Comparing Web of Science, Scopus and Google Scholar from an Environmental Sciences perspective

• Main Authors: Leslie S. Adriaanse, Chris Rensleigh
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Stellenbosch University 2011-01-01
• Series: South African Journal of Libraries and Information Science
• Subjects: Web of Science; Scopus; Google Scholar; citation resources; citation resource comparison
• Online Access: http://sajlis.journals.ac.za/pub/article/view/58

This paper presents a macro- and micro-level comparison of the citation resources Web of Science (WOS), Scopus and Google Scholar (GS) for the environmental sciences scholarly journals in South Africa during 2004-2008. The macro-level measuring instruments consisted of 26 evaluation criteria with the following broad categories: content, access, services, interface, searching, search results, cost, citation and analytical tools, and linking abilities. The micro-level measuring instrument’s evaluation criteria represented the data fields of the journal records to establish comprehensivity. The macro-level evaluation results indicated that Scopus surpassed both WOS and GS whereas the micro-level evaluation results indicated that WOS surpassed both Scopus and GS. Based on the macro- and micro-level evaluation results the study was able to establish that GS is not yet a substitute but rather a supplementary citation resource for the fee-based WOS and/or Scopus for the South African international accredited scholarly environmental sciences journals during the period 2004-2008.