TARU PUBLICATIONS
COLLNET Journal of Scientometrics and Information Management cover
Open Access ·Peer-reviewed·ISSN (Online): 2168-930X·ISSN (Print): 0973-7766

WoS  JIF 2026 : 0.6 (Q3)

Powered by:Powered by

Half-Yearly Journal: Publishes research and articles on scientometrics and information management, including bibliometric analysis and quality assurance models.

Issues up to 2022 co-published with and available at:Taylor & Francis Online
EDITOR-CJSIM@tarupublications.com
Open Access Research Article

Russian Publications in Web of Science: A bibliometric study

* ,

* Corresponding author · click or hover a name for details

pp. 217–245Vol. 17Issue 2December 2023DOI: 10.47974/CJSIM-2022-0006XML
Published Online:
21 Dec 2023
Article type:
Research Article
Language:
EN
Article no.:
CJSIM-2022-0006
Pages:
217–245

Abstract

This article presents a bibliometric study of 1.38 million Russian publications indexed in Web of Science as of May 2022 without any restrictions as to document types, time periods, scientific disciplines, etc. From this perspective, the present analysis reflects Russian research’s true presence and visibility in the most prestigious scientific literature database. The main results obtained are: a) There was a rapid increase in research production in the 2010s, but the share of the Russian output in the global research production is still below 3%. b) International collaborative publications account for about 30% of Russian papers but around 70% of Russian citations. c) Physics, chemistry, and engineering are the most productive Russian research areas, but their citation impact is below the world average in those respective fields. d) The most frequently collaborating countries are the United States, Germany, and France, but Canada and Switzerland consistently contribute to the greatest relative citation impact of collaborative papers in the top ten research areas.

