Mitigating consequences of prestige in citations of publications.
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| Title: | Mitigating consequences of prestige in citations of publications. |
|---|---|
| Authors: | Balzer, Michael1 (AUTHOR) michael.balzer@uni-bielefeld.de, Benlahlou, Adhen1 (AUTHOR) adhen.benlahlou@uni-bielefeld.de |
| Source: | Scientometrics. Nov2025, Vol. 130 Issue 11, p6035-6062. 28p. |
| Subjects: | Scientometrics, Matthew effect, Prestige, Bibliographical citations, Scholarly peer review, Medical periodicals, Grants (Money), PubMed (Online service) |
| Abstract: | For many public research organizations, funding creation of science and maximizing scientific output is of central interest. Typically, when evaluating scientific production for funding, citations are utilized as a proxy, although these are severely influenced by factors beyond scientific impact. This study aims to investigate the consequences of the Matthew effect in citations, where prominent authors and prestigious journals receive more citations regardless of the scientific content of the publications. To this end, the study presents statistical models for the prediction of citations of papers based solely on observable characteristics available at the submission stage of a double-blind peer-review process. Combining classical linear models, generalized linear models and utilizing large-scale data sets on biomedical papers based on the PubMed database, the results demonstrate that it is possible to make fairly accurate predictions of citations using only observable characteristics of papers excluding information on authors and journals, thereby mitigating the Matthew effect. Thus, the outcomes have important implications for the field of scientometrics, providing a more objective method for citation prediction by relying on pre-publication variables that are immune to manipulation by authors and journals, thereby enhancing the objectivity of the evaluation process. Our approach is thus important for government agencies responsible for funding the creation of high-quality scientific content rather than perpetuating prestige. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
| Copyright of Scientometrics is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.) | |
| Database: | Engineering Source |
| FullText | Text: Availability: 0 |
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| Header | DbId: egs DbLabel: Engineering Source An: 189803023 AccessLevel: 6 PubType: Academic Journal PubTypeId: academicJournal PreciseRelevancyScore: 0 |
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| Items | – Name: Title Label: Title Group: Ti Data: Mitigating consequences of prestige in citations of publications. – Name: Author Label: Authors Group: Au Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Balzer%2C+Michael%22">Balzer, Michael</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> michael.balzer@uni-bielefeld.de</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Benlahlou%2C+Adhen%22">Benlahlou, Adhen</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> adhen.benlahlou@uni-bielefeld.de</i> – Name: TitleSource Label: Source Group: Src Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Scientometrics%22">Scientometrics</searchLink>. Nov2025, Vol. 130 Issue 11, p6035-6062. 28p. – Name: Subject Label: Subjects Group: Su Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Scientometrics%22">Scientometrics</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Matthew+effect%22">Matthew effect</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Prestige%22">Prestige</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Bibliographical+citations%22">Bibliographical citations</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Scholarly+peer+review%22">Scholarly peer review</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Medical+periodicals%22">Medical periodicals</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Grants+%28Money%29%22">Grants (Money)</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22PubMed+%28Online+service%29%22">PubMed (Online service)</searchLink> – Name: Abstract Label: Abstract Group: Ab Data: For many public research organizations, funding creation of science and maximizing scientific output is of central interest. Typically, when evaluating scientific production for funding, citations are utilized as a proxy, although these are severely influenced by factors beyond scientific impact. This study aims to investigate the consequences of the Matthew effect in citations, where prominent authors and prestigious journals receive more citations regardless of the scientific content of the publications. To this end, the study presents statistical models for the prediction of citations of papers based solely on observable characteristics available at the submission stage of a double-blind peer-review process. Combining classical linear models, generalized linear models and utilizing large-scale data sets on biomedical papers based on the PubMed database, the results demonstrate that it is possible to make fairly accurate predictions of citations using only observable characteristics of papers excluding information on authors and journals, thereby mitigating the Matthew effect. Thus, the outcomes have important implications for the field of scientometrics, providing a more objective method for citation prediction by relying on pre-publication variables that are immune to manipulation by authors and journals, thereby enhancing the objectivity of the evaluation process. Our approach is thus important for government agencies responsible for funding the creation of high-quality scientific content rather than perpetuating prestige. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] – Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright Label: Group: Ab Data: <i>Copyright of Scientometrics is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.) |
| PLink | https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=egs&AN=189803023 |
| RecordInfo | BibRecord: BibEntity: Identifiers: – Type: doi Value: 10.1007/s11192-025-05455-3 Languages: – Code: eng Text: English PhysicalDescription: Pagination: PageCount: 28 StartPage: 6035 Subjects: – SubjectFull: Scientometrics Type: general – SubjectFull: Matthew effect Type: general – SubjectFull: Prestige Type: general – SubjectFull: Bibliographical citations Type: general – SubjectFull: Scholarly peer review Type: general – SubjectFull: Medical periodicals Type: general – SubjectFull: Grants (Money) Type: general – SubjectFull: PubMed (Online service) Type: general Titles: – TitleFull: Mitigating consequences of prestige in citations of publications. Type: main BibRelationships: HasContributorRelationships: – PersonEntity: Name: NameFull: Balzer, Michael – PersonEntity: Name: NameFull: Benlahlou, Adhen IsPartOfRelationships: – BibEntity: Dates: – D: 01 M: 11 Text: Nov2025 Type: published Y: 2025 Identifiers: – Type: issn-print Value: 01389130 Numbering: – Type: volume Value: 130 – Type: issue Value: 11 Titles: – TitleFull: Scientometrics Type: main |
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