A Perspective on Altmetrics

Abstract

This chapter discusses the potential of altmetrics. It starts with analyzing what the main drivers of altmetrics are. A multi-dimensional conception of altmetrics is proposed, namely as traces of the computerization of the research process, and as a tool for the practical realization of the ethos of science and scholarship in a computerized or digital age. An attempt is made to provide a theoretical foundation of altmetrics, based on notions developed by Michael Nielsen in his monograph Reinventing Discovery: The New Era of Networked Science (Nielsen, 2011).

This chapter re-uses with permission selected paragraphs from: Moed, H.F. (2016a). Altmetrics as traces of the computerization of the research process. In: C.R. Sugimoto (ed.), Theories of Informetrics and Scholarly Communication (A Festschrift in honour of Blaise Cronin). ISBN 978-3-11-029803-1. Berlin/Boston: Walter de Gruyter. It is based on an earlier key note presentation ‘Altmetrics as traces of the computerization of the research process’ at the Altmetrics’14 Conference, Indiana University, Bloomington, USA, 23 June 2014; and on a key note ‘(Alt)Metrics-Based Research Assessment’ at the STI-ENID Conference, Leiden, 3–5 Sept. 2014.