RESEARCH ARTICLE

A comprehensive analysis of the journal
evaluation system in China

Ying Huang1,2

, Ruinan Li1

, Lin Zhang1,2

, and Gunnar Sivertsen3

1School of Information Management, Wuhan University, 中国
2Centre for R&D Monitoring (ECOOM) and Dept. MSI, KU Leuven, 比利时
3Nordic Institute for Studies in Innovation, Research and Education, Tøyen, Oslo, Norway

关键词: bibliometrics, journal evaluation, peer review, science journal

抽象的

Journal evaluation systems reflect how new insights are critically reviewed and published, 和
the prestige and impact of a discipline’s journals is a key metric in many research assessment,
performance evaluation, and funding systems. With the expansion of China’s research and
innovation systems and its rise as a major contributor to global innovation, journal evaluation has
become an especially important issue. 在本文中, we first describe the history and background
of journal evaluation in China and then systematically introduce and compare the most currently
influential journal lists and indexing services. These are the Chinese Science Citation Database
(CSCD), the Journal Partition Table ( JPT), the AMI Comprehensive Evaluation Report (AMI), 这
Chinese S&T Journal Citation Report (CJCR), “A Guide to the Core Journals of China” (GCJC),
the Chinese Social Sciences Citation Index (CSSCI), and the World Academic Journal Clout
Index ( WAJCI). Some other influential lists produced by government agencies, 专业的
协会, and universities are also briefly introduced. Through the lens of these systems, 我们
provide comprehensive coverage of the tradition and landscape of the journal evaluation system
in China and the methods and practices of journal evaluation in China with some comparisons
to how other countries assess and rank journals.

介绍

China is among the many countries where the career prospects of researchers, 部分地, depend on
the journals in which they publish. Knowledge of which journals are considered prestigious and
which are of dubious quality is critical to the scientific community for assessing the standing of a
research institution, tenure decisions, grant funding, performance evaluations, ETC.

The process of journal evaluation dates back to Gross and Gross (1927), who postulated that
the number of citations one journal receives over another similar journal suggests something
about its importance to the field. Shortly after, the British mathematician, librarian, and documen-
talist Samuel C. Bradford published his study on publications in geophysics and lubrication. 这
paper presented the concept of “core-area journals” and an empirical law that would, 经过 1948,
become Bradford’s well-known law of scattering (Bradford, 1934, 1984). 反过来, Bradford influ-
enced Eugene Garfield of the United States, who subsequently published a groundbreaking paper
on citation indexing called “Citation Indexes for Science: A New Dimension in Documentation
through Association of Ideas.” According to Garfield (1955), “the citation index … may help a
historian to measure the influence of an article—that is, its ‘impact factor’.” In the 1960s, Garfield

开放访问

杂志

引文: 黄, Y。, 李, R。, 张, L。, &
Sivertsen, G. (2020). A comprehensive
analysis of the journal evaluation
system in China. Quantitative Science
学习, 2(1), 300–326. https://doi.org
/10.1162/qss_a_00103

DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1162/qss_a_00103

已收到: 30 四月 2020
公认: 18 九月 2020

通讯作者:
Lin Zhang
linzhang1117@whu.edu.cn

处理编辑器:
Liying Yang

版权: © 2020 Ying Huang, Ruinan
李, Lin Zhang, and Gunnar Sivertsen.
在知识共享下发布
归因 4.0 国际的 (抄送 4.0)
执照.

麻省理工学院出版社

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A comprehensive analysis of the journal evaluation system in China

conducted a large-scale statistical analysis of citations in the literature, reaching the conclusion
that many citations were concentrated in just a few journals and the many remaining journals
only accounted for a few citations (Garfield, 1963, 1964). Garfield went on to create the
Institute for Scientific Information (ISI), then successively published the Science Citation Index
(SCI), the Social Science Citation Index (SSCI), and the Art and Humanities Citation Index
(A&人机交互) databases.

Assessing the quality of published research output is important in all contexts where research
assessment takes place—for example, when evaluating the success of research projects or when
distributing research funding (Su, Shang et al., 2017). As part of the assessment, evaluating and
ranking the quality of the journals where the output was published has become increasingly
重要的 (Mingers & 哪个, 2017). Journal evaluation and rankings are used by governments,
组织, 大学, 学校, and departments to evaluate the quality and quantity of fac-
ulty research productivity, ranging from promotion and tenure to monetary rewards (黑色的,
Stainbank et al., 2017). Even though the merit of using such a system is not universally agreed
之上 (Dobson, 2014), and is sometimes even contested (张, Rousseau, & Sivertsen, 2017), 它
是, 然而, widely believed that the rank or citation impact of a journal is supposed to reflect its
prestige, influence, and even difficulty of having a paper accepted for publication (Su et al.,
2017).

Over the past few years, the number of papers published in international journals by Chinese
researchers has seen a dramatic increase, to the point that, 今天, China is the largest contributor
to international journals covered by Web of Science ( WoS) and Scopus. In tandem, 政府
policies and guidance, especially the call to “publish your best work in your motherland to
benefit local society,” proposed by President Xi in 20161, are seeing more and more papers
published in China’s domestic journals. 所以, with these increases in the number of papers
and journals, it will be an important task to explore the strengths and weaknesses of various
methods for evaluating journals as well as the types of ranking systems that may be suitable
for China’s national conditions.

The journal evaluation system in China was established gradually, beginning with the intro-
duction of Western journal evaluation theories about 60 几年前. Over the last 30 年, 在
特别的, these foreign theories have been adopted, adapted, researched, and vigorously rede-
veloped. 在过去, journal evaluation and selection results were mainly used to help librarians
develop their collections and to help readers better identify a discipline’s core journals. 然而,
in recent years, the results of journal evaluation and ranking have increasingly been applied to
scientific research evaluation and management (IE。, in tenure decisions, grant funding, 和每-
formance evaluations). (Shu, Quan et al., 2020). Many institutions are increasingly relying on
journal impact factors ( JIFs) to evaluate papers and researchers. This is commonly referred to
in China as “evaluating a paper based on the journal and ranking list” (以刊评文，Yi Kan Ping
Wen). The higher the journal’s rank and JIF, the higher the expected outcome of evaluations.

In the ever-changing environment of scientific research evaluation, the research and practice
of journal evaluation in China is also evolving to meet different needs. Many influential journal
evaluations and indexing systems have been established since the 1990s, with their evaluation
methods and standards becoming increasingly mature. These activities have played a positive
role in promoting the development of scientific research and have also been helpful for improving
the quality of academic journals.

1 http://www.xinhuanet.com//politics/2016-05/31/c_1118965169.htm

Quantitative Science Studies

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A comprehensive analysis of the journal evaluation system in China

The aim of this study is to review the progress of journal evaluation in China and present a
comprehensive analysis of the current state of the art. 因此, the main body of this article is a
comparative analysis of the journal lists that are most influential in China’s academic landscape.
The results not only offer a deeper understanding of China’s journal evaluation methods and
practices but also reveal some insights into the journal evaluation activities of other countries.
全面的, our aim is to make a valuable contribution to improving the theory and practice of
journal evaluation and to promote the sustainable and healthy development of journal manage-
ment and evaluation systems, both in China and abroad.

JOURNAL EVALUATION IN CHINA

2.1. A Brief History

Journal evaluation in China dates back to the 1960s, with some fairly distinct stages during its
发展. Qiyu Zhang and Enguang Wang first introduced the Science Citation Index
(SCI) to Chinese readers in 1964 (张, 2015). 在 1973, Erzhong Wu introduced a core journal
list for chemistry. This was the first mention of the concept of a “core journal” (吴, 1973). 在
1982, Liansheng Meng finished his Master’s thesis entitled “Chinese science citation analysis”
(猛, 1982), 进而, 在 1989, he built the Chinese Science Citation Index (CSCI), now called
the Chinese Science Citation Database (CSCD), with the support of the Documentation and
Information Center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. At this stage of development, 内部-
tional journal evaluation practices were simply applied to the Chinese context almost without
making any changes to the underlying methodologies. 同时, exploring bibliometric
laws and potential applications became an important topic for researchers in library and infor-
mation science.

