The rich scientists get richer and the poor get poorer

Why do scientists with similar backgrounds and abilities often achieve widely different levels of success? The ‘Matthew effect’ theory offers one explanation: if one of two equally talented young scholars is given an award, the winner will have a more successful career, due to resource and status advantages. In sociology, it is sometimes summarised as ‘the rich get richer, the poor get poorer’. In science, it says early success increases future odds of success.

Now, a study of applicants for a funding scheme for young Dutch scientists has found that the Matthew effect at play. ‘The Matthew effect was bigger than we expected and explains a lot of the variation we see in the chances of an applicant winning a mid-career grant,’ says Thijs Bol, study author at the University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands.