A few months ago, Clarivate Plc released its Journal Citation Report 2023, providing publisher-neutral data through a range of metrics, including the Journal Impact Factor and the Journal Citation Indicator. This year, the annual report extended its coverage to provide a Journal Impact Factor to all journals in the Web of Science Core Collection. By including the Arts and Humanities Citation Index and the Emerging Sources Citation Index, more than 9,000 journals from as many as 3,000 smaller publishers received the Journal Impact Factor for the first time.1
In this report summary, we delve into the purpose and importance of this annual report, outline the changes and key highlights of the Journal Citation Report 2023.
Importance of the Journal Citation Report
Since the first issue released in 1975, the Journal Citation Report has aimed to present researchers, librarians, and administrators with unique, objective information to help them evaluate the quality and importance of academic journals. Specifically, the annual report provides clarity on how the scholarly community is using a journal and the impact and relevance of journals in a specific field.
The Journal Citation Report is based on data from the Web of Science Core Collection, the largest publisher-neutral global citation database for journals, books, and conference proceedings. It covers journals that pass the Web of Science’s rigorous selection process that evaluates journals across 28 key parameters of quality, editorial vigor, impact, and other best practices. Only 15% of journals assessed pass this check, ensuring that insignificant or potentially fraudulent journals are eliminated.2
By giving its stamp of quality and approval to deserving journals, the Journal Citation Report allows for more meaningful comparisons and insights. Its descriptive data and compelling visualizations help publishers better manage journals in their portfolio and also empowers academics to:
- Assess quality and impact of journals across key performance metrics
- Understand the leading journals in different research categories
- Shortlist the best journal in which to publish their ongoing research
- Evaluate impact based on journals where they’ve published earlier research
- Understand scholarly publishing landscape and assess significance of research output
Changes in Journal Citation Report 2023
Along with the increasing number of journals published, we’re also seeing more cases of questionable scholarly publishing practices. When releasing the report, Emmanuel Thiveaud, Senior Vice President for Research & Analytics, Academia & Government at Clarivate, said, “Research integrity is crucial for ensuring the credibility, reliability, and trustworthiness of scientific and scholarly record. This year we have taken significant additional steps to foster research integrity in the Web of Science as we seek to uphold the highest ethical standards and proactively contribute to the maintenance of public trust in scientific and scholarly research.”2
In its effort to continue as a trusted, transparent, and objective indicator of journal quality and impact, Journal Citation Report 2023 has made changes to expand its coverage and encourage the use of other indicators and descriptive data to evaluate journals.1
- All journals that have passed the rigorous Web of Science quality checks were assigned a Journal Impact Factor. This allows them to demonstrate their significance and value to the academic community along with other highly cited journals.
- In 2023, instead of three decimal places, the Journal Impact Factor was displayed with just one decimal point. This aims to persuade users to consider other metrics like the Journal Citation Indicator when comparing journals.
These changes apply to Journal Citation Reports 2023, with no other alterations planned for data from previous years. In the long run, the goal is to level the playing field for all quality journals, including open access journals, new or niche journals, and regional journals like those from the Global South.
Journal Citation Report 2023: Key Highlights
The Journal Citation Report seeks to adapt and evolve to the needs of the scholarly and academic research community by supporting a well-rounded, robust, and responsible method of research evaluation. The range of metrics employed for this has made it easier for users to do a multi-faceted journal analysis. Here are the key highlights from Journal Citation Report 2023.1,2
- The Journal Impact Factor was assigned to 21,500+ high-quality journals across 254 research categories and 112 countries. These include:
- 13,668 science journals
- 7,123 social science journals
- 3,248 arts & humanities journals
- 9,136 journals from over 3,000 publishers received a Journal Impact Factor for the first time
- More than 5,600 journals are entirely open access publications
- About 8% more gold open access journals now have a Journal Impact Factor.
- Journal Impact Factor granted to journals from Global South up at least 5%.
Clarivate reaffirms its commitment to both researchers and publishers as it evolves and adapts the Journal Citation Report to the fast-changing scholarly research landscape. Using trusted and verified tools to make scholarly evaluation reliable, the Journal Citation Report maintains the highest standards of integrity and validation as it helps the academic community make informed more decisions.
References:
- Quaderi, N. Announcing changes to the 2023 Journal Citation Reports. Clarivate, July 2022. Available online at https://clarivate.com/blog/clarivate-announces-changes-to-the-2023-journal-citation-reports-release/
- Clarivate Unveils Journal Citation Reports 2023 – a Trusted Resource to Support Research Integrity and Promote Accurate Journal Evaluation, PR Newswire, June 2023. Available online at https://www.prnewswire.com/in/news-releases/clarivate-unveils-journal-citation-reports-2023–a-trusted-resource-to-support-research-integrity-and-promote-accurate-journal-evaluation-301864500.html
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