Identifying the classics: An examination of articles published in the Journal of Pediatric Psychology from 1976-2006

Abstract

Objectives: The purpose of the present investigation was to identify the top 100 most highly cited "classic" articles in the Journal of Pediatric Psychology, from 1976 to 2006. Methods: The Cited Reference search option of the Web of Science® was used, which allows for identification of variations in citations. Results: One-hundred and four classic articles ranging in citations from 46 to 192 (M = 71.66, SD = 31.15) were identified. These articles were found to be mostly applied research that focused predominantly on children across several age groups with chronic illness. Citation trends among the classics revealed an inverted-u shape relationship between year since publication and citations per year, which peaked around seven years after publication. Conclusions: The current findings highlight some of the influential works in the field, which have contributed to important advances not only the field of pediatric psychology but other fields as well. © The Author 2007. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society of Pediatric Psychology. All rights reserved.