2018/06/01 by Iman Tahamtan, Lutz Bornmann, Tahamtan, Iman +1 · 2 citations
Decision Sciences · #Digital Libraries (cs.DL) #FOS: Computer and information sciences #Information Theory (cs.IT) #scientometrics and bibliometrics research
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1806.00224
openalex publication_date 2018/06/01 · openalex created_date 2022/10/03 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Several authors have proposed that a large number of unusual combinations of\ncited references in a paper point to its high creative potential (or novelty).\nHowever, it is still not clear whether the number of unusual combinations can\nreally measure the creative potential of papers. The current study addresses\nthis question on the basis of several case studies from the field of\nscientometrics. We identified some landmark papers in this field. Study\nsubjects were the corresponding authors of these papers. We asked them where\nthe ideas for the papers came from and which role the cited publications\nplayed. The results revealed that the creative ideas might not necessarily have\nbeen inspired by past publications. The literature seems to be important for\nthe contextualization of the idea in the field of scientometrics. Instead, we\nfound that creative ideas are the result of finding solutions to practical\nproblems, result from discussions with colleagues, and profit from\ninterdisciplinary exchange. The roots of the studied landmark papers are\ndiscussed in detail.\n