Publish or Perish: A Comprehensive Tool for Academic Citation Analysis
Introduction
Publish or Perish (PoP) is a free software program created by Anne-Wil Harzing, first released in October 2006. It is designed to retrieve and analyze academic citations, providing a robust set of tools for academics, researchers, and institutions to assess research impact and conduct various forms of bibliometric research.
Key Features and Functionality
Data Sources
Publish or Perish draws data from eight diverse sources, including Google Scholar, Google Scholar Profiles, Crossref, Semantic Scholar, Scopus, PubMed, Web of Science, and OpenAlex. This multi-source approach ensures a comprehensive and accurate analysis of academic citations.
Citation Metrics and Analysis
The software generates a wide range of citation metrics, such as publication years, citation years, annual citation count, total citations, h-index, g-index, papers per author, and more. These metrics are crucial for evaluating an author’s or an institution’s research impact and can be used to support grant, award, and tenure applications, as well as promotions.
Search and Retrieval
Users can search for authors, journals, and specific publications using various search options. For example, searching for an author can be done using Google Scholar or by finding their Google Scholar Profile. The software allows for precise searches using quotes around names or keywords and supports the retrieval of citing works for any selected publication.
Literature Reviews and Bibliometric Research
Publish or Perish facilitates conducting literature reviews and bibliometric research by enabling searches using key terms or titles. It helps in identifying seminal and highly cited works, tracking the historical development of a field, and identifying relevant journals. The software also allows users to retrieve citing works for a set of publications, which can be exported for further analysis.
Journal Selection
The tool assists in selecting journals to submit manuscripts to by analyzing journal impact. Users can search for journals by title, restrict the years of publication, and sort the results by citation count to identify well-cited journals in their field.
Export and Import Capabilities
Results from Publish or Perish can be exported in various formats, including BibTeX, EndNote, ISI, JSON, RefMan/RIS, and CSV. This allows for easy integration with other applications and databases. Additionally, external data can be imported into the software using the “Import External Data” command.
New Features in Version 8
The latest version, Publish or Perish 8, introduced several significant enhancements:
- Abstract Download and Export: Abstracts for each paper are now downloaded and visible in the paper details panel, and can be exported along with other metadata.
- DOI Extraction: DOIs are extracted for Google Scholar results and included in all export options.
- Related Works Search: Users can view works related to a selected result directly from the interface.
- Diagnostic Log: Improved diagnostic logs allow users to see the exact search strings sent to data sources, enhancing transparency and replicability.
Additional Tools
For advanced users, Publish or Perish offers command line tools for manual and automated searches, and it supports the use of emulators like Wine for GNU/Linux platforms.
Usage Scenarios
Publish or Perish is versatile and can be used in various scenarios:
- Research Impact Assessment: To present a strong case for research impact in grant, award, and tenure applications.
- Literature Reviews: To conduct thorough literature reviews and identify key works in a field.
- Journal Selection: To select appropriate journals for manuscript submission based on their impact.
- Bibliometric Research: To conduct detailed bibliometric analyses and track the development of academic fields.
In summary, Publish or Perish is an indispensable tool for academics and researchers, offering a comprehensive suite of features to analyze and present academic citations effectively. Its ability to draw from multiple data sources, generate detailed metrics, and support various research activities makes it a valuable resource in the academic community.