The field of Scientometrics involves measuring and analyzing scholarly literature. It is a sub-field of informetrics. The focus is on studying science, specifically growth structure, interrelationships, and productivity. Some measurement areas include studying strategies to improve the impact of research papers and academic journals and understanding scientific citations within the larger frame of measuring policy and management across contexts.
Scientometrics is a field of research that focuses on the quantitative analysis of science, scientific publications, and research trends. It involves using various metrics and statistical methods to study scientific research’s structure, development, and impact. Some of the key areas in which Amrita researchers are working on are:
Citation Analysis: Researchers use citation data to evaluate the influence and impact of individual articles, journals, or researchers. Citation counts and related metrics like the h-index are commonly used.
Bibliometrics: Researchers use bibliometric techniques to map research domains, identify emerging trends, and assess the productivity of researchers and institutions.
Co-authorship Analysis: Scientometrics often involves studying patterns of collaboration among researchers. Co-authorship networks help researchers understand how knowledge is disseminated and shared within and across disciplines.
Journal Impact Metrics: Metrics like the Journal Impact Factor (JIF) are widely used to assess the influence and reputation of scientific journals.
Patent Analysis: Scientometric methods are also applied to patent data to analyze technological trends, innovation patterns, and the strategic behavior of companies and inventors.
Research Productivity and Impact: Scientometrics evaluates the productivity and impact of individual researchers, institutions, and countries. Metrics like the h-index, total citations, and field-normalized citation scores are commonly used, and Amrita researchers are actively involved.
Research Evaluation and Funding: Funding agencies and academic institutions often use scientometric analysis to inform decision-making regarding research funding, tenure and promotion, and resource allocation.
Science Mapping: Scientometric techniques, such as co-citation analysis and keyword clustering, are used to create visual maps representing scientific knowledge’s structure and evolution within specific fields or disciplines.
Altmetrics: In addition to traditional citation-based metrics, altmetrics consider non-traditional sources of impact, such as social media mentions, downloads, and online discussions, to measure the broader societal influence of research.
Ethical and Methodological Issues: Scientometrics researchers at Amrita also investigate ethical concerns and methodological issues related to data collection, interpretation, and the responsible use of metrics in research evaluation.
