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Cited by 101Psychology Research and Bibliometricsscientometrics and bibliometrics researchEvolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior

Hot Topics and Popular Papers in Evolutionary Psychology: Analyses of Title Words and Citation Counts in Evolution and Human Behavior , 1979 – 2008

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Webster, Gregory D., Jonason, Peter K., Schember, Tatiana Orozco·2009·Evolutionary Psychology
DOI 10.1177/147470490900700301
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Abstract

What do evolutionary psychologists study, which are their most highly cited articles, and which variables predict high citation counts? These are important questions for any emerging science. To help answer these questions, we present new empirical research on publication trends in evolutionary psychology's flagship journal, Evolution and Human Behavior (and its predecessor, Ethology and Sociobiology), from its inception in 1979 to 2008. First, analyses of 8,631 title words published in these journals between 1979 and 2008 (808 articles) show an increasing interest in researching sex, sex differences, faces, and attractiveness. For example, during the Ethology and Sociobiology era (1979–1996), the most frequent title words were “evolutionary,” “human,” “behavior,” “reproductive,” “evolution,” “selection,” and “altruism,” whereas during the Evolution and Human Behavior era (1997–2008), they were “sex,” “attractiveness,” “differences,” “sexual,” “human,” “male,” and “facial.” Second, we reveal the 20 most-cited articles in these journals, which show the importance of research teams. Third, citation analyses for these journals between 1979 and 2002 (562 articles) suggest articles that cite more references are in turn cited more themselves ( r = .44, R 2 = .19). Lastly, we summarize recent research that suggests evolutionary psychology is not only surviving, but also thriving, as a new interdisciplinary science.

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Crossref · 10.1177/147470490900700301

Cites

25 of 25 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

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  • One possible explanation for the relationship between reference counts and citation counts is that the more people you cite in your paper, the more people are likely to cite your paper in the future.

    “One possible explanation for such relationship is that 'the more people you cite in your paper, the more people are likely to cite your paper (the paper they were cited in) in the future' (Webster et al., 2009, p. 349).”

    From Core Elements in the Process of Citing Publications: Conceptual Overview of the Literature (2018) · cites this paper as Webster et al., 2009

  • In evolutionary psychology, reference counts explained 19% of the variance in citation counts.

    “Webster et al. (2009, p. 356) indicate that in evolutionary psychology, 'reference counts explained 19% of the variance in citation counts'.”

    From Core Elements in the Process of Citing Publications: Conceptual Overview of the Literature (2018) · cites this paper as Webster et al., 2009

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Authors
Webster, G. D., Jonason, P. K., & Schember, T. O.
Affiliations
  • University of Florida (US)
  • New Mexico State University (US)
ORCID
Venue
Evolutionary Psychology
Publisher
SAGE Publications
Published
2009-07-01
Volume
7
Issue
3
ISSN
1474-7049 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1177/147470490900700301
OpenAlex
W2265169768
Cited by
101
References
25
Citations by year
2026: 1 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 10 · 2020: 25 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 6 · 2017: 7 · 2016: 4 · 2015: 4 · 2014: 7 · 2013: 2 · 2012: 5
FWCI
4.23
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Evolutionary Psychology (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
  • Padua Research Archive (University of Padova) (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Psychology Research and Bibliometrics
  • Social Sciences › Decision Sciences › Statistics, Probability and Uncertainty › scientometrics and bibliometrics research
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior
Keywords
publication trends, citation analysis, highly cited papers, sex differences, facial attractiveness, research groups, interdisciplinary research

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