This study aims to determine the governance factors that influence the scientific research output of lecturers through the application of PLS-SEM, in conjunction with ANOVA and "t"-test. Based on a survey of 398 lecturers in twelve higher education institutions (HEIs) in Vietnam, the psychometric properties of the scales measuring the considered dimensions of scientific research outputs were initially examined through the Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) procedure, prior to being input into the PLS-SEM model. The SEM model comprised six constructs for the scientific research outputs: scientific research objectives of HEIs, leadership, decentralization, policies for lecturers, support for scientific research activities, and resources for scientific research. The results reveal that resources for scientific research have the most impact on lecturers' scientific research output, followed by policies for lecturers, support for scientific research activities, scientific research objectives of HEIs, and finally, leadership.