Totalized input–output assessment of research productivity of nations using multi-dimensional input and output

Research evaluation is a multi-dimensional problem as there are multiple input dimensions, multiple output dimensions and a country space of many dimensions. The data making the connections are usually available in matrix form. In this paper, we use matrix normalization and multiplication so that totalized input and output measures can be obtained. This facilitates comparative research evaluation. The US and Japan lead as the major players when patents and papers are jointly considered. Most of the countries considered register totalized output that is commensurate with totalized input. Three countries are seen to be falling short of this ideal: China, Russia and Mexico.

     

Are international co-publications an indicator for quality of scientific research?

This article deals with the role of internationally co-authored papers (co-publications). Specifically, we compare, within a data-set of German research units, citation and co-publication indicators as a proxy for the unobserved quality dimension of scientific research. In that course we will also deal with the question whether both citations and co-publications are considerably related. Our results suggest that, although there is a strong partial correlation between citations and co-publications within a multivariate setting, we cannot use reasonably normalised co-publication indicators as an alternative proxy for quality. Thus, concerning quality assessment, there remains a primer on citation analysis.     

The state of science and technology in Africa (2000–2004): A scientometric assessment

This article reports for first time the state of science and technology in the African Continent on the basis of two scientometric indicators — number of research publications and number of patents awarded. Our analysis shows that Africa produced 68,945 publications over the 2000–2004 period or 1.8% of the World’s publications. In comparison India produced 2.4% and Latin America 3.5% of the World’s research. More detailed analysis reveals that research in Africa is concentrated in just two countries — South Africa and Egypt. These two counties produce just above 50% of the Continent’s publications and the top eight countries produce above 80% of the Continent’s research. Disciplinary analysis reveals that few African countries have the minimum number of scientists required for the functioning of a scientific discipline. Examination of the Continent’s inventive profile, as manifested in patents, indicates that Africa produces less than one thousand of the world’s inventions. Furthermore 88% of the Continent’s inventive activity is concentrated in South Africa. The article recommends that the African Governments should pay particular attention in developing their national research systems.     

Convergence or polarisation? The impact of research assessment exercises in the Italian case

Scientometrics - Two research assessments with an impact on university funding have taken place in Italy, covering the periods 2004–2010 and 2011–2014. After correcting grading schemes...     

Thunder®: A new frontier in research for smart materials

A powerful new family of high-performance actuators and sensors is shaking up the motion control industry. These solid state devices, called Thunder^®, are capable of delivering extraordinarily high displacement at substantial forces in a compact, energy efficient package. Based on a patented NASA invention, Thunder is a unique, rugged and adaptable member of the ‘smart’ materials group of products. This article describes this new enabling technology and highlights ongoing research.     

How scientific research incorporates policy: an examination using the case of China’s science and technology evaluation system

Scientometrics - Governments typically formulate sets of policies to guide the direction of scientific research. And the possible effects of these policies on scientific research have been...     

The π<Subscript>v</Subscript>-index: a new indicator to characterize the impact of journals

For determining the eminence of scientific journals, a new indicator stressing the importance of papers in the “elite set” (i.e., highly cited papers) is suggested. The number of papers in the elite set (P _πv) is calculated with the equation: (10 log P) − 10, where P is the total number of papers in the set. The one-hundredth of citations (C) obtained by P _πv papers is regarded as the π_v-index which is field and time dependent. The π_v-index is closely correlated with the citedness (C/P) of P _πv papers, and it is also correlated with the Hirsch-index. Three types of Hirsch-sets are distinguished, depending on the relation of the number of citations received by the Hirsch-paper (ranked as h) and the paper next in rank (h + 1) by citation. The h-index of an Anomalous Hirsch-set (AH) may be increased by a single citation to a paper outside the Hirsch-core. (A set of papers may be regarded as AH, where the number of citations to the Hirsch-paper is higher than the h-index and the next paper in rank shows as many citations as the value of the h-index.)     

Are predatory journals undermining the credibility of science? A bibliometric analysis of citers

Warnings against publishing in predatory journals are plentiful and so are the suggested solutions to the problem. The existing studies all confirm that authors of articles published in potential predatory journals are typically young, inexperienced and from Asia or Africa. To what extend we can consider the problem negligible is determined by the impact they are having on the scholarly communication in terms of publications and citations. The existing literature can provide more information about the former than the latter. This paper is an analysis of potential predatory journals as well as potential poor scientific standards journals. Citations to 124 potential predatory journals and poor scientific standards journals are looked up in Scopus and the citing authors analysed in regards to geographic location, publications and citations. The results show that the characteristics of the citing author indeed resemble those of the publishing author. Implications for recommendations and future research are discussed.     

