Citation behavior of Pondicherry University faculty in digital environment: a survey

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to understand the citation behavior of Pondicherry University faculty with a focus on their recent publication experience, indexed in Scopus. The paper endeavors to gain an insight into their pattern of citation of scientific papers and attempts to understand the underlying motive in doing so especially in an era where information resources have transitioned from print to digital. Design/methodology/approach The study adopted a judgmental sample consisting of 100 selected faculty members whose recent papers were indexed by Scopus database. A pre-defined questionnaire consisting of demographic profile and 23 items on citation trust and authority statements of citing sources was self-administered to them. Findings The findings of the study indicate that the citation behavior of faculty in Pondicherry University is complex and multi-faceted. Although majority of the faculty depicted an inclination toward normative citation behavior (concerned with the intellectual content of the work), there are others who displayed social constructivist (concerned with the social aspects of the work) citation behavior as well. However, in spite of the differences observed in the citation behavior of the faculty, it was observed that they remained traditional while making trust decisions even in the digital era. Finally, findings suggest no statistical significant difference when it comes to variables, such as gender and discipline in the citation behavior of the faculty. Originality/value Given the ever-increasing importance of citation in judging the quality of research journals, in ranking institutions and in determining the efficacy of faculty in India, author-based approach of understanding citer motivation definitely carry research value.