Evidence-based recommendations for increasing the citation frequency of original articles

Nicole Heßler and Andreas Ziegler ()
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Nicole Heßler: Universität zu Lübeck, Universitätsklinikum-Schleswig-Holstein
Andreas Ziegler: Medizincampus Davos

Scientometrics, 2022, vol. 127, issue 6, No 21, 3367-3381

Abstract: Abstract Publications and citations are important for career advancement of researchers. Our main aim was to derive recommendations that might increase the citation frequency of authors’ work. We examined title and article characteristics of original research articles published in the major medical journals BMJ, JAMA, Lancet, NEJM and PLOS Med (PLOS) between 2011 and 2020, using PubMed and Web of Science. To analyze citation frequencies, we estimated quasi Poisson regression models. The NEJM had by far the shortest titles (9.7 ± 1.8 words). Titles in the other journals were at least 8 words longer on average. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were rarely identifiable by its title in the NEJM (5.3% by title, 63.3% by title plus abstract). BMJ, Lancet and PLOS articles had more frequently active verbs than JAMA and NEJM articles. The citation frequency was higher when articles were open access and when more authors and corporate authors were involved (all p

Keywords: Article title; Bibliometrics; Citation frequency; Impact; Research evaluation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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DOI: 10.1007/s11192-022-04378-7

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