A new publication from legal scholars has highlighted the conflicts involved in the contemporary focus of bibliometrics in assessing researcher quality.
Kieran Tranter (QUT) and Timothy Peters (UniSC) report on a study of Australian-based law researchers’ H-index and total citation counts, as recorded on Google Scholar in September 2024, divided by academic position. The study aimed to provide the Australian legal academy, particularly more junior researchers, with more reliable data about Australian law researcher bibliometrics within Google Scholar.
However, they also highlighted the problems with bibliometrics. The use by researchers and institutions is often beset with misunderstandings about the data behind the measures. Also, they argue that bibliometric measures ‘individualises’ researchers failing to recognise the collective nature of contributing to knowledge.
Ultimately, Tranter and Peters recognise the immediate practical need for bibliometric benchmarks as presented in the paper to help researchers craft research impact narratives and counter some of the institutional misunderstandings. They also acknowledge the important need for more “nuanced and sophisticated research assessment measures”.
The full article is open access and available online at Law, Technology and Humans.
About Law, Technology and Humans
Law, Technology and Humans (ISSN 2652-4074) is an innovative, open access journal dedicated to research and scholarship on the human and humanity of law and technology. Supported by the Humans Technology Law Centre and the School of Law at Queensland University of Technology, Australia, the Journal is advised by a leading International Editorial Board. In 2021 it was awarded the DOAJ Seal reflecting best practice in open access publishing. The Journal is indexed in international databases including Scopus and Web of Science.
All queries related to the Journal can be sent to Chief Editor Professor Kieran Tranter from the Humans Technology Law Centre by email.
You can follow Journal announcements on LinkedIn, Bluesky and X (Twitter).
