al. (2015), and Peng and Gao (2019). In relationship
researchers’ opportunities, our results exhibited a greater availability of
economic and human resources than of information resources. According to
our results, economic and human resources must be available to support
researchers’ hard skills (research abilities and scientific knowledge) and one
dimension of “soft skills” (research accuracy). However, our data indicated
the availability of information resources in terms of only one dimension of
“hard skills” (research abilities) and the last dimension of “soft skills” (skill of
accepting criticism). Our results indicate that universities need to provide
164
adequate opportunities in the form of resources to improve the skills and

performance of academics, as indicated by previous research, such as Kwick
(2016) and Hicks (2012).
Therefore, we can conclude that researchers’ motivations and

opportunities stimulate their ability to achieve greater scientific performance.
Universities and research units need to focus on these variables to emphasise
their contributions to improving academic research. Furthermore, it is worth
noting that despite the evident contextual differences, researchers seem to
respond to concerns in ways that are similar to workers in different
organisational contexts (Szulc et al., 2021; Szulc & Smith, 2021). Academic
researchers, like other workers, develop a series of abilities and motivations
that allow them to achieve certain returns in their jobs. Similarly, the
opportunities offered by their organisations and environments allow them to
make improvements, as shown in this study. These have allowed us to show
those characteristics that are most sensitive to the research activity of
academics. Thus, the different research units (universities, research groups, and
researchers) should utilise these attributes to encourage research activity. The
research units should provide first-hand knowledge of the elements that would
allow for greater performance.
b.4) Identify the research performance measurement

Research performance has been widely debated in the literature. In the
current university environment, scoring well on measured criteria of research
performance establishes our authenticity as researching academics at both the
institutional and personal levels (Bazeley, 2010). Traditional measures of
research performance have been based on the number of publications or
citations as a measure of impact. These measures have allowed universities to
establish different criteria for the good performance of researchers. However,
as mentioned in the contributions of this thesis, these measures suffer from
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certain problems, such as the so-called “publish or perish” (Garfield, 1996

Hangel & Schmidt-Pfister, 2017; Heng et al., 2020; Van Dalen, 2021) or the
adequate distribution of researchers’ time among the different functions
(Kenny & Fluck, 2021; White et al., 2012), for example. Research performance
has also been criticised because it does not adequately reflect the contribution
of researchers to academia. For these reasons, other measures have been
developed that could establish the comparison and recognition that researchers
bring to their universities, such as the H-index. Given the limitations of the H-
index, we used DEA to define an efficiency frontier. This efficiency frontier
makes the performance of each researcher comparable to that of other
researchers with different seniorities, for example. DEA gives us a value for
the closeness of the researcher’s efficiency frontier to the ideal, which makes
the compatibility between the samples homogeneous and easily
understandable. However, the focus of our study is not only to know the
performance of researchers but also the determinants that promote academic
research from an individual perspective.
Therefore, we can conclude that the performance measure, DEA, used

for the study is suitable for our analyses, as it allows for compatibility between
researchers at different points in their academic careers and as an average of
research efficiency. Beyond their comparison, this measure allowed us to
clearly rank the efficiency of the members of our sample.
c) Analyse the effect of the perception of incentives on research

activity
c.1) Elucidate the nature of researchers’ perceptions in the field of

university management
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Employee perceptions have recently generated some interest in human

resource management research (Nishii and Wright, 2008; Van Beurden et al.,
2020). Some studies have proposed that more important than research policies
are the perceptions of researchers towards them (Gaus & Hall, 2016; Kenny &
Fluck, 2021; Khan & Siriwardhane, 2021). The importance of a clear fit
between the job and the organisation is essential for the expected results. One
of the most important assumptions is how researchers have certain synergies
with universities and how universities join their efforts to achieve their goals
(Drake et al., 2019; Nguyen et al., 2020). This can lead to new contributions as
well as enhance certain performance-driven behaviours of researchers.
As a conclusion of this study, we posit that the incentive system is of

vital importance for researchers, as universities should offer management tools
so that academics feel valued in their jobs. In general, our results suggest that
there is no single form of management to improve the perception of
researchers, since research incentives should aim to support an open, ethical,
equitable, and autonomous research culture that promotes the research results
of their researchers. University managers should support academics as thinkers,
researchers, academics, and educators rather than producers of their research
results. The satisfaction of researchers at universities allows them to develop
research activities in better conditions (Mwesigwa et al., 2020). Ultimately, if
universities take these perceptions of researchers into account, they will
provide better incentives for research activities. The sample used in this study
to elaborate on the role of incentives was diverse and experienced to offer
better guarantees of success in the field of research.
c.2) Define the types of incentives for research activity

