Authorship and citation patterns of highly cited biomedical researchers: a cross-sectional study
Abstract Background Scientific productivity is often evaluated by means of cumulative citation metrics. Different metrics produce different incentives. The H-index assigns full credit from a citation to each coauthor, and thus may encourage multiple collaborations in mid-list author roles. In contra...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2023-09-01
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| Series: | Research Integrity and Peer Review |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s41073-023-00137-1 |
| _version_ | 1797555757918453760 |
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| author | Thomas Perneger |
| author_facet | Thomas Perneger |
| author_sort | Thomas Perneger |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Scientific productivity is often evaluated by means of cumulative citation metrics. Different metrics produce different incentives. The H-index assigns full credit from a citation to each coauthor, and thus may encourage multiple collaborations in mid-list author roles. In contrast, the Hm-index assigns only a fraction 1/k of citation credit to each of k coauthors of an article, and thus may encourage research done by smaller teams, and in first or last author roles. Whether H and Hm indices are influenced by different authorship patterns has not been examined. Methods Using a publicly available Scopus database, I examined associations between the numbers of research articles published as single, first, mid-list, or last author between 1990 and 2019, and the H-index and the Hm-index, among 18,231 leading researchers in the health sciences. Results Adjusting for career duration and other article types, the H-index was negatively associated with the number of single author articles (partial Pearson r -0.06) and first author articles (-0.08), but positively associated with the number of mid-list (0.64) and last author articles (0.21). In contrast, all associations were positive for the Hm-index (0.04 for single author articles, 0.18 for first author articles, 0.24 for mid-list articles, and 0.46 for last author articles). Conclusion The H-index and the Hm-index do not reflect the same authorship patterns: the full-credit H-index is predominantly associated with mid-list authorship, whereas the partial-credit Hm-index is driven by more balanced publication patterns, and is most strongly associated with last-author articles. Since performance metrics may act as incentives, the selection of a citation metric should receive careful consideration. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T16:52:08Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b1e4f5b6ae924ac6bc38fc4a8791163b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2058-8615 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T16:52:08Z |
| publishDate | 2023-09-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Research Integrity and Peer Review |
| spelling | doaj.art-b1e4f5b6ae924ac6bc38fc4a8791163b2023-11-20T11:16:42ZengBMCResearch Integrity and Peer Review2058-86152023-09-01811910.1186/s41073-023-00137-1Authorship and citation patterns of highly cited biomedical researchers: a cross-sectional studyThomas Perneger0Division of clinical epidemiology, Geneva University HospitalsAbstract Background Scientific productivity is often evaluated by means of cumulative citation metrics. Different metrics produce different incentives. The H-index assigns full credit from a citation to each coauthor, and thus may encourage multiple collaborations in mid-list author roles. In contrast, the Hm-index assigns only a fraction 1/k of citation credit to each of k coauthors of an article, and thus may encourage research done by smaller teams, and in first or last author roles. Whether H and Hm indices are influenced by different authorship patterns has not been examined. Methods Using a publicly available Scopus database, I examined associations between the numbers of research articles published as single, first, mid-list, or last author between 1990 and 2019, and the H-index and the Hm-index, among 18,231 leading researchers in the health sciences. Results Adjusting for career duration and other article types, the H-index was negatively associated with the number of single author articles (partial Pearson r -0.06) and first author articles (-0.08), but positively associated with the number of mid-list (0.64) and last author articles (0.21). In contrast, all associations were positive for the Hm-index (0.04 for single author articles, 0.18 for first author articles, 0.24 for mid-list articles, and 0.46 for last author articles). Conclusion The H-index and the Hm-index do not reflect the same authorship patterns: the full-credit H-index is predominantly associated with mid-list authorship, whereas the partial-credit Hm-index is driven by more balanced publication patterns, and is most strongly associated with last-author articles. Since performance metrics may act as incentives, the selection of a citation metric should receive careful consideration.https://doi.org/10.1186/s41073-023-00137-1Research assessmentPublicationsCitationsH-indexHm-index |
| spellingShingle | Thomas Perneger Authorship and citation patterns of highly cited biomedical researchers: a cross-sectional study Research Integrity and Peer Review Research assessment Publications Citations H-index Hm-index |
| title | Authorship and citation patterns of highly cited biomedical researchers: a cross-sectional study |
| title_full | Authorship and citation patterns of highly cited biomedical researchers: a cross-sectional study |
| title_fullStr | Authorship and citation patterns of highly cited biomedical researchers: a cross-sectional study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Authorship and citation patterns of highly cited biomedical researchers: a cross-sectional study |
| title_short | Authorship and citation patterns of highly cited biomedical researchers: a cross-sectional study |
| title_sort | authorship and citation patterns of highly cited biomedical researchers a cross sectional study |
| topic | Research assessment Publications Citations H-index Hm-index |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s41073-023-00137-1 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT thomasperneger authorshipandcitationpatternsofhighlycitedbiomedicalresearchersacrosssectionalstudy |