What are Research Metrics?

Research metrics are quantitative measures to help articulate the impact of research publications within academia.

At the University of Melbourne, research impact is defined as the effect on, change or benefit to scholarly knowledge and the economy, society, culture, public policy or services, health, the environment, or quality of life.

Research metrics are one way of demonstrating this impact. However, research metrics alone do not provide an indication of the quality of the research and need to be considered as part of a broader impact narrative.

What are research metrics used for?

Research metrics can be used in applications for academic promotions and grants that require evidence of your research impact and engagement.

For examples of how metrics have been articulated in successful grant applications across all discipline areas, refer to the University's Grants Library (UoM login required).

Types of research metrics

Metrics are often considered at the research output or author level, and there are numerous tools available to collect them. The Metrics Toolkit provides more information about specific impact metrics.

If you have questions or would like to discuss the best options for your research metrics, contact your Faculty library liaison team.

Output-level metrics

Examples of traditional or established metrics include:

  • Citation metrics
  • Journal impact metrics
  • Journal rankings

Alternative or emerging metrics include:

  • Online attention scores
  • Policy mentions
  • Engagement metrics (ticket sales, download statistics etc)

Author-level metrics

Examples of traditional or established metrics include:

  • FWCI (Field Weighted Citation Index)
  • CNCI (Category Normalized Citation Impact)
  • h-index

Alternative or emerging metrics could include:

  • Discussion of your work in traditional media outlets
  • Online mentions
  • Reviews of your work

Considerations when using research metrics

The selection of the most appropriate metrics, and the optimum method of presenting those metrics, is dependent on the discipline, the purpose, the context and the specific research being evaluated.

Known issues with research metrics include:

  • Research metrics are not comparable across disciplines
  • No single database is comprehensive in its coverage
  • Quantitative measures (e.g. citation counts) alone are not an indication of research impact and quality
  • Research metrics by themselves lack context (e.g. author’s career stage, career interruptions etc) and can be skewed (e.g. by citation bias, the age of a publication).

The DORA Guidance on the responsible use of quantitative indicators in research assessment (2024) provides a useful and succinct discussion of these issues.