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Authorship, citations, acknowledgments and visibility in social media : symbolic capital in the multifaceted reward system of science
Article [Accepted Manuscript]
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Social science information ; vol. 57, no. 2, pp. 223-248.Publisher(s)
SAGEAuthor(s)
Abstract(s)
The reward system of science is undergoing significant changes, as traditional indicators
compete with initiatives that offer novel means of disseminating and assessing scholarly
impact. This paper considers a number of aspects of this reward system, including
authorship, citations, acknowledgements, and the growing use of social media platforms
by academics, with an eye towards identifying contemporary issues relating to scholarly
communication practices, as understood through the perspectives of Bourdieu’s
symbolic capital and Merton’s recognition paradigms. This paper posits that, while
scientific capital remains the foundation upon which the reward system of science is
built, this system is revealing itself to be more and more multifaceted, extremely
complex, and facing increasing tension between its traditional means of evaluation and
the potential of new indicators in the digital era. The paper presents an extended
literature review, as well as recommendations for further considerations and empirical
research. A better understanding of the perceptions of academics would be necessary to
properly assess the effects of these new indicators on scholarly communication practices
and the reward system of science.
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