Relational maps quickly show the publication successes and aspirations of countries and regions.
Mapping the World of Analytical Chemistry Tibor Braun L. Eötvös University and Hungarian Academy of Sciences
András Schubert Gábor Schubert Hungarian Academy of Sciences
apping is defined as the “science of drawing on maps and charts or otherwise representing the features of a region” or, in a broader sense, the “study or description of a region, system or entity showing specific relations of component parts as to shape, size, position, etc.” (1–3). In proportional science maps, the relative positions of the entities concerned (countries) more or less correspond to where they would be found on a geographic map, whereas their size (area) is proportional to certain quantitative indicators (e.g., publication output or citation rate). Therefore, the relative weights of analytical chemistry publishing in different countries can be easily visualized and, assuming an implicit knowledge of the “natural” area of each country,
M
S E P T E M B E R 1 , 2 0 0 2 / A N A LY T I C A L C H E M I S T R Y
477 A
(a)
Sweden Finland
Norway Canada The Netherlands
Soviet Union Belgium Germany Poland
Japan
India United Kingdom
United States
France
Hungary Czechoslovakia
Italy Austria
Spain
Bulgaria
People’s Republic of China
Yugoslavia Switzerland = 1% of world total
Israel
Egypt
Australia
(b)
Canada
The Netherlands
Sweden Finland Denmark
United Kingdom
United States
Belgium
France
Czechoslovakia Germany
Poland
Russia
Austria Hungary Brazil
India
Spain
= 1% of world total
Italy
Bulgaria People’s Republic of China
Japan
ture turns out to be peripheral and insignificant in another. This kind of relativity is a feature that must always be taken into account when considering and evaluating the mapping and relational charting of research activities in analytical chemistry. Proportional maps describing world analytical chemistry publishing for the periods 1981–1985 and 1991–1995 are presented in Figures 1a and 1b, respectively. The areas of the countries are proportional to their percentages of journal papers in the total, worldwide analytical chemical literature during the respective periods. Although some changes in the details are worth noting—for instance, the very substantial increase in output from the People’s Republic of China—the basic proportions have not changed much since 1981. The coloring of each area represents the relative citation rate (RCR) value, which is the relative contribution of papers from single countries to the citation rate of the journals where they were published. A RCR of 1.1 means that papers from that country receive, on average, 10% more citations than the gross average of the publishing journals; a RCR of 0.9 means 10% fewer citations.
Relational charts
Relational charts were introduced to correlate expected and observed citation rates (5–6). An exYugoslavia Australia pected citation rate is determined on the basis of Egypt the average citation rates of journals in which the authors of a particular country publish their paFIGURE 1. Proportional map of world analytical chemistry for (a) 1981–1985 and pers. An average citation rate is calculated as the (b) 1991–1995. ratio of the number of citations received by all Areas of the countries are proportional to their percentage share in world total analytical chempapers of the journal in one year plus those from istry journal papers. Countries in green have higher-than-expected citations (RCR ≥ 1.10); blue are cited as expected (0.90 ≤ RCR < 1.10); yellow have lower-than-expected citations (RCR the subsequent two years divided by the number < 0.90). of papers published in the journal in the given year. For each paper in this analysis, the expected citation rate is the average citation rate of the joursignificant deviations can readily be pinpointed. Multidimension- nal in which it was published. On the other hand, a paper’s observed citation rate is the numal indicators can be represented by complementing multidimensional maps with proper shading, coloring, or both. In this arti- ber of citations it actually received in the year of publication cle, we present four maps that show the worldwide distribution plus those from the two subsequent years. Thus, a country’s poof publication- and citation-based (scientometric) indicators of sition reflects a nationwide relative success or failure at meeting the envisaged citation standards. analytical chemistry work. Figures 2a and 2b show typical relational charts. For easier This approach seems to be particularly well suited to defining and redefining such topographic concepts as center, periph- comprehension and comparability, both figures set the gross ery, and metropolis. These relations are not merely formally de- average citation rate of the world’s analytical chemistry publicafined but, by their very nature, can be visually represented. Thus, tions to unity. The diagonal on the chart separates lower-thanexpected from higher-than-expected citation rates. The vertical they may have a very strong heuristic power. line separates lower-than-world-average from higher-than-worldaverage expected citation rates. The horizontal position on the Constructing maps Exactly constructed maps are thought to reflect objective facts chart thus hints at a country’s publication strategy in analytical and nothing but objective facts (4). However, which version of chemistry or, if you like, the analytical research ambitions of a the facts is to be considered? Maps are overly sensitive to the country. The vertical position measures how the expectation is point of view, both in the literal and the figurative sense of the fulfilled—that is, the extent of the actual citation success. The four term. What appears to be central and fundamental in one pic- zones delimited by the straight lines are usually occupied by simSwitzerland
478 A
Greece
A N A LY T I C A L C H E M I S T R Y / S E P T E M B E R 1 , 2 0 0 2
Relative observed citation rate
Relative observed citation rate
