Scientometric indicators are especially important when choosing a journal for publication, so some scientists pay significant attention to their analysis. In particular, these metrics can reflect the authority and influence of a publication in a specific scientific field, as well as demonstrate its citation rate, visibility and position in the scientific field. In our article, we will consider the key indicators of journals and their significance.
The significance of scientometric indicators
Scientometric indicators of journals are quantitative metrics that are especially useful for scientists, editorial boards and scientific institutions. In particular, they help to:
- assess the citation rate and scientific impact of a journal
- find out the position of a journal in the ranking of a subject category and compare it with other publications
- choose a journal for article submission
Types of scientometric indicators of journals
The key metrics of publications may differ depending on the databases in which they are indexed. We propose considering separately the main indicators of Scopus and Web of Science and their functions.
Scientometric indicators in Scopus
- CiteScore. This indicator reflects the average citation rate of a journal’s publications over a certain period. It is usually used to compare publications within the same field, as well as when choosing a journal for article submission.
- Scimago Journal Rank (SJR). This metric helps to assess the prestige of a journal, as the calculation of SJR takes into account not only the number of citations, but also the authority of the sources from which they come. That is why citations from more influential publications carry more weight than those from lesser-known ones.
- Source Normalised Impact per Paper (SNIP). This indicator reflects the citation rate of a journal, taking into account the characteristics of a specific field. It is useful for the correct comparison of publications from different disciplines.
Scientometric indicators in Web of Science
- Journal Impact Factor (JIF). This is one of the key journal indicators, which can be viewed in Journal Citation Reports on the Web of Science platform. Thanks to the impact factor, it is possible to find out the average number of citations of journal articles for a certain year or period, as well as assess the influence of the publication.
- Journal Citation Indicator (JCI). This is an indicator of a journal’s citation rate, during the determination of which the characteristics of a specific scientific field are taken into account. Thanks to JCI, the comparison of journals from different disciplines is much more accurate than with simple citation counts.
Journal quartile
In addition to the scientific metrics mentioned above, it is worth highlighting the journal quartile (Q). It is determined on the basis of the publication’s position within a certain subject category. Usually, the scientometric databases Scopus and Web of Science divide journals into four groups – quartiles. The highest among them is considered to be Q1, which includes publications with leading positions in the relevant category, while Q4 covers journals from the lower part of the ranking. It is worth noting that the calculation of quartiles differs depending on the database: in Scopus, the SJR metric is usually taken into account, while in Web of Science it is the Journal Impact Factor. You can learn more about this from our article.
Percentile
The percentile is also an important scientometric indicator. It reflects the relative position of a journal among publications in a certain scientific category. The higher the percentile, the stronger the position of the journal usually is within the relevant field. Unlike the quartile, which divides journals into four groups, the percentile gives a more precise understanding of the publication’s place in the ranking in percentage terms. At the same time, the methodology for calculating the percentile may differ depending on the scientometric database or analytical resource, so when assessing a journal it is important to take into account the source of the indicator.
Scientometric indicators are important because they help to assess the level of journals and compare them with one another. However, all metrics should be considered together, not separately, as this will make the conclusions more objective.
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