I am frustrated with Google Scholar. Specifically, we need citations to get tenure and promotion. It is hard enough to get published and to get those publications cited, then to have to deal with Google Scholar’s algorithms not counting the citations. What is more frustrating is when my cites are counted by Google Scholar and then disappear. Generally, I do not typically complain publicly about online apps. But, I am getting pretty weary of these issues.
Self-cites
Here is a list of my journal and conference publications that include self-cites to my past articles. Google Scholar is not counting these self-cites:
Publications no longer counted
There are also 15 publications authored by other scholars where their citing my publications is no longer counted by Google Scholar. Frustratingly, I once got credit for these, but these cites disappeared in my Google Scholar profile:
| Other scholars’ publications | Citing the following paper that I authored
(but their cite is no longer counted by Google Scholar) |
| 1. Malik (2020), Patent rights and competition law: Conflicts and need for harmonization | Adequacy of the 1995 Antitrust Guidelines for IP Licensing: Commentaries from the 2002 FTC and DOJ Hearings about the Competition and Intellectual Property Law and Policy in the Knowledge-Based Economy, 2004 |
| 2. Rutgers University (2003), Thirty-Fifth Selected Bibliography on Computers, Technology, and the Law (January 2002 Through December 2002) | Adequacy of the 1995 Antitrust Guidelines for the Licensing of Intellectual Property in Complex High-Tech Markets, 2002 |
| 3. McKernan (2005), Intellectual Property v. Antitrust Law an Examination of Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission’s Guidelines Concerning Licensing Intellectual Property | Adequacy of the 1995 Antitrust Guidelines for the Licensing of Intellectual Property in Complex High-Tech Markets, 2002 |
| 4. Sinaga (2019), Involvement of Grower, Supplier and Product innovation in Determining the Business Performance of Malaysian Poultry industry: Moderating Role of Management Skills | HBCU Technology Transfer Supply Chain Networks’ Sustainability: Budget Resource Planning Tool Development, 2017 |
| 5. Bozeman (2013), Technology Transfer Research and Evaluation: Implications for Federal Laboratory Practice
|
University Technology Transfer and Economic Development: Proposed Cooperative Economic Development Agreements under the Bayh-Dole Act, 2003 |
| 6. Stephen (2010), Asian initiatives on Bayh-Dole with Special Reference to India
|
University Technology Transfer and Economic Development: Proposed Cooperative Economic Development Agreements under the Bayh-Dole Act, 2003 |
| 7. Kay (2010), Extending Tort Liability to Creators of Fake Profiles on Social Networking Websites
|
University Technology Transfer and Economic Development: Proposed Cooperative Economic Development Agreements under the Bayh-Dole Act, 2003 |
| 8. Nair (2009), Protection and Use of Publicly Funded Intellectual Property
|
University Technology Transfer and Economic Development: Proposed Cooperative Economic Development Agreements under the Bayh-Dole Act, 2003 |
| 9. National Academies Press (2007), Rising Above Gathering Storm Energizing and Employing America for A Brighter Economic Future | University Technology Transfer and Economic Development: Proposed Cooperative Economic Development Agreements under the Bayh-Dole Act, 2003 |
| 10. US Congress, US House of Representatives Committee on Science & Technology (2005), Science, Technology and Global Economic Competitiveness: Hearing Before the Committee on Science, House of Reps 109th Congress | University Technology Transfer and Economic Development: Proposed Cooperative Economic Development Agreements under the Bayh-Dole Act, 2003 |
| 11. Hyndman (2005), Technology Transfer What India Can Learn
|
University Technology Transfer and Economic Development: Proposed Cooperative Economic Development Agreements under the Bayh-Dole Act, 2003 |
| 12. Bloomberg (2004), Federal funded inventions and Bayh Dole Act compliance
|
University Technology Transfer and Economic Development: Proposed Cooperative Economic Development Agreements under the Bayh-Dole Act, 2003 |
| 13. Furniss (2004), Amici Curiae University of Rochester, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. G.D. Searle & Co., inc., Monsanto Company, Pharmacia Corporation, and Pfizer inc., Defendants-Appellees, 358 F.3d 916 (Fed. Cir. 2004) | University Technology Transfer and Economic Development: Proposed Cooperative Economic Development Agreements under the Bayh-Dole Act, 2003 |
| 14. Duh (2017), Patent ownership of R&D funded by the government focusing on the university teacher relationship
|
University Technology Transfer and Economic Development: Proposed Cooperative Economic Development Agreements under the Bayh-Dole Act, 2003 |
| 15. Schmidt (2019), Socially Responsible Learning in the Digital Age: A Literature Review
|
Preparing Millennials as Digital Citizens and Socially and Environmentally Responsible Business Professionals in a Socially Irresponsible Climate, 2018 |
And there is more!
