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<p>Traditional metrics for evaluating scientific quality often assume that highly cited research is inherently better, without considering the quality or origin of those citations. In this study, we examine whether citations from more distant sources in the journal citation network are indicative of higher impact. We define and compare five measures of citation distance and assess their relationship with journal impact. Our results show that journals receiving citations from farther in the network tend to have greater scientific influence. Validating our findings against two expert-driven rankings—the Norwegian Register and JUFO Finnish Journal Classification—as well as the SCImago algorithmic ranking, we find that highly ranked journals generally exhibit longer average incoming citation distances. Conversely, journals flagged for anomalous citation behavior in journal citation reports (JCR) tend to have shorter citation distances. Additionally, by weighting the journal impact factor (JIF) with the citation lengths, we improve upon its ability to distinguish top-tier journals from lower-ranked ones, while also recognizing the long-range effect (LRE) as an independent dimension that reflects the broader, cross-disciplinary reach of journals.</p>

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Citation distance matters: towards a new metric for evaluating journal impact

  • 期刊论文

  • 出版模式：

    开放获取

  • 发表日期：

    2026年3月19日

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  • Kate Barnes,
  • Ahmed Bannour,
  • Levente Török,
  • Roland Molontay

摘要

Traditional metrics for evaluating scientific quality often assume that highly cited research is inherently better, without considering the quality or origin of those citations. In this study, we examine whether citations from more distant sources in the journal citation network are indicative of higher impact. We define and compare five measures of citation distance and assess their relationship with journal impact. Our results show that journals receiving citations from farther in the network tend to have greater scientific influence. Validating our findings against two expert-driven rankings—the Norwegian Register and JUFO Finnish Journal Classification—as well as the SCImago algorithmic ranking, we find that highly ranked journals generally exhibit longer average incoming citation distances. Conversely, journals flagged for anomalous citation behavior in journal citation reports (JCR) tend to have shorter citation distances. Additionally, by weighting the journal impact factor (JIF) with the citation lengths, we improve upon its ability to distinguish top-tier journals from lower-ranked ones, while also recognizing the long-range effect (LRE) as an independent dimension that reflects the broader, cross-disciplinary reach of journals.