Consequences of the Spanish Civil War for entomology: a quantitative example of abrupt alteration in scientific research dynamics

Abstract

The effects of the Spanish Civil War (1936¿1939) on entomology are evaluated quantitatively using publication-related data. The authors tested the hypothesis that all research results are equally affected by a period of severe disruption. This hypothesis is rejected, and they quantified the degree to which different research outputs were affected. The recovery of scientific production was fast; there was no major destruction of infrastructure. Exiles were not an important factor, and half of the entomologists were active both immediately before and just after the war. Important differences are found in the postwar period in relation to the international situation influencing Spain and the new organization of the state. A decrease is detected in publication in foreign journals, and there was less use of foreign languages. There was a growing importance of publications and scientists associated with the public sector. Conversely, there was a clear decline in research outside the public sector, and local learned societies recovered much more slowly than governmental institutions, which explains, for instance, the near-disappearance of publications in Catalan until the late 1950s. The study indicates that an abrupt social alteration will have a relatively minor impact on scientific production as long as there is a base of continuity of human and material resources and continuous government financial support.