Librarians helped me find more citations. Many scholars in China and other countries have cited my publications over the years and Google Scholar are not citing these:
| My research publications | Others citing my research |
| A comparative analysis of the EU GDPR to the US’s breach notifications, 2019 | Selle (2020), The Data breach Notification Obligation in the GDPR: Assessing the interpretative and Practical Problems posed by the Obligation, Master’s Thesis, University of Oslo |
| Adequacy of the 1995 Antitrust Guidelines for the Licensing of Intellectual Property in Complex High-Tech Markets, 2002 | Chang, Aileen
Chapter 2 mobile phone product structure
|
| Adequacy of the 1995 Antitrust Guidelines for the Licensing of Intellectual Property in Complex High-Tech Markets, 2002 | Chang, Aileen (2006) |
| Adequacy of the 1995 Antitrust Guidelines for the Licensing of Intellectual Property in Complex High-Tech Markets, 2002 | Chen, Andy (2004)
The Current and Future Regulation of Predatory Conduct – An Evaluation Under the New Economy System |
| Adequacy of the 1995 Antitrust Guidelines for the Licensing of Intellectual Property in Complex High-Tech Markets, 2002 | Gözlükaya, Fatma (2005)
Teknoloji Transferi Sözleşmeleri Ve İlgili Rekabet İncelemesinin Ekonomik Ve Hukuki Unsurlari (Technology Transfer Agreements Turkish Competition Authority) Gozlukaya 2005 technology transfer agreements Turkish competition authority Master’s Thesis |
| Adequacy of the 1995 Antitrust Guidelines for the Licensing of Intellectual Property in Complex High-Tech Markets, 2002 | McKernan, Francis (2005) |
| Adequacy of the 1995 Antitrust Guidelines for the Licensing of Intellectual Property in Complex High-Tech Markets, 2002 | Zhimin, Chen |
| Adequacy of the 1995 Antitrust Guidelines for the Licensing of Intellectual Property in Complex High-Tech Markets, 2002 | Luo Jing (2008)
Legislation Regulation of Antimonopoly law on intellectual property license Hunan University Thesis |
| Adequacy of the 1995 Antitrust Guidelines for the Licensing of Intellectual Property in Complex High-Tech Markets, 2002 | Yi, Wang (2008)
Master’s Thesis |
| High-Tech Transportation Corridors Are in Vogue: Proposed Federal Transportation Policy Amendments, 2004 | Kang, Heon (2007)
The Study on Patent Protection of Nanotechnology 나노기술의 특허보호에 관한 연구
|
| Preparing Millennials as Digital Citizens and Socially and Environmentally Responsible Business Professionals in a Socially Irresponsible Climate, 2018 | Ikechukwu, Eleba Victor
Eke, Pau (2019) |
| University Technology Transfer and Economic Development: Proposed Cooperative Economic Development Agreements Under the Bayh-Dole Act, 2003 | Ping, Wang Tai (2009)
On the Public Policy of Intellectual Property Ping Wang Tai on the public policy of Intellectual property |
| University Technology Transfer and Economic Development: Proposed Cooperative Economic Development Agreements Under the Bayh-Dole Act, 2003 | Wu, Chen (2009)
In Chinese Thesis Management School Huazong University of Science & Technology in Wuhan |
| University Technology Transfer and Economic Development: Proposed Cooperative Economic Development Agreements Under the Bayh-Dole Act, 2003 | Wang Shujun (2015)
Study university patents public interest perspectives Thesis
|
Energy Consumption
Being frustrated with Google Scholar is energy consuming. In fact, Google Scholar shows that I have only 70 cites. I should have at least 94 when these errors are corrected. I count even more because there are cites to urban planning studies that I have worked on which Google Scholar has not counted.
Clovia Hamilton Google Scholar profile
Here is more frustration
Moreover, I contacted Google Scholar a long time ago and they sent an email stating that this problem is due to broken links somewhere. I contacted repositories of my publications and was told that there are no broken links. In fact, you can read countless posts in Quora, Stack Exchange, Academia and ResearchGate about these issues. Interestingly, it is not just a problem I am facing. This has been a pervasive problem for many years. We can point these errors out and Google Scholar’s staff does not seem willing to go into their system and manually make corrections. In my opinion, if their algorithm does not pick this up, then tough.
What Google Scholar needs to do!
I think Google Scholar needs to do much more for scholars to ensure that our counts are correct. Particularly, the founding vision for Google was to create a library of sorts. Scholars are key to any library of publications. Academics deserve more care and attention from Google. Scholars are not just frustrated with Google Scholar. In fact, this dilemma is closely related to recent complaints about Facebook. The concern is over Facebook allegedly putting profit over people.
Well, there are several authors who have stated that Google Scholar is a low priority for Google because it is not revenue generating. Further, there are no paid for ads on the site. So, Google’s staff does not put as much energy into the site. I experienced this because I would either get no reply or I would get the message that there are broken links somewhere that are out of Google’s control. Google can do better.
#Google_frustrates_scholars
By Dr. Clovia Hamilton
Assistant Professor
Department of Technology and Society
SUNY Korea