Overcoming alphabetical disadvantage: factors influencing the use of surname initial techniques and their impact on citation rates in the four major disciplines of social sciences

Abstract

This study investigates the factors influencing surname initial techniques in academic publications and their impact on citation counts. Focusing on the disciplines of Economics, Psychology, Political Science, and Sociology, we utilized data from the top 500 universities listed in the Shanghai List. Examining 70.377 academic publications from 2.278 academics published between 2011 and 2020, the study reveals that alphabetical ordering is more prevalent in Economics and Political Science. Academics with surnames placed at the beginning of the alphabet in these fields experience increased visibility and recognition. Conversely, those with surnames placed at the end of the alphabet face disadvantages and often employ strategies such as changing surname initials, using hyphenated surnames, or adding prefixes to improve their positioning in the author list of the article. These strategies, influenced by factors like the number of authors, country of origin, gender and whether the advantage is gained or not in positioning of author list, help mitigate the unfairness caused by alphabetization and positively contribute to authors’ citation statistics.