Keywords

References

[1] Aleixandre, J. L., Aleixandre-Tudó, J. L., Bolaños-Pizarro, M. and Aleixandre-Benavent, R., Global trends in scientific production in enology and viticulture in selected emerging economies (BRIC). Scientometrics, Vol. 103(2), pp. 649-668 (2015). 
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-015-1543-4.
[2] Avanesova, A. A. and Shamliyan, T. A., Comparative trends in research performance of the Russian universities. Scientometrics, Vol. 116(3), pp. 2019-2052 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-018-2807-6.
[3] Aversa, E. and Markusova, V., Bibliometric indicators and their impact on Russian university rankings. COLLNET Journal of Scientometrics and Information Management, Vol. 4(1),  
pp. 1-8 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1080/09737766.2010.10700879.
[4] Bornmann, L., Wagner, C. and Leydesdorff, L., BRICS countries and scientific excellence: A bibliometric analysis of most frequently cited papers. Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology, Vol. 66(7), pp. 1507-1513 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1002/asi.23333.
[5] Chankseliani, M., Lovakov, A. and Pislyakov, V., A big picture: Bibliometric study of academic publications from post-Soviet countries. Scientometrics, Vol. 126(10), pp. 8701-8730 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-021-04124-5.
[6] Dickenson, R. P., The level of research in advanced composite materials in the countries of the former Soviet Union. Scientometrics, Vol. 36(1), pp. 43-57 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02126644.
[7] Evdokimenkova, Y. B., Soboleva, N. O., Organic chemistry in Russia: Bibliometric publication flow analysis over the past 30 years. COLLNET Journal of Scientometrics and Information Management, Vol. 14(1), pp. 23-36 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1080/09737766.2020.1766388.
[8] Fiala, D. and Tutoky, G., Computer science papers in Web of Science: A bibliometric analysis. Publications, Vol. 5(4), art. no. 23 (2017). https://doi.org/10.3390/publications5040023.
[9] Fiala, D. and Willett, P., Computer science in Eastern Europe 1989-2014: A bibliometric study. Aslib Journal of Information Management, Vol. 67(5), pp. 526-541 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1108/AJIM-02-2015-0027.
[10] Finardi, U., Scientific collaboration between BRICS countries. Scientometrics, Vol. 102(2), pp. 1139-1166 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-014-1490-5.
[11] Finardi, U. and Buratti, A., Scientific collaboration framework of BRICS countries: An analysis of international coauthorship. Scientometrics, Vol. 109(1), pp. 433-446 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-016-1927-0
[12] Guevara, M. R. and Mendoza, M., Publishing patterns in BRIC countries: A network analysis. Publications, Vol. 4(3), art. no. 20 (2016). https://doi.org/10.3390/publications4030020.
[13] Guskov, A., Kosyakov, D. and Selivanova, I., Scientometric research in Russia: Impact of science policy changes. Scientometrics, Vol. 107(1), pp. 287-303 (2016). 
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-016-1876-7.
[14] Guskov, A. E., Kosyakov, D. V. and Selivanova, I. V., Boosting research productivity in top Russian universities: The circumstances of breakthrough. Scientometrics, Vol. 117(2),  
pp. 1053-1080 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-018-2890-8.
[15] Ivanov, V. V., Markusova, V. A. and Mindeli, L. E., Government investments and the publishing activity of higher educational institutions: Bibliometric analysis. Herald of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Vol. 86(4), pp. 314-321 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1134/S1019331616040031.
[16] Ivanov, V. V., Markusova, V. A., Mindeli, L. E. and Zolotova, A. V., The open-access system of journals and its use by Russian scientists according to the statistics of Web of Science (2008–2017). Scientific and Technical Information Processing, Vol. 45(3), pp. 182-191 (2018). https://doi.org/10.3103/S0147688218030097.
[17] Karaulova, M., Gök, A., Shackleton, O. and Shapira, P., Science system path-dependencies and their influences: Nanotechnology research in Russia. Scientometrics, Vol. 107(2), 
pp. 645-670 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-016-1916-3.
[18] Kassian, A. and Melikhova, L., Russian Science Citation Index on the WoS platform: A critical assessment. Journal of Documentation, Vol. 75(5), pp. 1162-1168 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1108/JD-02-2019-0033.
[19] Kirchik, O., «Invisible» science: Patterns of internationalisation for the Russian scientific publications. Foresight Russia, Vol. 5(3), pp. 34-42 (2011). 
https://doi.org/10.17323/1995-459X.2011.3.34.42.
[20] Kirchik, O., Gingras, Y. and Larivière, V., Changes in publication languages and citation practices and their effect on the scientific impact of Russian science (1993-2010). Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, Vol. 63(7), pp. 1411-1419 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1002/asi.22642.
[21] Kozak, M., Bornmann, L. and Leydesdorff, L., How have the Eastern European countries of the former Warsaw Pact developed since 1990? A bibliometric study. Scientometrics, Vol. 102(2), pp. 1101-1117 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-014-1439-8.
