Dread in Academia – how COVID-19 affects science and scientists

Abstract

In order to gain an insight into scholars’ concerns emerging from the COVID-19 crisis, we asked scientists from all over the world about their attitudes and predictions regarding the repercussions of this current crisis on academia. Our data showed that the academic world was placed in an unprecedented situation. Results further showed that everybody worked on-line, conducting studies was impossible or highly impeded, and lab work was difficult. Almost a quarter of all scientists participating in our survey were anxious about their scientific employment, and over 25% expected serious financial losses as a consequence of the pandemic. Moreover, we identified sex differences regarding the severity of the COVID-19 impact in the majority of questions. We inferred from this that women perceived to be in a worse situation than men.

Creating communities and communicating science during COVID-19: From Coast2Coast to Coast2Cast

“…Since the COVID-19 pandemic started in 2020, there have been several studies highlighting the gendered effects of the lockdowns, with significantly more papers submitted by men and less papers submitted by women ( King and Frederickson, 2021 ), and with evidence that the COVID-19 effects are causing a 30 year set back on the diversity advances of the last decades ( Maas et al, 2020 ; Woolston, 2020 ). The sense of isolation during the pandemic lockdowns has been documented in the literature ( Corbera et al, 2020 ; Kowal et al, 2020 ; Schwarz et al, 2020 ). Depending on their personal circumstances, some researchers become more productive while confined in their homes, with Isaac Newton being one of the most famous examples having developed much of his seminal ground-breaking work during the Great Plague of London in 1665 ( Kowal et al, 2020 ).…”

“…The sense of isolation during the pandemic lockdowns has been documented in the literature ( Corbera et al, 2020 ; Kowal et al, 2020 ; Schwarz et al, 2020 ). Depending on their personal circumstances, some researchers become more productive while confined in their homes, with Isaac Newton being one of the most famous examples having developed much of his seminal ground-breaking work during the Great Plague of London in 1665 ( Kowal et al, 2020 ). But staying engaged with the profession may become difficult under certain circumstances and it was cited by our respondents as one of the main reasons to attend online seminars and conferences.…”

The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Working Conditions, Employment, Career Development and Well-Being of Refugee Researchers

“…The social distancing that the pandemic brought to RRs' lives generated serious obstacles to create new networks of contacts, accessing job information and obtaining employment [24]. Proactivity is suggested as an important integration process (contact with locals, learn the local language, adaptation of local norms and practices, recognize training opportunities) [42].…”

“…Social inequalities increased with the pandemic with women scientists found to be in a more vulnerable situation than men [24]. Due to the fact that female scientists have not had access to their "bench" laboratories, they have faced difficulties with organizing their time in WFH due to school closure, especially those with small children [18,22].…”

Antimicrobial Activity Derivatives 2H-pirano[2,3-c]piridines against Pathogens of Intestinal Yersiniosis

“…Pandemic diseases are of global concern in the present era, causing gigantic morbidity and transience, regardless of, extensive medical facilities [1,2] with significant changes in medical service [3] and science [4].…”