The Use and Valuation of Journals in Planning Scholarship: Peer Assessment versus Impact Factors

Harvey Goldstein, head of the Department of Public Governance and Management at MODUL University Vienna, and Gunther Maier from WU-Wien have published an article in the Journal of Planning Education and Research that examines whether the subjective value of journals by scholars in the field of planning is related to journal impact factors. Impact factors are based upon incidence of citations of the articles published in a given journal. Goldstein and Maier found that there is no statistical relationship, and urge university administrators to be cautious in using journal impact factors for making personnel decisions and for evaluating the scholarly productivity of academic departments. The article has already attracted a lot of commentary; the journal's editor is devoting a section of the following issue to publishing commentaries on the Goldstein/Maier piece. There will also be a special session at the World Planning Schools Congress in Perth, Australia in July 2011 devoted to the discussion of the article.

To read the article klick on the following link (PDF):

jpe.sagepub.com/content/30/1/66.full.pdf+html

Contact

Prof. Harvey Goldstein, MODUL University Vienna

Department of Public Governance and Management, Am Kahlenberg 1, 1190 Vienna, Austria

harvey.goldstein@modul.ac.at | www.modul.ac.at