ilar groups of countries. This is done largely independently of characterize the relationship between productivity and impact in different regions of the analytical research world. the time periods considered. For example, in Figure 2a, both the expected and observed citation rates of Israel (ISR) are 1.2, showing that, from 1981 Tibor Braun is professor of chemistry at the L. Eötvös University and the to 1985, Israel published in journals that were cited 20% more head of the Information Science and Scientometrics Research Unit of than the average, and these papers were in fact cited 20% more the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. His research interests include nuthan the average paper—that is, their RCR was 1.2/1.2 = 1.0. clear and radioanalytical chemistry, fullerene science, information sciFrom 1991 to 1995, the expected citation rate remained 1.2— ence, and scientometrics. András Schubert is senior researcher at the the “ambitions” did not change—but the relative observed cita- Institute for Research Organization, Hungarian Academy of Sciences. tion rate dropped to 0.8. Thus, the mean citations of Israeli pa- His interests are scientometrics, mathematical modeling, and physical pers were 20% lower than the world’s analytical chemistry average chemistry. Gábor Schubert is a Ph.D. student at the Chemical Research and 33% lower than the average citation rate of the journals in Center, Hungarian Academy of Sciences. His interests are quantum which the papers were published (RCR = 0.8/1.2 = 0.67). chemistry and informatics. Address correspondence to Braun at the InThe most prestigious group is the northeast zone of Figure 2, stitute of Inorganic and Analytical Chemistry, L. Eötvös University, P.O. in which countries typically publish in highly cited journals and Box 123, H-1443 Budapest, Hungary (
[email protected]). produce articles that reach a higher-than-average citation rate. Several technically advanced countries populate this region. References The southeast zone is characterized by countries with ambi- (1) Schmid, C. F.; Schmid, S. E. Handbook of Graphical Presentation, 2nd ed.; tious, citation-conscious publication strategies but a lack of Wiley: New York, 1979. matching citation influence. The most typical member of this (2) Schmid, C. F. Statistical Graphics: Design Principles and Practices; Wiley: area is Israel, but it also includes Spain, Australia, Finland, and New York, 1983. Italy (Figure 2b). (3) Tufte, E. R. The Visual Display of Quantitative Information; Graphics Press: The southwest zone is always the most crowded as a conseCheshire, CT, 1983. quence of the well-known “skew distribution” laws: In science, (4) Szilard: “I am going to write down all that is going on these days in the as in so many other areas of human activity, most of the impact project. I am just going to write down the facts—not for anyone to read, is concentrated in a relatively small number of countries, and just for God.” there is a long list of less-productive and less-effective counBethe: “Don’t you think God knows the facts?” tries. The map also shows a definite and characteristic upwardSzilard: “Maybe He does, but not this version of the facts.” bending shape of the graph—its lowest end closely approaches In Weart, S. R., Weiss-Szilard G.; Eds. Leo Szilard: His Version of the Facts. the diagonal. This region is the home of former Soviet Union Selected Recollections and Correspondence; MIT Press: Cambridge, MA, states and several of its close associates. Their position means that 1978; 149. these countries publish mainly in their own low-impact journals, (5) Braun, T.; Bujdoso, E.; Schubert, A. Literature of Analytical Chemistry: A where they automatically meet their own standards. Scientometric Evaluation; CRC Press: Boca Raton, Florida, 1987. Most conspicuously, the northwest zone of the charts (low- (6) Schubert, A.; Braun, T. Scientometrics 1986, 9, 281–291. expectation, higher-than-expected actual citation rate) is empty. This is a spectacular refutation of (a) (b) SWE the belief that a cheap and trivial way of reaching CHEDNK CHECAN USA 1.5 1.5 NLD SWE N NLD USA higher-than-expected citation rates is to publish DNK UKD BEL AUS W E NOR UKD only in low-impact journals, in which even a few FINNOR HZL AUT ISR FRA CAN DEUESPAUS citations might count for more than expected. AlS FIN BEL 1 1 ITA though this might work in one or two cases, as a JPN ITA JPN CSK FRA GRC CSK ISR GRC ZAF strategy it seems to be wrong. In the long run, HUN AUT NZL DEU BRA YUG BRAPRC HUN even in less-prestigious journals, significantly more ARG POL ARG POL ZAF 0.5 0.5 IND YUG BGR citations are garnered by those authors and instiROM ESPROM EGY IND PRC BGR IRQ SUN tutions who earn credit by regularly publishing EGY IRQ SUN in leading, prestigious analytical journals than by those exclusively publishing in mediocre ones. 0.5 1 1.5 0.5 1 1.5 Mapping and relational charting are familiar Relative expected citation rate Relative expected citation rate approaches to evaluation problems in analytical chemistry. However, by combining the well-esFIGURE 2. Relational chart of world analytical chemistry publications for tablished techniques of scientometrics and car(a) 1981–1985 and (b) 1991–1995. tography, they provide rather suitable tools for ARG: Argentina; AUS: Australia; AUT: Austria; BEL: Belgium; BGR: Bulgaria; BRA: Brazil; CAN: representing and analyzing quantitative data reCanada; CHE: Switzerland; CSK: Czechoslovakia; DEU: Germany; DNK: Denmark; EGY: Egypt; ESP: Spain; FIN: Finland; FRA: France; GRC: Greece; HUN: Hungary; IND: India; IRQ: Iraq; ISR: lating to the scientific activity, performance, and Israel; ITA: Italy; JPN: Japan; NLD: Netherlands; NOR: Norway; NZL: New Zealand; POL: Poland; impact of countries and regions in analytical chemPRC: People’s Republic of China; ROM: Romania; SUN: Soviet Union; SWE: Sweden; UKD: Unitistry. Particularly, they may help to define and ed Kingdom; USA: United States; YUG: Yugoslavia; ZAF: South Africa. S E P T E M B E R 1 , 2 0 0 2 / A N A LY T I C A L C H E M I S T R Y
479 A
