Department of Radiology, College of Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA.
Acad Radiol. 2011 Nov;18(11):1337-40. doi: 10.1016/j.acra.2011.06.017. Epub 2011 Aug 27.
Despite rapid adoption of the Hirsch index (h-index) as a measure of academic success, the correlations between the h-index and other metrics of productivity remain poorly understood. The aims of this study were to determine whether h-indices were associated with greater National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding success among academic radiologists.
Using the Scopus database, h-indices were calculated for a random sample of academic radiologists with the rank of professor. Using the NIH tool Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tools Expenditures and Reports, we determined the number, classification, and total years of NIH grant funding as principal investigator for each radiologist. Differences in h-index, sorted by funding status, were determined using Wilcoxon's tests. Associations between h-index and funding status were determined using logistic regression. Significant correlations between h-index and grant metrics were determined using Spearman's ρ.
Among 210 professors of radiology, 48 (23%) secured at least one NIH grant. The mean h-index was significantly higher among individuals who secured at least one NIH grant (19.1) compared to those who did not (10.4) (P < .0001). Professors with h-indices < 10 compared to those with h-indices > 10 were significantly less likely to receive NIH funding (odds ratio, 0.07; P = .0321). However, h-indices > 10 were not significantly predictive of greater funding. No significant relationships were observed between h-index and the number of grant awards, years of prior funding, the amounts of grant awards, or grant classification.
Having obtained at least one NIH grant was associated with a higher h-index, yet multiple or large grants, such as those for program projects, were not predictive of higher h-indices.
尽管 Hirsch 指数（h-index）作为学术成功的衡量标准已经得到了广泛应用，但 h-index 与其他生产力指标之间的相关性仍知之甚少。本研究旨在确定学术放射科医生的 h-index 是否与获得更多美国国立卫生研究院（NIH）资助成功有关。
使用 Scopus 数据库，为具有教授职称的随机抽取的学术放射科医生计算 h-index。使用 NIH 工具 Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tools Expenditures and Reports，我们确定了每位放射科医生作为主要研究者获得的 NIH 拨款的数量、分类和总年限。使用 Wilcoxon 检验确定按资助状态排序的 h-index 差异。使用逻辑回归确定 h-index 与资助状态之间的关联。使用 Spearman's ρ 确定 h-index 与拨款指标之间的显著相关性。
在 210 名放射学教授中，有 48 人（23%）获得了至少一项 NIH 资助。获得至少一项 NIH 资助的个体的平均 h-index（19.1）明显高于未获得资助的个体（10.4）（P <.0001）。h-index < 10 的教授获得 NIH 资助的可能性明显低于 h-index > 10 的教授（比值比，0.07；P =.0321）。然而，h-index > 10 并不能显著预测更高的资助。h-index 与拨款数量、前期资助年限、拨款金额或拨款分类之间没有观察到显著关系。
获得至少一项 NIH 资助与更高的 h-index 相关，但多个或大笔拨款，如项目拨款，并不预示着更高的 h-index。
