Allocation of Research Funds Using Bibliometric Indicators – Asset and Challenge to Swedish Higher Education Sector

Abstract

Since 2009, the Swedish government has allocated a part of its direct funding to the Swedish universities based on a bibliometric indicator, which stems from the number of publications and citations found in the Web of Science bibliographic database. This paper discusses the creation and detailed structure of the new indicator, which has met criticism from both researchers and the Swedish Research Council, set to maintain the new system. The current focus on evaluation and quality assurance in the area of higher education, together with the introduction of the new indicator, has created an increased demand on the university administration and libraries for publication databases and bibliometric services