Impact of COVID-19 on Research in Durham University Business School

Statistically robust evidence that the pandemic (C19) has had an adverse impact on academic research carried out in Universities is limited. The new results presented are based on a survey of Business School academics who were entered into the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021 assessment of research quality, confirming that C19 had a major effect during the March to September 2020 period on research activities. In terms of which sub-groups of staff have been most affected, the largest negative effects are associated with those (almost all female) staff who took paternity/maternity leave during the 7-year REF period; followed by female staff, those (mid-career researchers) in the Associate Professor grade, then staff classified as “other white ethnic” (as opposed to White British). The implications of this for equality, diversity, and inclusion are likely to be significant, as is discussed when looking at what universities might do to overcome the negative impacts of C19.