Research programme › Science policy


JOURNAL OF INFORMETRICS; 2009; 3(4):363 - 366

Some comments on Egghe's derivation of the impact factor distribution

Authors: Waltman L, van Eck NJ
Affiliations: Leiden Univ, Erasmus Univ

Abstract:
In a recent paper, Egghe [Egghe, L. (in press). Mathematical derivation of the impact factor distribution. Journal of Informetrics] presents a mathematical analysis of the rank-order distribution of journal impact factors. The analysis is based on the central limit theorem. We criticize the empirical relevance of Egghe's analysis. More specifically, we argue that Egghe's analysis relies on an unrealistic assumption and we show that the analysis is not in agreement with empirical data. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Publication type:
Article in Journal

Journals:
Journal of Informetrics
  
Authors (2)
Research programs (1)
  
Dr. N.J. (Nees Jan) van Eck
Centre for Science and Technology Studies
Researcher. MSc in Economics & Informatics from Erasmus University Rotterdam (2005). Currently working on a PhD thesis on science mapping at Erasmus University Rotterdam. Working at CWTS from November 2008. Involved in various science mapping projects, and working on the development of science ...
MSc L. (Ludo) Waltman
Researcher. MSc in Economics & Informatics from Erasmus University Rotterdam (2005). Currently working on a PhD thesis in economics at Erasmus University Rotterdam. Working at CWTS from June 2009. Involved in various science mapping projects. Main research interests are science mapping and ...