Altmetric and bibliometric indicators for academic social networks: Academia.edu & ResearchGate

Background: E-visibility embodies the online presence of a researcher and their research, the researcher’s discoverability, and the accessibility of the research. Academic social networking tools (ASNT) enable the creation of altmetrics for research within these academic online research communities.Objectives: This article reports on the correlations between e-visibility and altmetric-bibliometric indicators on ASNTs (Academia.edu and ResearchGate) for the Environmental Sciences researchers at the University of South Africa.Method: Altmetric and bibliometric indicators were collected from the ASNTs (Academia.edu and ResearchGate) and bibliometric data from the traditional citation resources (Scopus, Web of Science and Google Scholar), as part of a longitudinal study exploring research e-visibility and altmetric-bibliometric trends. Statistical analysis (using Spearman’s rank coefficient) was conducted on the altmetric and bibliometric data to identify the altmetric-bibliometric correlations.Results: The altmetric-bibliometric spearman correlation results show positive correlations that translates to increases in bibliometrics and altmetrics on ASNTs and citation resources.Conclusion: This study is significant as it concludes that altmetric-bibliometric indicators correlate positively and translate to the increase in research e-visibility and it allows for the enhancement of research and societal impact for environmental researchers within a South African context.Contribution: The findings of this study are beneficial to all researchers aiming at increasing their citation counts and enhancing their research- and societal impact. The main contribution of the study is the identification of altmetric-bibliometric correlations. Recommendations for researchers include well-maintained research profiles on ASNTs and citation resources for the increase of research e-visibility and the enhancement of research and societal impact.