[22] Lewison, G. and Markusova, V., Female researchers in Russia: Have they become more visible? Scientometrics, Vol. 89(1), pp. 139-152 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-011-0435-5.
[23] Lewison, G. and Markusova, V., The evaluation of Russian cancer research. Research Evaluation, Vol. 19(2), pp. 129-144 (2010). https://doi.org/10.3152/095820210X510098.
[24] Liu, X., Kaza, S., Zhang, P. and Chen, H., Determining inventor status and its effect on knowledge diffusion: A study on nanotechnology literature from China, Russia, and India. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, Vol. 62(6), pp. 1166-1176 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1002/asi.21528.
[25] Lovakov, A. and Agadullina, E., Bibliometric analysis of publications from post-Soviet countries in psychological journals in 1992–2017. Scientometrics, Vol. 119(2), pp. 1157-1171 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-019-03087-y.
[26] Lovakov, A., Panova, A., Sterligov, I. and Yudkevich, M., Does government support of a few leading universities have a broader impact on the higher education system? Evaluation of the Russian University Excellence Initiative. Research Evaluation, Vol. 30(3), pp. 240-255 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1093/reseval/rvab006.
[27] Markusova, V., Bogorov, V. and Libkind, A., Usage metrics vs classical metrics: Analysis of Russia’s research output. Scientometrics, Vol. 114(2), pp. 593-603 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-017-2597-2.
[28] Markusova, V., Mindeli, L., Libkind, A., Zolotova, A. and Akoev, M., Comparative analysis of Russian and industrialized countries performance on energy and fuels, WoS, 2008–2017. Scientometrics, Vol. 123(3), pp. 1281-1300 (2020). 
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-020-03440-6.
[29] Markusova, V. A., Ivanov, V. V. and Varshavskii, A. E., Bibliometric indicators of Russian science and of the Russian Academy Of Sciences (1997-2007). Herald of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Vol. 79(3), pp. 197-204 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1134/S1019331609030010.
[30] Markusova, V. A., Jansz, M., Libkind, A. N., Libkind, I. and Varshavsky, A., Trends in Russian research output in post-Soviet era. Scientometrics, Vol. 79(2), pp. 249-260 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-009-0416-0.
[31] Markusova, V. A., Libkind, A. N. and Aversa, E., Impact of competitive funding on research output in Russia. COLLNET Journal of Scientometrics and Information Management, Vol. 6(1), pp. 61-69 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1080/09737766.2012.10700924.
[32] Markusova, V. A., Libkind, A. N., Jansz, M. and Mindeli, L. E., Bibliometric performance in two main research domains: The Russian Academy of Sciences and the higher education sector. COLLNET Journal of Scientometrics and Information Management, Vol. 8(1), pp. 49-60 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1080/09737766.2014.916866.
[33] Markusova, V. A., Libkind, A. N., Krylova, T. A., Libkind, I. A. and Bogachev, D. Y., Basic research in the Novosibirsk oblast’: Bibliometrical analysis for 2004-2009. Scientific and Technical Information Processing, Vol. 38(3), pp. 224-236 (2011). https://doi.org/10.3103/S0147688211030130.
[34] Markusova, V. A., Libkind, A. N., Mindeli, L. E. and Jansz, M., Research performance by federal and national research universities and impact of competitive funding on their publication activity. COLLNET Journal of Scientometrics and Information Management, Vol. 7(2),  pp. 217- 229 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1080/09737766.2013.832904.
[35] Markusova, V. A., Libkind, A. N., Varshavsly, A. E. and Jansz, C. N. M., Research performance and collaboration in the Novosibirsk region. Scientometrics, Vol. 91(2), pp. 513-526 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-011-0597-1.
[36] Markusova, V. A., Minin, V. A., Libkind, A. N., Jansz, C. N. M., Zitt, M. and Bassecoulard-Zitt, E., Research in non-metropolitan universities as a new stage of science development in Russia. Scientometrics, Vol. 60(3), pp. 365-383 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1023/B:SCIE.0000034380.12874.cc.
[37] Matveeva, N. and Ferligoj, A., Scientific collaboration in Russian universities before and after the excellence initiative project 5-100. Scientometrics, Vol. 124(3), pp. 2383-2407 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-020-03602-6.
[38] Matveeva, N., Sterligov, I. and Yudkevich, M., The effect of Russian university excellence initiative on publications and collaboration patterns. Journal of Informetrics, Vol. 15(1),  
art. no. 101110 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joi.2020.101110.
[39] Mikhaylov, A., Mikhaylova, A. and Hvaley, D., Knowledge hubs of Russia: Bibliometric mapping of research activity. Journal of Scientometric Research, Vol. 9(1), pp. 1-10 (2020). https://doi.org/10.5530/JSCIRES.9.1.1.
[40] Mindeli, L. E., Akoev, M. A., Zolotova, A. V., Libkind, A. N. and Markusova, V. A., Bibliometric evaluation of development trends in domestic research and models of scientific cooperation in basic energy science. Herald of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Vol. 90(4),  pp. 476-486 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1134/S1019331620030120.
