How much is too much? The difference between research influence and self-citation excess

Abstract

Citations can be an indicator of publication significance, utility, attention, visibility or short-term impact but analysts need to confirm whether a high citation count for an individual is a genuine reflection of influence or a consequence of extraordinary, even excessive, self-citation. It has recently been suggested there may be increasing misrepresentation of research performance by individuals who self-cite inordinately to achieve scores and win rewards. In this paper we consider self-referencing and self-citing, describe the typical shape of self-citation patterns for carefully curated publication sets authored by 3517 Highly Cited Researchers and quantify the variance in the distribution of self-citation rates within and between all 21 Essential Science Indicators' fields. We describe both a generic level of median self-referencing rates, common to most fields, and a graphical, distribution-driven assessment of excessive self-citation that demarcates a threshold not dependent on statistical tests or percentiles (since for some fields all values are within a central 'normal' range). We describe this graphical procedure for identifying exceptional self-citation rates but emphasize the necessity for expert interpretation of the citation profiles of specific individuals, particularly in fields with atypical self-citation patterns. , for their advice and suggestions during the development of this work. We also thank an anonymous referee for their comments regarding the 'typicality' of highly-cited researchers.

Self-citation and corruption: cross-sectional, cross-country study

“…2,3 This behavior is not inappropriate by definition, given that it can also reflect genuine acknowledgment of scientific influence and priority. 4,5 Further, while this behavior is most often discussed in reference to individual authors, 6 it can also be a characteristic of journals and journals editors (i.e., to inflate journal impact factors) 7,8 and institutions. 9 One type of self-citation behavior, extreme self-citation 10 -which occurs when an inordinately large propor-tion of an author's total citation count is derived from selfcitation behavior -has also been described in the literature.…”

Are publications on zoological taxonomy under attack?

“…Self-citation phenomena, either of author or journal types, have been deeply investigated from various perspectives, including sociological and bibliometric aspects. A review focused on author selfcitation and all its technical nuances was presented by Szomszor et al [33]. Generally, high levels of self-citation are condemned, particularly when journal self-citation is interpreted as the result of manipulation for boosting indexes; in these situations, it has of course been determined that the biased metrics should not be considered for analyses of influence or impact [1].…”

Author Self-Citation in the Turkish Otorhinolaryngology Literature

“…However, self-citations can also be manipulated by the researchers to affect their influence and recognization. Due to the potential role of author self-citations in citation manipulation, the accurate utilization of self-citations has become an ethical concern and there is ongoing effort to better delineate the self-citation-based ethical misconducts in the academic era ( 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 ).…”