Effectiveness of strategic environmental assessment in Germany? – meta-review of SEA research in the light of effectiveness dimensions

SEA practice in Germany has been growing since its introduction and so has the number of SEA research projects and publications. This paper provides a meta-review of German SEA effectiveness research published between 2004 and 2018. In this context, we discuss: (1) What is the status quo of SEA application in Germany? (2) What dimensions of SEA effectiveness have been addressed in research to date? and (3) How effective is SEA in Germany? Our findings indicate that there is room and need for SEA improvement, for example, with regards to the practice of screening, transparency, and quality management. With a focus of previous SEA research on the dimension of procedural effectiveness, future research should aim at other dimensions and their interactions (substantive, transactive, knowledge and learning, legitimacy).     

Which type of ecosystem for distributed ledger technology?

Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), or the blockchain, enables new ways of inter-firm interaction in a networked environment. The economic community consisted of organizations, that although independent, are connected and interact through this seminal technology form the DLT ecosystem. DLT may be applicable in many ecosystem types. However, little research has been done on how DLT works in the ecosystem types. We acknowledge specific ecosystem characteristics in a DLT network of actors and argue that there are similarities between various ecosystem types. Our study extends DLT and ecosystem literature by answering the question “How do ecosystem types make fit to DLT?“. We build upon the software, technological, digital, innovation, product and service ecosystem literature and examine how do they match to DLT ecosystem. We find that these ecosystems can be part or subset of the DLT ecosystem, but it is the business ecosystem type that fits better to DLT ecosystem conceptualization. We further analyse the characteristics, definitions and enablers of business ecosystem and identify the analogies between these two structures. In this way we provide academics and practitioners alike insight into what characteristics shape DLT business ecosystems and what features it adopts from other ecosystem types.     

Are the strategic research agendas of researchers in the social sciences determinants of research productivity?

Scientometrics - This study analyzes the association between the strategic research agendas of researchers in the social sciences and their research performance. Based on a worldwide sample of 604...     

Using normative ethics for building a good evaluation of research practices: towards the assessment of researcher’s virtues

This paper is an attempt of using co-citation analysis to sort out and to analyze the development and evolution of a latest hot area, open innovation from the perspective of network embedding. A dataset of 1437 records published between 1990 and 2019 is collected from Web of Science database. The empirical results show the latest hot topics in the open innovation study focus on innovation performance and value creation. In addition, we make a new interpretation of open innovation from four aspects: innovation and entrepreneurship, resource acquisition, knowledge sharing and innovation performance, then combines the importance of network embedding to the innovation and development of enterprises, and proposes the future research direction of open innovation. Our research in this paper is helpful to systematically sort out the knowledge context of open innovation, which is of great significance to the construction and development of open innovation knowledge system. The conclusions and implications in this paper will be particularly illuminating for both academic research and enterprises’ practice application.

     

Is the United States losing ground in science? A global perspective on the world science system

Based on the Science Citation Index-Expanded web-version, the USA is still by far the strongest nation in terms of scientific performance. Its relative decline in percentage share of publications is largely due to the emergence of China and other Asian nations. In 2006, China has become the second largest nation in terms of the number of publications within this database. In terms of citations, the competitive advantage of the American “domestic market” is diminished, while the European Union (EU) is profiting more from the enlargement of the database over time than the USA. However, the USA is still outperforming all other countries in terms of highly cited papers and citation/publication ratios, and it is more successful than the EU in coordinating its research efforts in strategic priority areas like nanotechnology. In this field, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has become second largest nation in both numbers of papers published and citations behind the USA.     

How do you select the “greenest” technology? Development of guidance for the pharmaceutical industry

There is widespread interest in government and industry in green chemistry and green technology. For truly “green” processes to be developed, scientists must take a concurrent, integrated approach that considers chemistry and technology. While it is vital to understand those things traditionally considered in technology selection such as operational, quality, and cost differences, it is equally vital to understand the associated environmental and safety issues that are inherent to the chosen technology. This is a major challenge and there is a clear need for guidance in this area. This paper proposes the concept of a “Clean/Green Technology Guide” as an expert system that would provide scientists and engineers with comparative environmental and safety performance information on available technologies for commonly performed unit operations in the pharmaceutical industry. At this stage, the framework has been developed to demonstrate the concept, using a metric set based on the concepts of sustainable development. This framework is used to evaluate the alternatives on a case-scenario basis, and will compare traditional and emerging technologies. A life-cycle approach is also used in the evaluation of the alternatives. This approach is illustrated by comparing batch, mini-, and microreactors. Received: 3 November 2000 / Accepted: 19 December 2000