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A simple back-of-the-envelope test for self-citations using Google Scholar author profiles

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  • Frode Eika Sandnes

    (Oslo Metropolitan University
    Kristiania University College)

Abstract

The issue of self-citation has received much attention in academia. Widely used and accessible tools such as Google Scholar do not provide information about self-citations. Therefore, a simple and practical back-of-the-envelope test for identifying researchers with strategic self-citations is proposed without access to self-citation information. It is shown that the h-index squared divided by the number of citations predicts self-citations. The test is simple to apply based on Google Scholar author profiles. Bibliometric data for more than 100,000 researchers worldwide were used to assess the proposed test. Test values of 0.35 or more indicate high ratios of self-citation while test values below 0.2 suggest low ratios of self-citations.

Suggested Citation

  • Frode Eika Sandnes, 2020. "A simple back-of-the-envelope test for self-citations using Google Scholar author profiles," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 124(2), pages 1685-1689, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:scient:v:124:y:2020:i:2:d:10.1007_s11192-020-03521-6
    DOI: 10.1007/s11192-020-03521-6
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Marshall H. Medoff, 2006. "The efficiency of self-citations in economics," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 69(1), pages 69-84, October.
    2. Frode Eika Sandnes, 2018. "Do Norwegian academics who publish more earn higher salaries?," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 115(1), pages 263-281, April.
    3. Ernesto Gianoli & Marco A. Molina‐Montenegro, 2009. "Insights into the relationship between the h‐index and self‐citations," Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 60(6), pages 1283-1285, June.
    4. James Hartley, 2012. "To cite or not to cite: author self-citations and the impact factor," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 92(2), pages 313-317, August.
    5. Kjetil K. Haugen & Frode E. Sandnes, 2016. "The new Norwegian incentive system for publication: from bad to worse," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 109(2), pages 1299-1306, November.
    6. Dag W. Aksnes, 2003. "A macro study of self-citation," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 56(2), pages 235-246, February.
    7. Lutz Bornmann & Hans-Dieter Daniel, 2005. "Does the h-index for ranking of scientists really work?," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 65(3), pages 391-392, December.
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    Cited by:

    1. Frode Eika Sandnes, 2021. "Everyone onboard? Participation ratios as a metric for research activity assessments within young universities," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 126(7), pages 6105-6113, July.
    2. Evelyn Eika & Frode Eika Sandnes, 2022. "Starstruck by journal prestige and citation counts? On students’ bias and perceptions of trustworthiness according to clues in publication references," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 127(11), pages 6363-6390, November.
    3. Frode Eika Sandnes, 2021. "A bibliometric study of human–computer interaction research activity in the Nordic-Baltic Eight countries," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 126(6), pages 4733-4767, June.

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