Who gets the grant? A persona-based investigation into research funding panelist preferences.

This article investigates the attributes influencing research grant panelists' preferences by employing a novel method using simulated quantitative and narrative personas of fictional candidates. The study finds that panelists favor mid-career, multidisciplinary researchers with solid publication records, prior project experience, and a balance of collaborative and solo work, with a preference for applied science and openness to challenging established norms. Notably, female candidates were nearly twice as likely to be selected, which the authors interpret as a possible overcorrection due to panelists' awareness of existing gender biases in academia. Age also negatively impacted selection odds, suggesting a preference for younger researchers or those perceived as more productive. The findings highlight the importance of candidate consistency across attributes and have implications for grant evaluation practices, bias mitigation, and guidance for early-career researchers.