Google Scholar is manipulatable
Abstract
Citations are widely considered in scientists' evaluation. As such, scientists may be incentivized to inflate their citation counts. While previous literature has examined self-citations and citation cartels, it remains unclear whether scientists can purchase citations. Here, we compile a dataset of ~1.6 million profiles on Google Scholar to examine instances of citation fraud on the platform. We survey faculty at highly-ranked universities, and confirm that Google Scholar is widely used when evaluating scientists. Intrigued by a citation-boosting service that we unravelled during our investigation, we contacted the service while undercover as a fictional author, and managed to purchase 50 citations. These findings provide conclusive evidence that citations can be bought in bulk, and highlight the need to look beyond citation counts.
- Publication:
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arXiv e-prints
- Pub Date:
- February 2024
- DOI:
- 10.48550/arXiv.2402.04607
- arXiv:
- arXiv:2402.04607
- Bibcode:
- 2024arXiv240204607I
- Keywords:
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- Computer Science - Computational Engineering;
- Finance;
- and Science;
- Computer Science - Digital Libraries;
- Computer Science - Social and Information Networks;
- Physics - Physics and Society