Citation advantage of positive words: predictability, temporal evolution, and universality in varied quality journals

IF 3.5 3区管理学 Q2 COMPUTER SCIENCE, INTERDISCIPLINARY APPLICATIONS

Scientometrics Pub Date : 2024-06-27 DOI:10.1007/s11192-024-05074-4

Dengsheng Wu, Huidong Wu, Jianping Li

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

The number of positive words in scientific papers has exhibited a notable upwards trend over the past few decades. However, there remains a gap in our comprehensive understanding of the relationship between positive words and research impact. In this study, we conduct a multifaceted exploration of the citation advantage associated with positive words based on social cognitive theory, examining its predictability, temporal evolution, and universality across journals of varying quality grades. Drawing from a corpus encompassing 124,144 papers published in the management field between 2001 and 2020, our regression results provide compelling evidence suggesting that positive words can serve as a significant predictor of the citation counts of academic papers, supporting the citation advantage of positive words. However, it is essential to recognize that over time, the citation advantage attributed to positive words is experiencing a conspicuous decline. The universality of the above phenomenon has been further verified in the analysis of journals of different quality. Our findings prompt a discussion regarding the need to pay more attention to the overuse and misuse of positive words, as well as practical considerations for enhancing scientific communication within the academic community.

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正面词语的引用优势：不同质量期刊的可预测性、时间演变和普遍性

过去几十年来，科学论文中的正面词汇数量呈明显上升趋势。然而，我们对正面词语与研究影响力之间关系的全面理解仍然存在差距。在本研究中，我们以社会认知理论为基础，对与正面词语相关的引文优势进行了多方面的探索，考察了其在不同质量等级期刊中的可预测性、时间演变和普遍性。我们从 2001 年至 2020 年间管理领域发表的 124,144 篇论文的语料库中得出的回归结果提供了令人信服的证据，表明积极词汇可以显著预测学术论文的引用次数，支持了积极词汇的引用优势。然而，我们必须认识到，随着时间的推移，正面词语的引文优势正在明显下降。对不同质量期刊的分析进一步验证了上述现象的普遍性。我们的研究结果引发了一场讨论，探讨是否有必要更多地关注褒义词的过度使用和滥用，以及加强学术界科学交流的实际考虑。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Scientometrics 管理科学-计算机：跨学科应用

CiteScore

7.20

自引率

17.90%

发文量

351

审稿时长

1.5 months

期刊介绍： Scientometrics aims at publishing original studies, short communications, preliminary reports, review papers, letters to the editor and book reviews on scientometrics. The topics covered are results of research concerned with the quantitative features and characteristics of science. Emphasis is placed on investigations in which the development and mechanism of science are studied by means of (statistical) mathematical methods. The Journal also provides the reader with important up-to-date information about international meetings and events in scientometrics and related fields. Appropriate bibliographic compilations are published as a separate section. Due to its fully interdisciplinary character, Scientometrics is indispensable to research workers and research administrators throughout the world. It provides valuable assistance to librarians and documentalists in central scientific agencies, ministries, research institutes and laboratories. Scientometrics includes the Journal of Research Communication Studies. Consequently its aims and scope cover that of the latter, namely, to bring the results of research investigations together in one place, in such a form that they will be of use not only to the investigators themselves but also to the entrepreneurs and research workers who form the object of these studies.