Year: 2010
Type: review
Abstract: This book is a recent study on the "socio-cognitive specificities" of academic publishing in the natural and social sciences.The text, edited by Katarina Prpic, is largely based on original empirical evidence, namely recent Croatian studies on patterns and factors in research productivity and citation thus providing an interesting and original backdrop for this work, being outside of the Anglophone centre of the academic publishing world.This analysis is accompanied by discussion of philosophical and sociological differences between processes of creation and the dissemination of knowledge in the natural and social sciences.Along with her colleagues, Dr. Prpic provides an in-depth discussion of the actual processes behind the production of scientific knowledge.The book begins with an elaboration of the social and professional profiles of natural and social sciences by Branka Golub, utilising results from a recent web-based survey of PhD level Croatian scientists from which we learn, for instance, that the average age at which the natural scientists surveyed earned their doctorate was 35. 3 years compared to 38. 3 years for social scientists (p.50).The following chapter, by the editor along with Marija Brajdic Vukovic, explores various differentials in self-reported productivity, revealing that natural scientists have higher levels of output in terms of published articles, although these statistics are likely to be bloated in their favour due to factors such as the greater propensity not only for shared author credits in the natural sciences but also writing more insubstantial, or at least shorter, articles than their social science peers.In regard to the impact of these works, Maja Jokic and Adrijana Šuljok discuss trends in the ISI and Scopus citation databases, utilising data from 1996 to 2005.As a guide to helping us understand the complex and highly competitive processes through which academic work is processed and evaluated, this chapter alone warrants reading for anyone concerned about how evaluations are made of their own output, as well as highlighting outcomes in relation to the Croatian scientists surveyed.The application of a scatter principle seems to be the key in quantifying productivity, which has led over time to the establishment and maintenance of an Anglo-American core and a rest-of-the-world periphery in academic publishing.The remainder of the book grapples with the issue of scientific quality and objectivity.Sven Hemlin discusses definitions, taking into account the views of the researcher, the research environment, what he terms "research effects, " financing and evaluation.What we learn is that aspects such as method, results and reasoning and the problem itself are rated highest by researchers, while in respect to their work it is its novelty, correctness, stringency and depth which matter.We can thus infer that, for instance, application of a stringent method, correct reasoning
Source: Repositório do ISCTE-IUL
Author: David Cairns
Language: English
Subfield: General Social Sciences
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W4385329495