Hirsch index is one of the most important metrics for measuring the effectiveness of a scientist's activity and his/her influence in the scientific community. H-index is an international indicator, which is one of the main indicators in the global databases Scopus, Web of Science, Google Scholar. The higher the Hirsch index, the more influential a scientist is in international scientific circles. In this article we will consider the concept of Hirsch index and its influence on the researcher's activity.
The concept of Hirsch index of an author
H-index is one of the main indicators in the scientometric world for assessing the cumulative impact of an author's scientific activity. Thanks to this indicator it is possible to trace the quantity and quality of a researcher's scientific work by comparing the number of published articles and their value measured by the number of citations.
The formula for calculating the Hirsch index:
Hirsch index = h,
in which h articles have been cited at least h times.
For example, H-index = 100 means that each of the author's 100 articles has been cited at least 100 times.
For visual perception, let us refer to the graph below:
where h is the index of the number of citations of the numbered articles of the author (arranged in descending order).
How does H-index affect the scientist's activity?
In the scientometric sphere, the Hirsch index is a kind of quality standard of a scientist's activity. This universally recognized indicator allows us to assess the author's scientific contribution to science, to understand how valuable his works are, to compare the indicators of researchers' influence.
What are the benefits of high h-index scores for the author:
- Receiving funding for future research
- priority in awarding grants
- employers take into account the Hirsch index when allocating academic positions in educational institutions
- increasing the reputation of a scientist at the international level
- high h-index is equivalent to the first-class quality of the author's work, the value of the researcher's scientific contribution is determined by this indicator
- receiving the honorable privilege of becoming a reviewer of a rated scientific journal
- invitations to participate in large-scale international conferences, seminars and webinars.
What is considered a good Hirsch index?
On average, the Hirsch index for assistant professors ranges from 2 to 5, for PhDs from 6 to 10, and for professors from 12 to 24.
A Hirsch index of 20 is considered good, a Hirsch index of 40 is considered outstanding, and a Hirsch index of more than 60 is considered truly exceptional.
At the time of writing, researchers from the world's leading universities, such as Oxford and Harvard, have the highest Hirsch indexes.
How to increase the h-index of a scientist?
There are several effective techniques to increase the Hirsch index:
- High quality research with groundbreaking theories will have more value in the academic society, hence such articles are cited more often
- Collaboration with distinguished researchers increases the visibility of the work of young researchers.
- The choice of journal also plays an important role: the more reputable the journal, the larger its readership, the greater the chance of high citation of articles
- making papers freely available also increases their visibility.
- Choose a specialized journal for publication according to your readership and research topic
- Attend scientific conferences and other academic events in your field of study to publicize your work and exchange contacts with colleagues
- To make it easy for other scholars to find and read your work, join the social networks that researchers most often use: ResearchGate, Academia.edu, LinkedIn, Facebook, and others.
To summarize, the Hirsch index is one of the most important metrics for measuring an author's research impact. High Hirsch index scores have a direct impact on a researcher's career prospects and scholarly activity. If you need to increase your Hirsch Index to apply for a research grant, fulfill university requirements, increase your ranking in scientific circles or other academic goals, our experts will help you achieve the desired result in a short period of time. Leave your application online and our manager will contact you within a business day.
