A few weeks ago I wrote something noting that my h-index score has got to 10. Well it has now reached 11 so it is time for another celebration. The paper that has moved up into the golden h-index list is The Evidence Base on Lifelong Guidance.
However, is my obsessive watching of my h-index score a good or bad thing for me and research?
On the plus side it means that I keep an eye on what it is that I’ve done which people seem to like and find useful. This is surely a good thing as it hopefully helps to inform my future research and gives me some ideas about the relative value of what I’ve produced. It also helps me to continue to participate in conversations with other researchers who are writing about similar things to me.
On the negative side it reduces my academic output to a number and encourages me to think about the value of what I’ve done through a quantitative lens. The things that are at the top of my list are not necessarily the best things that I’ve written, nor is the fact that someone cites them necessarily and indicator of what is the most useful or valuable. I also notice that citations tend to beget more citations which I assume is something to do with the way that Google Scholar ranks and presents things.
So I’m going to try and temper my love of metrics a bit…. but if you are looking for something to cite in your next paper these are the papers that are bubbling under and could move me up to a 12!
Adventures in Career Development 