THE IMPACT OF DECREE LAWS ON THE PERFORMANCE OF TURKISH PHYSIOLOGY ACADEMICS
THE IMPACT OF DECREE LAWS ON THE PERFORMANCE OF TURKISH PHYSIOLOGY ACADEMICS

Summary/Abstract: THIS STUDY AIMED TO DESCRIBE THE ACADEMIC LOSSES RESULTING FROM THE TURKISH PURGE AND ASSOCIATED DISMISSALS WITH THE DECREE LAWS FOLLOWING THE FAILED COUP ATTEMPT IN 2016 CONCERNING PHYSIOLOGY ACADEMICS. AN OBSERVATIONAL STUDY WAS CONDUCTED COVERING THE TIME BEFORE 2008, 2009-2012, 2013- 2016, AND 2017-2020. ALL ACTIVELY-WORKING ASSISTANT, ASSOCIATE, AND FULL PROFESSORS OF PHYSIOLOGY IN TURKEY AS OF 15TH JULY 2016 AND RECENTLY HIRED ACADEMIC STAFF AFTER THE COUP ATTEMPT IN 2016 WERE INCLUDED IN THE STUDY. DATA COLLECTION WAS PERFORMED IN DECEMBER 2020. THE PRIMARY OUTCOME VARIABLE OF THE STUDY WAS THE TOTAL NUMBER OF PUBLICATIONS LISTED IN GOOGLE SCHOLAR. DATA OF 271 ACADEMICS WERE ANALYZED. OF THE PARTICIPANTS, 209 (87.1%) CONTINUED ON THEIR POSITIONS, 31 (12.9%) WERE DISMISSED AFTER THE 2016 COUP ATTEMPT, AND 31 WERE HIRED AFTER THE PURGE. THE NUMBER OF PUBLICATIONS OF SCHOLARS HIRED BEFORE 2016 AND DISMISSED WERE SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER BEFORE 2008, BETWEEN 2009 AND 2012, AND BETWEEN 2013 AND 2016 COMPARED TO SCHOLARS HIRED BEFORE 2016 AND NOT PURGED (P <0.05). ALTHOUGH THE PURGED ACADEMICS HAD RELATIVELY HIGHER PERFORMANCE INDICATORS IN THE PREVIOUS YEARS, THEY EXPERIENCED A 44.2% LOSS IN THE NUMBER OF PUBLICATIONS AFTER 2016. THE MASS DISMISSALS AFTER THE COUP ATTEMPT IN 2016 HARMED INDIVIDUAL PHYSIOLOGY ACADEMICS AS WELL AS THE GENERAL PHYSIOLOGY ACADEMY. INTERNATIONAL ACADEMIC AND HUMAN RIGHTS ORGANIZATIONS MUST BE MORE SENSITIVE TO PROTECT SCHOLARS WHO UNDERGO SIMILAR PERSECUTIONS.

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