在 1988, Jing and Xian used the “citation method” to identify a list of “Chinese Natural Science
Core Journals,” which included 104 core Chinese journals in the natural sciences. This is now
typically recognized as the first Chinese journal list (Jing & Xian, 1988). Around that same time,
some institutions began to undertake journal evaluation activities. 例如, 在 1987, 这
Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (ISTIC) (commissioned by the Ministry
of Science and Technology—formerly the National Scientific and Technological Commission)
began to analyze publications in the SCI, the Index to Scientific Reviews (ISR), and the Index to
Scientific&Technical Proceeding (ISTP), 并在 1989 it began selecting domestic scientific journals
for analysis. During this process, 1,189 journals were selected from 3,025 scientific journals
nationwide as statistical sources of journal selection, which have been adjusted annually ever
自从 (Qian, 2006). 因此, this second stage of development saw the beginnings of adapting
international evaluation systems and approaches to local journals, and some institutions building
their own citation and bibliographic indexes.

From the 1990s onwards, journal evaluation activities moved on to rapid development with
equal emphasis on theoretical research and practical applications. On the theoretical side,
bibliometric researchers and information scientists were engaged in developing more advanced
evaluation methods and better indicators. The theories and methods of journal evaluation spread
from the natural sciences to the social sciences and humanities (SSH). In terms of practical appli-
阳离子, more and more researchers in the library and information science fields began to depart
from individual research agendas and move into joint working groups and professional evalua-
tion institutions to promote journal evaluation practices. The number of journal lists burgeoned as
出色地. Some combined “quantitative” methods and “qualitative” approaches, 例如 “A Guide to
the Core Journals of China” (GCJC) by the Peking University Library and the Chinese Social
Sciences Citation Index (CSSCI) from the China Social Sciences Research Center of Nanjing

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A comprehensive analysis of the journal evaluation system in China

大学. Others were proposed by joint working groups and research institutions, and these
lists began to be used to support scientific research evaluation and management.

总体上, these advances in methods and standards played a positive role in promoting
the quality of academic journals. 然而, 随着时间的推移, JIFs have tended to become a proxy for the
quality of the papers and authors published within their pages (IE。, “evaluating a paper based on
the journal and ranking list” [以刊评文，Yi Kan Ping Wen]). This phenomenon has been causing
a wide debate nationwide, with many calling for papers to be judged by their content, 不由
their wrapping (张等人。, 2017). 在这方面, the number of solutions proposed to improve
the standards of journal selection and to avoid improper or even misleading use continues to
乘.

2.2. Motivations for Performing Journal Evaluation in China

Advances in science and technology and the rapid growth of scientific research have brought a
change in the way that journals are evaluated. 最初, the assessments were reader oriented,
serving as a guide for journal audiences to understand research trends and developments in the
various disciplines. 之后, greater focus was placed on the needs of libraries and other organiza-
系统蒸发散. English core journals were translated into Chinese and introduced to China to ensure better
use of the most valuable journals with limited funds and to optimize the journal collections of
China’s libraries.

然而, with the rapid development of information network technology and the populari-
zation of reading on screen, electronic journal databases are having an unprecedented impact on
journal subscriptions. 更远, early use of journal evaluation systems by pioneering institutions
has spread beyond the library and information science community. 今天, journal evaluations
are inextricably tied to many aspects of assessing research performance.

The Journal Citation Reports ( JCR), an annual publication by Clarivate, contains a relatively
transparent data set for calculating JIFs and citation-based performance metrics at the article and
the journal level. 更远, JCR clearly outlines a network of references that represent the journal’s
voice in the global scholarly dialog, highlighting the institutional and international players who
are part of the journal’s community. 然而, many journals selected for inclusion in JCR are
from English-speaking countries, 如表所示 1. To fulfill a growing demand to extend the
universe of journals in JCR, the WoS platform launched the Emerging Sources Citation Index
(ESCI) in November 2015. 然而, ESCI has also done very little to promote journals from
non-English-speaking countries and regions (黄, Zhu et al., 2017). Although English is the

桌子 1.

The top 10 countries with the highest journal numbers in JCR 2019

国家
美国

英国

荷兰

德国

瑞士

Number of journals
in JCR 2019
4135

Number of
出版物
470,953

2864

929

721

278

146,734

49,135

127,881

47,005

国家
日本

中国

法国

澳大利亚

俄罗斯

Data Source: Web of Science Group (2019).

笔记: Some journals in the portfolio of international publishers have no genuine national affiliation.

Quantitative Science Studies

Number of journals
in JCR 2019
248

Number of
出版物
88,507

221

192

159

151

497,802

83,152

82,132

44,165

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A comprehensive analysis of the journal evaluation system in China

数字 1. 这 10 countries with the largest number of publications in WoS (1975–2019).
笔记: Indexes = SCIE, SSCI, A&HCI; Document types = article, review.

working language of the international scientific community, 出于很多原因, it is not a wise
choice for researchers to only publish their scholarly contributions in English. Building domestic
evaluation systems turns out to be very necessary for fostering domestic collaborations, appropri-
ately evaluating research performance, and keeping up with research trends close to home.

而且, China’s economy is growing rapidly and, along with it, the country’s scientific
activity is also flourishing. 如图 1 节目, China’s scientific research inputs and outputs have
consistently increased over the past few decades, exceeding that of the United States in 2019 到
become the most productive country in the world. With such a large number of papers, 工作
of researchers cannot be assessed without shortcuts. 因此, for want of a better system, the quality
of the journals in which a researcher’s papers are published has become a proxy for evaluating the
quality of the researcher themselves, and ways to define “core journals” and how to select those
indexed journals have attracted wide attention, especially from the Chinese government.

此外, national policies, such as those listed in Table 2, are now playing a vital role in
these evaluation activities. Early in China’s history of journal evaluation, the policies implemented
were designed to support the development of some influential journals across the natural and social
科学. 最近, 然而, the government’s policies have sought to reverse the excessive
emphasis that has come to be placed on the volume of a researcher’s output and the JIF of their
venues (张 & Sivertsen, 2020). Research institutions and universities are now being encouraged
to adopt a more comprehensive evaluation method that combines qualitative and quantitative
methods and pays more attention to the quality, contribution, and impact of a researcher’s master-
片. 因此, more indicators are being taken into account and, upon these, a culture more con-
ducive to exploration is being established that does not prioritize SCI/SSCI/A&HCI journals to the
exclusion of all else.

3. THE LEADING JOURNAL EVALUATION SYSTEMS OF ACADEMIC JOURNALS IN CHINA

Through these three stages of development, multiple institutions in China have established
comprehensive journal evaluation systems that combine quantitative and qualitative methods
and a variety of different indicators, many of which have had a significant influence on scien-
tific research activities. 因此, what follows is a comparison of the current journal indexes in
中国. These are the CSCD and the Journal Partition Table ( JPT) from the National Science
Library, Chinese Academy of Sciences (NSLC); the AMI journal list from the Chinese
Academy of Social Sciences Evaluation Studies (CASSES); the Chinese S&T Journal Citation

Quantitative Science Studies

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A comprehensive analysis of the journal evaluation system in China

不.
1

桌子 2.

The related policies about journal evaluation in China (selected)

Policy document name

Authority

Implementation plan of the project of the famous journals of
philosophy and social sciences in colleges and universities

MOE

Some opinions on the role of S&T journals in the academic

评估

Several opinions on further strengthening scientific integrity

The opinions on deepening reform in review and evaluation of

项目, talent and institutions

CAST; MOE; SAPPRFT

(现在, NRTA); CAS; CAE

General Office of the CPC

Central Committee; GOSC

General Office of the CPC

Central Committee; GOSC

Some measures to eliminate the bad orientation of “papers only”

MOST

in science and technology evaluation (审判)

日期
2003.11.06

2015.11.03

2018.05.30

2018.07.03

2020.02.17

Some suggestions on standardizing the use of sci paper indexes

MOE; MOST

2020.02.18

in higher educational institutes and establishing correct
evaluation orientation

笔记: Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China (MOE); China Association for Science and Technology (CAST); State Administration of Press,
Publication, 收音机, Film and Television of the People’s Republic of China (SAPPRFT), and it was renamed as National Radio and Television Administration
of the People’s Republic of China (NRTA) 在 2018; Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS); Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE); General Office of the
State Council of the People’s Republic of China (GOSC); Ministry of Science and Technology of the People(西德:1)s Republic of China (MOST); Communist Party
of China (CPC).

