This handbook presents the state of the art of quantitative methods and models to understand and assess the science and technology system. Focusing on various aspects of the development and application of indicators derived from data on scholarly publications, patents and electronic communications, the individual chapters, written by leading experts, discuss theoretical and methodological issues, illustrate applications, highlight their policy context and relevance, and point to future research directions. A substantial portion of the book is dedicated to detailed descriptions and analyses of data sources, presenting both traditional and advanced approaches. It addresses the main bibliographic metrics and indexes, such as the journal impact factor and the h-index, as well as altmetric and webometric indicators and science mapping techniques on different levels of aggregation and in the context of their value for the assessment of research performance as well as their impact on research policy and society. It also presents and critically discusses various national research evaluation systems. Complementing the sections reflecting on the science system, the technology section includes multiple chapters that explain different aspects of patent statistics, patent classification and database search methods to retrieve patent-related information. In addition, it examines the relevance of trademarks and standards as additional technological indicators. The Springer Handbook of Science and Technology Indicators is an invaluable resource for practitioners, scientists and policy makers wanting a systematic and thorough analysis of the potential and limitations of the various approaches to assess research and research performance.

The OECD Science, Technology and Innovation Outlook 2018 is the twelfth edition in a series that biennially reviews key trends in science, technology and innovation (STI) policy in OECD countries and a number of major partner economies. The 14 chapters within this edition look at a range of ...

Advanced countries have shown an increasing convergence in their economic performance and technological intensity, with a relative decline of the position of the United States and the emergence of the European and Japanese economies. The Technological Specialization of Advanced Countries moves beyond aggregate patterns and examines the sectoral structure of technological activities, the process of specialization, and the impact on national performance. Indicators of technology and of scientific activity are examined together with other economic and R & D data, providing a wealth of empirical evidence on the activities, and areas of strength and weakness of individual countries. The amount of disaggregated data provided, and the assessment offered on the state of art in science and technology indicators, make The Technological Specialization of Advanced Countries an important reference work. A description of the fields of national effort is provided and a special study is devoted to the fields of greater innovative dynamism where patenting has grown most rapidly. Over time, countries have concentrated their technological efforts in the fields of their greater strength, under the pressure of increasing international competition and the proprietary nature of know how. Conversely, in science there has generally been a decrease in the degree of specialization, with countries entering new fields of research, taking advantage of the open flow of scientific knowledge. For science and technology policy, the findings of The Technological Specialization of Advanced Countries suggest that national efforts should be combined with the growing international integration. The aims of maintaining established areas of strength and of developing new specializations in emerging fields should be balanced, and a more selective policy at the sectoral level is suggested.