Hits:

Indexed by:期刊论文

Date of Publication:2014-07-01

Journal:JOURNAL OF INFORMETRICS

Included Journals:EI、SSCI、Scopus

Volume:8

Issue:3

Page Number:478-485

ISSN No.:1751-1577

Key Words:Bibliometrics; Citations; Research evaluation; H-index sequence

Abstract:Most current h-type indicators use only a single number to measure a scientist's productivity and impact of his/her published works. Although a single number is simple to calculate, it fails to outline his/her academic performance varying with time. We empirically study the basic h-index sequence for cumulative publications with consideration of the yearly citation performance (for convenience, referred as L-Sequence). L-Sequence consists of a series of L factors. Based on the citations received in the corresponding individual year, every factor along a scientist's career span is calculated by using the h index formula. Thus L-Sequence shows the scientist's dynamic research trajectory and provides insight into his/her scientific performance at different periods. Furthermore, L proportional to, summing up all factors of L-Sequence, is for the evaluation of the whole research career as alternative to other h-index variants. Importantly, the partial factors of the L-Sequence can be adapted for different evaluation tasks. Moreover, L-Sequence could be used to highlight outstanding scientists in a specific period whose research interests can be used to study the history and trends of a specific discipline. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.