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Citations as a Measure of the Research Outputs of New Zealand's Economics Departments: The Problem of 'Long and Variable Lags'

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  • John Tressler
  • David L. Anderson

Abstract

The paper explores the merits of utilising citation counts to measure research output in economics in the context of a nationwide research evaluation scheme: the New Zealand Performance-Based Research Fund (PBRF). Citations were collected for all refereed papers produced by New Zealand's academic economists over the period 2000 to 2008, and used to estimate the time-lags in between publication and the flow of citations; to demonstrate the impact of alternative definitions of 'economics-relevant' journals on citation counts; and to assess the impact of citation measures on departmental and individual performance. We conclude that under certain scenarios around 60 per cent of papers received no citations over the period. Our findings suggest that the time-lags between publication and citation make it difficult to rely on citation counts to produce a meaningful measure of output in a PBRF-like research-evaluation framework, especially one based on the assessment of individual academics.

Suggested Citation

  • John Tressler & David L. Anderson, 2012. "Citations as a Measure of the Research Outputs of New Zealand's Economics Departments: The Problem of 'Long and Variable Lags'," Agenda - A Journal of Policy Analysis and Reform, Australian National University, College of Business and Economics, School of Economics, vol. 19(1), pages 17-40.
    • Handle: RePEc:acb:agenda:v:19:y:2012:i:1:p:17-40
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    File URL: http://press-files.anu.edu.au/downloads/press/p192951/pdf/citations02.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Robert A. Buckle and John Creedy, 2018. "The Impact on Research Quality of Performance-Based Funding: The Case of New Zealand’s PBRF Scheme," Agenda - A Journal of Policy Analysis and Reform, Australian National University, College of Business and Economics, School of Economics, vol. 24(1), pages 25-48.
    2. David L. Anderson & John Tressler, 2017. "Researcher rank stability across alternative output measurement schemes in the context of a time limited research evaluation: the New Zealand case," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 49(45), pages 4542-4553, September.
    3. Vinod Mishra & Russell Smyth, 2013. "Are more senior academics really more research productive than junior academics? Evidence from Australian law schools," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 96(2), pages 411-425, August.
    4. David Anderson & John Tressler, 2018. "The Impact of Citation Timing: A Framework and Examples," Review of Economics and Institutions, Università di Perugia, vol. 9(2).
    5. David L. Anderson & John Tressler, 2013. "The New Zealand performance-based research fund and its impact on publication activity in economics," Research Evaluation, Oxford University Press, vol. 23(1), pages 1-11, September.
    6. Russell Smyth & Vinod Mishra, 2014. "Academic inbreeding and research productivity and impact in Australian law schools," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 98(1), pages 583-618, January.
    7. David L. Anderson & John Tressler, 2014. "Citation-Capture Rates by Economic Journals:Do they Differ from Other Disciplines and Does it Matter?," Working Papers in Economics 14/10, University of Waikato.

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