Q. What are altmetrics and how useful are they?

Altmetrics are “alternative metrics” – measures of the attention received by academic outputs other than standard bibliometric indicators such as number of citations.

Examples of altmetrics include the number of times a link to an article is shared on social media, the number of government policy documents that cite an article, and the number of readers an article has on an academic collaboration platforms.

Given the nature of the data upon which such measures are based none can claim to be 100% accurate or comprehensive, and the value attached to such measures will vary considerably by discipline.

The altmetrics.org site provides information about altmetrics and lists freely accessible software to track and view altmetrics related data. In addition the University subscribes to the Altmetric Explorer database.

For further information or help  concerning altmetrics please contact the Scholarly Communications Librarian.