Keywords

information systems journal rankings, scientometrics, bibliometrics, journal quality, SenS-6, SenS-8, self-citation, Impact Factor, h-index, social network analysis, expert opinion, composite ranking or rating, AIS Senior Scholars basket of journals, nomologies for dissemination of scientific knowledge

Abstract

Information systems (IS) journal rankings and ratings help scholars focus their publishing efforts and are widely used surrogates for judging the quality of research. Over the years, numerous approaches have been used to rank IS journals, approaches such as citation metrics, school lists, acceptance rates, and expert assessments. However, the results of these approaches often conflict due to a host of validity concerns. In the current scientometric study, we make significant strides toward correcting for these limitations in the ranking of mainstream IS journals. We compare expert rankings to bibliometric measures such as the ISI Impact Factor™, the h-index, and social network analysis metrics. Among other findings, we conclude that bibliometric measures provide very similar results to expert-based methods in determining a tiered structure of IS journals, thereby suggesting that bibliometrics can be a complete, a less expensive, and a more efficient substitute for expert assessment. We also find strong support for seven of the eight journals in the Association for Information Systems (AIS) Senior Scholars’ “basket” of journals. A cluster analysis of our results indicates a two-tiered separation in the quality of the highest quality IS journals—with MISQ, ISR, and JMIS belonging, in that order, to the highest A+ tier. Journal quality metrics fit nicely into the sociology of science literature and can be useful in models that attempt to explain how knowledge disseminates through scientific communities.

Original Publication Citation

Lowry, Paul B., Moody, Greg, Galletta, Dennis, Gaskin, James E., Barlow, Jordan B., and Wilson, David W. “Evaluating journal quality and the Association for Information Systems (AIS) Senior Scholars’ journal basket via bibliometric measures: Do expert journal assessments add value?” (2013). MIS Quarterly, 37(4), pp. 993-1012.

Document Type

Peer-Reviewed Article

Publication Date

2013

Publisher

MIS Quarterly

Language

English

College

Marriott School of Business

Department

Information Systems Management

University Standing at Time of Publication

Assistant Professor

Download

Share

COinS