A rationale for the Hirsch-index rank-order distribution and a comparison with the impact factor rank-order distribution

✍ Scribed by Leo Egghe

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2009
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 123 KB
• Volume: 60
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1532-2882
• DOI: 10.1002/asi.21121

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

We present a rationale for the Hirsch‐index rank‐order distribution and prove that it is a power law (hence a straight line in the log–log scale). This is confirmed by experimental data of Pyykkö and by data produced in this article on 206 mathematics journals. This distribution is of a completely different nature than the impact factor (IF) rank‐order distribution which (as proved in a previous article) is S‐shaped. This is also confirmed by our example. Only in the log–log scale of the h‐index distribution do we notice a concave deviation of the straight line for higher ranks. This phenomenon is discussed.