报告 (CJCR) from ISTIC; “A Guide to the Core Journals of China” (GCJC) from Peking
University Library; CSSCI from the Institute for Chinese Social Science Research and
Assessment (ICSSRA) of Nanjing University, and the World Academic Journal Clout Index
( WAJCI) from the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI). 此外, some other
influential lists produced by government agencies, professional associations, and universities
are also briefly discussed.

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3.1. NSLC: CSCD Journal List

3.1.1. Background

The CSCD was established in 1989 by the National Science Library of CAS, with the aim of
disseminating excellent scientific research achievements in China and helping scientists to dis-
cover information. This database covers more than 1,000 of the top academic journals in the
areas of engineering, medicine, mathematics, 物理, 化学, the life and earth sciences,
agricultural science, industrial technology, the environmental sciences, 等等 (国家的
Science Library of CAS, 2019乙). 自成立以来, the CSCD has amassed 5.5 million articles
和 80.5 million citation records. As the first Chinese citation database, the CSCD published
the first printed book of journals in 1995 and the first retrieval CD-ROM in 1998, 其次是
an online version in 2003. 在 1999, it launched the “CSCD ESI Annual Report” and in 2005 这
“CSCD JCR Annual Report”, which are similar to the ESI and JCR and very well known across
中国. 然而, perhaps the most notable feature of CSCD is its cooperation with Clarivate
Analytics (以前, Thomson-Reuters) 在 2007 to offer a cross-database search with the WoS,
giving rise to the first-ever database of non-English-language journals.

CSCD provides information discovery services for analyzing China from the perspective of the
world and analyzing the world from the perspective of China. 所以, it is widely used by
research institutes and universities for subject searches, funding support, project evaluations,
declaring achievements, talent selection, literature measurement, and evaluation research. 这是

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A comprehensive analysis of the journal evaluation system in China

also an authoritative document retrieval tool (Jin & 王, 1999). Jin, 张等人. (2002) 和
Rousseau, Jin, and Yang (2001) both provide relatively thorough explorations and discussions
of this journal list.

3.1.2.

Journal selection criteria

The CSCD journal list is updated every 2 年, using both quantitative and qualitative
方法. The most recent report (2019–2020) was released in April 2019 and listed 1,229
source journals in total: 228 English journals published in China and 1,001 Chinese journals.
The selection criteria are summarized below (National Science Library of CAS, 2019A).

Journal scope The journal must be published in either Chinese or English in China, 和
3.1.2.1.
both an International Standard Serial Number (ISSN) and a China Domestic Uniform Serial
Publication Number (CN). The subject coverage includes mathematics, 物理, 化学, earth
科学, biological science, agricultural science, medicine and health, engineering technology,
environmental science, interdisciplinary disciplines, and some other similar subject areas.

3.1.2.2. Research fields The research fields are mainly derived from the Level 1 和 2 classes of
the 5th Chinese Library Classification (CLC). 然而, the Level 2 classes might be further sub-
divided based on the coupling strength between the citations and semantic similarity of articles
published in the corresponding journal set. In the most recent edition, 有 61 research fields.
To avoid the possible bias of subjectively allocating journals to fields, classifications are based on
cross-citation relationships, and any journal can be classified into more than one field.

3.1.2.3. Evaluation indicators To ensure fairness to all candidate journals, journal self-citations
are excluded. The qualitative indicators used to measure different aspects of a journal’s quality
are shown in Table 3.

桌子 3. Quantitative indicators of CSCD journal list

指标
JIF (excluding self-citations)

Definition
Calculated by dividing the number of citations to the journal from other journals in the 6th year

by the number of articles published in that journal in the previous 5 年.

Hot index

Taking 10 years as the statistical window, the hot index is defined as the ratio of the number of
highly cited papers published by the journal to the total number of highly cited papers in the
given discipline the journal belongs to.

Eigenfactor score

Calculated based on the number of times articles from the journal published in the past 5 年

have been cited in the JCR year (exclude self-citations).

Article influence score

Calculated by multiplying the eigenfactor score by 0.01 and dividing by the number of articles in
the given journal in the past 5 年, normalized as a fraction of all articles in all publications.
It is used to track the influence of a journal at the single article level.

Diffusion index

Excellent index

The ratio of the number of citing journals to the total number of journals in the CSCD.

The ratio of the average received citations of a journal to the average received citations of the

given discipline the journal belongs to.

Utilization index

The ratio of the number of noncited articles to the total number of published articles in the journal.

Cross-citation index

The coefficient of skewness of the distribution of the citation journals received from other journals.
The index measures the skewness of the distribution of the journal’s citation data. The larger the
价值, the more frequent the cross-citation behavior.

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3.2. NSLC: JPT Journal List

3.2.1. Background

The JPT was built and is maintained by the Centre of Scientometrics, NSLC. The idea behind the
partitioned design of this list began in 2000 with the goal of helping Chinese researchers distin-
guish between the JIFs of journals across different disciplines. The list was first released in 2004 在
Excel format and only included 13 broad research areas. 在 2007, these research areas were
expanded to include the JCR categories, 和, 自从 2012, the entire list has been published online
to meet the growing number of retrieval requests.

This list provides reference data for administrators and researchers to evaluate the influence of
international academic journals, and is widely recognized by many research institutions as a
metric in their cash reward policies (普通话, 陈, & Shu, 2017).

在 2019, the NSLC released a trial variation of the list while continuing to publish the official
version. The upgraded JPT (审判) includes 11930 journals that are classified into 18 major
学科. The journals cover most of the journals indexed in SCI and SSCI, as well as the
ESCI journals published in China.

3.2.2.

Journal selection criteria

Journals on the list are assessed using a rich array of citation metrics, including 3-year average JIFs.
The list is divided into four partitions according to the 3-year average JIFs by research areas/fields.
Using averages somewhat reduces any instability caused by significant annual fluctuations in
JIFs. The partitions follow a pyramidal distribution. The top partition contains the top 5% of jour-
nals with the highest 3-year average JIFs in their discipline. 分割 2 covers 6%–20% and par-
tition 3 covers 21%–50%, with the remaining journals in the fourth partition. 此外, all the
journals in the first partition and the top 10% of the journals in the second partition with the
highest total citations (TC) are marked as “Top Journals.”

在里面 2019 版, multidisciplinary journals, such as Nature and Science, were ranked
according to the average impact of each paper in an assigned discipline as determined by the
majority of references given in the paper (Research Services Group at Clarivate, 2019). 那就是说,
the papers in these journals are counted as multidisciplinary, despite the fact that many of them
are highly specialized and represent research in specific fields, such as immunology, 物理,
神经科学, ETC.

Compared to the official version, the trial version has incorporated several essential updates
(Centre of Scientometrics of NSLC, 2020). 第一的, the journals are classified based on the average
impact of each paper published in the journal, and the papers are assigned to specific topics
according to both citation relationship and text similarity (Waltman & van Eck, 2012). 第二,
this version introduces a citation success index (Franceschini, Galetto et al., 2012; Kosmulski,
2011) to replace JIFs as a measure of a journal’s impact. The citation success index of the target
journal compared with the reference journal is defined as the probability of the citation count of a
randomly selected paper from the target journal being larger than that of a random paper from a
reference journal (Milojevic(西德:1), Radicchi, & Bar-Ilan, 2017). 第三, it extends the coverage of disci-
plines from the natural sciences into the social sciences to support the internationalization pro-
cess of domestic titles. 进一步来说, coverage is extended to some local journals that are not
listed in the JCR but are listed in the ESCI.

The initial purpose of the list was to evaluate the academic influence of SCIE journals, to pro-
vide academic submission references for scientific researchers, and to support macro analysis
for research management departments. Although the Centre of Scientometrics, NSLC, 有

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consistently stated that the list should not be used to make judgments at the micro level (例如, 到
evaluate the performance of an individual), many institutions still use the JCR as a tool to evaluate
the research of their employees. The list’s prominent position and strong influence in China’s
scientific research evaluation has caused extensive debate, especially in the field of nuclear phys-
ics in 2018 (王, 2018).

