Is Social Simulation a Social Science Outstation? A Bibliometric Analysis of the Impact of JASSS

Abstract

This paper examines the bibliometric impact of JASSS on other ISI- and Scopus-indexed sources by examining inward and outward citations and their inter-relation. Given the prestige of JASSS, this analysis can measure the growth and dynamics of social simulation and give us an indication of the direction in which social simulation is moving. Results show that the impact of JASSS is higher in computer sciences, physics and ecology than it is in the social sciences, even though JASSS-indexed articles tend to be more concerned with social science-related topics. Looking at inter-journal citations revealed an interesting citation structure: JASSS collected its largest percentage of citations from non-social science-focused journals while directing more citations within its own articles toward works published in social science journals. On the one hand, this would confirm that social simulation is not yet recognised in the social science mainstream. On the other hand, this may indicate that the cross-disciplinary nature of JASSS allows it to promulgate social science theories and findings in other distant communities.