Scopus is one of the main databases used by the NRF in the process of its monitoring and evaluation system.
The proliferation of information has only risen over time with the growth of digital media and general use of the internet. Not only has the number of information sources mushroomed, so too have the means of access and dissemination.
There are vast research resources available — from Google to specialised subject databases — and it is not only librarians and information specialists who have to come to terms with the information overload but also students and researchers.
This increase poses a new problem for information seekers, as they have to assess the quality and relevance of all resources available to them.
From a research workflow perspective, scientists and students alike are mainly interested in obtaining the research data they need without getting bogged down by the process of getting that information.
Not surprisingly, these users avoid searches that are too time-consuming but in the process they may unknowingly compromise on the quality of the information they find.
In this regard, the availability of a fast, high-quality online search is not only valuable but also critical for researchers as the scope of information continues to expand. In the world of research, an important resource for many is the abstracting and indexing (A&I) database.
A&I databases have an added value as they can provide quick, top-line overviews of a given subject. The content meets certain quality standards, is enhanced with expert-sourced index terms and made more searchable through robust classifications and thesauri.
Consequently, researchers can access high-quality information that is organised with a high degree of structure, thus making for a more focused and efficient search. This user-driven philosophy underlies every single aspect of Scopus — the largest abstract and citation database of research literature and quality web resources.
It is designed to be quick, comprehensive and up to date so scientists can always count on Scopus for a thorough and focused literature research process.
Increased coverage of arts and humanities
The coverage of arts and humanities in Scopus will almost double in 2009 with the addition of nearly 1 450 new titles.
Scopus users will benefit from broader access to close to 3 500 high-quality, international arts and humanities journals dating back to 2002 in a variety of subject areas including education, history, developmental and educational and social psychology, literature and literary theory, architecture and design.
Why Scopus?
Scopus is the easiest way to get relevant content fast. It has tools to sort, refine and quickly identify results, helping scientists focus on the outcome of their work.
The result: scientists spend less time on mastering the database and more time on research. Through Scopus researchers can easily find out who is citing them, how many citations an article or an author has received, as well as analyse citations for a particular journal issue, volume or year.
A user can quickly use the ‘refine results” function to see the main journals, disciplines and authors that publish in their area of interest.
For further analysis, a user can click on the ‘cited-by” and ‘references” links to track research trends and make connections between disciplines. Many of these features can also support researchers in putting together their grant applications.
More reading leads to more writing
In 2008 a total of 8 336 articles were published by South African institutes — 0.4% of the total article output that year.
From 1996-2001, the rate at which articles were published remained steady, followed by a rapid increase after 2001.
This increase in article publication coincided with an even steeper increase in the number of articles downloaded from Elsevier’s ScienceDirect database (covering about 25% of the world’s peer-reviewed literature).
This activity suggested a strong correlation between the numbers of full text papers downloaded to articles published by South African institutes.
For more information visit info.scopus.com