IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v12y2020i12p5175-d376044.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Scientometric Analysis of Research in Energy Efficiency and Citizen Science through Projects and Publications

Author

Listed:
  • Daniela De Filippo

    (INAECU Research Institute for Higher Education and Science (UC3M-UAM), Calle Madrid 126, 28903 Getafe, Spain
    Department of Library and Information Sciences, Carlos III University of Madrid, Calle Madrid 126, 28903 Getafe, Spain)

  • María Luisa Lascurain

    (INAECU Research Institute for Higher Education and Science (UC3M-UAM), Calle Madrid 126, 28903 Getafe, Spain
    Department of Library and Information Sciences, Carlos III University of Madrid, Calle Madrid 126, 28903 Getafe, Spain)

  • Andres Pandiella-Dominique

    (INAECU Research Institute for Higher Education and Science (UC3M-UAM), Calle Madrid 126, 28903 Getafe, Spain)

  • Elias Sanz-Casado

    (INAECU Research Institute for Higher Education and Science (UC3M-UAM), Calle Madrid 126, 28903 Getafe, Spain
    Department of Library and Information Sciences, Carlos III University of Madrid, Calle Madrid 126, 28903 Getafe, Spain)

Abstract

Energy efficiency is part of the commitment to environmental sustainability made by the organizations that promote and finance research and by the researchers that make this field their subject of study. Although there is growing interest in the subject, it is worth asking whether the research has been approached considering citizens’ needs or citizens’ participation. The main objective of this study is to analyse whether energy efficiency research has adopted a citizen science perspective. Using scientometric methods, the SCOPUS and CORDIS databases were consulted and a document search strategy was developed to gather information on publications and projects. The analysis revealed that, out of 265 projects under the Seventh Framework Programme on Energy Efficiency, only seven (3%) were related to citizen science. Although there is a large volume of publications on energy efficiency (over 200,000) and a considerable number of publications on citizen science (>30,000 articles), only 336 documents were identified that deal with both topics. The number of projects and publications on these topics has increased in recent years, with universities being the institutions that have published the most. Content analysis found that the most frequent topics are public perception of the use of renewable energies; citizen participation in measures to address climate change and global warming; and the involvement of different stakeholders in the use and responsible consumption of energy. Finally, information was collected on the impact of these publications on social media and altmetric tools. It was revealed that 33% of the 336 papers have had a presence in different sources, especially Twitter. This is a high figure compared with the dissemination achieved by papers from other disciplines.

