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Publications, Volume 11, Issue 4 (December 2023) – 5 articles

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21 pages, 376 KiB

Open AccessReview

Options in the (Semi-)Periphery: A Review of Multilingual Scholars’ Choices of Topics, Methodologies, and Theories in Research and Publishing

Xiatinghan Xu

Publications 2023, 11(4), 50; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications11040050 - 21 Nov 2023

Viewed by 434

Abstract

In most global contexts, academic publishing plays an essential part of scholars’ professional lives. For multilingual scholars, who may use multiple languages and publish for different communities, publishing can entail making a range of important choices. To date, while there has been a substantial amount of research on multilingual scholars’ choices of language and genre, little has focused on their choices of topics, methodologies, and theories, which are also important aspects of their research and publishing practices. In this review article, I explore specifically what the extant research has found about why multilingual scholars make particular choices of topics, methodologies, and theories outside of Anglophone contexts. Reviewing research published between 2004 and 2023, I found that overall, scholars’ choices in such aspects are motivated by their desire for professional success and their aims of making academic and social contributions. Also, their choices can be further complicated by various sociopolitical factors. I argue that the current strand of research mainly focuses on the neoliberal contexts of publishing and the effects of Anglophone academia on global knowledge production, whereas the practices of multilingual scholars outside the Anglosphere can be also affected by many other factors that have received less attention. Full article

16 pages, 765 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Migrating 120,000 Legacy Publications from Several Systems into a Current Research Information System Using Advanced Data Wrangling Techniques

and

Publications 2023, 11(4), 49; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications11040049 - 14 Nov 2023

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Abstract

This article describes a complex CRIS (current research information system) implementation project involving the migration of around 120,000 legacy publication records from three different systems. The project, undertaken by Tampere University, encountered several challenges in data diversity, data quality, and resource allocation. To handle the extensive and heterogenous dataset, innovative approaches such as machine learning techniques and various data wrangling tools were used to process data, correct errors, and merge information from different sources. Despite significant delays and unforeseen obstacles, the project was ultimately successful in achieving its goals. The project served as a valuable learning experience, highlighting the importance of data quality and standardized practices, and the need for dedicated resources in handling complex data migration projects in research organizations. This study stands out for its comprehensive documentation of the data wrangling and migration process, which has been less explored in the context of CRIS literature. Full article

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18 pages, 3529 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Mapping Two Decades of Research Productivity in the Middle Eastern and Arab Countries: A Comprehensive Bibliometric Analysis

and

Publications 2023, 11(4), 48; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications11040048 - 10 Oct 2023

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Abstract

Middle Eastern and Arab countries have been experiencing significant advancements in scientific research and development over the past few decades. Understanding the trends, patterns, and impact of research within this region can provide valuable insights into its scientific landscape, identify areas of strength, and uncover potential areas for improvement. This study presents a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of research productivity in the Middle Eastern and Arab region over a 20-year period. The findings revealed a consistent increase in research productivity, yet mapped significant disparities between countries in scholarly output, excellence, and impact. Adjusting for population size and GDP, Iran displayed the highest publication activity, trailed by Egypt and Turkey. Delving into the distribution of research output across different journal quartiles, the results revealed that this region has a lower percentage of scholarly output published in high-impact journals (both the top 10% and the top 25% categories). Compared to North America and the European Union, the Middle Eastern and Arab region consistently exhibited lower performance in terms of top 10% citations, average citations per publication, and field-weighted citation impact. The field of physical sciences took the lead as the most prevalent subject area in the Middle Eastern and Arab region, comprising about 60.5% of the research emphasis. Conversely, social sciences garnered comparatively less research attention, making up approximately 8.9% of the focus. The region showed strong international collaboration levels (40.5%), yet relatively low national (24.4%) and academic–corporate collaborations (1.5%). The outcomes of this study can facilitate international comparisons and benchmarking, allowing Middle Eastern and Arab countries to position themselves within the global scientific community. There remains a need to prioritize quality over quantity by emphasizing rigorous research practices and collaboration. An ongoing evaluation of research performance using a combination of indicators can help track progress and adjust strategies as needed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Looking Forwards and Backwards: 10 Years of Publications)

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14 pages, 821 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Some Insights into the Factors Influencing Continuous Citation of Retracted Scientific Papers

Bor Luen Tang

Publications 2023, 11(4), 47; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications11040047 - 08 Oct 2023

Viewed by 2156

Abstract

Once retracted, the citation count of a research paper might be intuitively expected to drop precipitously. Here, we assessed the post-retraction citation of life and medical sciences papers from two top-ranked, multidisciplinary journals Nature and Science, from 2010 to 2018. Post-retraction citations accounted for a staggering 47.7% and 40.9% of total citations (median values), respectively, of the papers included in our analysis. These numbers are comparable with those from two journals with lower impact factors, and with retracted papers from the physical sciences discipline. A more qualitative assessment of five papers from the two journals with a high percentage (>50%) of post-retraction citations, all of which are associated with misconduct, reveal different contributing reasons and factors. Retracted papers associated with highly publicized misconduct cases are more prone to being cited with the retraction status indicated, or projected negatively (such as in the context of research ethics and misconduct discussions), with the latter also indicated by cross-disciplinary citations by humanities and social sciences articles. Retracted papers that retained significant validity in their main findings/conclusions may receive a large number of neutral citations that are somewhat blind to the retraction. Retracted papers in popular subject areas with massive publication outputs, particularly secondary publications such as reviews, may also have a high background citation noise. Our findings add further insights to the nature of post-retraction citations beyond the plain notion that these are largely made through sheer ignorance or negligence by the citing authors. Full article

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14 pages, 1376 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Determining the Characteristics of Papers That Garner the Most Significant Impact: A Deep Dive into Mexican Engineering Publications

Claudia N. Gonzalez Brambila

José I. Ponce

Silvia B. Gonzalez Brambila

and

Matias F. Milia

Publications 2023, 11(4), 46; https://doi.org/10.3390/publications11040046 - 26 Sep 2023

Viewed by 607

Abstract

Engineers make things, make things work, and make things work better and easier. This kind of knowledge is crucial for innovation, and much of the explicit knowledge developed by engineers is embodied in scientific publications. In this paper, we analyze the evolution of publications and citations in engineering in a middle-income country such as Mexico. Using a database of all Mexican publications in Web of Science from 2004 to 2017, we explore the characteristics of publications that tend to have the greatest impact; this is the highest number of citations. Among the variables studied are the type of collaboration (no collaboration, domestic, bilateral, or multilateral), the number of coauthors and countries, controlling for a coauthor from the USA, and the affiliation institution of the Mexican author(s). Our results emphasize the overall importance of joint international efforts and suggest that publications with the highest number of citations are those with multinational collaboration (coauthors from three or more countries) and when one of the coauthors is from the USA. Another interesting result is that single-authored papers have had a higher impact than those written through domestic collaboration. Full article

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