As mentioned in the previous section, one of the conclusions reached in
this thesis is that research incentives should be synchronised with the
universities. In Table 3.3, we propose four incentives that are basic to research
167
activity. With these incentives, academics will enhance the development of

research careers by boosting performance and professional and international
networks.
Universities should not only provide these incentives for researchers

but should also understand the complexity of research activities and inherent
problems to consistently identify solutions. Therefore, universities, and
academics should work together to establish synergies between all research
units to offer value to society and be efficient in the market.
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Table 3.3: Factorial analysis dimensions and items of research incentives
Research incentives Items

The perception of incentives for Promote the updating and recycling of
training researchers
Train researchers in research methodology
Improve the dissemination, national and
international, of the research carried out at
the university
Promote and finance research stays for
academic researchers
The perception of the incentives for Increase the endowment of pre-doctoral
staffing research at the university contracts
Increase the endowment of postdoctoral
contracts
Increase financial resources
The perception of the university’s Encourage participation in public calls for
support for competitive funding calls research funding
Give administrative support for the
preparation and presentation of projects in
public calls
Promote and support the presentation of
research projects in European calls
The perception of the strategic focus of Establish an objective, reliable and equitable
the university system to measure research
Promote those lines of research in which
university is strong
Differentiate between staff with a teaching
and research profile
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2. Contributions and implications
Many studies have concluded that to respond to this new context,

institutions dedicated to scientific research must articulate new types of
resources and different forms of management that favour their contribution to
research performance. The application and contextualisation of new
approaches that help to understand the determinants of research performance
and facilitate new tools for the management of science is an important
contribution.
The achievement of the scientific objectives set out in the empirical
section of the thesis also makes a significant contribution to the literature on
the management of human resources in an academic context. The application
of the human capital approach involves the conceptualisation of new variables
that deepen the study of the determinants of research performance. Therefore,
by applying and contextualising the human capital approach in the unit of
analysis on which we focused our research, we reached an important series of
academic and practical implications. It is also important to note that, with the
contextualisation of the human capital approach to the research environment,
we respond to the call for more studies to develop research on this topic in a
specific context, something that facilitates the practical application of human
capital approaches (Marginson, 2019). As Wright et al. (2014) noted, the
empirical definition of the concept of human capital cannot be done in an
abstract way but must be contextualised depending on the particularities of the
unit to which it is applied. Therefore, in our work, which follows a synergist
approach, we will focus on the study of human capital in the specific context of
academic research to deepen how human capital is mobilised in this context,
conceptualising, and identifying which measures and attributes set of human
capital are fundamental in the development of research. Thus, the
contextualisation of the human capital approach in a research environment is
also justified by the particularities and notorious differences between
170
organisations dedicated to research and traditional organisations, which means

that traditional measures of human capital do not capture all the variables that
make up the research environment. This work therefore proposes using the
perspective offered by the human capital approach to deepen the identification,
conceptualisation, and measurement of new variables that reflect the
competences necessary to develop research.
To demonstrate the contributions of our thesis, we carried out the
study following methodological triangulation. We developed our analysis using
both qualitative and quantitative techniques. To conceptualise and identify the
intangible elements that make up the human capital, motivations, opportunities,
and research incentives construct in the academic context in general, a Delphi
analysis was carried out. In this case, given that the initial conceptualisation
proposal was carried out in an academic environment that included different
fields of scientific knowledge, the panel consisted of a group of Spanish
research team leaders who were experts in different fields. This qualitative
phase was essential for the identification of all the elements mentioned above.
The experts had to reach a consensus on each element of the study. Thus, the
process was repeated until acceptance of each item was reached. Furthermore,
the Delphi panel was complemented with another quantitative phase to confirm
the constructs developed. For this purpose, a questionnaire was designed to be
answered by Spanish researchers. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses
were carried out to validate each of the proposed scales. Therefore, we
contextualised and proposed a construct that allowed us to conceptualise
different constructs in an academic context.
With the proposal made in the empirical study, we tried to address the
limitations of previous studies in the field by focusing more on the specific
attributes of academic researchers that explain higher scientific performance.
In essence, the proposed scale presents two specific advantages that justify its
application in an academic context. It provides direct information from
researchers about aspects that are particularly difficult to measure, such as their
competence profiles. Although this information is subjective, it can be used as
171
preliminary data to supplement more objective information and to understand

