1 Academic and Government Products Group Elsevier Amsterdam The Netherlands L.Colledge@elsevier.com2 CCHS Institute, CSIC Madrid Spain3 University of Extremadura, SCImago Group Spain vicente.p.guerrero.bote@gmail.com4 CSIC Institute of Public Goods and Policies (IPP), Centre of Human and Social Sciences (CCHS) C/ Albasanz 26‐28 3D23 E‐28037 Madrid Spain http://www.ipp.csic.es/ (+34) 610698442 (+34) 91602.2352 carmen.lillescas@cchs.csic.es5 Academic and Government Products Group Elsevier The Netherlands M.Aisati@elsevier.com6 Leiden University The Netherlands H.Moed@elsevier.com
This paper introduces two journal metrics recently endorsed by Elsevier's Scopus: SCImago Journal Rank (SJR) and Source Normalized Impact per Paper (SNIP). SJR weights citations according to the status of the citing journal and aims to measure journal prestige rather than popularity. SNIP compensates for disparities in citation potential and aims to account for differences in topicality across research fields. The paper underlines important points to keep in mind when using journal metrics in general; it presents the main features of the two indicators, comparing them one with another, and with a journal impact measure similar to Thomson Reuters' journal impact factor; and it discusses their potentialities in regard to specific interests of a user and theoretical beliefs about the nature of the concept of journal performance.