Productivity no longer a criterion for scientists

Ever since I work in science, I've had issues with the "pressure to publish as much as you can". Apparently, real curiosity driven questions seem no longer the aim of science, just the quick (and dirty) research that will yield an easy publication. It bothers me because I feel that I'm already thinking about my own research in terms of publications and not in terms of research questions that I would like to investigate. In addition this pressure likely leads to publications that are shaky to say the least or downright fraudulent.

But finally! Productivity is no longer a criterion to distinguish the good researchers from the bad, as can be read in a press statement on the website of the KNAW. This criterion has been removed from the Standard Evaluation Protocol (SEP) which is drafted by the three big scientific organisations in the Netherlands: KNAW, NWO and VSNU.  Now only "scientific quality", "social relevance" and being "future proof" are the criteria to measure researchers qualities.

Social relevance as a criterion for science and researchers is yet another issue that could better be removed from the SEP, but that is for another discussion. What do you think?

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