Research evaluation support tools
ARCA University Catalogue
The ARCA University Catalogue is the institutional repository of Ca' Foscari research products. It has been active since 2015 and has been enriched, over time, with tools dedicated to the monitoring and self-evaluation of scientific production by University researchers.
Consultation through the following functions (accessible from the ARCA menu under "Products" > "Reporting and analysis"):
- Research products: this function extracts detailed information on the publications of the Catalogue which include in particular, in addition to all available metadata:
- the citation and impact values of the individual publications obtained from the Web of Science and Scopus databases, such as: number of citations; positioning of the single contribution and the journal in the subject categories of reference; Impact Factor and 5-year Impact Factor; SNIP, CITESCORE, SJR weighted and non-weighted values
- the listing of the journal in the ANVUR lists of “Scientific” and “Class A” journals, with the possibility of refining the result by cross-referencing it with the competition sector of the authors of the article.
- ASN 2018-2020 Simulation: this function simulates the positioning of ARCA users with reference to the ASN (National Scientific Qualification) thresholds envisaged for the qualifications of Associate and Full Professor and Commissioner, using the data recorded in the Catalogue. The report simulates the indicators relating to the ASN 2020, on the basis of the subject area of the individual researcher. The tool provides a detailed report of the publications considered for the purpose of calculating the indicators and any causes of exclusion of the products from the count of the useful publications.
Further information on the ARCA University Catalogue and the management of its publications are available on the platform introduction page [ITA].
CRUI-UniBas Evaluation support system
Ca' Foscari has adopted the CRUI-UniBas support system for the evaluation of scientific production as a tool of internal monitoring of scientific production and support for national evaluation procedures.
The System calculates aggregate indicators based on the products registered in the ARCA University Catalogue. The evaluation models available are borrowed from those adopted by ANVUR in the context of national research evaluation procedures, e.g. the ASN and FFABR parameters for bibliometric and non-bibliometric areas and the “VQR-Like” model for bibliometric areas only.
It is also possible to perform comparative assessments comparing the University indicators (defined by Department, Area, Subject and Competition Sector) with the aggregated indicators calculated using the data on scientific production of all the Universities that use the System.
The system operates through “evaluation rounds”, during which it acquires data from the ARCA Catalogue. At the end of the evaluation session, the status of the metadata is frozen and no further acquisitions are made from the Catalogue. On the basis of the data acquired during the round, the indicators are then calculated that consider the data of all the universities participating in the project.
Calendar of evaluation sessions: the system normally foresees the management of two evaluation sessions per year. By accessing the system, you can consult the results of the last simulation performed.
For further information, please contact: Research Area - Quality of Research and Third Mission office.
SciVal
SciVal is a tool of quantitative analysis and evaluation of scientific production developed by Elsevier and based on the Scopus database, aimed at supporting the strategic decisions of research bodies in the area of planning scientific research.
SciVal provides several continuously expanding bibliometric indicators, including in particular: the number of publications surveyed, the number of citations, the percentile of a publication in terms of citation, the percentile of the journal in which a particular article is published according to bibliometric indicators (CiteScore, SJR, SNIP and many others).
The SciVal platform also identifies known international collaborations and indicates new ones, highlighting at the same time the research areas in which the individual works are found and those the scholar can look to for future developments.
SciVal is organized into five integrated modules (Overview; Benchmarking; Collaboration; Trends; Reporting) which provide different points of view on the data of the University's scientific production. Of these, Ca' Foscari has activated the following four modules:
Overview (high level view on metrics)
The module gives access to complete summaries of the scientific production of any institution/entity of interest, through which to identify rapidly their strengths and the research areas in which they are involved. In particular:
- it immediately retrieves standardized reports
- it accesses the expertise maps for all institutions and groups of institutions
- it highlights the topics preferred by the institutions, providing a complete overview of their scientific portfolio.
Benchmarking (detailed analysis and comparison among institutions)
The module compares the performance of any institution, country and predefined group, or creates customized groupings, monitoring their progress over time. It is possible to carry out in-depth analysis based on any combination of thematic and metric areas, thus identifying the strengths and weaknesses of the University in the research areas in which it is involved.
Collaboration (analysis of national and international collaborations)
The module identifies and analyses existing and potential collaborations based on the categories of publications and those who cite these publications. In particular:
- it explores current and potential partnerships using customizable maps
- it identifies the best institutions with which to collaborate, based on the analysis of existing co-authored publications and research topics of interest.
Reporting (creation of personalized reports)
The module creates and modifies the analysis, acting on the entities considered, the time intervals and the metrics of interest, producing reporting documents that can be shared with the internal Ca’ Foscari stakeholders.
Last update: 26/05/2023