Dr. Alex Rushforth

Alex Rushforth is a researcher at CWTS. His work is located in social studies of science, with particular focus on research evaluation. Alex has longstanding interests in the uses of indicators in research and evaluation settings. His current research interests focus on the challenges of scaling-up and sustaining novel evaluation practices across university research settings. Alex is part of the TARA project (Tools to Advance Research Assessment), an international applied research collaboration between CWTS and the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (supported by the Arcadia Fund), that aims to accelerate research assessment reforms. This work uses mixed methods to investigate research assessment reforms in Europe and the United States and to co-develop new tools and resources to advance these efforts. 

Publications

Journal publications (9)

• Paul-Hus, A., Desrochers, N., De Rijcke, S., & Rushforth, A.D. (2017). The reward system of science. Aslib Journal of Information Management, 69(5), 478-485. (paper)
• Rushforth, A.D., & De Rijcke, S. (2017). Quality monitoring in transition: The challenge of evaluating translational research programs in academic biomedicine. Science and Public Policy, 44(4), 513-523. (paper)
• De Rijcke, S., Wouters, P., Rushforth, A.D., Franssen, T., & Hammarfelt, B.M.S. (2016). Evaluation practices and effects of indicator use - A literature review. Research Evaluation, 25(2), 161-169. (paper)
• Hammarfelt, B.M.S., De Rijcke, S., & Rushforth, A.D. (2016). Quantified academic selves: The gamification of science through social networking services, : eSM1. Information Research, 21(2). (paper)
• Rushforth, A.D. (2016). What's in a slogan? The meanings of translational science among academic cancer researchers in an English medical school. Nordic Journal of Science and Technology Studies, 4(1), 32-42. (paper)
• Rushforth, A.D., & Weaire, D. (2016). All or nothing? Debating the role of evaluative bibliometrics in the research system. Research Evaluation, 25(2), 230-231. (paper)
• De Rijcke, S., & Rushforth, A.D. (2015). To intervene, or not to intervene, is that the question? On the role of scientometrics in research evaluation. Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology, 66(9), 1954-1958. (paper)
• Rushforth, A.D. (2015). Meeting pragmatism halfway: Making a pragmatic clinical trial protocol. Sociology of Health & Illness, 37(8), 1285-1298. (paper)
• Rushforth, A.D., & De Rijcke, S. (2015). Accounting for impact? The journal impact factor and the making of biomedical research in the Netherlands. Minerva, 53(2), 117-139. (paper)

Conference publications (1)

• Rushforth, A.D., Yegros, A., Mongeon, P., & Van Leeuwen, T.N. (2016). How does ‘undone science’ get funded? A bibliometric analysis linking Rare Diseases publications to national and European funding sources.