3.3. CASSES: AMI Journal List

3.3.1. Background

The AMI journal list is managed by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Evaluation Studies
(CASSES), which was established in July 2017 out of the Centre of Social Sciences Evaluation,
Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS). CASSES has conducted a series of journal evalua-
tion systems for Chinese journals based on the characteristics of disciplines and journals to form a
comprehensive evaluation report of Chinese journals in the SSH. CASSES’ mandate is to optimize
the utilization of scientific research journals and literature resources, as well as to provide refer-
ences for journal evaluation, scientific research performance evaluation, scientific research man-
代理, talent selection, ETC. (Ma, 2016). The purpose of AMI is to focus on formative evaluation
“to help and improve” rather than perform a summative evaluation “to judge” a journal’s quality.
Another goal is to increase recognition of journals in the SSH by collaborating nationally across
机构, rather than competing to support good journals. The basic principle of AMI is to
provide well-informed judgments about journals, not simple indicators, that translates to reliable
advice on where to publish.

CASSES also provides evaluations on both new journals and English-language journals pub-
lished in China to promote their development. New journals are defined as less than 5 years old.
现在, no other domestic evaluation scheme has undertaken a similar expansion, which turns
out to be one of the innovations of this index.

3.3.2.

Journal selection criteria

The AMI journal list is updated every 4 年, and its comprehensive evaluation method
combines quantitative evaluation with expert qualitative evaluation. According to the latest
report of 2018, 1,291 academic journals in the field of SSH founded in 2012 or before are
published in mainland China, 和 164 new journals and 68 English journals were targets of
particular evaluation. The reports divide the journals into categories: the Top Journals (5),
Authoritative Journals (56), Core Journals (546), Extended Journals (711), and Indexed Journals
(179) (CASSES, 2018). 和 26 English journals without CN have not evaluated.

The selection criteria for inclusion in the list are summarized below (CASSES, 2018;

Su, 2019):

Journal scope The journals in the AMI list include some 2000 SSH journals listed by the
3.3.2.1.
former State Administration of Press, Publication, 收音机, Film and Television of the People’s
Republic of China in 2014 和 2017 (SAPPRFT, 2014, 2017). The lists include English-language
journals and new journals that were founded in 2013–2017, and the final scope of journal
evaluation is 1,291 Chinese academic journals, 164 new journals, 和 68 English-language
journals.

3.3.2.2. Research fields The journals are divided into three broad subject categories, 23 主题
类别, 和 33 subject subcategories based on the university degree and academic training

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directory published by the Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China, Classification
and the disciplines codes GB/T 13745-2009 in the Chinese Library Classification (fifth edition).

Evaluation indicators There are three evaluation metrics: attraction, 管理
3.3.2.3.
力量, and influence. Attraction gauges the journal’s external environment, its reputation among
readers and researchers, and its ability to acquire external resources. Management power refers
to the ability of the editorial team to promote the journal’s development. Influence represents the
journal’s academic, 社会的, and international influence, which is affected by the other two
权力 (attraction and management).

In addition to these three indicators, there are a further 10 second-level indicators and 24 第三-
level indicators, 如表所示 4. Looking closely at the list, one can see that most of the
quantitative indicators can be obtained from different data sources (例如, the journal’s website,
academic news sources, citation platforms). Data to inform the remaining qualitative indicators
is drawn from a broad survey and follow-up interviews. Note that the weights of the first-level
indicators for pure humanities journals (H) versus the social sciences (SS) and multidisciplinary
journals (MJ) are different, as indicated in the table by H/SS/MJ.

3.4.

ISTIC: CJCR Journal List

3.4.1. Background

迟至 1987, few Chinese knew how many papers were published by Chinese scientists in the
世界, and no one knew how many papers were published domestically. 因此, the Institute
of Science and Technical Information of China (ISTIC) was commissioned to conduct a paper
“census.” Thus, initiated by ISTIC and sponsored by the Ministry of Science and Technology (然后
the State Science and Technology Commission), the China Scientific and Technical Papers and
Citations Database (CSTPCD) was born as a database dedicated to the partial evaluation of the
research performance of China’s scientists and engineers (吴, Pan et al., 2004).

ISTIC took advantage of the CSTPCD data to conduct statistical analyses on various categories
of China’s scientific output each year. The results were then published in the form of an annual
report and an accompanying press conference to inform society of China’s academic progress.
The report includes the Chinese S&T Papers Statistics and Analysis: Annual Research Report and
the Chinese S&T Journal Citation Reports (Core Edition), which provides a wealth of information
and decision support for government administration departments, colleges and universities,
research institutions, and researchers (ISTIC, 2020A).

3.4.2.

Journal selection criteria

The list of journals selected by CSTPCD is called the “Statistical Source Journal of Chinese
Science and Technology.” These journals are selected from a rigorous peer review and quanti-
tative evaluation, and so are regarded as important scientific and technical journals in various
disciplines in China. 现在, the list includes 2049 journals (1933 Chinese-language journals
和 116 English-language journals) in the fields of natural sciences, engineering and technology,
和 395 journals in the social sciences (ISTIC, 2020乙). More details on the selection criteria are
provided below (ISTIC, 2020A).

Journal scope The catalog of China’s core S&T journals is adjusted once a year. 这
3.4.2.1.
candidate journals to be evaluated include the core S&T journals selected in the previous year,
along with applications to be considered for the current year that have held a CN number for more
比 2 年. 更远, the journal’s impact indicators must be ranked at the forefront of their

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桌子 4. Quantitative indicators of AMI journal list

2nd level indicator
姓名

Type
S

3rd level indicator
Awards received by journals and editors

Awards received by publications

1st level indicator
Attraction 0.45/0.35/0.40

Award status

Publication

Peer review

管理 0.20/0.20/0.20

Academic misconductb

Editorial team and author group

Institutional regulation

Informalization construction

Influence 0.35/0.45/0.40

Academic influence

氧

氮

Funded paper ratioa

Open access

Download frequency

Expert committee members

Suggested experts

Scientific researchers and administrators

Editorial team

Author group

System construction

Editor specification

Website construction

The online manuscript processing system

WeChat public account

Journal immediacy index

2-year JIF

5-year JIF

Reprint ratio

The ratio of cited journals from the given

categories or external categories

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Social influence

氮

Circulation

International influence

N/S

Overseas distribution

Cited by foreign journals

Online propagation capability

笔记: The indicator type S means measurements add to the total score; O means measurements will reduce the total score; N means measurements do not affect the
score in the current edition.

a This refers to the proportion of papers that are funded by national funds in a journal.
b This indicator is a point deduction indicator. If there is no academic misconduct, the score is “0”; 相当, if there is such behavior, points will be deducted.

discipline; should operate in line with national regulations and academic publishing norms; 和
must meet publishing integrity and ethical requirements. If a journal fails to meet these criteria or
its peer assessment, its application is rejected or, if a journal is already listed in the catalog, 这是
withdrawn and can be reevaluated 1 year later.

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3.4.2.2. Research fields The journals are distributed across 112 subject classifications in the
natural sciences and 40 in the social sciences.

3.4.2.3. Evaluation indicators The evaluation system is based on multiple indexes, mostly bib-
liometric, and a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods. Specific indexes include
citation frequency, JIF, important database collection, and overall evaluation score (Ma, 2019).

3.5. Peking University Library: GCJC Journal List

3.5.1. Background

The GCJC is a research project conducted by researchers at the Peking University Library in con-
junction with a dozen other university libraries and experts from other institutions. The guide is
regularly updated to reflect the changing dynamics of journal development and has been pub-
lished every 4 years since 1992 and every 3 years since 2011. It is only published in a printed
书, and to date eight editions have been published by Peking University Press.

Whether and how the guide is used is up to the institutions that make use of it. It is worth noting
that the guide is not an evaluation criterion for academic research and has no legal or adminis-
trative effectiveness, but some institutions do use it this way, which can create conflict. 这
selection principles emphasize that core journals are a relative concept to specific disciplines
and periods. 大部分情况下, the guide is used by library intelligence departments as an infor-
mational reference to purchase and reserve books, and to help tutors develop reading lists
(Committee for A Guide to the Core Journals of China, 2018).

3.5.2.

