The state of h index research

Abstract

How does one measure the quality of science? The question is not rhetorical; it is extremely relevant to promotion committees, funding agen- cies, national academies and politicians, all of whom need a means by which to recognize and reward good research and good researchers. Identifying high-quality science is necessary for science to progress, but measuring quality becomes even more important in a time when individual scien- tists and entire research fields increasingly compete for limited amounts of money. The most obvious measure available is the bibliographic record of a scientist or research institute—that is, the number and impact of their publications.