Suggested Citation

  • Daniela De Filippo & María Luisa Lascurain & Andres Pandiella-Dominique & Elias Sanz-Casado, 2020. "Scientometric Analysis of Research in Energy Efficiency and Citizen Science through Projects and Publications," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-25, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:12:y:2020:i:12:p:5175-:d:376044
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/12/12/5175/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/12/12/5175/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Ladislav Pilař & Lucie Kvasničková Stanislavská & Jana Pitrová & Igor Krejčí & Ivana Tichá & Martina Chalupová, 2019. "Twitter Analysis of Global Communication in the Field of Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(24), pages 1-16, December.
    2. Daniela De Filippo & Nuria Bautista-Puig & Elba Mauleón & Elías Sanz-Casado, 2018. "A Bridge between Society and Universities: A Documentary Analysis of Science Shops," Publications, MDPI, vol. 6(3), pages 1-15, August.
    3. Romo-Fernández, Luz M. & López-Pujalte, Cristina & Guerrero Bote, Vicente P. & Moya-Anegón, Félix, 2011. "Analysis of Europe’s scientific production on renewable energies," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 36(9), pages 2529-2537.
    4. Daniela De Filippo & Leyla Angélica Sandoval-Hamón & Fernando Casani & Elías Sanz-Casado, 2019. "Spanish Universities’ Sustainability Performance and Sustainability-Related R&D+I," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(20), pages 1-21, October.
    5. Antonio Eleazar Serrano-López & Peter Ingwersen & Elias Sanz-Casado, 2017. "Wind power research in Wikipedia: Does Wikipedia demonstrate direct influence of research publications and can it be used as adequate source in research evaluation?," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 112(3), pages 1471-1488, September.
    6. Christian Gumpenberger & Wolfgang Glänzel & Juan Gorraiz, 2016. "The ecstasy and the agony of the altmetric score," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 108(2), pages 977-982, August.
    7. Maria Peter & Tim Diekötter & Kerstin Kremer, 2019. "Participant Outcomes of Biodiversity Citizen Science Projects: A Systematic Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(10), pages 1-18, May.
    8. Jing Liang & Yueming Qiu & Poornima Padmanabhan, 2017. "Consumers’ Attitudes towards Surcharges on Distributed Renewable Energy Generation and Energy Efficiency Programs," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(8), pages 1-23, August.
    9. Corrine Nöel Knapp & Robin S. Reid & María E. Fernández-Giménez & Julia A. Klein & Kathleen A. Galvin, 2019. "Placing Transdisciplinarity in Context: A Review of Approaches to Connect Scholars, Society and Action," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(18), pages 1-25, September.
    10. Dong-xu Yang, 2013. "A Research on the Comprehensive Influential Factors of Energy Conservation in Chinese Public Building," Springer Books, in: Ershi Qi & Jiang Shen & Runliang Dou (ed.), The 19th International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management, edition 127, chapter 0, pages 719-728, Springer.
    11. Bornmann, Lutz, 2014. "Do altmetrics point to the broader impact of research? An overview of benefits and disadvantages of altmetrics," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 8(4), pages 895-903.
    12. Ines Wilkens (nee Braune) & Peter Schmuck, 2012. "Transdisciplinary Evaluation of Energy Scenarios for a German Village Using Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 4(4), pages 1-26, April.
    13. Sanz-Casado, Elias & Lascurain-Sánchez, Maria Luisa & Serrano-Lopez, Antonio Eleazar & Larsen, Birger & Ingwersen, Peter, 2014. "Production, consumption and research on solar energy: The Spanish and German case," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 68(C), pages 733-744.
    14. Jennifer Schneiderhan-Opel & Franz X. Bogner, 2020. "The Relation between Knowledge Acquisition and Environmental Values within the Scope of a Biodiversity Learning Module," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(5), pages 1-19, March.
    15. Kenneth Gillingham & Richard G. Newell & Karen Palmer, 2009. "Energy Efficiency Economics and Policy," Annual Review of Resource Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 1(1), pages 597-620, September.
    16. Anne Pisarski & Peta Ashworth, 2013. "The Citizen’s Round Table process: canvassing public opinion on energy technologies to mitigate climate change," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 119(2), pages 533-546, July.
    17. Stefana Broadbent & Francesco Cara, 2018. "Seeking Control in a Precarious Environment: Sustainable Practices as an Adaptive Strategy to Living under Uncertainty," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(5), pages 1-13, April.
    18. Florian Heigl & Barbara Kieslinger & Katharina T. Paul & Julia Uhlik & Daniel Dörler, 2019. "Opinion: Toward an international definition of citizen science," Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 116(17), pages 8089-8092, April.
    19. Chia-Hsuan Hsu & Te-En Lin & Wei-Ta Fang & Chi-Chang Liu, 2018. "Taiwan Roadkill Observation Network: An Example of a Community of Practice Contributing to Taiwanese Environmental Literacy for Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-14, October.
    20. Chia-Hsuan Hsu & Yuan-Mou Chang & Chi-Chang Liu, 2019. "Can Short-Term Citizen Science Training Increase Knowledge, Improve Attitudes, and Change Behavior to Protect Land Crabs?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(14), pages 1-15, July.
    21. Christian Stenqvist & Susanne Balslev Nielsen & Per-Otto Bengtsson, 2018. "A Tool for Sourcing Sustainable Building Renovation: The Energy Efficiency Maturity Matrix," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(5), pages 1-15, May.
