“…As funding plays an influential role in the governance of contemporary science, changes in allocation mechanisms are assumed to affect the scope, content, direction, and impact of public research (Gläser & Velarde, 2018;Sörlin, 2007). Such changes are in turn also likely to influence the distribution of funding across individuals and topics and hence the overall degree of funding concentration.Current evidence suggests that funding concentration has in fact increased as a result of these changes and that there may be some advantages, but also important downsides, linked to high degrees of selectivity in the distribution of funding (Aagaard, Nielsen, & Kladakis, 2020). However, the exact patterns and the potential drivers at aggregated levels are still underexplored.On the one hand, more pervasive competition, increased performance orientation, stronger emphasis on excellence, and higher reliance on project funding have, across countries, been seen as essential means to optimize the returns on public investments in science (Wang, Lee, & Walsh, 2018).…”