Journal selection criteria

这 2017 edition of GCJC contains 1983 core journals assigned to seven categories and 78
学科. The selection criteria are provided below (陈, Zhu et al., 2018).

3.5.2.1.

Journal scope Any Chinese journal published in mainland China can be a candidate.

3.5.2.2. Research fields Fields are based on the CLC categories of Philosophy, Sociology, 政治,
and Law (第一部分); Economy (部分 2); Culture, Education and History (部分 3); Natural Science (部分 4);
Medicine and Health (部分 5); Agricultural Science (部分 6); Industrial Technology (部分 7).

3.5.2.3. Evaluation indicators Comprehensive quantitative and qualitative analysis of 16 evalu-
ation indicators, combined with the opinions of experts and scholars, are the basis of selection,
如表所示 5.

桌子 5. Quantitative indicators of GCJC journal list

ID
1

指标

Reprint count

(full-text, 抽象的)

Reprint ratio

(full-text, 抽象的)

Times cited

ID
5

指标

2-year JIF

ID
9

指标
Eigenfactor index

ID
13 Awards or indexed by

指标

important retrieval systems

2-year JIF

10 Article influence scores

Funded paper ratio (national

(exclude self-citations)

and provincial level)

5-year JIF

Paper cited index

15 Web downloads amount

Inner-citation index

16 Web downloads ratio

(exclude self-citations)

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3.6.

ICSSRA: CSSCI Journal List

3.6.1. Background

CSSCI was developed by Nanjing University in 1997 and launched in 2000. CSSCI collects all
source and citation information from all papers in source journals and source collections
(published as one volume). The index records in CSSCI contain most of the bibliographic
information in the papers. The content is normative, and the reference data are searchable
(Qiu & Lou, 2014).

The focus is on the social sciences in China and is gathered for the purposes of providing an
efficient repository of information about Chinese knowledge innovation and cutting-edge
research in the SSH, coupled with a comprehensive evaluation of China’s academic influence
in these areas (Su, Deng, & 沉, 2012; Su, Han, & Han, 2001). The journal data in CSSCI
provides a wealth of raw information and statistics for researchers and institutions to study or
to conduct evaluations based on authentic records of research output and citations.

3.6.2.

Journal selection criteria

Through quantitative and qualitative evaluation methods, the 2019–2020 edition of CSSCI
包含 568 core source journals and 214 extended source journals assigned among 25 disci-
平线 (ICSSRA, 2019). Extended source journals are evaluated and those that qualify are trans-
ferred to the core source journal list. The selection criteria are summarized below (CSSCI
Editorial Department, 2018; ICSSRA, 2019).

Journal scope In the latest edition of CSSCI (2019–2020), all selected journals/collections

3.6.2.1.
must meet the following basic requirements (CSSCI Editorial Department, 2018):

(西德:129) The journals must be Chinese and publish mainly original academic articles and reviews

in the social sciences

(西德:129) Journals published in mainland China must have a CN number. Journals published in
香港, Macao, or Taiwan must have an ISSN, and academic collections must have
an ISBN.

(西德:129) Journals must be published regularly according to an established publishing cycle and
must conform to the standards of journal editing and publication with complete and
standardized bibliographic information.

3.6.2.2. Research fields Each article in the CSSCI database is categorized according to the
Classification and Code of Discipline (GBT 13745-2009) with reference to the Catalogue of
Degree Awarding and Personnel Training (2011) (程度 [2011] 不. 11) and the Subject
Classification Catalogue of National Social Science Foundation in China. 现在, 有
23 journal categories based on subject classification, and two general journal categories: 多-
disciplinary university journals and multidisciplinary social science journals.

3.6.2.3. Evaluation indicators The source journals of CSSCI are determined according to their
2-year JIF (excluding self-citations), total times cited, other quantitative indicators, 和
opinions of experts from various disciplines.

3.7. CNKI: WAJCI Journal List

3.7.1. Background

The China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) is the largest comprehensive database in
中国. It is a key national information project led by Tsinghua University, first launched in

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1996 in conjunction with the Tsinghua Tongfang Company. 在 1999, CNKI began to develop
online databases. 十月 2009, it unveiled the construction of an international digital library
together with world-famous foreign partners. 现在, CNKI contains literature published since
1915 in over 7,000 academic journals published in China, including nearly 2,700 core and other
significant journals. The database is divided into 10 系列, 168 subjects, 和 3,600 subsubjects
(CNKI, 2020). When a Chinese scholar wants to read a paper, they typically go to CNKI as the first
port of call.

自从 2009, CNKI has invested and managed the “International and Domestic Influence of
Chinese Academic Journals Statistics and Analysis Database.” This database publishes interna-
tional and domestic evaluation indicators for nearly 6,000 academic journals officially published
in China across four reports: the “Annual Report for Chinese Academic Journal Impact Factors,”
the “Annual Report for International Citation of Chinese Academic Journals,” the “Journal
Influence Statistical and Analysis Database,” and the “Statistical Report for Journal Network
Dissemination” (CNKI, 2018乙).

自从 2018, CNKI has also released the “Annual Report for World Academic Journal Impact
Index (WAJCI).” This report aims to explore a scientific and comprehensive method for evaluating
the academic influence of journals and provides objective statistics and comprehensive ranking for
the academic impact of the world’s journals. This idea is not only conducive to building an open,
diversified, and fairer evaluation system for journals; it is also helpful for improving the representa-
tion of Chinese journals in Western-dominated international indexes (CNKI, 2018A).

3.7.2.

Journal selection criteria

The WAJCI journal list is updated annually; the most recent report was released in October 2019.
The statistics shown in this report were derived from 22,325 source journals from 113 国家
and regions (21,165 from the WoS database, 包括 9,211 from SCIE, 3,409 from SSCI, 7,814
from ESCI, 和 1,827 from A&人机交互, 加 1,160 Chinese journals). The WoS database does not
provide JCR evaluation reports for some journals. In the case of new journals, this is because
the citation frequency is typically very low. Excluding these journals without a JCR report leaves
13,088 journals to be evaluated, comprising 1,429 journals from mainland China and 11,659
from other countries and regions. Of these, 486 journals are in the field of SSH, 957 journals
are in the field of science, 技术, engineering and medicine (STEM), 和 14 journals are
interdisciplinary (CNKI, 2019).

The selection criteria follow.

Journal scope The target journals are academic journals with wide dissemination and
3.7.2.1.
significant influence around the world. Candidate journals must meet four basic requirements:

(西德:129) Journals should be published continuously and publicly.
(西德:129) Journals must predominantly publish original academic achievements, which should be

peer reviewed.

(西德:129) Journals should comply with the requirements of international publishing and profes-

sional ethics.

(西德:129) Papers published in journals must conform to international editorial standards, 哪个
include editorial and publishing teams of high standing in their disciplines and a high
level of originality, scientific rigor, and excellent readability.

3.7.2.2. Research fields CNKI mainly follows a hybrid of the JCR classification system, 这
International Classification for Standards (ICS), and the CLC. Chinese journals that cannot be

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found in JCR are categorized into disciplines in one of the other lists. 而且, the disci-
plines of JCR journals with serious duplication are appropriately merged. The final list spans
175 STEM disciplines and 62 SSH disciplines. 最终, 全部 13,088 journals are assigned
into relatively accurate disciplines to ensure that the journals are ranked and compared within
a unified discipline system.

3.7.2.3. Evaluation indicators To comprehensively assess the international influence of journals,
CNKI developed a complex indicator, called the CI index (clout index), that combines JIF with
citation counts (吴, Xiao et al., 2015). It is generally believed that the most influential journal in
a field should be the journal with the highest JIF and TC. The meaning of the CI value represents
the degree of closeness between the journal influence and the optimal state of journal influence
in the field. The smaller the gap, the closer the distance, which indicates that the influence of
journals is closer to the optimal state. 此外, to compare journals on an international
规模, CNKI publishes the indicators in WAJCI. The higher the value of the WAJCI, the higher
the journal’s influence. WAJCI reflects the relative position of academic influence of journals
within a discipline, so it can be used for interdisciplinary and even cross-year comparison,
which has practical value.

