The number of models used to assess the effect of journals and articles is growing all the time, while the majority are based on the number of citations and place a strong focus on the impact factor.
The impact factor is computed by dividing the number of current year citations to source items published in that journal during the previous two years by the number of current year citations to source items published in that journal during the previous two years.
While the impact factor is a simple to compute and comprehend metric, it does have certain limitations.
The appropriateness of employing a mean has been questioned given the highly skewed nature of a journal's article citation distribution. Furthermore, most journals contain a large number of publications that are never cited. Such articles may be perceived as unfairly profiting from the impact factor of the journal in which they are published.
The Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA) was created in 2012 with the goal of advancing practical and effective approaches to research assessment across all scholarly fields.
This declaration questions the impact factor's status as the primary criterion for evaluating science and advocates for judging research on its own merits rather than on the basis of the journal in which it was published.
The Brazilian Linguistics Association - Abralin is a DORA signatory. CadLin, one of Abralin's publication, is aiming to enhance how research we publish is evaluated by providing a variety of article-based metrics.
We've made a number of enhancements to the 'Details' tab in the right-hand column of our journal article pages to encourage shift the focus of article 'success' away from just the impact factor and to present a fuller picture of each article's performance.
In the Article Metrics, we're allowing users to examine citation data from several sources. Besides the traditional 'article metrics', which display total article download and view, we've implemented altmetrics tracking, smart citations and public endorsement.
While there is still work to be done to enhance accuracy, we hope that this data will give authors and readers a more full picture of how an article is functioning and help them move away from assumptions based on impact factor.
The impact factor is now overvalued as a metric for evaluating the success of journals and papers. By joining DORA, Abralin is aiming to improve the evaluation of the research published by its journals by providing a number of different indicators.
