THE USE OF CITATIONS MATRICES TO GROUP JOURNALS

A method of grouping journals within a wide discipline area into clusters is proposed, based on a algorithm that attempts to re-order a citations matrix so that it is block diagonal, or block recursive. The algorithm is based on a penalty function which allows one to account for the level of citation, not just the distribution of citations between journals. A case study involving eight economics journals is presented which illustrates the principles involved, but which also highlights the computational problems associated with extending the analysis to larger numbers of journals.