the antecedents of scientific performance. Scopus offers tools such as SciVal, a
web-based analytics solution that allows us to obtain and process a large
amount of comprehensive information on the research performance of over
14,000 research institutions and their associated researchers from 230 nations
worldwide. We consider that the availability of different metrics or information
allows universities to make more efficient decisions about their academic
researchers and provides an integrative measure that includes different
dimensions of human capital. We deem this especially interesting because the
scales used to assess academic human capital globally consider some attributes
that define researchers’ competence profiles. Further, we are aware that the
manuscript provides subjective information about researchers’ competences,
which can be particularly useful if the scale is applied as a complement to other
objective measures (i.e., SciVaL).
The proposal of this measurement instrument involves important uses
and practical implications, differentiating between the individual, research
group, and institutional/organisational level. Specifically, as we have argued,
the proposal and validation of this tool for measuring academic human capital
allowed us to identify certain intangible elements that are relevant to the
research process and to determine scientific productivity. Considering what the
literature has pointed out, these key intangible assets in research processes are
difficult to capture through the traditional and decontextualised measures of
human capital that can be found in the organisational literature. Therefore, in
our view, building a measurement tool specifically designed for the academic
research context will be particularly valuable for different agents.
• Individual researchers: This tool can be used to analyse the level of
human capital a researcher has and, on the basis of this information, to detect
training needs. The specific training offered to academic researchers will serve
to develop and improve the KSA. Further, the tool provides an adequate
172
measurement for the self-evaluation of KSA attributes in research context.

From this perspective, academic researchers could know their potential
knowledge, ability, and skill limitations with the objective of improving the
way in which they conduct research and their results. In a different vein, we
agree regarding the valuation of the individual data points. The scale can also
be used to establish comparisons between the scores obtained by researchers
within their research teams and even their research areas. To this end, it is
possible to determine whether a researcher is average or needs to improve
specific attributes.
• Research teams: This measure scale is useful for principal investigators
to manage their research teams in three main aspects. First, it provides
principal investigators with useful input and preliminary information about the
stock of competencies within their teams. In this respect, collaboration between
researchers, either within the research group itself or among other researchers,
can facilitate the generation of new knowledge and research capacities, as has
been described in studies such as Lee and Bozeman (2005). Second,
complementarities between KSA dimensions can be determined using the
scale. Principal investigators may use the scale to perceive the
complementarities of academic human capital to improve the research
performance of team members. This could be very useful for decision-making
regarding how to foster complementarities between team members or advising
younger researchers on their potential training needs and help manage their
academic careers. Lastly, the research careers of team members need to be
managed. This scale could be used to analyse the evolution of academic careers
by examining how much human capital they have and, using this information,
detecting specific training needs.
• University management: The need for adequate management policies
are essential in academia, as described in studies such as Alshaikhmubarak et
al. (2020), Xia et al. (2020); Ayaita et al., 2019 or Nguyen, (2016). This
measurement scale is useful for university research management in six main
areas. First, the scale could be used as a guide to promotion opportunities for
173
researchers. This scale would imply that faculties’ policies to manage young
and senior researchers can be communicated more directly. Our scale could be
used as a supplement to the research team’s decisions about promotion
opportunities. Decision-making about the promotion of researchers could be
complex by its nature; therefore, the process can be complemented with this
scale of measurement for the decision to be fair and equitable. In fact, the scale
can be used as a guide of researchers´ competence profiles, utilising not the
specific scores but serving as a checklist for potential candidates. Second, this
scale provides the university with a tool to obtain interesting information about
academic human capital to design talent management initiatives. In this sense,
universities would have a better understanding of the training needs and
development opportunities offered to their staff. Revealing the underlying
determinants of the production of scientific knowledge makes it possible to
define, with greater precision, the reward systems and professional careers of
people working in the field of science (White et al., 2012). Thus, university
managers must promote adequate human resource management policies that
improve the ability and motivation of academic researchers; these are both
directly and indirectly related to research performance, suggesting that
universities retain and generate high levels of performance of researchers.
Third, the scale could also foster the design of an academic human capital
profile for academic researchers. Academic researchers must combine their
scientific activities with teaching and management responsibilities (White et
al., 2012). This profile would reinforce the idea that there is a need to
differentiate the nature and evaluation perspectives between research, teaching,
and management activity. In complex jobs, such as conducting research,
having a comprehensive list of human capital attributes could be especially
useful as a job analysis to clarify what is needed to perform. Fourth, the scale
provides a tool that could be useful for the allocation of research funding, for
example, assigning more funds to research teams that present higher levels of
174
academic human capital, or according to the training needs exhibited by the