3.8. Other Lists

In addition to the above seven main journal lists in China, another influential list, 叫做
Research Center for Chinese Science Evaluation (RCCSE) core journal list, was developed by
the RCCSE of Wuhan University in the early 2000s to provide multidisciplinary and comprehen-
sive Chinese journal rankings (张 & Lun, 2019). The evaluated journals mainly include pure
academic journals and semiacademic journals from the natural sciences or humanities and social
科学 (Qiu, 李, & Shu, 2009). It adopts a mixture of quantitative and qualitative methods to
evaluate the target journals and mainly concerns the quality, 等级, and academic influence of
the journal (Qiu, 2011). In the process of journal evaluation, the general principles are classified
evaluation and hierarchical management (Qiu, 2011). 此外, there are some other lists pub-
lished by government agencies, professional associations, and universities that warrant mention,
and they are briefly described below.

3.8.1. CDGDC: A-class journal list

在 2016, the fourth China University Subject Rankings (CUSR) was launched to evaluate the sub-
jects of universities and colleges in mainland China in line with the “Subject Catalogue of Degree
Awarding and Personnel Training” approved by the Ministry of Education. Organized by the
China Academic Degrees and Graduate Education Development Centre (CDGDC), the aim
was to acquaint participating universities and institutions with the merits and demerits of their
subject constructions and curriculums, and to provide relevant information on national graduate
教育 (CDGDC, 2016). The instructions of the fourth CUSR specifically point out that the
number of papers published in A-class journals (both Chinese and international) is a critical
indicator of the quality of a subject offering (Ministry of Education, 2016A).

As described by the Ministry of Education (Ministry of Education, 2016A, 2016乙), the process
for selecting which journals were “A-class” was as follows. 第一的, the publishers and bibliometric
data providers (例如, Thomson Reuters, 爱思唯尔, CNKI, CSSCI, CSCD) were invited to provide a
preliminary list of journals based on bibliometric indicators, such as JIF and reputation indices.
然后, doctoral tutors were invited to participate in online voting for the candidates. 最后的, 这
voting results were submitted to the Academic Degrees Committee of the State Council for
review, who finalized the journal list. The A-class journal list exercise was an attempt to combine

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A comprehensive analysis of the journal evaluation system in China

bibliometric indicators and expert opinions. 然而, the list was abandoned only 2 weeks after
release as a fiery debate erupted among many scientific communities.

3.8.2. Chinese Computing Federation: CCF-recommended journal list

The China Computer Federation (CCF) is a national academic association in China, 已确立的
在 1956. Their publication ranking list, released in 2012, divides well-known international com-
puter science conferences and journals into 10 subfields. A rank of A indicates the top confer-
ences and journals, B is for journals and conferences with significant impact, and important
conferences and journals are placed in the C bracket.

In April 2019, the CCF released the 5th edition List of International Academic Conferences and
Periodicals Recommended by the CCF. In the course of the review, the CCF Committee on
Academic Affairs brought experts together to thoroughly discuss and analyze these suggestions.
The candidates were reviewed and shortlisted by an initial assessment panel, then examined by a
final evaluation panel before announcing the final results. Factors such as the venue’s influence
and an approximate balance between different fields were considered when compiling the list
(China Computer Federation, 2019). 今天, this list is widely recognized in computer science
fields and has accelerated the process of publishing more papers in top conferences, 也
improving the quality of those publications (李, Rong et al., 2018).

3.8.3. School or departmental journal lists

With the rapidly increasing and burdensome number of scholarly outlets for academic assessment,
administrators and research managers are constantly looking to improve the speed and efficiency
of their assessment processes. Many construct their own school or departmental list as a guide for
evaluating faculty research (Beets, Kelton, & Lewis, 2015). Business schools particularly prefer
internal journal lists to inform their promotion and tenure decisions (Bales, Hubbard et al.,
2019). 实际上, almost all of the 137 Chinese universities that receive government funding have
created their own internal journal lists as indicators of faculty performance (李, 卢等人。, 2019).

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4. COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF JOURNAL EVALUATION SYSTEMS IN CHINA

What is clear from the descriptions of each of the major journal lists is that each was established to
fill specific objectives, and each has its own selection criteria, yet there may be as many similar-
ities between the seven systems as there are differences. 所以, for a broader picture of the
evaluation system landscape, we undertook a comprehensive comparative analysis. Our findings
are presented in this section.

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4.1. Profiles of Journal List and Indexed Journals

CJCR was first established by ISTIC in 1987. GCJC, CSCD, CSSCI, and JPT followed shortly after.
AMI and WAJCI joined the club more recently. As indicated in Table 6, studies on journal selec-
tion have included a wide variety of participants, such as research institutes, 大学, 和
private enterprises. Another observation is that the regularity with which journal lists are updated
is not the same. 现在, JPT, CJCR, and WAJCI are updated once a year; CSCD and CSSCI are
updated every 2 年; GCJC is updated every 3 年, and AMI every 4 年.

清楚地, the number of journals, 范围, 语言, and research areas of each journal list are
不同的. JPT and WAJCI count the most journals, both of which have a domestic and international
范围. All of the other lists only cover domestic journals, obviously making them smaller than the
previous two. Although most of the journal lists include English-language journals, these are few in

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桌子 6.

Profiles of the leading academic journal lists in China

Indexed journals

Journal list
CSCD

Provider

Number of
journals

Scopes

语言

Research areas

NSLC

1,229 (2019) Domestic

Chinese, English LB; 聚苯乙烯; TE; SS

Identification
numbers
ISSN and CN

Release
年
1995

Update frequency

Biennially

(partly)

JPT

NSLC

11,930 (2019) Domestic &

英语

LB; 聚苯乙烯; SS; TE

ISSN

2004

Yearly

international

AMI

CJCR

GCJC

CASSES

ISTIC

1,523 (2018) Domestic

Chinese, English AH; SS

2014

Quadrennial

2,444 (2019) Domestic

Chinese, English AH; LB; 聚苯乙烯; SS; TE CN

1997

Yearly

Peking University

1,983 (2017) Domestic

Chinese

AH; LB; 聚苯乙烯; SS; TE CN

1992

Library

CSSCI

ICSSRA, Nanjing
大学

782 (2019) Domestic

Chinese

AH; SS

ISSN or CN

1998

Triennial (2008–);
Quadrennial
(前 2008)

Biennially (2003–)

Yearly (前 2003)

WAJCI

CNKI

13,088 (2018) Domestic &

Chinese, English AH; LB; 聚苯乙烯; SS; TE

ISSN or CN

2018

Yearly

international

笔记: The research areas are classified into five broad categories: 艺术 & 人文学科 (AH); Life Sciences & Biomedicine (LB); Physical Sciences (聚苯乙烯); 社会科学 (SS); 技术
Engineering (TE).

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A comprehensive analysis of the journal evaluation system in China

中国. In terms of disciplines, JPT and CSCD focus more on the natural sciences; AMI and CSSCI
focus on the SSH field; and CJCR, GCJC, and WAJCI span all disciplines.

There are also different requirements for ISSNs and CNs. AMI, CJCR, and GCJC only accept
journals with CNs, and the JPT only accepts journals with an ISSN. CSSCI and WAJCI have the
least stringent requirements, requiring that the journal has one or the other. 相比之下, CSCD
requires its journals to have both.

4.2. The Evaluation Characteristics of Journal lists

How journals are assessed is the most critical aspect of any evaluation system. 更远, as indicated
表中 7 和表 8, these systems were designed with many different objectives in mind.
Although often used in scientific evaluation, the purpose of most is to provide readers, librarians,
and information agencies with reference material to help them purchase and manage journal
stocks. This is certainly the case with JPT, CJCR, GCJC, CSSCI. CSCD, CJCR, and CSSCI extend this
mission further by seeking to provide references for research management and academic evalua-
的. 然而, the objectives of AMI and WAJCI are different. AMI’s goal is to increase the quality
and recognition of journals in the SSH, while CNKI built WAJCI to provide “apples with apples”
statistics on the world’s journals.

The methods of calculation and indicators that each system uses are different. Most rely on a
combination of quantitative and qualitative tools, while JPT and WAJCI are largely quantitative
系统. Both are heavily dependent on JIFs, but JPT relies on a 3-year average, while WAJCI
combines JIFs with TC to create its indicator. The other lists mainly evaluate the attraction and
management ability of journals through bibliometric indicators, such as JIFs and citations, sup-
plemented by peer review. AMI, 然而, adds extra indicators over and above the standard set.

