Alternative metrics, also known as Altmetrics, are complementary to traditional, citation-based metrics and are used to measure research impact outside traditional scholarly impacts such as citation counts and journal impact.
Altmetrics measure the attention a publication receives online through likes, shares, downloads, and mentions. They demonstrate research dissemination, community engagement, and potential impact through policy mentions and expert commentary. Altmetrics provide insights into where research is being cited, reused and read.
Altmetrics measures the uses of both traditional scholarly communication as well as non-traditional sources such as datasets, programming codes, poster presentations, software, performances, exhibitions etc. It can include:
| Advantages | Disadvantages |
|---|---|
| Measures impact outside research environment - e.g. public adoption | Lack of standards of measurement |
| Available more quickly than traditional metrics | Can be manipulated - e.g. falsely inflated likes |
| Measures non-traditional outputs - e.g. performances, software, datasets | Popular, not research related |
| More granular article-level data | Time-consuming to gather due to the wide range of sources |
|
A broader picture of research impact than just traditional metrics |
Acceptance by the research community |
| Promotes sharing | Lack of comparability across platforms, countries, disciplines and time |
There are a number of Altmetric products available that track and collate alternative metrics such as social media and mass media mentions, shares, likes etc.