Altmetrics 101

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Real-Time Research Impact:Altmetrics 101Amanda Clay Powers, MSU LibrariesOctober 13, 2015

What Will We do?

Find Alternative tools to assess your research impactTell a complete story of your research impactGet faster feedback on research

Why Measure Scholarly Impact?Promotion and TenureNational ReputationScholarInstitutionGrant ApplicationsAssess and Adjust Research Agenda

Traditional MetricsImpact FactorJournal Level (Journal Citation Reports)Easily ManipulatedLimited to Web of Science Journals (Science and Social Sciences)Open Access / Feedback Loop / Favor Corporate PublishersCitationsDelayed feedbackDependent on disciplineNiche research can be problematic

Newer MetricsAuthor levelH-indexG-Index

Article levelDownloadsSource Normalized Impact Per Paper (SNIP)

Journal levlEigenfactor

Complimentary Metrics

AltmetricsAttention MetricsArticle-level MetricsScholar-Level MetricsData MetricsWebometrics

Its about Your StoryProvide a more coherent understanding of research attentionUnderstand the broader reach and early impact of researchTrack attention to a broad range of research outputs, including articles, posters, data sets and working papers, etc. for funding agenciesWellcome TrustResearch Excellence FrameworkHelp researchers get credit for impact activities

WhAt are Altmetrics?Research outputs in non-traditional sourcesHow research is being received and usedComplementary to traditional citation-based analysis

Journal Impact FactorCitation countsH-indexNumber of publications

Mentions in news reports,References in policyMentions in social media, Wikipedia citationsReference managers+

What can you track?Published journal articlesWhite papersPostersPresentationsDataNon-peer reviewed publicationsBooksTechnical reportsPre-PrintsVideosStandardsPatentsWorking papersCommittee reportsNewslettersGovernment documentsTechnical documentationConference proceedingsSymposiaBulletinsNon-traditional outputs (DH)

Social media and blogs

TwitterFacebookGoogleSinaWeiboReference managers

Mendeley, CiteULikeReader countsOther sources

Wikipedia YouTubeRedditF1000PinterestPost-publication peer review

PublonsPubPeer

Policy documents

NICE EvidenceIntergovernmental Panel on Climate ChangeMany more

News outlets

Curated listsText miningGlobal coverage

Tracking Your ImpactTools to track impactInstitutional RepositoriesResearchGate & Academia.eduAggregatorsScopusAltmetric BookmarkletPLoSImpactStory

What can the data tell you?

Metrics Wont Tell you:

Uncover conversations about your research

Set up email alerts for your output in the Summary tab

Help researchers to uncover unknown and early attention to their work from date of publication. Use the Get email updates when this article is shared on the Altmetric Details page to receive a regular email alert whenever we track a new mention for that item across our sources. This is similar to setting a search alert in Google Scholar, for example. This is an easy way for to monitor mentions to new articles soon after publication.

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Cochrane Library paper investigated use of probiotics to treat eczema: There is not enough evidence to recommend using probiotics for the treatment of eczema.

The paper has a relatively low score of attention but received mentions across policy documents and Wikipedia: Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health - Allergy Care Pathways for Children: core competency for health professionals treating children with eczema Discover policy references

Remember: look beyond the numbers. Its always important to dig deeper to the underlying mentions in order to understand how a research output has been received and used. This example, of a policy guideline advising professionals about best practice for treating children with eczema, demonstrates the value of considering the quality of the mention rather than looking only at the score.

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Discover popular new content

Use the bookmarklet or check out the metrics page on a publisher platform to see the Altmetric data for that article you might want to share the most interesting ones with your working groups or students.16

Finding AltmetricsScopusButterfly genome reveals promiscuous exchange of mimicry adaptations among speciesThe genome of the green anole lizard and a comparative analysis with birds and mammalsDesign and kinematic modeling of constant curvature continuum robots: A reviewImpact StoryAltmetric / Altmetric BookletPLoS metricsJournal / Publishers

StandardizingAlternative Assessment Metrics Initiative (NISO)Becker Medical Library Model for Assessment of Research Impact (Becker Model)

How to Get attentionDecide what you want Policy influence? Mainstream media? Publish Open Access, if possibleTweet about it! Conferences, Hashtags, etc.Compare to other articles in your field what attention are they getting and where?Work on your online presence what will they find?Get an ORCiD ID and/or a ResearchGate/Academia.edu accountShare links to your research in your email signatureShare your data, posters, working papers, etc. (figshare, Dryad, social networks)

Further ReadingAltmetrics ManifestoAltmetric, Social Media, and ImpactThe Evolution of Impact Indicators: From bibliometrics to altmetricsFrom bibliometrics to altmetrics: A changing scholarly landscapeThe History and Meaning of the Journal Impact FactorHow to Track the Impact of Research With Data MetricsImpact and Attention: What Can the Metrics Tell Us?The Impact Factor GameThe Metric Tide: Report of the Independent Review of the Role of Metrics in Research Assessment and Management Three Simple Ways to Improve the Tenure Process in the United StatesThe Thomson Reuters Impact Factor