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Bibliometric analysis models

There are two different models of bibliometric analyses: citation analysis and analysis by the Norwegian model.

Citation analysis

Basis for citation analysis

A citation analysis is based on publications in a citation database,  i.e. Web of Science (WoS), Scopus or Google Scholar. Web of Science is the most widely used and established database for large scale analyses. It is also the database used for citation analyses at LiU (departments, research groups etc.).

Coverage in WoS is very good for science and medicine, but poor for social sciences and humanities. The poor coverage for some fields can be explained by their publication patterns.  WoS mainly covers international journals, whereas researchers within the social sciences and the humanities also publish in chapters, monographs and national journals.  When coverage is too low, a citation analysis has no relevance.

Indicators in citation analysis 

1. Volume

  • Number of publications and fractions

2. Impact

  • Field normalized citation rate
  • Share of top 10 per cent
  • Share of uncited publications

3. Journal Quality

  • Field normalized journal citation rate

Norwegian model 

The Norwegian model intends to measure both quantity and quality by acknowledging both the publication volume and the publication channels.

Each publication receives a certain point depending on whether it is published in a scientific channel (level 1) or a scientific channel considered leading in its field (level 2). Each year, the division of publication channel levels is revised by a publication committee of the Norwegian association of higher education institutions. Also, new publication channels are taken into consideration regularly.

Point distribution in the Norwegian model

Publication type

Level 1

Level 2
Article 1 3
Chapter 0.7 1
Book 5 8

Basis for the Norwegian model

Publications published in a publication channel on the Norwegian list are included in the analysis. Since both journals and publishers are included in the list, the Norwegian list will have a higher coverage than citation databases. That is, the Norwegian model will be better suited for the humanities and parts of the social sciences that are often poorly covered in a citation analysis.

Indicators in the Norwegian model

1. Volume

  • Number of publications and fractions

2. Volume and quality

  • Publication points

3. Quality of publication channels

  • Share of level 2 publications

Further reading 

Swedish Research Council (2015) Guidelines for using bibliometrics at the Swedish Research Council

Library FAQ - Bibliometrics

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