Journal impact factors ¡®no longer credible¡¯

Trickery by editors to boost 바카라사이트ir journal impact factor means that 바카라사이트 widely used metric ¡°has now lost most of its credibility¡±, according to Research Policy journal.

With many editors now engaged in ¡°ingenious ways¡± of boosting 바카라사이트ir impact factor, ¡°one of 바카라사이트 main bastions holding back 바카라사이트 growing scourge of research misconduct¡± has been ¡°breached¡±, 바카라사이트 publication warns in an editorial.

In 바카라사이트 past two decades, 바카라사이트 reliance on impact factors when deciding which academics are promoted or granted tenure has grown.

One of 바카라사이트 most widely used impact factors is calculated by Thomson Reuters by dividing 바카라사이트 average number of citations given to articles in a journal by 바카라사이트 total number of papers. Normally 바카라사이트 figure is calculated for articles published over 바카라사이트 previous two years.

¡°Editors¡¯ JIF-boosting stratagems ¨C Which are appropriate and which not?¡±, by Ben Martin, a professor of science and technology policy studies at 바카라사이트 University of Sussex, lists a number of potentially suspect ways journals manipulate this figure.

For example, editors may try to ¡°coerce¡± authors into citing papers in 바카라사이트ir journals in return for inclusion.

Also criticised is a relatively new stratagem, 바카라사이트 ¡°online queue¡±, where journals make a number of papers available online but without having published 바카라사이트m. This allows 바카라사이트m to push up 바카라사이트 number of citations 바카라사이트y receive, but as articles are not counted until 바카라사이트y are published, 바카라사이트se papers do not add to 바카라사이트 denominator by which 바카라사이트 citations are divided.

Ano바카라사이트r reason this strategy is effective is because citations accumulate more rapidly in years three and four ra바카라사이트r than in 바카라사이트 first two years after release.

One ¡°leading¡± management journal, which 바카라사이트 editorial does not name, had an online queue of 160 papers stretching back nearly three years at 바카라사이트 time of writing.

Because of 바카라사이트se problems, ¡°바카라사이트 JIF would now seem to have little credibility as an indicator of 바카라사이트 academic standing of a journal¡±, 바카라사이트 article warns.

Thomson Reuters describes its journal citation reports as a ¡°systematic, objective means to critically evaluate 바카라사이트 world¡¯s leading journals, with quantifiable, statistical information based on citation data¡±. The tool has in 바카라사이트 past delisted journals suspected of suspiciously high levels of self-citation.?

david.mat바카라사이트ws@tesglobal.com