而且, the weight of each indicator changes depending on the purposes of lists. 考试用-
普莱, AMI’s mission is to improve the quality and influence of both China’s SSH journals and the
evaluation systems that rank them. 所以, AMI houses a comprehensive set of indicators that
cover processes, 天赋, 管理, the editorial team, ETC。, each of which is measured against
the three “powers” (IE。, attraction, 管理, and influence). 相比之下, 基本的
purpose of GCJC is to help librarians optimize their journal collections and provide readers with
guidance on the titles in their disciplines. 因此, GCJC rests more on bibliometric indicators and
quantitative analyses of the growth trends and scatter law patterns of journals in a field.

Data sources of indicators are another characteristic for comparison. JPT is mainly an interna-
tional database. WAJCI and GCJC combine international databases with local Chinese databases
to expand the type and volume of data provided. Although the indicators data of AMI draws from
a wide range of sources, such as the self-built and self-collected data of CASSES (例如, CHSSCD),
the third-party data, the self-evaluated data of the journal editorial departments, and the data
included are mostly determined by the producers of the original indexes. The same is true for
CSCD, CSSCI, and GCJC.

The last criterion for comparison is the grading system. All divide their listed journals into
学科, and most calculate their rankings relative to that discipline. JPT and WAJCI each have
four tiers, but the JPT system is a pyramid, whereas the WAJCI scheme is equally divided, 这
same as JCR. AMI’s system is more complicated because the journals are divided into three
类别 (A-journals, new journals and English-language journals), then further subdivided into
five levels according to quality. CSCD and CSSCI are divided into two levels—core and extended
journals—and CJCR and GCJC do not have grades. 在某种程度上, these divisions are hierar-
chical and systematic, which is convenient for users. 然而, how many journals appear in

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桌子 7.

Evaluation purposes, 方法, and results of the leading academic journal lists in China

Journal list
CSCD

Evaluation purposes
Provide a basis for selecting source journals

for CSCD and journal evaluation

Evaluation methods
Qualitative &
quantitative

JPT

Help Chinese researchers to distinguish the
JIF of journals across different disciplines

Quantitative

Evaluation results

Disciplines

Grades

61 discipline categories

Core source journals;

18 major disciplines
和 229 minor
学科

Three broad subject categories,
23 subject categories, 和
33 subject subcategories

112 subject classifications in
the natural sciences and
40 in the social sciences

Extended source journals

T1 (顶部 5%); T2 (6%–20%);

T3 (21%–50%);
T4 (51%–100%)

Top journals; Authoritative
journals; Core journals;
Extended journals;
Indexed journals

Natural sciences volume;
Social sciences volume

Qualitative &
quantitative

Seven categories and

78 discipline categories

Core journals

Qualitative &
quantitative

25 学科

Core source journals;

Extended source journals

Quantitative

237 subjects, among which

175 are science and
technology and 62 是
social sciences

Q1 (顶部 25%); Q2 (26%–50%);

Q3 (51%–75%);
Q4 (76%–100%)

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AMI

Help and improve journal quality, 和

increase the recognition of journals in
the SSH

CJCR

Be used for quantitative analysis and

GCJC

scientific evaluation of the characteristics
and discipline status of journals, 和
providing a basis for scientific research
管理

Help library intelligence departments to
purchase and reserve books as an
informational reference, and help tutors
develop reading lists

CSSCI

Provide a reference for evaluation,

WAJCI

performance appraisal, 管理,
and research

To explore scientific and comprehensive
evaluation methods for measuring the
influence of journals, and to provide
objective statistics and comprehensive
rankings of that influence

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桌子 8.

Evaluation criteria, 指标, data sources of the leading academic journal lists in China

Journal list
CSCD

Selection criteria
Editorial standardization, focus on basic research,
academic and theoretical frontier journals, ETC.

Evaluation indicators

Indicators data sources

JIF (excluding self-citations), Hot index,

CSCD

Eigenfactor score, Article Influence score,
Diffusion index, Excellent index,
Utilization index, Cross-citation index

JPT

AMI

the same as JCR

3-year average impact factor

WoS

Journal influence, academic quality, 编辑

specifications, ethical norms, ETC.

Attraction power; Management and influence
(award status, 出版物, peer review,
academic misconduct, editor team and author
团体, institutional regulation, informalization
建造, academic influence, 社会的
influence, international influence)

the self-built and self-collected

data of CASSES (例如, CHSSCD),
the third-party data, 和
self-evaluated data of the
journal editorial department

CJCR

Editorial norms, authoritative editorial board,

Citation frequency, JIF, important database

CSTPCD

timeliness, the collection of important retrieval
systems at home and abroad, the social and
academic influence of journals, the balance
of regions and disciplines, ETC.

GCJC

Based on the quantitative selection of the core
列表, the use of the middle-map method to
divide the size of the subject; journals are
representative and practical

收藏, overall evaluation score

Reprint count (full-text, 抽象的), 2-year JIF,
Eigenfactor index, Awards or indexed by
important retrieval systems, Reprint ratio
(full-text, 抽象的), 2-year JIF (excluding
self-citations), Article influence scores, Funded
paper ratio (national and provincial level),
Times cited, 5-year JIF, Paper cited index,
Web downloads amount, Times cited
(excluding self-citations), 5-year JIF
(excluding self-citations), Inner-citation index,

Web downloads ratio

CSCD, CSTPCD, CSSCI, Wanfang

Data Knowledge Service Platform
( Wanfang), China Science and
Technology Journal Database
( VIP), Scopus, 社会科学
Citation Index (SSCI), ETC.

CSSCI

Journal quality, regional and discipline balance,
editorial norms, timeliness, original, 创新的
academic literature, ETC.

2-year JIF (exclude self-citations), Total times

The self-built and self-collected

引用, ETC.

数据 (例如, CSSCI)

WAJCI

Continuous publication, journal attributes,

Clout index (CI); WAJCI index (both are based

WoS, JCR report, CNKI

ethical norms, editorial norms, 出版物
strength, content quality, ETC.

on the JIF and total times cited [TC])

笔记: Partly refer to Ma (2019).

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more than one index and how similar their rankings are across indexes needs further analysis
and discussion.

5. CONCLUSIONS AND DISCUSSION
There is no doubt that China’s journal evaluation and selection systems have achieved remark-
able growth and impact, resulting in some influential journal lists. 在里面 60 years since journal
evaluation was first introduced to China, the functions of these lists have grown, diversified, 和
generated their fair share of controversy. Some lists simply seek to provide decision-making
support for information consultants, journal managers, research managers and funders, 编辑,
和别的. Others are designed to help optimize library collections, provide reading-list
guidance or support referencing and citation services. 更远, and more controversially, journal
evaluations are increasingly becoming proxies for evaluating the academic achievements of
individual researchers. As an extension of the original purposes, the evaluation of core journals
has an important influence on a journal’s editorial procedures and strategies. To maintain the
continuous development of their academic journals, publishers and publishing houses must
conduct journal evaluations as well as supervision (Ren & Rousseau, 2004).

5.1. Greater Cooperation Among the Different Journal List Providers

Seven different journal lists is a lot, even for a country as large and diverse as China. 然而,
what is more notable is the number of different institutions that contribute to informing these lists,
and the fact that individual universities still feel the need to create their own internal lists to
complement the published systems. Everyone in this landscape is gathering their data, and most
are constructing their own data sets, classifying and ranking the journals and papers, calculating
their own rankings and metrics, ETC. The result is simply an overlap of effort in many cases. 我们
know that if institutions want to build an influential and authoritative journal evaluation or selec-
tion system, it not only needs to be based on sound indicators but also a on comprehensive range
of triangulated data sources. An obvious solution is for the producers of these evaluation instru-
ments to collaborate on research and development. They could build a national platform for
协调, influence, and collaboration on developing shared information resources and tools
and agreed definitions and protocols (张 & Sivertsen, 2020). Cooperation would be condu-
cive to establishing a unified and authoritative journal evaluation and selection system and, 更多的
重要的是, it could significantly increase the objectivity and fairness of the results.

