Análisis de la producción científica del Ecuador e impacto de la colaboración internacional en el periodo 2006-2015

One hundred years of Ecuadorian biomedical scientific output and its association with the main causes of mortality: a bibliometric study

Introduction

Historically, low-and middle-income countries have been scarce producers of biomedical research; only 2% of the global scientific output is produced by these countries despite accounting for 92% of the global burden of disease. In addition, few low-and middle-income countries have exhaustively mapped and analyzed their scientific production in health and its association with main local burden of disease.

Objective

To evaluate the evolution of biomedical research in Ecuador over the last 100 years and its relationship with the main causes of mortality.

Methods

A bibliometric study embedded in a systematic review design was carried out using biomedical publications indexed in Scopus and Web of Science (WoS) during the period 1920-2021. Information from the National Institute of Statistics and Census was used to identify the main causes of mortality.

Results

Our search strategy identified 16,697 publications related to biomedicine in Ecuador. Of these 3,225 articles met the criteria for this study. Since 2010, there has been an exponential increase in scientific production in biomedicine. This increase was predominantly based on cross-sectional observational studies (49.67%). During the period analyzed (1920-2021), biomedical production was distributed with 52.43% in clinical research, 37.79% in public health, and 9.77% in basic sciences. The research focus with the highest number of publications was epidemiology and surveillance system of diseases (23.44%). Additionally, private universities are the largest producers of biomedical research compared to public universities, 40.12% vs. 19.60%, respectively. Of the total biomedical research produced, 18.54% is associated with the main causes of mortality, and the Ecuadorian private university is the largest contributor to these studies compared to public universities, 39.97% vs. 16.72%.

Conclusion

In one century, Ecuador produced 3,225 articles in biomedicine, according to our criteria. 18.54% of the total produced is aimed at solving the main causes of mortality in the country. Private universities are the leaders in scientific production related to health in Ecuador.

Overcoming the Tropical Andes publication divide: Insights from local researchers on challenges and solutions

The Tropical Andes, one of the world's most biodiverse regions, is vital for ecological research and conservation. However, while researchers in Bolivia, Ecuador, and Peru contribute significantly to scientific knowledge, their publication rates in academic journals have historically lagged behind neighboring nations. A multifaceted strategy was employed to understand and address the publication divide in the Tropical Andes region. This approach focused on regional researchers and consisted of a three-day workshop to improve scientific writing skills, offer publication insights, and equip researchers with tools to overcome obstacles. A series of surveys were also conducted to explore the challenges faced by local researchers and their proposed solutions, covering topics such as participant demographics, factors contributing to lower publication rates, personal barriers, proposed strategies for improving publications, specific topics of interest, participant satisfaction, most valuable workshop topics, and future recommendations. The workshop had an overwhelming response, with over 500 interested participants registering in just a few days, mostly experienced professionals, highlighting the need for such initiatives in the region. About two-thirds had ready-to-publish materials, highlighting the potential impact of targeted interventions on unlocking untapped knowledge. The surveys revealed the challenges contributing to the publication divide, including insufficient training, cultural emphasis on economic development, language barriers, limited resource access, lack of institutional support, high publishing costs, and time and financial constraints. The most common personal barriers were insufficient knowledge and experience in the publication process, lack of self-confidence, and fears of rejection. Proposed solutions include conducting training workshops, fostering collaborative networks, improving resource accessibility, and an institutional and cultural shift that encourages publishing. Addressing challenges faced by experienced professionals in the Tropical Andes by understanding individual needs, fostering support, and demystifying the publication process offers a promising path to closing the publication divide and unlocking the region's valuable scientific contributions.

Analysis of Ecuador's SCOPUS scientific production during the 2001-2020 period by means of standardized citation indicators

An analysis of the scientific production of Ecuador is performed by means of the composite indicator computed for Ecuador-based authors as compared to their counterparts of other South American countries. The dataset employed was obtained from the Databricks platform of the ELSEVIER's International Center for Science Research, ICSR. Therefore, this analysis is limited to the metadata of the documents published in journals indexed in SCOPUS. Comparison of the results obtained for two decades: 2001-2010 and 2011-2020 showed that the number of Ecuador-based researchers has significantly increased in different areas of knowledge. Moreover, comparison between the total number of authors that worked in Ecuador at any given year of the 2011-2020 period and the number of authors that are still working in this country up to the date of the data extraction (i.e., June 2021) showed an average of ∼68% of permanency. Analysis of the percentage distribution in terms of range quarters of the composite indicator (i.e., Q4: 0-1.5, Q3: 1.5-3.0, Q2: 3.0-4.5, and Q1: 4.5-6.0) showed that nearly the totality of the Ecuador-based researchers has composite indicators that lay in the Q4 and Q3 ranges for all the scientific fields considered. The latter was observed to be an effect of the scientific impact of South American countries, with larger investments in science and technology in comparison to Ecuador (i.e., Argentina, Brazil, and Chile). Exclusion of this group of countries in the calculation of the composite indicator of Ecuador-based authors resulted in a noticeable increment of scientists with composite indicators within Q2. Finally, our results suggest, in agreement with previous studies, a correlation between the sustained growth of scientific productivity in the decade 2011-2020 with the scientific programs and policies created by the state, where the initiative of scientific culture is shown as a strategy for growth and development.

