Exploring the Local Focus of Science Journals

Scientific journals that focus on national topics have been examined using a unique method. This study looks at data from Scimago Journal Rank, which is based on Scopus. The researchers have come up with a new way to define how nationally focused a journal is. This is based on where the authors are from, if they collaborate internationally, and how many articles a country publishes in total. The study also looks at how these journals have changed over time, up until 2019, and builds on earlier findings. A specific method was used to analyze journals from countries that were once part of the USSR or under socialism in Eastern and Central Europe. The study differentiates between journals that focus on their own country and those that focus on other countries. The study highlights several factors that might affect a journal's national orientation. These include whether the journal is open access or not, the language it is published in, the field of science it covers, international scientific migration and collaboration, how well databases cover these journals, the size of the national research community, historical and political factors, and national policies for assessing and funding research.