New indicators for gender studies in Web networks

New indicators for gender studies are introduced using the multi-authored publications of a set of 64 members of the COLLNET network. Considering the sample of 223 papers and their visibility on the Web, analyses were performed on the sets comprised of publications on the one hand and the authors (social network analysis) on the other. The indicators developed include: Gender co-operation; Web visibility rates and Gender centrality in networks. The co-operation among COLLNET members results in a publication set with a different pattern to other gender studies in science, which show low contribution rates of women in collaboration activities. In the sample the collaboration patterns of female COLLNET members are almost the same as their male counterparts. However, when considering only the arrangement of gender in the by-line of publications, this is in favour of men. Regarding average Web visibility rates, there are no differences dependent upon the arrangement of gender in publications with both male and female co-authors. However, the results also show strong gender differences in favour of publications with only male co-authors. The centrality of female actors in the networks is correlated with the central positions of women in the International Society for Scientometrics and Informetrics (ISSI), where they are leading either as presidents or organisers of its international conferences. It may well be that, with webometric methods and new indicators for gender studies, there is a real continuation of gender equality in COLLNET over time. (c) 2005 Published by Elsevier Ltd.