Producción científica colombiana en psicología en Scopus desde el 2015 al 2019

Este artículo tuvo como objetivo realizar un análisis bibliométrico en el periodo 2015 - 2019, de la producción científica en psicología colombiana indexada en Scopus. Los datos de los países latinoamericanos se recolectaron a través Scimago Journal & Country Rank. Las principales variables analizadas fueron el número total de documentos y de citaciones y el porcentaje de colaboración internacional; también se tuvo en cuenta los datos pertenecientes a las revistas colombianas en el área de psicología indexada en Scopus. Se encontró que Colombia presenta el mayor porcentaje de crecimiento en producción científica durante el periodo analizado, sin embargo, su contribución total de producción en la región es muy inferior a países como Brasil, México y Chile. Igualmente, se evidenció que Colombia es el segundo país latinoamericano que cuenta con mayor número de revistas de psicología en Scopus, diez (10), no obstante, se sitúa como el cuarto país en número de documentos.

Scientific Research in Ecuador: A Bibliometric Analysis

Ecuador has shown a growth in its scientific production since 2011, representing 85% of the total historical production. These investigations are reflected in scientific publications, which address world interest topics and serve as a link for the university, business, and society. This work aims to analyze the scientific production generated by Ecuador in the period of 1920–2020 using bibliometric methods to evaluate its intellectual structure and performance. The methodology applied in this study includes: (i) terms definition and search criteria; (ii) database selection, initial search, and document compilation; (iii) data extraction and software selection; and finally, (iv) analysis of results. The results show that scientific production has been consolidated in 30,205 documents, developed in 27 subject areas, in 13 languages under the contribution of 84 countries. This intellectual structure is in harmony with the global context when presenting research topics related to “Biology and regional climate change”, “Higher education and its various approaches”, “Technology and Computer Science”, “Medicine”, “Energy, food and water”, and ”Development and applications on the Web”. Topics framed in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), sustainability, climate change, and others. This study contributes to the academic community, considering current re-search issues and global concerns, the collaboration between universities and countries that allow establishing future collaboration links.

Producción científica del Ecuador en el ámbito agropecuario: caso del Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Agropecuarias, periodo 2014-2019

La producción científica en Ecuador ha seguido un patrón similar a la evolución de otros países latinoamericanos, existiendo escasa generación de documentos indexados; pero en los últimos años se ha incrementado. El INIAP ha plasmado los resultados de sus investigaciones en publicaciones técnicas, dípticos, guías, manuales, entre otros. Desde el año 2014 ha tenido un aumento sostenido en su producción científica, debido a nueva reglamentación de acreditación e incentivos a investigadores. El objetivo de la presente investigación fue realizar un análisis de la producción científica del INIAP durante el periodo 2014-2019. Los resultados mostraron un aumentó 3,1 veces durante el periodo analizado, superando el crecimiento latinoamericano en ese mismo tiempo. Se determinó que más del 54% de las publicaciones del INIAP tienen colaboración internacional y el 62% de publicaciones están indexadas en revistas con índice SJR. Estos resultados indican que INIAP ha incrementado su producción y calidad científica en investigación agropecuaria.

Caracterización de la producción científica de Ecuador en el periodo 2007–2017 en Scopus

Ecuador ha aumentado vertiginosamente su producción científica en los últimos años, actualmente es el sexto país de Latinoamérica y el Caribe con mayor número de artículos publicados en Scopus. El objetivo de este trabajo fue estudiar la evolución de la producción científica de Ecuador en Scopus durante el periodo 2007-2017, obteniendo para cada año el número de citas recibidas, el porcentaje de artículos por cuartil, el porcentaje de artículos escritos en inglés, español u otros idiomas, y el porcentaje de documentos publicados como artículos, revisiones y memorias de congresos, entre otros. Los resultados muestran un aumento en la proporción de artículos en Q4 y un descenso en Q1, un aumento en la proporción de artículos escritos en español, y un aumento del porcentaje de documentos publicados como memorias de congreso, mientras que no hubo evidencia de un aumento en el número de citas recibidas. Estos resultados sugieren que el aumento de la producción científica en Ecuador no ha dado como resultado un aumento de la calidad, medida como usabilidad (citas), visibilidad (idioma) e impacto (cuartiles), lo que podría ser resultado de la incipiente ciencia que se está generando en el país.