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Title
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Databased research in context : exploration of contextual features of national databases for research output in the social sciences and humanities
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Author
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Abstract
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| The aim of this thesis is to contribute to the understanding of contextual features of national databases of research output and the role these features play in the understanding of research within the social sciences and humanities. This mixed-methods thesis consists of four separate studies, each one contributing to the understanding of a particular aspect of databases for research output. The focus of the first study is on the identification and description of national databases for research output for social sciences and humanities currently operational in Europe. It is based on data collected through two surveys. The first survey gathered responses from 39 countries in Europe and identified more than 20 national databases. The key finding of the second survey is the identification of a variation in terms of different aspects of comprehensiveness (e.g., research output types, authors, institutions). The second study makes use of bibliometric research methods and explores how the choice of disciplinary classifications for journals in the social sciences and humanities influences bibliometric analysis. The findings of this study show that the choice of disciplinary classifications does not equally affect all analyses. While the changes in the absolute number of publications can be substantial, the changes in the relative number of publications are typically small. The third study also employs bibliometric methods and demonstrates an approach to construct complexity-sensitive book metrics for scholarly monographs. This approach takes into account that scholarly monographs can be complex works consisting of different translations, editions, and physical manifestations and results in a typology of different scholarly monographs: Globally-visible single-expression works, Globally-visible multi-expression works (GVME), Globally invisible works, and Miscellaneous. The fourth empirical study employs qualitative research methods to explore the conceptualisations that underpin national databases for research output. The findings show that there are two different database logics—Enlightenment and New Public Management—that shape the way these databases are designed and run. The main conclusion that can be drawn from this thesis is that contextual features of databases for research output are of utmost importance. Databases for research output are created differently and for different purposes thus setting limits to the uses of these databases. Furthermore, this study highlights that the understanding of national databases for research output requires understanding of both the debates on such databases that take place in different knowledge domains and the specifics of research and research governance where the database for research output is situated. |
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Language
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English
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Publication
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Antwerp
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University of Antwerp, Faculty of Social Sciences, Centre for R&D Monitoring (ECOOM)
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2021
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ISBN
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978-90-5728-682-7
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Volume/pages
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272 p.
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Note
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Guns, Raf [Supervisor]
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Engels, Tim [Supervisor]
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Full text (open access)
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