Eye of the research metrics storm: Libraries are the leading force for demonstrating impact

In the 21st century, librarians are assuming a greater role as research partners, becoming part of the research process from start to finish. This – along with their position at the hub of research activities in their institution – puts librarians in a unique position to help researchers understand their scholarly impact.

“One of the big changes with respect to research librarians these days is that scholars are increasingly seeing them as part of the process,” says John Palfrey, co-founder of Digital Public Library of America and Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet and Society, and head of the Philips Academy. “And then, increasingly, librarians can be helpful in terms of assessing the outcome of the research as well.”

Librarians can help with this in both quantitative and qualitative ways.

Numbers and repositories

Librarians have access to tools which can give researchers quantitative data on their impact. Metrics like numbers of citations and downloads help people understand exactly how much their work is being used and accessed. And because librarians are intimately connected to the research process, they can use these insights to help researchers increase that impact.

Institutional repositories increase access to these metrics. These university-run databases are usually organized by the library and feature work by that particular institution’s researchers.

Because librarians have access to metrics and citation data, they can help researchers better understand the impact that research has had. This is more than just raw numbers. Understanding the different ways research has been cited can give researchers insight into what types of researchers and publications are interested in their work, and help them better hone their projects for higher impact.“That’s a measure of success that researchers simply didn’t have before the Internet existed,” says Palfrey. “And librarians are very often the ones who are making that possible.”

Qualitative impact evaluation

Because librarians are both research hubs and long-term partners for individual researchers, Palfrey emphasizes that they’re also in a unique position to give qualitative feedback about impact. Understanding exactly what makes a research project valuable to other researchers is as important as knowing numbers of citations.

“There are qualitative types of outcomes that relate to the impact of the research such as what other researchers have been affected by the research in a positive way,” Palfrey says. “And I think librarians are really good human connectors in that way and can help scholars understand the reach of their work.”

He says this is simply because librarians often know things that scholars don’t. They’re central research partners for multiple groups of researchers – people come to them for information and advice. This not only helps librarians form connections between people, but also helps them understand how their research fits together, and the impact of one on another.

Palfrey stresses the research partnership as a key aspect of library work in the modern age. When they participate in the research process, librarians bring a unique perspective and way of thinking to every aspect of scholarship. Because they are partners, they then understand and can explain the relevance of various metrics and impact measures, which can inform how best to proceed to maximize that impact in the future.

“In a thriving intellectual community, librarians stand at a crossroads where lots of scholars gather,” says Palfrey. “And I think librarians are the nonpartisans in the discussion, able to connect people and understand things from the perspective of the life of the mind. That’s a very powerful place to be.”