Duplicate references in the 'Introduction' and 'Discussion' sections of scientific articles on physical education and sports

Leonid Podrigalo; Sergii Iermakov

doi:10.15561/health.2023.0203

Authors

Leonid Podrigalo Kharkiv State Academy of Physical Culture https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7893-524X
Sergii Iermakov Kharkiv State Academy of Design and Arts https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5039-4517

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15561/health.2023.0203

Keywords:

scholarly publications, academic citations, literature analysis, scholarly impact, research methodology

Abstract

Background and Study Aim. In the context of the increasing volume of scientific publications, the adequacy and effectiveness of source use in key sections of articles become crucial tasks. This requires detailed consideration, especially in light of potential duplication of references, which can affect the perception of originality and depth of research. The purpose of this article is to investigate the nature and impact of duplicate references in the 'Introduction' and 'Discussion' sections of scientific articles on physical education and sports.

Material and Methods. The authoritative Web of Science Core Collection database was selected as the information source. The search was conducted under the categories "Hospitality, Leisure, Sport & Tourism and Sport Sciences". Publications available in full version and open access were extracted (n=21). The selection criteria included indicators such as a high level of citation, including the "Citing Items Breakdown / Background" indicator (WoS). In this study, the PyCharm CE development environment and Python libraries were used to extract and analyze duplicate references in the "Introduction" and "Discussion" sections of scientific articles. The Shapiro-Wilk test was utilized to assess the normality of data distribution, and the Spearman correlation coefficient was applied to analyze the relationship between citation frequency and the frequency of duplicate references. To mitigate the impact of outliers, the robust RANSAC method was also employed.

Results. Key trends in the use of sources and citation strategies in highly cited articles on physical education and sports were identified. Articles categorized as 'Highly cited threshold ≤1%' and '≥1%' exhibit different aspects of their impact in the academic environment. A statistically significant relationship was established between the number of citations of articles and the frequency of duplicate references within them, with a Spearman correlation coefficient of 0.645 (p= 0.0016).

Conclusions. The duplication of key sources in the "Introduction" and "Discussion" sections can be an indicator of the depth of research and the quality of the scientific argument. The results highlight the importance of conscious and strategic use of literature in scientific articles, which can enhance their impact and visibility in the academic community.

Author Biographies

Leonid Podrigalo, Kharkiv State Academy of Physical Culture

leonid.podrigalo@gmail.com; Department of Physical Culture and Sports Rehabilitation; Kharkiv, Ukraine.

Sergii Iermakov, Kharkiv State Academy of Design and Arts

sportart@gmail.com; Department of Methodologies of Cross-Cultural Practices; Kharkiv, Ukraine.

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