team. Thus, this distribution could be more equitable, considering the
differences between areas of knowledge. Some studies have highlighted
financial incentives from a macro-level imperative in the development of
university-based research (Auranen & Nieminen, 2010). As these studies
mention, there is no straightforward mechanism from funding incentives to
research activities. Therefore, the proposed measure scale could be used to add
information about specific academic human capital attributes to clarify fund
allocation at the university level between areas of knowledge or emergent
research groups. Furthermore, the scale could be employed to provide
integrative value to support the system of funding assignments. The scale could
be a good tool for assessing the academic human capital of academic research
in the research teams that respond to calls to adequately develop the research.
A fifth practical implication will be related to the strategic decision-making of
the universities regarding their research policies (Fumasoli et al., 2020). The
strategic research position of the universities highlights the importance of the
measurement tool to improve ranks, resources, and decision-making power in
attracting and retaining research talent. University leaders could use this scale
to develop strategies and methods that enhance ability, motivation, and
opportunities to help researchers improve individual scientific performance.
Further, university managers should be alert about calls for new regional,
national, and international funding for obtaining funding and human resources,
as well as information resources that facilitate research activity. Lastly,
universities should consider the perception of incentives of academic
researchers to provide the basis for the definition of management systems for
universities, as well as tools for the evaluation and monitoring of research
capacities and scientific performance. A definition of incentives that takes
these perceptions into account could promote research behaviours that
reinforce the scientific productivity of institutions as well as motivation in the
workplace based on commitment and a feeling of belonging to the university.
The management and perception of incentives must be focused on each stage
175
of the academic career (Levin & Stephan, 1991). We suggest that universities
use appropriate incentives at each stage of their academic life cycle and that
they perceive it in a satisfactory way to stimulate researchers appropriately and
influence their expected performance. To summarise, the configuration of
academic human capital may help universities analyse the specific needs of
researchers rather than propose homogeneous research policies.
In summary, we understand the proposed scale as a novel and
complementary tool to support specific processes in the academic context, as
mentioned above. We further explain that this scale can be used as an input of
information to guide the set of management policies and to clarify the
usefulness of the scale itself. As previously mentioned, the scale cannot be
understood as a single measure upon which different decisions are based in an
academic context. In fact, as explained, the proposed scale would be useful in
supporting the principal investigator, researchers, and even managers, always
matching the scale to other objective indicators or measures. As explained, it
can be used as an input of information at the micro, group, and organisational
levels. What is particularly relevant in this scale from the individual
perspective is the extent to which it allows researchers to be more conscious of
the real level of their competences. We assume that this kind of scale fosters a
realistic and critical view when assessing one’s own human capital and offers
an integrative assessment of many different human capital attributes that define
academic work. In this way, the definition of a system of indicators for the
analysis of academic human capital could guide decision-making in the
management of scientific equipment that is developed both in universities and
public institutions.
3. Limitations
The results obtained in the quantitative analysis (empirical studies 1,

2, and 3) should be considered in light of a series of limitations that allow us to
176
better understand the significance of the conclusions drawn, as well as qualify

certain aspects of the investigation. The main limitations derive from the
complexity of the research topic with which we initially approached research in
academia. The fact that we have focused on the study of the human capital of
academics provides multiple considerations of the diverse and complex nature
of the topic to be analysed in the field of study itself, as well as its more
specific dimensions. Therefore, it is also important to highlight the
consideration of this thesis as the beginning of an incipient line of research that
offers us the opportunity to develop future research that includes variables in
an integrated way in the topic studied. Nevertheless, we present different
conceptual issues and restrictions in the empirical research process that must be
considered when analysing the scope of the conclusions drawn from this thesis.
However, it is important to note that the breadth with which the

present study was initially drawn did not allow us to consider the effects of
multiple contingent variables that could have contributed to a better
understanding of the determinants of scientific productivity. In the second and
third empirical study, variables such as funding (Álvarez-Bornstein & Bordons,
2021; Bloch, 2020; Bloch et al., 2014; Shin et al., 2021), university culture
(Fussy, 2019; Kaltenbrunner, 2018), leadership of the principal investigator
(Ballesteros-Rodriguez et al., 2020a, 2020c), and specific management policies
(Alshaikhmubarak et al., 2020; Amin et al., 2014; Nguyen, 2016; Xia et al.,
2020) as drivers of scientific performance were not considered. The inclusion
of these variables would have allowed us to improve and specify certain
conclusions. However, it should be mentioned that in the second empirical
study, only the influence of the university was considered a variable that
conditions research opportunities within the AMO framework, without major
differences in the significance of the rest of the study variables. Thus, the
inclusion of these variables could be the result of future studies that contribute
to the field of understanding human capital in the university context.
177
Similarly, another possible limitation in the research could come from

the participation of a single member of the academic researchers studied as an
informant. To study the variables of human capital, motivation, and
opportunity or their management, individuals were surveyed to respond to
questions about their own attributes. Given that information on the dimensions
of human capital was provided by a single individual, the bias of the common
method could be generated. Therefore, considering this limitation and
following different studies (Podsakoff et al., 2003), we have developed
different ex ante and ex post procedures to control for possible biases. Based
on these procedures, we infer that the common method is not a serious
limitation of our study. However, to avoid possible high response or
acquiescence biases, as we will reflect in future lines of research, future studies
should focus on obtaining data aggregated by the team by a minimum of
members of the scientific team.
Another possible limitation can be found in the design of the

