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Diversity, value and limitations of the journal impact factor and alternative metrics

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Abstract

The highly popular journal impact factor (JIF) is an average measure of citations within 1 year after the publication of a journal as a whole within the two preceding years. It is widely used as a proxy of a journal’s quality and scientific prestige. This article discusses misuses of JIF to assess impact of separate journal articles and the effect of several manuscript versions on JIF. It also presents some newer alternative journal metrics such as SCImago Journal Rank and the h-index and analyses examples of their application in several subject categories.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Max Planck Society, Administrative Headquarters, Munich, Germany

    Lutz Bornmann

  2. Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research, Stuttgart, Germany

    Werner Marx

  3. Clinical Research Unit, Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust (A Teaching Trust of University of Birmingham), Department of Rheumatology, Russell’s Hall Hospital, Dudley, West Midlands, DY1 2HQ, UK

    Armen Yuri Gasparyan & George D. Kitas

  4. Arthritis Research UK Epidemiology Unit, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK

    George D. Kitas

Authors
  1. Lutz Bornmann
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  2. Werner Marx
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  3. Armen Yuri Gasparyan
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  4. George D. Kitas
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Armen Yuri Gasparyan.

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Bornmann, L., Marx, W., Gasparyan, A.Y. et al. Diversity, value and limitations of the journal impact factor and alternative metrics. Rheumatol Int 32, 1861–1867 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00296-011-2276-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00296-011-2276-1

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