Determinants of citation impact: A comparative analysis of the Global South versus the Global North

Abstract

The impact of the scientific output produced by different nations in different fields varies extensively. In this article, we apply bibliometric and econometric analysis to study how citation impact varies across countries. This paper differs from previous research in that a cross-section model is put forward to account for such variation. A special focus is given to the Global South, as countries in this group have been converging with the Global North recently. We find that previous citation impact, level of international collaboration and total publications in a specific scientific field are important determinants of citation impact among all nations. However, specialization in particular scientific fields seems significantly more important in the Global South than in the Global North. These findings imply that most lower- and middle-income countries would better concentrate their resources in generating higher critical masses in specific fields, in addition to pursuing long-lasting international collaboration partnerships, as these actions may lead to higher impact research.