Responsible Use of Research Metrics
"Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts." William Bruce Cameron
Guiding Documents on Responsible Use of Research Metrics
Limitations of Citation-Based Metrics
- Errors on citations can lead to multiple entries and missed citations.
- Author and institutional naming inconsistencies can lead to multiple entries and missed citations.
- Different databases use different sources to generate data. Some databases are more comprehensive than others.
- These tools are highly skewed toward STEM (science, technology, engineering, medicine) scholars.
- Citations do not measure the number of times a work has been read or accessed.
- Citations are not and should not be the only indicator of the importance of a work.
Source: UCLA Library (2015). Impact Metrics and Scholarly Attribution. In R. Lewis, C.C. Sarli, and A.M. Suiter (Eds.), SPEC kit 346: Scholarly output assessment activities (p. 167). Association of Research Libraries.
With Great Power Comes the Responsible Use of Metrics
- A 30-minute video by Cambridge University's Office of Scholarly Communication. The video provides a brief overview of research metrics, as well as limitations and issues. It summarizes DORA, Leiden Manifesto, and the Metric Tide Report mentioned above.
The Leiden Manifesto for Research Metrics
- A 4-minute video summarizing the 10 principles described in the Leiden Manifesto.
SCOPE Framework for Research Evaluation
- A 5-minute video on the SCOPE framework. NOTE: Video opens in a new tab.
