Digital Research Report: Evidence for excellence: has the signal overtaken the substance? An analysis of journal articles submitted to RAE2008

A massive volume and diversity of data is associated with research. Most people are familiar with analyses of publications and citations (bibliometrics), especially around research performance benchmarking. They are aware that such analyses have both limitations and flaws and are often misused. But performance is only one part of the publication story and bibliometrics are only one part of the data portfolio.

This report looks at what publication analysis can tell us about other aspects of researcher activity and behaviour, such as collaboration and interdisciplinarity. It looks at what researchers choose to submit for assessment compared to what they say best represents leading research in their field.