    22. Zhiyuan Lv & Jun Yang & Ben Wielstra & Jie Wei & Fei Xu & Yali Si, 2019. "Prioritizing Green Spaces for Biodiversity Conservation in Beijing Based on Habitat Network Connectivity," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-20, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Daniela Filippo & Pablo Sastrón-Toledo, 2023. "Influence of research on open science in the public policy sphere," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 128(3), pages 1995-2017, March.
    2. Rachel Pateman & Heidi Tuhkanen & Steve Cinderby, 2021. "Citizen Science and the Sustainable Development Goals in Low and Middle Income Country Cities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(17), pages 1-24, August.
    3. Daniel Wuebben & Juan Romero-Luis & Manuel Gertrudix, 2020. "Citizen Science and Citizen Energy Communities: A Systematic Review and Potential Alliances for SDGs," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(23), pages 1-24, December.
    4. Robert Lepenies & Ibrahim Sidi Zakari, 2021. "Citizen Science for Transformative Air Quality Policy in Germany and Niger," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(7), pages 1-21, April.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Maryam Moshtagh & Tahereh Jowkar & Maryam Yaghtin & Hajar Sotudeh, 2023. "The moderating effect of altmetrics on the correlations between single and multi-faceted university ranking systems: the case of THE and QS vs. Nature Index and Leiden," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 128(1), pages 761-781, January.
    2. Daniela Filippo & Pablo Sastrón-Toledo, 2023. "Influence of research on open science in the public policy sphere," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 128(3), pages 1995-2017, March.
    3. Núria Bautista-Puig & Daniela De Filippo & Elba Mauleón & Elías Sanz-Casado, 2019. "Scientific Landscape of Citizen Science Publications: Dynamics, Content and Presence in Social Media," Publications, MDPI, vol. 7(1), pages 1-22, February.
    4. Ying Guo & Xiantao Xiao, 2022. "Author-level altmetrics for the evaluation of Chinese scholars," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 127(2), pages 973-990, February.
    5. Daniela De Filippo & Fernanda Morillo & Borja González-Albo, 2023. "Measuring the Impact and Influence of Scientific Activity in the Humanities and Social Sciences," Publications, MDPI, vol. 11(2), pages 1-17, June.
    6. Bornmann, Lutz & Haunschild, Robin & Adams, Jonathan, 2019. "Do altmetrics assess societal impact in a comparable way to case studies? An empirical test of the convergent validity of altmetrics based on data from the UK research excellence framework (REF)," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 13(1), pages 325-340.
    7. Peter Ingwersen & Antonio Eleazar Serrano-López, 2018. "Smart city research 1990–2016," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 117(2), pages 1205-1236, November.
    8. Chia-Hsuan Hsu, 2021. "Environmental Education: Revealing Some Current Problems from Personal Opinion," Technium Social Sciences Journal, Technium Science, vol. 22(1), pages 113-116, August.
    9. repec:thr:techub:10022:y:2021:i:1:p:113-116 is not listed on IDEAS
    10. Andrea Spasiano & Salvatore Grimaldi & Alessio Maria Braccini & Fernando Nardi, 2021. "Towards a Transdisciplinary Theoretical Framework of Citizen Science: Results from a Meta-Review Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(14), pages 1-22, July.
    11. Shan-Hui Chao & Jin-Zhang Jiang & Kuan-Chu Wei & Eric Ng & Chia-Hsuan Hsu & Yi-Te Chiang & Wei-Ta Fang, 2021. "Understanding Pro-Environmental Behavior of Citizen Science: An Exploratory Study of the Bird Survey in Taoyuan’s Farm Ponds Project," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(9), pages 1-24, May.
    12. Sergio Copiello, 2020. "Other than detecting impact in advance, alternative metrics could act as early warning signs of retractions: tentative findings of a study into the papers retracted by PLoS ONE," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 125(3), pages 2449-2469, December.
    13. Yang, Siluo & Zheng, Mengxue & Yu, Yonghao & Wolfram, Dietmar, 2021. "Are Altmetric.com scores effective for research impact evaluation in the social sciences and humanities?," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 15(1).
    14. Vitaliy Roud & Thomas Wolfgang Thurner, 2018. "The Influence of State‐Ownership on Eco‐Innovations in Russian Manufacturing Firms," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 22(5), pages 1213-1227, October.
    15. Deming Lin & Tianhui Gong & Wenbin Liu & Martin Meyer, 2020. "An entropy-based measure for the evolution of h index research," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 125(3), pages 2283-2298, December.
    16. Andrew Chapman & Timothy Fraser & Melanie Dennis, 2019. "Investigating Ties between Energy Policy and Social Equity Research: A Citation Network Analysis," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 8(5), pages 1-18, April.
    17. Louis-Gaëtan Giraudet & Anna Petronevich & Laurent Faucheux, 2018. "How do lenders price energy efficiency? Evidence from posted interest rates for unsecured credit in France [Comment les créditeurs valorisent-ils l'efficacité énergétique? Une analyse des taux d'in," Working Papers hal-01890636, HAL.
    18. Abrardi, Laura & Cambini, Carlo, 2015. "Tariff regulation with energy efficiency goals," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 122-131.
    19. Jihyo Kim & Suhyeon Nam, 2021. "Do Household Time, Risk, and Social Preferences Affect Home Energy Retrofit Decisions in Korea?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(8), pages 1-18, April.
    20. Lange, Steffen & Pohl, Johanna & Santarius, Tilman, 2020. "Digitalization and energy consumption. Does ICT reduce energy demand?," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 176(C).
    21. Sara Calvo & Luciano Celini & Andrés Morales & José Manuel Guaita Martínez & Pedro Núñez-Cacho Utrilla, 2020. "Academic Literacy and Student Diversity: Evaluating a Curriculum-Integrated Inclusive Practice Intervention in the United Kingdom," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(3), pages 1-14, February.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:12:y:2020:i:12:p:5175-:d:376044. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.