eprintid: 3754
rev_number: 7
eprint_status: archive
userid: 69
dir: disk0/00/00/37/54
datestamp: 2017-08-04 11:01:58
lastmod: 2017-08-04 11:01:58
status_changed: 2017-08-04 11:01:58
type: article
metadata_visibility: show
creators_name: Medo, Matúš
creators_name: Cimini, Giulio
creators_id: 
creators_id: giulio.cimini@imtlucca.it
title: Model-based evaluation of scientific impact indicators
ispublished: pub
subjects: QC
divisions: EIC
full_text_status: public
abstract: Using bibliometric data artificially generated through a model of citation dynamics calibrated on empirical data, we compare several indicators for the scientific impact of individual researchers. The use of such a controlled setup has the advantage of avoiding the biases present in real databases, and it allows us to assess which aspects of the model dynamics and which traits of individual researchers a particular indicator actually reflects. We find that the simple average citation count of the authored papers performs well in capturing the intrinsic scientific ability of researchers, regardless of the length of their career. On the other hand, when productivity complements ability in the evaluation process, the notorious h and g  indices reveal their potential, yet their normalized variants do not always yield a fair comparison between researchers at different career stages. Notably, the use of logarithmic units for citation counts allows us to build simple indicators with performance equal to that of h  and g. Our analysis may provide useful hints for a proper use of bibliometric indicators. Additionally, our framework can be extended by including other aspects of the scientific production process and citation dynamics, with the potential to become a standard tool for the assessment of impact metrics.
date: 2016-09
date_type: published
publication: Physical Review E
volume: 94
publisher: American Physical Society
pagerange: 032312
id_number: 10.1103/PhysRevE.94.032312
refereed: TRUE
issn: 1539-3755
official_url: https://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevE.94.032312
citation:   Medo, Matúš and Cimini, Giulio  Model-based evaluation of scientific impact indicators.  Physical Review E, 94.  032312.  ISSN 1539-3755      (2016)  
document_url: http://eprints.imtlucca.it/3754/1/PhysRevE.94.032312.pdf