Wouters, P (Wouters, Paul) Towards the origins of scientometrics the emergence of the Science Citation Index ACTES DE LA RECHERCHE EN SCIENCES SOCIALES, (164): 10-+ SEP 2006

[Eugene Garfield]

E-mail Address: paul.wouters at vks.knaw.nl 

Note: The editor of the French social science journal Julien Duval 
translated the following paper by Paul Wouters.  We somehow overlooked the 
fact that it had appeared earlier in an ASIS Monograph under a different 
title.  The full reference is :

Wouters, P.F. The creation of the SCI, in: Mary Ellen Bowden, Trudi 
Bellardo Hahn and Robert V. Williams (Eds) Proceedings of the 1998 
Conference on the History and Heritage of Science Information Systems, 
American Society for Information Science Monographies, pp. 127-136.

The full proceedings of that conference are worth your attention.  Contact 
Paul Wolters for a reprint in English at paul.wouters at vks.knaw.nl

Author(s): Wouters, P (Wouters, Paul) 
 
Title: Towards the origins of scientometrics the emergence of the Science 
Citation Index 

Source: ACTES DE LA RECHERCHE EN SCIENCES SOCIALES, (164): 10-+ SEP 2006  

Language: French 

Document Type: Article 

Abstract: The article analyzes the emergence of the Science Citation Index 
(SCI) and argues that the concept of citation indexing was not a "natural" 
outgrowth of the scientific field. It originated in the area of US legal 
publishing and information services, and was translated into a scientific 
reference service by an information entrepreneur, Eugene Garfield. The 
actual creation of the Science Citation Index and the subsequent 
development of the field of scientometrics were strongly shaped by the 
political and technological context of the late 1950s -early 1960s. The 
way the US responded to the Sputnik crisis and the Soviet challenge 
provided the opportunity for Garfield to build the Science Citation Index 
in close cooperation with the Nobel laureate Joshua Lederberg and to gain 
the legitimacy that his project previously lacked. 

Addresses: Royal Netherlands Acad Arts & Sci, Virtual Knowledge Studio 
Human & Soc Sci, VKS, 1090 HC Amsterdam, Netherlands 

Reprint Address: Wouters, P, Royal Netherlands Acad Arts & Sci, Virtual 
Knowledge Studio Human & Soc Sci, VKS, Cruquiusweg 31, 1090 HC Amsterdam, 
Netherlands. 

E-mail Address: paul.wouters at vks.knaw.nl 

Cited Reference Count: 33 

Times Cited: 0 

Publisher: EDITIONS SEUIL 

Publisher Address: 27 RUE JACOB, PARIS, 75006, FRANCE 

ISSN: 0335-5322 

29-char Source Abbrev.: ACTES RECH SCI SOC 

ISO Source Abbrev.: Actes Rech. Sci. Soc. 

Source Item Page Count: 13 

Subject Category: Social Sciences, Interdisciplinary 

ISI Document Delivery No.: 076DS 

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MEASURING QUALITY OF SOCIOLOGICAL RESEARCH - PROBLEMS IN USE OF SCIENCE 
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GARFIELD E
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GARFIELD E
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GARFIELD E
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GARFIELD E
COMMUNICATION 0306 : 1962 

GARFIELD E
COMMUNICATION 0316 : 1953 

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GARFIELD E
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GARFIELD E
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KEEPING RESEARCH IN CONTACT WITH THE LITERATURE - CITATION INDICES AND 
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