Department of Immunobiology, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut.
Section of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut.
JAMA Netw Open. 2023 Feb 1;6(2):e230855. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.0855.
Diversity in the biomedical research workforce is essential for addressing complex health problems. Female investigators and investigators from underrepresented ethnic and racial groups generate novel, impactful, and innovative research, yet they are significantly underrepresented among National Institutes of Health (NIH) investigators.
To examine the gender, ethnic, and racial distribution of super NIH investigators who received 3 or more concurrent NIH grants.
DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This cross-sectional study included a national cohort of NIH-funded principal investigators (PIs) from the NIH Information for Management, Planning, Analysis, and Coordination (IMPAC II) database from 1991 to 2020.
Self-identified gender, race and ethnicity, annual number of NIH grant receipt, career stage, and highest degree.
Distribution of investigators receiving 3 or more research project grants, referred to as super principal investigators (SPIs), by gender, race, and ethnicity.
Among 33 896 investigators in fiscal year 2020, 7478 (22.01%) identified as Asian, 623 (1.8%) as Black, 1624 (4.8%) as Hispanic, and 22 107 (65.2%) as White; 21 936 (61.7%) identified as men; and 8695 (35.3%) were early-stage investigators. Between 1991 and 2020, the proportion of SPIs increased 3-fold from 704 (3.7%) to 3942 (11.3%). However, SPI status was unequal across gender, ethnic, and racial groups. Women and Black PIs were significantly underrepresented among SPIs, even after adjusting for career stage and degree, and were 34% and 40% less likely than their male and White colleagues, respectively, to be an SPI. Black women PIs were the least likely to be represented among SPIs and were 71% less likely to attain SPI status than White men PIs (adjusted odds ratio, 0.29; 95% CI, 0.21-0.41).
In this cross-sectional study of a national cohort of NIH-funded investigators, the gender, ethnic, and racial gaps in receipt of multiple research project grants among NIH investigators was clearly apparent and warrants further investigation and interventions.
生物医学研究人员队伍的多样性对于解决复杂的健康问题至关重要。女性研究人员和代表性不足的族裔和种族群体的研究人员提出了新颖、有影响力和创新的研究，但他们在国立卫生研究院 (NIH) 研究人员中所占比例明显偏低。
检查获得 3 项或更多 NIH 同期拨款的超级 NIH 研究人员的性别、族裔和种族分布。
设计、环境和参与者：这是一项横断面研究，纳入了来自 NIH 信息管理、规划、分析和协调 (IMPAC II) 数据库的 NIH 资助的主要研究者 (PI) 的全国队列，时间范围为 1991 年至 2020 年。
自我认同的性别、种族和族裔、获得 NIH 拨款的年度数量、职业阶段和最高学位。
根据性别、种族和族裔，接受 3 项或更多研究项目拨款的研究人员的分布情况，称为超级主要研究者 (SPI)。
在 2020 财年的 33896 名研究人员中，7478 名（22.01%）为亚裔，623 名（1.8%）为非裔，1624 名（4.8%）为西班牙裔，22107 名（65.2%）为白人；21936 名（61.7%）为男性；8695 名（35.3%）为早期阶段的研究人员。1991 年至 2020 年间，SPI 的比例增加了两倍多，从 704 人（3.7%）增加到 3942 人（11.3%）。然而，SPI 地位在性别、族裔和种族群体之间并不平等。女性和非裔研究人员在 SPI 中的代表性明显不足，即使在考虑了职业阶段和学位后也是如此，他们成为 SPI 的可能性分别比男性和白人同事低 34%和 40%。非裔女性研究人员在 SPI 中最不受代表，与白人男性研究人员相比，她们获得 SPI 地位的可能性低 71%（调整后的优势比，0.29；95%CI，0.21-0.41）。
在这项对 NIH 资助的研究人员进行的全国性队列的横断面研究中，NIH 研究人员在获得多项研究项目拨款方面的性别、族裔和种族差距明显，值得进一步调查和干预。
