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The emergence of plate tectonics and the Kuhnian model of paradigm shift: a bibliometric case study based on the Anna Karenina principle

Author

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  • Werner Marx

    (Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research)

  • Lutz Bornmann

    (Max Planck Society, Administrative Headquarters)

Abstract

How scientific progress functions in detail and what the specific prerequisites for scientific breakthroughs in a given research area are, is still unclear today. According to philosopher of science Thomas S. Kuhn, scientific advancement takes place via paradigm shift. As a principle supplementing Kuhn’s theory, we proposed the Anna Karenina principle: a new paradigm can be successful only when several key prerequisites are fulfilled (e.g., verified by means of independent data and methods). If any one of these prerequisites is not fulfilled, the paradigm will not be successful. Aiming at investigating the schema of paradigm shift supplemented by the Anna Karenina principle with the aid of concrete examples from science, in this study we analyze one of the most important scientific revolutions: the shift from a fixed to a mobile worldview in geoscientific thinking. This paradigm shift will be explained based on key papers that played a decisive role, selected carefully from reviews in the literature. The account of the development will be complemented by empirical findings that were produced based on publication and citation data using the software Histcite.

Suggested Citation

  • Werner Marx & Lutz Bornmann, 2013. "The emergence of plate tectonics and the Kuhnian model of paradigm shift: a bibliometric case study based on the Anna Karenina principle," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 94(2), pages 595-614, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:scient:v:94:y:2013:i:2:d:10.1007_s11192-012-0741-6
    DOI: 10.1007/s11192-012-0741-6
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Henry Small, 2003. "Paradigms, citations, and maps of science: A personal history," Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 54(5), pages 394-399, March.
    2. Garfield, Eugene, 2009. "From the science of science to Scientometrics visualizing the history of science with HistCite software," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 3(3), pages 173-179.
    3. Werner Marx & Manuel Cardona, 2009. "The citation impact outside references — formal versus informal citations," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 80(1), pages 1-21, July.
    4. Werner Marx & Lutz Bornmann & Manuel Cardona, 2010. "Reference standards and reference multipliers for the comparison of the citation impact of papers published in different time periods," Journal of the Association for Information Science & Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 61(10), pages 2061-2069, October.
    5. Henry Small, 1973. "Co‐citation in the scientific literature: A new measure of the relationship between two documents," Journal of the American Society for Information Science, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 24(4), pages 265-269, July.
    6. Eugene Garfield & A. I. Pudovkin & V. S. Istomin, 2003. "Why do we need algorithmic historiography?," Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 54(5), pages 400-412, March.
    7. Lutz Bornmann & Werner Marx, 2012. "The Anna Karenina principle: A way of thinking about success in science," Journal of the Association for Information Science & Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 63(10), pages 2037-2051, October.
    8. Werner Marx, 2011. "Special features of historical papers from the viewpoint of bibliometrics," Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 62(3), pages 433-439, March.
    9. Werner Marx, 2011. "Special features of historical papers from the viewpoint of bibliometrics," Journal of the Association for Information Science & Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 62(3), pages 433-439, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Leydesdorff, Loet & Bornmann, Lutz & Marx, Werner & Milojević, Staša, 2014. "Referenced Publication Years Spectroscopy applied to iMetrics: Scientometrics, Journal of Informetrics, and a relevant subset of JASIST," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 8(1), pages 162-174.
    2. Rogier Langhe, 2017. "Towards the discovery of scientific revolutions in scientometric data," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 110(1), pages 505-519, January.
    3. Lutz Bornmann & Julian N. Marewski, 2024. "Opium in science and society: numbers and other quantifications," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 129(9), pages 5313-5346, September.
    4. Werner Marx & Robin Haunschild & Bernie French & Lutz Bornmann, 2017. "Slow reception and under-citedness in climate change research: A case study of Charles David Keeling, discoverer of the risk of global warming," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 112(2), pages 1079-1092, August.
    5. Pablo Contreras Kallens & Rick Dale, 2018. "Exploratory mapping of theoretical landscapes through word use in abstracts," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 116(3), pages 1641-1674, September.
    6. Thara Prabhakaran & Hiran H. Lathabai & Susan George & Manoj Changat, 2018. "Towards prediction of paradigm shifts from scientific literature," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 117(3), pages 1611-1644, December.
    7. Werner Marx & Lutz Bornmann, 2016. "Change of perspective: bibliometrics from the point of view of cited references—a literature overview on approaches to the evaluation of cited references in bibliometrics," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 109(2), pages 1397-1415, November.
    8. Loet Leydesdorff & Caroline S. Wagner & Lutz Bornmann, 2018. "Discontinuities in citation relations among journals: self-organized criticality as a model of scientific revolutions and change," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 116(1), pages 623-644, July.

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