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Are uncited papers necessarily all nonimpact papers? A quantitative analysis

Author

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  • Jianhua Hou

    (Sun Yat-Sen University)

  • Jiantao Ye

    (Sun Yat-Sen University)

Abstract

In traditional research, the application of quantitative measurement on the value and influence of uncited papers is not feasible owing to the lack of data. The rapid advancement of social media has offered a new path for the dissemination of scientific papers and gain influence. In this thesis, the uncited papers published during 2006–2014 with a 5-year window on PLOS ONE journals from the Web of Science core collection was selected. A measurement model was built for the influence of uncited papers on social media dimension based on its Discussed, Saved, and Viewed data to explore the dynamic evolution track of the influence and determine the patterns of interaction. We found that uncited papers have a universal and significant influence on social media platforms. Besides, the evolution pattern of influence of the uncited papers can be illustrated by the layer-to-layer aggregation model of “document properties → three indicators → influence” Overall, the findings of this thesis are referential to the quantitative measurement of the influence of uncited papers.

Suggested Citation

  • 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.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:scient:v:124:y:2020:i:2:d:10.1007_s11192-020-03539-w
    DOI: 10.1007/s11192-020-03539-w
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    Cited by:

    1. 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).
    2. Dias, Luis C. & Lev, Benjamin & Anderson, James B., 2023. "Low cited articles in operations research / management science," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 115(C).

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