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A scaling between Impact Factor and uncitedness

Author

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  • Hsu, Jiann-wien
  • Huang, Ding-wei

Abstract

The Impact Factor has become a well-known measure of the average citation number of articles published in a scientific journal. A journal with a high Impact Factor is assumed to have a low percentage of uncited articles. We show that the scaling relation between the Impact Factor and the uncited percentage can be understood by a simple mechanism. The empirical data can be reproduced by a random mechanism with the cumulative advantage. To further explore the robustness of such a mechanism, we investigate the relation between the average citation number and the uncited percentage from different perspectives. We apply the idea of Impact Factor to the publications of an institute in addition to its general application to the publications of a journal. We find that the same scaling relation can be obtained. We also show that a static relation can be applied to describe the time evolution of a dynamical process. These results provide further justification for the same citation mechanism behind different research fields.

Suggested Citation

  • Hsu, Jiann-wien & Huang, Ding-wei, 2012. "A scaling between Impact Factor and uncitedness," Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, Elsevier, vol. 391(5), pages 2129-2134.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:phsmap:v:391:y:2012:i:5:p:2129-2134
    DOI: 10.1016/j.physa.2011.11.028
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Jianhua Hou & Jiantao Ye, 2020. "Are uncited papers necessarily all nonimpact papers? A quantitative analysis," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 124(2), pages 1631-1662, August.
    2. Lucio Bertoli-Barsotti & Tommaso Lando, 2017. "The h-index as an almost-exact function of some basic statistics," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 113(2), pages 1209-1228, November.
    3. Katchanov, Yurij L. & Markova, Yulia V. & Shmatko, Natalia A., 2023. "Uncited papers in the structure of scientific communication," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 17(2).
    4. Egghe, L., 2013. "The functional relation between the impact factor and the uncitedness factor revisited," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 7(1), pages 183-189.
    5. Lucio Bertoli-Barsotti & Tommaso Lando, 2017. "A theoretical model of the relationship between the h-index and other simple citation indicators," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 111(3), pages 1415-1448, June.
    6. Jeppe Nicolaisen & Tove Faber Frandsen, 2019. "Zero impact: a large-scale study of uncitedness," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 119(2), pages 1227-1254, May.
    7. Javier E., Contreras-Reyes, 2016. "Credit allocation based on journal impact factor and coauthorship contribution," MPRA Paper 71294, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    8. Hu, Zewen & Wu, Yishan, 2014. "Regularity in the time-dependent distribution of the percentage of never-cited papers: An empirical pilot study based on the six journals," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 8(1), pages 136-146.
    9. Burrell, Quentin L., 2013. "A stochastic approach to the relation between the impact factor and the uncitedness factor," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 7(3), pages 676-682.
    10. Zewen Hu & Yishan Wu & Jianjun Sun, 2018. "A quantitative analysis of determinants of non-citation using a panel data model," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 116(2), pages 843-861, August.
    11. Pablo Dorta-González & Rafael Suárez-Vega & María Isabel Dorta-González, 2020. "Open access effect on uncitedness: a large-scale study controlling by discipline, source type and visibility," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 124(3), pages 2619-2644, September.
    12. Javier E. Contreras-Reyes, 2016. "Credit allocation based on journal impact factor and coauthorship contribution," Papers 1606.04139, arXiv.org.

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