The complex universe of citation data for bibliometric systems
The complex universe of citation data for bibliometric systems
Citation analysis has been the foundation of bibliometrics and of academic performance measurement for 70 years. Citations are based on the references and information networks which underpin academic writing. They are regarded as a proxy for the significance, importance or respect in which the cited article is held and of academic performance.
Citations are an imperfect form of the measurement of the impact of ideas, of individuals and organisations, but they underpin a huge global investment in academic appraisal, performance evaluation and promotion systems.
SCOPUS and the Web of Science (WoS) are commercial citation systems which support this information ecosystem with quality assurance processes. They process selected academic journals, books and other sources into core collections with detailed author, article and journal based bibliometric profiles. These core collections are regarded as primary sources for citation analysis.
Beyond the core collections lie a large number of citation sources, which are identified from the primary sources but which are not curated by SCOPUS or WoS. There are known as secondary sources.
Outwith the primary and secondary sources is a large volume of uncurated tertiary content whose size unknown and which is neither linked nor readily targetable for bibliometric analysis. These spheres of sources can be modelled as a “bibliometric universe of citation activity”, which I explore further in this essay.
Citation based career recognition creates perverse incentives to game the citation system for personal or institutional gain. Many sophisticated schemes have been devised to create false and dishonestly enhanced citation scores.
Efforts must therefore be made to educate the global academic community on the benefits and limitations of citation based evaluations; to maximise the trustworthiness of bibliometric data; and to develop methodologies which minimise the opportunities to game the system for fraudulent purposes.
citation analysis, Scopus, Web of Science, bibliometric systems, citation source documents, CrossRef, metadata manipulation, citation cartels, coercive citations, citation planting, ranking manipulation, article retractions, fake reviews
University of Southampton
Rew, David
36dcc3ad-2379-4b61-a468-5c623d796887
8 June 2025
Rew, David
36dcc3ad-2379-4b61-a468-5c623d796887
Rew, David
(2025)
The complex universe of citation data for bibliometric systems
(Essays in the Art and Science of Academic Journal Editing and Publishing)
University of Southampton
36pp.
Record type:
Monograph
(Working Paper)
Abstract
Citation analysis has been the foundation of bibliometrics and of academic performance measurement for 70 years. Citations are based on the references and information networks which underpin academic writing. They are regarded as a proxy for the significance, importance or respect in which the cited article is held and of academic performance.
Citations are an imperfect form of the measurement of the impact of ideas, of individuals and organisations, but they underpin a huge global investment in academic appraisal, performance evaluation and promotion systems.
SCOPUS and the Web of Science (WoS) are commercial citation systems which support this information ecosystem with quality assurance processes. They process selected academic journals, books and other sources into core collections with detailed author, article and journal based bibliometric profiles. These core collections are regarded as primary sources for citation analysis.
Beyond the core collections lie a large number of citation sources, which are identified from the primary sources but which are not curated by SCOPUS or WoS. There are known as secondary sources.
Outwith the primary and secondary sources is a large volume of uncurated tertiary content whose size unknown and which is neither linked nor readily targetable for bibliometric analysis. These spheres of sources can be modelled as a “bibliometric universe of citation activity”, which I explore further in this essay.
Citation based career recognition creates perverse incentives to game the citation system for personal or institutional gain. Many sophisticated schemes have been devised to create false and dishonestly enhanced citation scores.
Efforts must therefore be made to educate the global academic community on the benefits and limitations of citation based evaluations; to maximise the trustworthiness of bibliometric data; and to develop methodologies which minimise the opportunities to game the system for fraudulent purposes.
Text
The Complex Universe of Citation Data D Rew 08.06.2025
- Author's Original
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Published date: 8 June 2025
Additional Information:
David Anthony Rew, MA MB MChir (Cambridge) FRCS (London)
Honorary Consultant Surgeon to the Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, UK and to the Clinical Informatics Research Unit. Former Editor in Chief, European Journal of Surgical Oncology, 2003 to 2009 Former Member of Council, Committee on Publication Ethics, COPE, 2008-2010 Subject Chair for Medicine to the SCOPUS Content Selection Advisory Board, Elsevier BV, The Netherlands, 2009 to the Present.
Keywords:
citation analysis, Scopus, Web of Science, bibliometric systems, citation source documents, CrossRef, metadata manipulation, citation cartels, coercive citations, citation planting, ranking manipulation, article retractions, fake reviews
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Local EPrints ID: 502914
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/502914
PURE UUID: f158ef46-5c6f-4007-999d-c2e0ed1b5ae6
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Date deposited: 11 Jul 2025 17:06
Last modified: 12 Jul 2025 02:04
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