Abstract
This paper presents and discusses a new bibliometric indicator of research performance, designed with the fundamental concern of enabling cross-disciplinary comparisons. The indicator, called x-index, compares a researcher’s output to a reference set of research output from top researchers, identified in the journals where the researcher has published. It reflects publication quantity and quality, uses a moderately sized data set, and works with a more refined definition of scientific fields. x-index was developed to rank researchers in a scientific excellence award in the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto. The data set collected for the 2009 edition of the award is used to study the indicator’s features and design choices, and provides the basis for a discussion of its advantages and limitations.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Abbasi, A., Altmann, J., & Hwang J. (2009), Evaluating scholars based on their academic collaboration activities: two indices, the RC-index and the CC-index, for quantifying collaboration activities of researchers and scientific communities. Scientometrics. doi:10.1007/s11192-009-0139-2.
Egghe, L. (2006). Theory and practice of the g-Index. Scientometrics, 69(1), 131–152.
Enserink, M. (2009). Are you ready to become a number? Science, 323(5922), 1662–1664.
Falagas, M. E., Kouranos, V. D., Arencibia-Jorge, R., & Karageorgopoulos, D. E. (2008). Comparison of SCImago journal rank indicator with journal impact factor. FASEB Journal, 22(8), 2623–2628.
Hirsch, J. E. (2005). An index to quantify an individual’s scientific research output. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 102(46), 16569–16572.
Lehmann, S., Jackson, A. D., & Lautrup, B. E. (2006). Measures for measures. Nature, 444, 1003–1004.
Lundberg, J. (2007). Lifting the crown—citation z-score. Journal of Informetrics, 1(2), 145–154.
Moed, H. F., De Bruin, R. E., & Van Leeuwen, T. N. (1995). New bibliometric tools for the assessment of national research performance: Database description, overview of indicators and first applications. Scientometrics, 33(3), 381–425.
Nederhof, A. J. (2008). Policy impact of bibliometric rankings of research performance of departments and individuals in economics. Scientometrics, 74(1), 163–174.
Pendlebury, A. J. (2009). The use and misuse of journal metrics and other citation indicators. Archivum Immunologiae et therapiae Experimentalis, 57(1), 1–11.
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank António Miguel Gomes, José Fernando Oliveira, and Maria Antónia Carravilla, for helpful suggestions and comments in the development of the indicator, and the team at FEUP’s Library, for their collaborative spirit, and all their hard and thorough work.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Claro, J., Costa, C.A.V. A made-to-measure indicator for cross-disciplinary bibliometric ranking of researchers performance. Scientometrics 86, 113–123 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-010-0241-5
Received:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-010-0241-5