What Gets Funded Depends on How Intent Is Translated: Translation Dynamics in Funding Systems (ERC, Novo Nordisk Foundation, Gates Foundation)

Mertens, Robin Edgard Ulrik (2026): What Gets Funded Depends on How Intent Is Translated: Translation Dynamics in Funding Systems (ERC, Novo Nordisk Foundation, Gates Foundation).

Abstract

This paper examines how institutional intent is translated into selection criteria and allocation rules in major funding systems, including the European Research Council, the Novo Nordisk Foundation, and the Gates Foundation. Using a rule-based and replicable method, it traces how concepts such as excellence and impact become decision-relevant representations that structure evaluation and selection. The analysis shows that resource allocation operates on these representations rather than on stated intent, shaping what can be recognised, compared, and funded. The paper contributes a framework for analysing how selection mechanisms transform intent in institutional funding processes.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: resource allocation; funding systems; selection criteria; incentives; evaluation; institutional decision-making; information asymmetry; governance; public policy
• Subjects: D - Microeconomics > D0 - General > D02 - Institutions: Design, Formation, Operations, and Impact; D - Microeconomics > D2 - Production and Organizations > D23 - Organizational Behavior ; Transaction Costs ; Property Rights; H - Public Economics > H1 - Structure and Scope of Government > H11 - Structure, Scope, and Performance of Government; H - Public Economics > H8 - Miscellaneous Issues > H83 - Public Administration ; Public Sector Accounting and Audits

References

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