5.2. More Compatibility Between Subject Classifications

Our analysis shows that each scheme adopts a different subject classification system. 然而,
many articles are interdisciplinary and, because papers are assessed relative to their discipline, A
publication can be evaluated with very different results in each category. 所以, 什么时候
evaluating and selecting journals, institutions should pay attention to the subject classification
of journals to ensure the relative accuracy of the grades.

5.3. Exercise Caution when Using Journal Evaluations for Scientific Research Assessment

and Management

Although the practice of China’s journal evaluation and selection systems is scientific and some-
what accurate, it is worth noting that journal rankings (such as JIFs) are not suitable for assessing
the quality of individual research. The phenomenon of emphasizing JIFs and rankings in re-
search evaluation is prevalent and persistent in China, but at least awareness of its adverse effects
is growing (Ministry of Education, 2020). Journal evaluation systems can make a strong

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contribution to research evaluation at the macro level, but applying those rankings as measures
of impact and quality at the micro level (to individuals, 机构, subjects and the like) 应该
be done with extreme caution. We should focus on the macro information about whether a given
journal has been indexed in such systems, such as CSCD and CSSCI. A good example of wise
macrolevel use of these evaluation systems can be found in the National Science Fund for
Distinguished Young Scholars. At one time, the bibliometric data indexed in the CSCD was con-
sidered in the Fund’s document preparation and subsequent peer review.

而且, and in line with the new research evaluation policy in China as of 2020, the use
of information such as journal quartiles and JIFs for microlevel evaluations should be reduced.
Individual institutions need to establish their own guidelines on how to use journal ranking
lists in their decisions (Black et al., 2017), but when journal rankings are used they should
be combined with other indicators. Research managers are also beginning to notice that there
is no direct link between the influence of a journal and a single paper published in it. The use
of JIFs for measuring the performance of individual researchers and their publications is highly
contested and has been demonstrated to be based on wrong assumptions (张等人。, 2017).

因此, there have been some recent efforts to improve research evaluation at the ar-
ticle level as opposed to the level of journal, such as the F5000 project from ISTIC (http://
f5000.istic.ac.cn/). In this project, 5,000 outstanding articles from the top journals are selected
each year to showcase the quality of Chinese STM journals (Ma, 2019). The excellent articles
project by the CAST (http://www.cast.org.cn/art/2020/4/30/art_458_120103.html) is another
similar initiative. Reform will not be achieved overnight; that is long-term and arduous work.
然而, the many steps that need to be taken to get there begin with collaborative efforts
such as these.

5.4. Collaborate with the International Bibliographic Databases

现在, there is no interconnection between the international evaluation systems and China’s,
especially in the SSH. Journal list producers should try to cooperate with the international biblio-
graphic databases to promote the internationalization of China’s journal evaluation systems. 为了
例子, linkages between CSCD and SCI over citation data have been established, 和别的
joint systems, such as CSSCI and SSCI, might be promoted in the future. 然而, we should also
realize that SSCI and A&HCI only partly represent the world’s scholarly publishing in the SSH
(Aksnes & Sivertsen, 2019). 所以, China’s journal evaluation institutions should try to coop-
erate with international evaluation systems on the basis of improving their own systems as much
尽可能.

5.5. Accelerate the Establishment of an Authoritative Evaluation System

现在, there are seven main predominant journal lists in China, each established with its own
evaluation objectives. This is a dispersed system, but not an integrated system. Although diversity
allowed for the exploration of evaluation methods and data sources, there is no unified, 作者-
itative standard. With the new research evaluation policy as of 2020, China is moving away from
indicators based on the WoS as standard. This should empower China’s research institutions and
funding organizations to define new standards, but this is a process that needs to be coordinated
(张 & Sivertsen, 2020). We contend that one comprehensive journal list, both domestic and
international, should be created that reflects the full continuum of research fields, 包括
interdisciplinary and marginalized fields. The list needs to be dynamic to reflect the changing
journal market, and the evaluations need to be organized, balanced, and representative of a range
of interinstitutional expert advice. A national evaluation system would not only conserve

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resources but also increase the credibility and authority of the core journal list. 举个例子,
South Korea has only one system managed by the National Research Foundation of Korea. 这
same is true of several European, 非洲人, and Latin-American countries. 所以, while a national
system is not a new idea, it is perhaps a proposal that deserves to be reconsidered for the scientific
community in China.

致谢

We would like to thank Professor Xiaomin LIU (National Science Library, Chinese Academy of
科学), Professor Liying YANG (National Science Library, Chinese Academy of Sciences),
Professor Jinyan SU (Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Evaluation Studies), and Professor
Jianhua LIU ( Wanfang Data Co., LTD) for providing valuable data and materials. 我们也
thank Ronald Rousseau (KU Leuven & University of Antwerp) and Tim Engels (大学
Antwerp) for providing insightful comments.

作者贡献
Ying Huang: 资金获取, 形式分析, 方法, 资源, 监督, Writing—
original draft, Writing—review & 编辑. Ruinan Li: 形式分析, 调查, Writing—original
草稿, Writing—review & 编辑. Lin Zhang: 资金获取, 调查, 资源,
监督, Writing—review & 编辑. Gunnar Sivertsen: 资金获取, 方法,
Writing—review & 编辑.

COMPETING INTERESTS

The authors have no competing interests.

资金信息

This work is supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 72004169;
71974150; 71904096; 71573085), the Research Council of Norway (Grant No. 256223), 和
MOE (Ministry of Education in China) project of humanities and social sciences (18YJC630066),
and the National Laboratory Center for Library and Information Science in Wuhan University.

DATA AVAILABILITY

The raw bibliometric data were collected from Clarivate Analytics. A license is required to
access the Web of Science database. 所以, the data used in this paper cannot be posted
in a repository.

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APPENDIX

Abbreviations
A&人机交互

AMI

CAE

CAS

CASS

CASSES

CAST

CCF

CDGDC

CJCR

CLC

CNKI

CSCD

CSCI

CSSCI

Table A1.

Abbreviations and full names used in the article

Full Names
艺术 & Humanities Citation Index

艺术 & 人文学科

Attraction, 管理, Impact

Chinese Academy of Engineering

Chinese Academy of Sciences

Chinese Academy of Social Sciences

Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Evaluation Studies

China Association for Science and Technology

China Computer Federation

China Academic Degrees and Graduate Education

Development Centre

Clout Index

Chinese S&T Journal Citation Report

Chinese Library Classification

China Domestic Uniform Serial Publication Numbers

China National Knowledge Infrastructure

Chinese Science Citation Database

Chinese Science Citation Index

Chinese Social Sciences Citation Index

CSTPCD

China Scientific and Technical Papers and

CUSR

ESCI

GCJC

GOSC

ICS

ICSSRA

ISR

ISSN

ISTIC

Citations Database

China University Subject Rankings

Emerging Sources Citation Index

A Guide to the Core Journals of China

General Office of the State Council of the People’s

Republic of China

International Classification for Standards

Institute for Chinese Social Science Research

and Assessment

Index to Scientific Reviews

International Standard Serial Number

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China

Quantitative Science Studies

325

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A comprehensive analysis of the journal evaluation system in China

Table A1.

(continued )

Abbreviations
ISTP

JCR

JIF

JPT

MOE

MOST

NRTA

NSFC

NSLC

聚苯乙烯

S&时间

SAPPRFT

SCI

SCIE

SSH

STEM

STM

WAJCI

WoS

Index to Scientific&Technical Proceeding

Full Names

Journal Citation Reports

Journal Impact Factor

Journal Partition Table

Life Sciences & Biomedicine

Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China

Ministry of Science and Technology of the People’s

Republic of China

National Radio and Television Administration of the

People’s Republic of China

National Natural Science Foundation of China

National Science Library, Chinese Academy of Sciences

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Physical Sciences

Science and Technology

State Administration of Press, Publication, 收音机,

Film and Television of the People’s Republic of China

Science Citation Index

Science Citation Index Expanded

社会科学

Social Sciences and Humanities

科学, 技术, Engineering and Medicine

Scientific, Technical and Medical

Total Citations

Technology Engineering

World Academic Journal Clout Index

Web of Science

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Quantitative Science Studies

326 RESEARCH ARTICLE image

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