Analiza dorobku publikacyjnego samodzielnych pracowników naukowych z polskich placówek geograficznych = An analysis of the published output of independent researchers from Poland’s geographical institutions

Abstract

In recent years, Polish geographers have become increasingly interested in publishing their research results in English-language journals under the ISI Master Journal List (also known as the “Philadelphia List” in Poland). On the one hand, such an interest has arisen out of the desire to disseminate the results of individual or team research; while on the other it reflects the necessity for appropriate output to be calculated, in order that scientific advancement and parametric evaluation of the scientific institute may take place. Against that background, the work presented here has sought to assess the diversification of geographical centres in Poland, on the basis of an analysis of the published output of their independent employees (habilitated doctors and professors). A separate issue is to investigate the academic achievements of independent scientific workers, as regards age group, sub-discipline (physical or socio-economic geography), and scientific status (habilitated doctor or professor). The analyses were based on the bibliographical database within the Web of Sciences Core Collection, as well as Google Scholar. The analysis of bibliometric indicators referring to the work published by independent researchers shows that Poland’s leading geographical institutions are primarily large centres, first and foremost those in which scientists tend to specialise in physical geography. These are centres conducting numerous research projects, engaging in extensive scientific cooperation in Poland and abroad and publishing their own scientific journals. Among the leading geographical institutions are the University of Gdańsk, Jagiellonian University, University of Lódź, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Institute of Geography and Spatial Organization of the Polish Academy of Sciences, University of Warsaw, University of Wrocław and University of Szczecin. In terms of works published in domestic journals, the two sub-disciplines of geography are characterised by similar bibliometric indicators for an average representative. In contrast, in the case of international journals, there is an evident predominance of those representing physical geography. Conducted analyses also show that physical geographers more often publish as teams. The output of physical geographers is also more universal in character, meaning that extensive use can be made of them in the study of global processes. Socio-economic geographers generally focus their attention on research within the region in which their institution is located, or else deal with social and economic phenomena in their own country. Analysis of bibliometric indicators by age groups of researchers seems to offer optimism for the future. In the case of Google Scholar, older workers present higher values than their younger colleagues, but these differences – apart from citation number that reflect a longer presence on the publishing market – are not very great. However, in the case of the Web of Science, generally offering a better reflection of the level of scientific impact and involvement in international collaboration, young researchers rank higher than their older colleagues. It is therefore to be hoped that their impact in worldwide geography will be greater in the coming years than at present.