[41] Moed, H. F., Markusova, V. and Akoev, M., Trends in Russian research output indexed in Scopus and Web of Science. Scientometrics, Vol. 116(2), pp. 1153-1180 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-018-2769-8.
[42] Mokhnacheva, Y. V. and Tsvetkova, V. A., Representation of papers of Russian authors in the global array of scientific publications in the Web of Science Core Collection 
(2010–2017). Scientific and Technical Information Processing, Vol. 46(2), pp. 143-147 (2019). https://doi.org/10.3103/S014768821902014X.
[43] Mokhnacheva, Y. V. and Tsvetkova, V. A., Russia in the global array of scientific publications. Herald of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Vol. 89(4), pp. 370-378 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1134/S1019331619040075.
[44] Moskaleva, O., Pislyakov, V., Sterligov, I., Akoev, M. and Shabanova, S., Russian Index of Science Citation: Overview and review. Scientometrics, Vol. 116(1), pp. 449-462 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-018-2758-y.
[45] Oleinik, A., Publication patterns in Russia and the West compared. Scientometrics, Vol. 93(2), pp. 533-551 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-012-0698-5.
[46] Pislyakov, V. and Shukshina, E., Measuring excellence in Russia: Highly cited papers, leading institutions, patterns of national and international collaboration. Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology, Vol. 65(11), pp. 2321-2330 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1002/asi.23093.
[47] Seršić, D. M., Martinčević, M. and Jokić, M., The contribution of CEE authors to psychological science: A comparative analysis of papers published in CEE and non-CEE journals indexed by Scopus in the period 1996—2013. Scientometrics, Vol. 126(2), pp. 1453-1469 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-020-03784-z.
[48] Shashnov, S. and Kotsemir, M., Research landscape of the BRICS countries: Current trends in research output, thematic structures of publications, and the relative influence of partners. Scientometrics, Vol. 117(2), pp. 1115-1155 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-018-2883-7.
[49] Sterligov, I. A., Savina, T. F. and Chichkova, A. O., A study of grant support from Russian scientific foundations to domestic publications in leading international journals (based on data from Scopus and Web of Science, the Russian Foundation for Basic Research, and the Russian Science Foundation). Scientific and Technical Information Processing, Vol. 47(1), pp. 36-55 (2020). https://doi.org/10.3103/S0147688220010074.
[50] Subbotin, A. and Aref, S., Brain drain and brain gain in Russia: Analyzing international migration of researchers by discipline using Scopus bibliometric data 1996–2020. Scientometrics, 
Vol. 126(9), pp. 7875-7900 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-021-04091-x.
[51] Terekhov, A. I., Bibliometric spectroscopy of Russia’s nanotechnology: 2000–2014. Scientometrics, Vol. 110(3), pp. 1217-1242 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-016-2234-5.
[52] Thelwall, M. and Levitt, J. M., National scientific performance evolution patterns: Retrenchment, successful expansion, or overextension. Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology, Vol. 69(5), pp. 720-727 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1002/asi.23969.
[53] Turko, T., Bakhturin, G., Bagan, V., Poloskov, S. and Gudym, D., Influence of the program 
“5–top 100” on the publication activity of Russian universities. Scientometrics, Vol. 109(2),  
pp. 769-782 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-016-2060-9.
[54] Vasiljeva, М. V., Osipov, G. V., Ponkratov, V. V., Ivlev, V. J., Ivleva, M. I., Karepova, S. G., Gardanova, Z. R. and Dudnik, O. V., Factors to improve publication productivity in Russian universities. Publications, Vol. 9(2), art. no. 21 (2021). https://doi.org/10.3390/publications9020021.
[55] Wagner, C. S. and Wong, S. K., Unseen science? Representation of BRICs in global science. Scientometrics, Vol. 90(3), pp. 1001-1013 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-011-0481-z.
[56] Wainer, J., Xavier, E. C. and Bezerra, F., Scientific production in computer science: A comparative study of Brazil and other countries. Scientometrics, Vol. 81(2), pp. 535-547 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-008-2156-y.
[57] Walz, N., Publications of BRIC- and outreach countries in international journals on limnology. International Review of Hydrobiology, Vol. 95(4-5), pp. 298-312 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1002/iroh.201011243.
[58] Wilson, C. S. and Markusova, V. A., Changes in the scientific output of Russia from 1980 to 2000, as reflected in the Science Citation Index, in relation to national politico-economic changes. Scientometrics, Vol. 59(3), pp. 345-389 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1023/B:SCIE.0000018539.93567.d8.
[59] Wong, C.-Y. and Wang, L., Trajectories of science and technology and their co-evolution in BRICS: Insights from publication and patent analysis. Journal of Informetrics, Vol. 9(1),  
pp. 90-101 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joi.2014.11.006.
[60] Xie, Z. and Willett, P., The development of computer science research in the People’s Republic of China 2000-2009: A bibliometric study. Information Development, Vol. 29(3), pp. 251-264 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1177/0266666912458515.

Views: 583Downloads: 131Citations: 2