confirmatory analysis of the proposed measurement scale. We consider that the
relationship between the measures and the constructs conforms to a formative
model. Considering the nature of Likert scales and the multivariate non-normal
distribution of the variables, we used the elliptical least squares estimator in
this first empirical study (Brown, 2014). For instance, we considered how the
researcher’s knowledge, skills, and abilities form the degree of academic
human capital they had. The formative construct considered each item to form
one of the KSA dimension factors. For example, academic human capital has
five different factors (research ability, research knowledge, alertness skill,
work organisation skill, and criticism skills), and if any academic human
capital factor is removed, the construct changes completely. However, this
consideration was followed under the criteria of the researcher, without
possible alternative methods performed to help clarify the theoretical identity
that underlies the relationships between measures and constructs, as advised by
178
studies such as Jarvis et al. (2003). We have included this aspect as a limitation
of our work, considering that future research could evaluate or compare the
predictive power of the scales proposed in our work when we consider them
constructive or formative versus reflective. It is important to note that some
variables can be evaluated using both reflective and formative measurement
models (Chin, 1998). Therefore, we considered the evaluation of the scales
proposed in our work using the method of the two constructions, allowing the
simultaneous evaluation of both considerations to compare the predictivity of
both types of constructions.
However, the need to identify the intangible and complex variables of

human capital in the academic context, as well as the possible policies for
management, decisively influenced the approach of the three empirical studies.
This led us to develop a particularly extensive research questionnaire, and in
some cases, the complexity of the study made it difficult to understand how to
identify all the elements that comprise the construct itself. This can explain
why we intend to use measurement instruments that were contrasted in the
literature, although previously they had to be contextualised in the academic
field to guarantee the quality of the data obtained. This probably explains the
low number of responses obtained regarding the global population of the study.
According to data from the Spanish Ministry of Education, our sample
represents 6.25% of the sample population. This relatively low rate probably
reflects the general tendency towards non-response due to the increasing
number of online surveys that academic researchers are asked to complete
(Kaplowitz et al., 2012; Fan & Yan, 2010). Therefore, this condition does not
allow us to generalise, without due caution, the results obtained and the
conclusions drawn.
Further, our second and third empirical studies were carried out in a
sample of academics with a heterogeneity of demographic variables
(university, areas of knowledge, gender, age, length of academic career,
number of six-year periods of research positively assessed, and academic
179
rank). Although these results can be extrapolated to the general population by

the sample used, the effect of some of the variables studied may be affected by
some of demographic variables, as has been shown in studies such as Abramo
et al. (2021; 2018), Kamrani et al. (2021), Goel and Göktepe-Hultén (2020),
Leahey et al. (2017), and Bäker (2015). Another limitation that we detected in
our second study was the use of the university’s permanent academic rank.
This subsample caused heterogeneity in the results of the study (academic
performance) but did not contemplate the reality of all academic researchers
(PhD students, postdoctoral, or assistant professor), for example. Therefore,
future studies could analyse the effects of the variables from different academic
ranks to understand the research realities of academic researchers. It would
also be necessary to carry out more studies to verify the existence of these
differences between areas or between other variables of analysis. However, in
the second of the empirical studies, as mentioned previously, an analysis
categorised by university was carried out without any significant differences
between the two analyses. Therefore, we conclude that the results are not
biased by the universities in the sample. In the third empirical study, a study
based on a single university was also carried out to reduce the dispersion of
perceptions among the study variables. Although it is true that this helped to
provide some consistency with these findings, it obviously conditioned the
possible generalisation of the conclusions obtained.
Another limitation is that the thesis was carried out at a specific

moment in time. To enrich the results obtained and to contrast the causality in
the relationships proposed in the empirical studies, it would be necessary to
propose longitudinal studies. Such analyses allowed for the evolution of
research results and scientific productivity in different moments of time.
Academics need time to publish their contributions; thus, it would be of special
interest to know how these delayed effects contribute to the achievement of
future results. This would allow us to draw conclusions about the lagged
180
effects of academic human capital or incentives on research performance, for

example.
Lastly, in the first empirical analysis, where we propose and validate a

scale for measuring academic capital in the academic context, it is important to
consider some limitations when interpreting the results and using the proposed
scale. The empirical analysis was carried out with an initial sample of 2,223
Spanish academics. Scale validation needs to be confirmed in different national
contexts with larger datasets. Comparative analyses would be particularly
interesting in this regard to explore the possible effects of differences in
national scientific systems, as shown by other studies, such as those by
Reymert et al. (2020), Capano (2018), Hong (2018), and Lehmann et al.
(2018). In some cases, larger datasets would also allow a better factorial
solution to be obtained, which would explain the higher variance percentages.
Thus, in the third empirical study, two different university contexts can be
studied to understand the different incentives of academic researchers and to
assess the potential significant differences between them.
In fact, it would be necessary to conduct a more complete study on the

variables studied with mediating, moderating, and contextual variables that
integrally confirm the results obtained. Therefore, the findings and conclusions
obtained in our study invite the development of future research that can expand
and contrast the results obtained in this thesis.
4. Future research lines

