Can scientific journals be classified based on their 'citation profiles'?

Abstract

Classification of scientific publications is of great importance in biomedical research evaluation. However, accurate classification of research publications is challenging and normally is performed in a rather subjective way. In the present paper, we propose to classify biomedical publications into superfamilies, by analysing their citation profiles, i.e. the location of citations in the structure of citing articles. Such a classification may help authors to find the appropriate biomedical journal for publication, may make journal comparisons more rational, and may even help planners to better track the consequences of their policies on biomedical research.