Bibliometric Analysis of Highly Cited and General Papers in Computer Science Field

The purpose of this study is to explore the characteristics of highly cited papers and general papers in computer science field, and papers with Taiwan authors are also analyzed. The characteristics, explored by bibliometric techniques, include primary characteristics, collaboration, and obsolescence. The research papers, from 1996 to 2006, are taken from the Essential Science Indicators (ESI) database and the Web of Science (WOS) database. The results of this study suggest that highly cited papers, mainly published by American and European countries, are cited earlier than general papers. The collaboration rate as well as the international collaboration rate of highly cited papers are higher than those of general papers. Moreover, highly cited papers are cited continually; however, citations of general papers decrease rapidly. In addition, the rank of highly cited papers with Taiwan authors is inferior to that of general papers with Taiwan authors. That is to say, the quality of papers in Taiwan needs to be improved.