Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Collaboration and author productivity: A study with a new variable in Lotka's law

  • Short Communication
  • Published:
Scientometrics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The paper explores the possibility of using a new variable represented by the number of collaborators per author as a substitute for the number of papers in Lotka's distribution to predict the productivity strata. On the basis of a case study in theoretical population genetics it is concluded that the number of collaborators per author has not proved to be a good substitute in the Lotka's distribution, which is in contrast to Qin's results.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Jian Qin, Collaboration and productivity: An experiment with a new variable in Lotka's law. In:Koenig, M. andA. Bookstein, (Eds.),Fifth International Conference of the International Society for Scientometrics and Informetrics Proceedings—1995, June7–10, 1995. Medford, NJ; Learned Information, Inc., 1995, 445–454.

    Google Scholar 

  2. P. T. Nicholls, Bibliometric modelling processes and the empirical validity of Lotka's law,Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 40 (1989), 379–385.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. R. Rousseau, Breakdown of the robustness property of Lotka's law: A case of adjusted counts for multi-authorship,Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 39 (1988), p. 287.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. D. J. De Solla Price, D. De B. Beaver, Collaboration in an invisible college,American Psychology, 21 (1966) 1011–1018.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. J. Felsenstein,Bibliography of Theoretical Population Genetics, Dowden, Hutchinson & Ross, Inc., Stroudsburg, 1981.

    Google Scholar 

  6. D. Lindsey, Production and citation measures in the sociology of science: The problem of multipleauthorship,Social studies of Science, 21 (1980), 111–118.

    Google Scholar 

  7. P. T. Nicholls, Estimation of Zipf parameters,Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 38 (1987), 443–445; erratum:Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 39 (1988), p. 287.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. R. Rousseau, A table for estimating the exponent in Lotka's law,Journal of Documentation, 49 (1993), 409–412.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Scientometrics and Informetrics Group, National Institute of Science, Technology, and Development Studies, Dr. K. S. Krishnan Marg, 110 012, New Delhi, (India)

    B. M. Gupta

  2. Department of Library and Information Science, Karnatak University, Dharwad, 580 003, Karnataka, (India)

    C. R. Karisiddippa

Authors
  1. B. M. Gupta
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. C. R. Karisiddippa
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Gupta, B.M., Karisiddippa, C.R. Collaboration and author productivity: A study with a new variable in Lotka's law. Scientometrics 44, 129–134 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02458481

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02458481

Keywords

Search

Navigation