Considering the conclusions and the limitations exposed so far, we
conclude this work by proposing some lines of research that could help us
advance the development and deepening of this work. As previously indicated,
this thesis should be seen as the opening of a line of research for the
development of important future contributions. The field of research still has
certain dimensions that have not yet been explained and that require deeper and
more specific study. In fact, the breadth and need for development identified
181
throughout the review of the theoretical framework led us to propose a

theoretical model that, from too broad expectations, exceeded the objectives
that normally arise in a doctoral thesis.
Therefore, future research could focus on developing the synergistic

effect of human capital dimensions. These dimensions of academic human
capital are interrelated, and any synergistic effect could lead us to understand
that academic human capital factors do not work independently but are related
to each other. In the organisational context, the complementarity-synergistic
factors of human capital enhance the value that can be derived from a given
stock (Ennen & Richter, 2010; Gerhart & Feng, 2021; Ployhart et al., 2014;
Wright et al., 2014). In the research context, this approach is especially
interesting in clarifying the combination of attributes of academic researchers
that are necessary to develop efficient research and how the complement of
these attributes adds value to the research activity. As explained in the first
empirical study, this framework offers an integrative view of human capital,
considering how the interrelationships between human capital dimensions can
influence performance and competitive advantage. It is especially interesting to
elaborate on how these constructs combine to influence each other.
Future research could also deepen the effect of academic human

capital at different levels of the study (multilevel analysis). Specifically, in
future work, we intend to focus on studying the effects reviewed in this thesis
in an integrated way. Thus, academic human capital and motivation from an
individual perspective, as well as research opportunities and incentives at the
university level. The literature review highlighted the importance of these
variables in the functioning of the research units (Ballesteros et al., 2020b). We
analysed the influence of these variables in each of the research units. One of
the main gaps in the literature is how management policies in universities
influence different fields of study (Beerkens, 2013; Horta & Santos, 2020; Xia
et al., 2020). Through different policies, both the management of the scientific
182
team and the university institution in which it is located, or public bodies

interested in promoting research activity, can favour the generation and use of
human capital. Public incentive policies and human resource management
activities deployed by the research team or the researcher will affect scientific
productivity. Therefore, we propose future work that focuses on completing the
proposed theoretical model (Figure 3.1), specifying in the analysis each of the
dimensions of the human capital construct and the research policies that impact
each one of them. One potential study that could be carried out is how human
resources policies based on the AMO framework affect academic performance.
In the second empirical work, we used the three main dimensions of the AMO
framework but not how universities can manage them. Therefore, this study
could explain the most appropriate management mechanisms for each
dimension of the AMO framework. In short, the dimensions of the AMO
framework could be used as mediating variables between management policies
and academic performance from a multilevel perspective, as mentioned above.
In conclusion, to facilitate the conceptualisation of these factors, future
research could develop measures to generate and exploit human capital from a
multilevel perspective, since by their nature, they would require differentiated
treatment (Kirkland, 2008).
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Figure 3.1. Proposed theoretical model (multilevel academic human

capital in universities)
AMO Framework Performance

Determinants Human Capital Theory
Public polices
Social development
Macro
Researcher Opportunities
level
Incentives University academic Economic development
Funding human capital
Repositories (complementarities)
Knowledge transfer
Research universities
polices External financing
Meso
level
Academic human capital
Competitive position
of research group
Funding (complementarities)
Training
Reward policy
Scientific results
Number of publications
Micro Researcher Motivation H index

level
DEA
Academic human capital (KSA framework) SciVal Metrics
Own elaboration
184
Future research could also deepen the effect on other variables from
different research units, such as the leadership of the principal investigator
(Ballesteros-Rodriguez et al., 2020a, 2020c), the conflict of the research team
or the area to which it belongs (Ballesteros-Rodriguez et al., 2020a), and the
research results at the individual, group, and university levels (Gerashchenko,
2021). Future investigations could also deepen the effect that the leadership
style of the leading researcher has on the application of human capital
management mechanisms at the research team level. Although the generation
of scientific knowledge has traditionally been described from an individual
perspective, most scientific projects and activities are notably collective in
nature (Wuchty et al., 2007). These variables are introduced as factors that
condition the management mechanisms established by the scientific team,
which therefore have an indirect impact on the generation and use of human
capital. More specifically, future research could focus on obtaining information
from the scientific team by aggregating the data obtained by each member of
the team. In the development of this line of research and in obtaining data at
the group level, we can address one of the limitations indicated above
concerning the respondents. Given this limitation, if we focus our efforts in
future research on obtaining data at the group level, it might lead to the
collective the opinions of all the members of the same scientific team,
obtaining aggregated data at the team level and thus avoiding certain biases, as
well as ensuring the quality of the information collected. Thus, the object of the
analysis would be the scientific teams based on which how certain factors
influence the team’s ability to generate and complement human capital could
be analysed.
Another line for future research work is the adequate time distribution
of the different research functions as debated in the literature (Barham, et al.,
2014; Hu & Gill, 2000; Kawaguchi et al., 2016; Van Dalen, 2021; White et al.,
2012). It is also proposed that the time available for research activities (not
only the individual-level variable of the ability to manage time) affects
185
academics’ research performance. In the initial stages of an academic career,

