Valiela I, Martinetto P "The relative ineffectiveness of bibliographic search engines" BIOSCIENCE 55 (8): 688-692 AUG 2005

[Eugene Garfield]

Ivan Valiela :       E-mail Addresses: valiela at bu.edu
Paulina Martinetto : E-mail Addresses: pmartin at mdp.edu.ar


Title: The relative ineffectiveness of bibliographic search engines

Author(s): Valiela I, Martinetto P

Source: BIOSCIENCE 55 (8): 688-692 AUG 2005

Document Type: Article   Language: English
Cited References: 7      Times Cited: 0

Abstract:
The increasing number of scientific publications has made bibliographic
search engines essential tools in all disciplines. These software-based
devices, however, are far from perfect. Comparisons of software-based
bibliographic search engines with complete lists of three authors'
publications showed that reference citations were not generally available
before 1970, and that the effectiveness of recovery was improving but was
quite variable, yielding on average 36 percent of the publications. There
was marked year-to-year inconsistency in the recovery of titles. The
inconsistency could not be explained by differences in indexing due to
journal reputation: there was no evident relationship between search
effectiveness and journal impact factor, but the percentage of recovered
citations was higher for indexed journals. Search engines are widely used
in bibliographic searches performed for evaluating researchers, awarding
promotions, or assessing journal performance. Given the ineffectiveness of
search engines, their use in making such important personal and
institutional decisions needs careful consideration.

Author Keywords: search engines; scientific publications; bibliographic
searches

Addresses: Valiela I (reprint author), Boston Univ, Marine Program, Marine
Biol Lab, Woods Hole, MA 02543 USA
Boston Univ, Marine Program, Marine Biol Lab, Woods Hole, MA 02543 USA
Univ Mar del Plata, Fac Ciencias Exactas & Nat, Mar Del Plata, RA-7600
Argentina

E-mail Addresses: valiela at bu.edu, pmartin at mdp.edu.ar

Publisher: AMER INST BIOLOGICAL SCI, 1444 EYE ST, NW, STE 200, WASHINGTON,
DC 20005 USA
Subject Category: BIOLOGY
IDS Number: 953CO

ISSN: 0006-3568

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