In benchmarking international research, although publication and citation analyses should not be used to compare different disciplines, scientometrists frequently fail to resist the temptation to present rankings based on total publications and citations. Such measures are affected by significant distortions, due to the uneven fertility across scientific disciplines and the dishomogeneity of scientific specialization among nations and universities. In this note, we provide an indication of the extent of the distortions when comparative bibliometric analyses fail to recognize the range of levels of scientific fertility, not only within a given major disciplinary area, but also within different scientific disciplines encompassed by the same area.
Measuring science: Irresistible temptations, easy shortcuts and dangerous consequences
Abramo G;
2007-01-01
Abstract
In benchmarking international research, although publication and citation analyses should not be used to compare different disciplines, scientometrists frequently fail to resist the temptation to present rankings based on total publications and citations. Such measures are affected by significant distortions, due to the uneven fertility across scientific disciplines and the dishomogeneity of scientific specialization among nations and universities. In this note, we provide an indication of the extent of the distortions when comparative bibliometric analyses fail to recognize the range of levels of scientific fertility, not only within a given major disciplinary area, but also within different scientific disciplines encompassed by the same area.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