researchers must develop a high research capacity. However, as they continue
in their academic careers, they must develop other research management
functions that directly and indirectly affect their performance (Barham et al.,
2014; Taylor et al., 2006). As a researcher ages, the administrative obligation,
both in research teams and in academic institutions, generally increases.
Bentley and Kyvik (2013) and Link et al. (2008), for example, showed that
promotion to a permanent position leads to less research time and more service
time at leading research universities. Future research could be aimed at
analysing the efficiency of the use of time in each of the academic careers,
which allows researchers to continue encouraging research without reducing
the management and responsibility activities required in the course of the
academic career of researchers.
Another variable that has generated great interest at the individual

level in the development of human capital is the mobility of researchers. In this
sense, several studies have analysed the positive effects of mobility on
performance (Bäker et al., 2021; Tartari et al., 2020). Research mobility
provokes the generation of new scientific knowledge, both the researcher who
carries out a research stay at a prestigious university and the researchers from
the university itself. Researchers obtain new approaches and perspectives on
research topics, as well as the development of knowledge links (Tartari et al.,
2020; Wang et al., 2019). Mobility can be considered a moderating variable of
human capital and its performance, given the number of national and
international collaborations of academic researchers. Following these
arguments, researchers can develop a capacity for collaboration that allows for
the generation of human capital. The arguments of studies such as McCabe et
al. (2021) corroborate the importance of the role of collaborations in the
scientific field, whether due to participation in new research (Wang et al.,
186
2019) or the complementarities of researchers (Bozeman & Corley, 2004),

among other reasons.
Thus, the different variables could be studied from a multilevel point

of view. At the micro level, we could focus on how each of the dimensions of
academic human capital behaves among them at the level of
complementarities. At the meso level, future lines of research could delve into
the study of the effects of academic human capital at the group level. If the
mentioned complementarities at the micro level are produced, to what extent
do they promote the human capital of each research group? Must each team
member independently develop human capital to make it available to the group
itself, or are there synergies between the human capital attributes of the team´s
academic researchers that strengthen their specialisation in the process of
generating academic knowledge? The effect of variables such as leadership or
conflict on academic human capital could also be analysed. As a result of this
analysis, the effect of research policies could be addressed as a future line of
research on research teams and academic researchers. Although direct
coordination of the work of a scientific team affects the way in which human
capital is generated and used, many of the human resource management
policies applied to its members go beyond this area. Through their policies and
their own research plans, universities develop the training of research staff,
fostering their research capacity at the individual and group levels. Therefore,
university management policies will be especially relevant, since they directly
affect the levels of human capital of researchers and scientific teams
(Alshaikhmubarak et al., 2020; Amin et al., 2014; Beerkens, 2013; Nguyen,
2016; Xia et al., 2020). The possible incidence of variables in the generation
and use of human capital is not limited to the micro and meso levels but is
affected by factors of a higher macro level. These factors are external to the
university institution, and future research could analyse how they condition its
operation, delving into macro-level determinants, such as the incentives
provided by different public bodies or public policies aimed at quality
187
assessment and assurance, as well as the research efficiency of universities. For

example, the existence of the European Research Area has favoured the
harmonisation of research policies at different levels, following similar
research strategies with common objectives and goals. It would be interesting
to deepen the analysis of the differences in incentive public policy measures to
research activity, or in the guidance of national accreditation and quality
assessment agencies. To determine the effect of these variables on the
functioning of research teams and their levels of human capital, it would be
convenient to propose a comparative analysis in which institutions from
different national contexts are contrasted using differentiated research models
to understand the similarities and differences in the system itself.
To deepen the study of these factors and their impact on scientific

productivity, future research should reconsider the criteria and measures of
scientific productivity at different levels of analysis (meso and macro). For
example, future work could analyse how research policies or aggregate human
capital (research group and university level) affect the performance of
university research, as well as other measures of university researcher
satisfaction. Therefore, under a strong exploratory nature, studies should be
proposed that seek to identify and validate measurement instruments on
scientific performance and analyse their effects in the specific context of the
set of possible relationships raised in future research. Beyond proposing
specific measurement tools for the proposed higher levels of study, it would be
necessary to identify new measures of research performance. Although, as we
have seen, at the individual level, the traditional means of evaluating scientific
productivity make a valid and reliable assessment, they present limitations of
an empirical nature that have been highlighted in this thesis. Normally, the
criteria used in productivity at the individual level have been publications in
high-impact journals, the impact of the journals where they are published, and
citations received. In fact, in the second of the empirical studies developed to
188
measure research performance, we initially used the H-index, which is an

