Study  |  02/26/2021

Find Your Academic Doppelgänger! How to Build Scientists Control Groups With Sosia

Econometric analysis in Economics of Science and Innovation often requires control groups. The identification of such a population often constitutes a daunting data effort. The python package sosia simplifies and automates the search in the Scopus database.

Michael E. Rose und Stefano H. Baruffaldi

Econometric analysis in Economics of Science and Innovation often requires control groups. These control groups need to have similar observable characteristics to a sample of researchers of interest. There are specific methodologies and tools to assist Econometricians in the matching exercise. However, the identification of such a population often constitutes a daunting data effort, which may turn impossible for samples of scientists spanning multiple fields, institutions, or countries. The python package sosia – Italian for Doppelgänger – intends to simplify and automate the search for comparable researchers in the Scopus database.


See the publication by

Michael E. Rose and Stefano H. Baruffaldi
Finding Doppelgängers in Scopus: How to Build Scientists Control Groups Using Sosia
Max Planck Institute for Innovation & Competition Research Paper No. 20-20