ABS: Oppenheim, "The correlation between citation counts and the 1992 research assessment exercise ratings for British research in ...

[Gretchen Whitney]

Author's E-mail:
C. Oppenheim : 'C.Oppenheim at lboro.ac.uk'
______________________________________________

TITLE : The correlation between citation counts and the 1992 research
assessment exercise ratings for British research in genetics, anatomy and
archaeology
AUTHOR:  Oppenheim C
JOURNAL:  JOURNAL OF DOCUMENTATION 53: (5) 477-487 DEC 1997

 Document type: Article    Language: English    Cited References: 31   Times
Cited: 5


Abstract:
A study was carried out to assess the correlation between scores achieved by
academic departments in the UK in the 1992.
Research Assessment Exercise, and the number of citations received by
academics in those departments for articles published in
the period 1985-1992, using the Institute for Scientific Information's
citation databases. Only those papers first authored by
academics identified from the Commonwealth Universities Yearbook were
examined. Three subject areas: Anatomy, Generics
and Archaeology were chosen to complement Library and Information Management
that had already been the subject of such a
study. It was found that in all three cases, there is a statistically
significant correlation between the total number of citations
received, or the average number of citations per member of staff, and the
Research Assessment Exercise score. Surprisingly, the
strongest correlation was found in Archaeology, a subject noted for its
heavy emphasis on monographic literature and with
relatively low citation counts. The results make it clear that citation
counting provides a robust and reliable indicator of the
research performance of UK academic departments in a variety of disciplines,
and the paper argues that for future Research
Assessment Exercises, citation counting should be the primary, but not the
only, means of calculating Research Assessment
Exercise scores.

KeyWords Plus:
PUBLICATIONS, DEPARTMENTS, PERFORMANCE, SOCIOLOGY, POLITICS, LIBRARY

Addresses:
Oppenheim C, DE MONTFORT UNIV, INT INST ELECT LIB RES, HAMMERWOOD GATE,
MILTON KEYNES MK7
6HP, BUCKS, ENGLAND.

Publisher:
ASLIB, LONDON

IDS Number:
YJ265

ISSN:
0022-0418


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