original indicator provided by SCOPUS. However, the use of the H-index as an
indicator of scientific productivity has not been without criticism, as pointed
out by studies such as Alonso et al. (2009) and Bornmann and Leydesdorff
(2018). One of these criticisms has been that the H-index does not consider the
effect of co-authorship or the quality of the journal (Groot & García-
Valderrama, 2006; Alonso et al., 2009), as well as the lack of consideration of
the research career of the same author (Alonso et al., 2009; Bornmann &
Leydesdorff, 2018). To address these limitations, we calculated the research
performance scores using the DEA of each academic researcher (Sagarra et al.,
2017). Since DEA allows multiple inputs and outputs, it is a useful and
appropriate instrument for measuring scientific performance. This technique
allowed us to consider both productivity and impact levels through the H-index
scores, as output, and the experience in the number of years of the researchers,
as input, of the sample of scientists in our study. Another interesting tool for
obtaining data on academic performance, as well as institutional variables, is
the one developed by SCOPUS called SciVal. This measurement provides
access to the research performance of thousands of research institutions and
their associated researchers from 231 nations worldwide, allowing researchers
to visualize research performance and benchmark relative to peers, develop
strategic partnerships, identify and analyse new emerging research trends, and
create uniquely tailored reports. SciVal offers an extensive array of simple and
more sophisticated metrics, including Snowball Metrics, which were defined
through an academic–industry partnership to enable their confident and
appropriate use in strategic decision making and benchmarking. Snowball
Metrics were initiated by eight highly successful research universities as a
manageable set of metrics that captured the strategic aspects of research
performance. The aim is for Snowball Metrics to become the global standard
for the higher education sector. The agreed-upon and tested definitions are
shared free of charge with the research community. To address these
limitations, future research could aim to use various performance measures or
189
compare the measures used in the literature to check their consistency. With
this study, the applicability and usefulness of the criteria for choosing a good
outcome measure in this type of research can be demonstrated.
190
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Doctoral Thesis

Academic Human Capital and

Félix Guerrero Alba

Departament of Business Management

Academic Human Capital and Research

Félix Guerrero Alba

Paper 1: Academic human capital in universities: Definition and

Paper 3: Exploratory analysis of the perception of academic researchers about

1. Principal conclusions derived from the proposed

CONCLUSIONS, LIMITATIONS AND FUTURE LINES OF RESEARCH

Table 1 Descriptive statistics of the qualitative stage 55

Table 1 Descriptive statistics (n=471) 96

Table 1 Descriptive statistics 134

CONCLUSIONS, LIMITATIONS AND FUTURE LINES OF RESEARCH

1. Aim and relevance of the research: Academic human

essence, universities need to acquire, develop, and manage human capital

or propositional knowledge (Sahdra & Thagard, 2003). Others, such as

enriched, extended, and rationalised through social or individual processes

interpersonal skills (creativity, motivation, commitment, adaptability, etc.).

development of these skills and abilities has led to increased organisational

and personnel in training, as well as computer programs, electronic

research careers and greatly supports the performance of academic

becoming increasingly demanding and challenging over time. Another

2. Objectives and research questions

Although human capital has generated great interest in the academy, a

a) Conceptualise and construct a scale for measuring human capital in

b) Analyse the determinants of academic performance from the AMO

c) Analyse the effect of the perception of incentives on research activity

propelled the performance thereof (Almubarak, 2021; Martin-Sardesai &

3. Data and methodology

thesis are briefly explained using qualitative and quantitative methodologies.

Table 1.1. Sample of academics from the University of Cadiz

Database 2: Academics at Spanish universities

Table 1.2. Sample of academics from Spanish universities

the rigour of the research, as polarising the use of methodological perspectives

Figure 1.1. Methodological triangulation

In our research, we applied methodological triangulation through the

Qualitative Methodology (Delphi Panel)

non-numerical data collection, with the aim of answering the research

composed of the principal investigators of the active research groups at the

Table 1.3. Participant Delphi panel data

A) Exploratory factor analysis

However, to confirm our decision, in the development of our analyses,

Moreover, the confirmatory factor analysis supported the results of the

& Anguiano-Carrasco, 2010). Therefore, the analyses were repeated to obtain

B) Confirmatory factor analysis

between the items and the behaviour of the dimensions in an integrated

Moreover, the fit of each model was assessed by examining

2006). To assess model fit, we relied on the guidelines on cut-off values

were statistically significant, and factor loadings were reasonably high,

Lastly, reliability is an indication of the degree to which a measure is

C) Multiple linear regression models

To assess the goodness of fit of the data to the linear multiple

(2) coefficient of determination (R2), which measures the percentage of

variability of the dependent variable that can be explained by the independent

4. Structure and content of the thesis

contributes by conceptualising new variables that could be used to deepen and

Academic human capital in universities: Definition and

* García-Carbonell, N., Guerrero-Alba, F., Martín-Alcázar, F., & Sánchez.Gardey, G:

Academic human capital (AHC) is a key element in the explanation of scientific