Research Impact

This section introduces the metrics commonly used in evaluating and assessing research productivity, and the tools used to determine these metrics.

Important notes:

• These quantitative metrics are only an approximation of research quality; many of them were created in order to assist librarians in evaluating collections or to provide a better understanding of influences and interactions among scholars, not to measure quality of research
• Qualitative, expert assessment should always accompany a presentation of quantitative metrics
• Multiple indicators will give a better picture of research quality
• Not all metrics work for all disciplines
• Metrics can only be compared within a discipline, because of wide variation among disciplines

San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA): An agreement resulting from a 2012 meeting initiated by the American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB) together with a group of editors and publishers of scholarly journals which recognizes the need to improve the ways in which the outputs of scientific research are evaluated.

Leiden Manifesto for Research Metrics (2015): Five experts led by Diana Hicks, professor in the School of Public Policy at Georgia Institute of Technology, and Paul Wouters, director of CWTS at Leiden University, have proposed ten principles for the measurement of research performance.

Metrics Toolkit: Helping you Navigate the Research Metrics Landscape: evidence-based information about research metrics across disciplines, including how each metric is calculated, where you can find it, and how each should (and should not) be applied. You’ll also find examples of how to use metrics in grant applications, CVs, and promotion dossiers.