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Journal-level metrics are used to assess the impact, influence, and quality of academic journals. The impact of journals based on the number of publications and citations the publications received in the journal. The journal-level metrics can help researchers and scholars choose a journal in which to publish, compare journal performance and trends and evaluate publications in these journals.
CiteScore or Journal Impact Factor measure the average number of citations each publication receives in a journal, while more complex metrics like Source Normalized Impact per Paper (SNIP) or SCImago Journal Rank (SJR) perform some kind of field-normalization that allows for comparison of journal impact across disciplines and subject areas.
Journal Impact Factor (JIF) is calculated by dividing the total number of citations received by articles published in a specific journal within a given year by the total number of articles published in that journal during the same year. The JIF is often used as a measure of the average citation impact of articles published in a journal, with higher values indicating greater influence and visibility.
The time period of calculation over a two-year period. Only journals that are indexed in Web of Science's Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE) and Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI) will have a JIF value.
It is important to make use of JIF correctly and accurately and it has often been misused and abused as there are differences in publishing and citation behaviours between disciplines. You should never directly compare the JIF of two journals with different subject disciplines.
Adapted from Faeth, Kristen. LibGuides: Jour You should never directly compare the JIF of two journals with different subject disciplines.nal Citation Reports: Learn the Basics. https://clarivate.libguides.com/jcr/basics. Accessed 25 Aug. 2023.
CiteScore is a journal-level metric developed by Scopus. It is used to measure the average number of citations received by all items published in a journal and is calculated based on a four-year time period. While JIF is measured based on citable documents, CiteScore takes into account all items that are published in the journal.
Example of 2017 CiteScore calculation:
Ref: CiteScore: a new metric to help you choose the right journal for more details.
CiteScore and Journal Impact Factor (JIF) are both journal-level metrics used to assess the influence and visibility of academic journals. However, there are several differences between the two metrics:
SCImago Journal & Country Rank (SJR) is to measure the scientific influence and prestige of academic journals. SJR provides a ranking of journals based on their impact and visibility within their respective fields. SJR considers not only the number of citations received by a journal but also the quality and influence of the citing journals. It utilizes a weighted algorithm that considers the prestige of the citing journals, giving more weight to citations from highly ranked and influential journals. It uses a 3-year citation window and is calculated based on Scopus sources.
Source Normalized Impact per Paper (SNIP) is to measure the average citation impact of papers published in a particular journal, taking into account the citation potential of the journal's subject field. SNIP aims to normalize citation impact by considering the characteristics of the field in which a journal operates. It takes into account the citation patterns and citation practices within a specific field, acknowledging that citation practices can vary across disciplines.
Note: You are able to directly compare the SJR or SNIP values between journals from different subject categories due to the normalization done when calculating these two metrics.
Journal Citation Reports (JCR) is a library-subscribed database that provides you with access to JIF and JIF rank/quartile information for journals indexed in Web of Science's core collection.
Step 1: Go to Journal Citation Reports (JCR)
Step 2: Type in the journal title
Step 3: You can view the journal profile of the specific journal after selecting the journal. This page provides you with journal information, the subject categories that the journal is indexed in, and the key indicators and rank information for the journal. Under the 'Journal's performance', you can find 'Journal Impact Factor' section for a summary of the journal's impact.
Step 4: You can find the Journal Impact Factor rank information in 'Rank by Journal Impact Factor' section.
Step 1: Go to Scopus and click "Sources" at the top of the page.
Step 2: You can find the CiteScore of the journal on the page.
Step 3: Click on the journal name to go to the source details page for further information, such as how the journal's CiteScore is calculated, the ranking of this journal in relevant subject categories.
Step 4: You could also browse journals based on subject areas, and then browsing journals via the different categories. This will allow you to see a list of the different journals ranked based on the journal metrics within their respective subject areas.
Step 1: Go to Scopus and click "Sources" at the top of the page.
Step 2: You can find the SJR and SNIP of the journal on the page.
Or: Step 3. Click on the journal title to find the SNIP and SJR of the journal.
You can go directly to the SJR portal to find out more instead of just relying on Scopus Sources.
Step 1: Go to the SJR website and search for a particular journal via title, ISSN, or publisher name. Select the relevant journal record that you are interested in.
Step 2: At the journal page, scroll down to find the SJR and quartile information for the journal.
