Measuring Research Impact: Pūmanawa & Waehere | Software & Code

In some disciplines, researchers will produce or write software or code as part of their research. Software files can be published and cited in the same way as any other research output, however, the standards and norms for doing this are lacking which causes challenges for tracking impact in this way. Publishers and database providers are improving how full-text files are searched to uncover previously invisible mentions, for example in methodology sections and acknowledgments.

Other ways of identifying or measuring impact can include:

• Measuring the number of times code has been forked - that is, used as the basis for a new project. Code repositories such as GitHub will display this information
• Social media mentions, "stars" and other engagements can also be tracked in some repositories
• Number of users, downloads, installs, updates or add-on products
• Narrative explanations of use cases
• Commercialisation, patents and citations in technical reports.

Need Help?

For assistance, reach out to the Open Research Team at library@waikato.ac.nz.