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Laboratory and Basic Science Research Commons

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Selected Works

Professor Jerome K Vanclay

Selected Works

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Laboratory and Basic Science Research

Bias In The Journal Impact Factor, Jerome K. Vanclay Nov 2009

Bias In The Journal Impact Factor, Jerome K. Vanclay

Professor Jerome K Vanclay

The ISI journal impact factor (JIF) is based on a sample that may represent half the whole-of-life citations to some journals, but a small fraction (<10%) of the citations accruing to other journals. This disproportionate sampling means that the JIF provides a misleading indication of the true impact of journals, biased in favour of journals that have a rapid rather than a prolonged impact. Many journals exhibit a consistent pattern of citation accrual from year to year, so it may be possible to adjust the JIF to provide a more reliable indication of a journal’s impact.


Ranking Forestry Journals Using The H-Index, Jerome K. Vanclay Nov 2009

Ranking Forestry Journals Using The H-Index, Jerome K. Vanclay

Professor Jerome K Vanclay

An expert ranking of forestry journals was compared with Journal Impact Factors and h-indices computed from the ISI Web of Science and internet-based data. Citations reported by Google Scholar offer an efficient way to rank all journals objectively, in a manner consistent with other indicators. This h-index exhibited a high correlation with the Journal Impact Factor (r = 0.92), but is not confined to journals selected by any particular commercial provider. A ranking of 180 forestry journals is presented, on the basis of this index.