Scopus introduces the Author Position metric - a new researcher signal

Submitted by d.feldner@elsev...

on Thu, 09/07/2023 - 19:17

Introducing the Author Position metric

Scopus is proud to announce a new metric available on the Scopus Author Profile page. This metric is designed to help researchers better track and understand their research performance. It helps researchers pull together a comprehensive overview of their research performance and expand metrics they can provide on promotion, tenure and grant applications.

How does Author Position work?

Most publications are created with the input from multiple co-authors. Traditional citation metrics give each co-author the same citation impact, even though the actual contribution of each researcher will not have been even.

SC_Author position_3.png

For example, a publication with 10 co-authors receives 5 citations and each co-author therefore receives 5 citations. In many disciplines an author’s contribution to a research output can be approximated through the authorship position of a researcher.

We have now added a new feature to capture the following authorship positions or types:

First author: The first author mentioned in the publication
Last author: The last author mentioned in the publication
Co-author: For documents with more than one author, co-authors are any author that is not a first, last or corresponding author
Single author: An author is the only author of a publication

When using this functionality, be mindful of the following limitations:

In disciplines such as physics and mathematics, authors are often listed alphabetically in the publications and corresponding metadata
This metric has only been calculated for the last 10 years
Some Scopus records do not contain any author data

Elsevier remains dedicated to the responsible use of metrics.

The Author Position metric is an addition to the broad array of metrics provided by Elsevier in its Research Intelligence solutions. Elsevier supports the careful use of metrics and indicators in the evaluation of research and advocates for a combined qualitative and quantitative approach. We openly support the Agreement on Reforming Research Assessment, the Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA) and the Leiden Manifesto. When exploring an author’s research output, 'Author Position' should be considered along with other available qualitative and quantitative metrics.

What does Author Position look like in Scopus?

Author position preview (if an author has data to support this feature) will appear on the right side of the Author Profile Page. (See below)