Evaluation of scientific books' publishers in social sciences and humanities: Results of a survey

Abstract

Books are a key channel in the scientific communication processes for researchers in Social Sciences and Humanities. Although the best way of assessing the monographs would involve its individualized reading, this method is practically unfeasible both in terms of cost and time. An indicator which could be used is the prestige of the publisher of monographs and it is essential to take into account the academy's opinion to determine it. This article reports a survey launched to 11,647 lecturers and Spanish researchers, with a response rate of 26%, in which the respondents were asked to point those quality indicators they consider the most relevant for books as well as their opinion on the quality of publishers. As the main results, there are reported the top-rated publishers, as well as the characteristics which, according to the respondents' opinion, determine their quality; among these characteristics, stands out the fact of counting with an assessment system with external reviewers. Regarding the list of publishers, it is also explained the indicator which allows its ranking. It is also defended the use of the results in the form of categorization. © The Author 2012. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.