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The impact factor: its place in Garfield’s thought, in science evaluation, and in library collection management

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  • Stephen J. Bensman

    (LSU Libraries, Louisiana State University)

Abstract

This paper is a response to that of Vanclay, who proposes, that since the impact factor (IF) is so seriously flawed, Thomson Reuters should either correct the measure or—preferably—no longer publish it and restrict itself to journal certification. It is argued here that Vanclay’s analysis is itself seriously flawed, because he appears totally ignorant of the thought structure of Eugene Garfield, IF’s creator. As a result, Vanclay appears unaware of the importance of total cites and the close connection of IF with review journals, where the paradigms of science are defined. This paper’s author agrees that IF is a defective measure, analyzing its defects from the perspective of the frequency theory of probability, on which modern inferential statistics is based. However, he asserts that abandoning it would be counterproductive because of its demonstrated ability—even with its defects—to identify small important journals like review journals, giving it an important role in science evaluation and library collection management.

Suggested Citation

  • Stephen J. Bensman, 2012. "The impact factor: its place in Garfield’s thought, in science evaluation, and in library collection management," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 92(2), pages 263-275, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:scient:v:92:y:2012:i:2:d:10.1007_s11192-011-0601-9
    DOI: 10.1007/s11192-011-0601-9
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Stephen J. Bensman & Loet Leydesdorff, 2009. "Definition and identification of journals as bibliographic and subject entities: Librarianship versus ISI Journal Citation Reports methods and their effect on citation measures," Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 60(6), pages 1097-1117, June.
    2. Per O Seglen, 1992. "How representative is the journal impact factor?," Research Evaluation, Oxford University Press, vol. 2(3), pages 143-149, December.
    3. Stephen J. Bensman, 2008. "Distributional differences of the impact factor in the sciences versus the social sciences: An analysis of the probabilistic structure of the 2005 journal citation reports," Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 59(9), pages 1366-1382, July.
    4. Stephen J. Bensman & Lawrence J. Smolinsky & Alexander I. Pudovkin, 2010. "Mean citation rate per article in mathematics journals: Differences from the scientific model," Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 61(7), pages 1440-1463, July.
    5. E. Garfield & I. H. Sher, 1963. "New factors in the evaluation of scientific literature through citation indexing," American Documentation, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 14(3), pages 195-201, July.
    6. Stephen J. Bensman & Lawrence J. Smolinsky & Alexander I. Pudovkin, 2010. "Mean citation rate per article in mathematics journals: Differences from the scientific model," Journal of the Association for Information Science & Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 61(7), pages 1440-1463, July.
    7. Jerome K. Vanclay, 2012. "Impact factor: outdated artefact or stepping-stone to journal certification?," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 92(2), pages 211-238, August.
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    Cited by:

    1. David A. Pendlebury & Jonathan Adams, 2012. "Comments on a critique of the Thomson Reuters journal impact factor," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 92(2), pages 395-401, August.
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    4. Alfirević Nikša & Pavičić Jurica & Rendulić Darko, 2023. "A Bibliometric Analysis of Public Business School Scientific Productivity and Impact in South-East Europe (2017-2021)," South East European Journal of Economics and Business, Sciendo, vol. 18(1), pages 27-45, June.
    5. de Carvalho, Gustavo Dambiski Gomes & Sokulski, Carla Cristiane & da Silva, Wesley Vieira & de Carvalho, Hélio Gomes & de Moura, Rafael Vignoli & de Francisco, Antonio Carlos & da Veiga, Claudimar Per, 2020. "Bibliometrics and systematic reviews: A comparison between the Proknow-C and the Methodi Ordinatio," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 14(3).
    6. Finardi, Ugo, 2013. "Correlation between Journal Impact Factor and Citation Performance: An experimental study," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 7(2), pages 357-370.

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