In the scientific field, various metrics and indicators are used to help assess the ranking and quality of a publication, as well as the author's authority. Today, we will take a closer look at two such indicators – quartile and percentile.
One of the key scientometric indicators in the scientific field is the quartile and percentile. Often they are mistakenly identified or considered interchangeable, although this is not entirely true. In this article, we will look at what quartile and percentile are.
What is a quartile?
Quartile is a scientometric indicator that indicates the level of influence of a publication within a database. In addition to influence, the journal quartile reflects the level of popularity of the journal among the relevant indexing category. This indicator allows us to classify journals into 4 equal groups depending on their bibliometric indicators.
The quartile is denoted by the letter "Q".
What are the groups of journals by quartile?
When classifying journals by quartile, there are four equal groups.
- Q1 – the first group includes the most authoritative, prestigious and influential journals. Manuscripts submitted to journals in this category undergo a strict and lengthy review and peer review procedure. In addition, authors have to pay rather high publication fees to publish in such journals.
- Q2 – journals in this group have a lower ranking than those in the first group, but still receive high praise from the international scientific community.
- Q3 – journals in the Q3 quartile are the most popular among scientists publishing their first research papers. Publications in journals of this group are recognised and counted for most scientific purposes in almost every country.
- Q4 – the Q4 group includes journals that have recently been included in the scientometric database and have not yet gained significant authority. This category also includes journals whose rankings have deteriorated.
What is a percentile?
A percentile is an indicator that indicates the ranking of a publication in its subject area. It has a numerical expression from 1 to 99, with no percentile of 100. For example, if the percentile score is 99, it means that the journal is in the top 1% in its subject area.
Can a journal have multiple quartiles and percentiles?
Yes, one and the same publication can have different quartile and percentile indicators due to different categories of knowledge and the specifics of indexing in scientometric databases.
For example, if a publication is indexed in the Scopus database and publishes articles in several disciplines, it is considered multidisciplinary. In this case, articles from one discipline may be indexed as Q3 and from another as Q1. Accordingly, the percentiles may also differ.
The quartile and percentile scientometric indicators are important for choosing a journal to publish research. They allow us to assess the authority of the publication in the relevant scientific field and the impact of its publications. When choosing a journal, authors pay attention to such scientometric indicators as quartile and percentile. It is important to remember that the higher the percentile, the more prestigious the journal is for publishing your research. Publications with the Q1-Q2 quartile are considered the most influential and popular in their category.
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