Exploring the web visibility of world-class universities |
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Authors: | Moosung Lee Han Woo Park |
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Affiliation: | (1) Education Policy & Leadership, Hong Kong Institute of Education, Hong Kong, Hong Kong;(2) Department of Media and Communication, WCU Webometrics Institute, YeungNam University, 214-1 Dae-dong, Gyeongsan-si, Gyeongsangbuk-do, 712-749, South Korea |
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Abstract: | With the rapid development of the Internet, there is a need for evaluating the public visibility of universities on the Internet
(i.e., web visibility) in terms of its implications for university management, planning, and governance. The data were collected
in December 2010 by using Yahoo, one of the most widely used search engines. Specifically, we gathered “Single Mention” data
to measure the number of times that each university was mentioned on websites. In addition, we collected network-based data
on Single Mentions. We obtained another data set based on the 2010 world university rankings by Shanghai Jiao Tong University
(SJTU). We employed several analytical methods for the analysis, including correlations, nonparametric tests (e.g., the Mann–Whitney
test), and multidimensional scaling (MDS). The significant positive correlation between university rankings and web visibility
suggests that indicators of web visibility can function as a proxy measure of conventional university rankings. Another distinctive
implication can be drawn from the pattern of a disparity in web visibility stemming from the linguistic divide, that is, universities
in English-speaking countries dominated the central positions in various network structures of web visibility, whereas those
in non-English-speaking countries were located in the periphery of these structures. In this regard, further research linking
web visibility to university management, planning, and governance is needed. |
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