Although scientists frequently aim for high productivity, focusing on a large volume of publications can result in reduced time and effort allocated to each research project. We explored the link between productivity and disruption for individual researchers. Our findings reveal that as the number of published papers increases, the average citation per paper rises but mean disruption decreases. The disruption of scientists’ papers also decreases when they are highly productive in a given year. Besides, highly productive authors prefer referencing recent, impactful research. The conclusions have been validated across different disciplines.
