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Beyond au ho ship:
Analyzing disciplina y pa e ns o con ibu ion
s a emen s using he CRediT axonomy
El i a González-Salmón1, Vic o ia Di Césa e1*, Aoxia Xiao2 and Nicolas Robinson-Ga cia1
1Uni o Compu a ional Humani ies and Social Sciences (U-CHASS), Uni e si y o G anada (Spain)
2School o In o ma ion Managemen , Wuhan Uni e si y (China)
*Co esponding au ho : [email p o ec ed]
Abs ac
In his esea ch a icle we p esen he i s c oss-disciplina y desc ip i e analysis on he use o
con ibu ion s a emen s. Ou main objec i e is o ob ain u he insigh on con ibu ions by a a ie y o
ields (Mul idisciplina y, Heal h, Li e, Physical and Social Sciences) om he la ges da ase used up
o now. We examine mo e han 700,000 a icles published be ween 2017 and 2024 in Else ie and
PLOS jou nals, in combina ion wi h bibliome ic da a ex ac ed om he Scopus da abase. The
desc ip i e analysis o he da ase ocuses on he o e all co e age o he me ged da a, he dis ibu ion
o au ho ship and disciplines a pape le el, and he in e ac ions be ween con ibu ion s a emen s, au ho
o de and disciplines. Ou wo main indings indica e ha , on he one hand, looking a con ibu ions
and au ho ship o de can en ich he way we unde s and science as a social endea o . On he o he hand,
del ing deepe in o con ibu o ship di e ences by ield is key. We unde sco e he alue o he CRediT
axonomy in un eiling nuanced esea ch dynamics and o e ing a mo e equi able amewo k o
e alua ion.
Keywo ds: CRediT axonomy; Au ho ship; Con ibu o ship; Di ision o labo
In oduc ion
Team science is on he ise (Wuch y e al., 2007), challenging p e ious concep ions o wha
accoun s o science and au ho ship (Bi nhol z, 2006). This may equi e new no ms ha a e p epa ed
o deal wi h he new s uc u e o science (Jabbehda i & Walsh, 2017) and has al eady led many o
sugges eplacing he concep o au ho wi h ha o con ibu o , which acknowledges he dis ibu ed
and collabo a i e na u e o science as i is conduc ed in he 21s Cen u y. Since hei in oduc ion in
biomedical jou nals by he end o he 1990s (Rennie e al., 1997; Rennie e al., 2000), con ibu ion
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s a emen s a e becoming mo e widesp ead in academia, especially hanks o he launch o he
Con ibu o Roles Taxonomy (CRediT) (B and e al., 2015). This axonomy was de eloped o
homogenize con ibu ion s a emen s ac oss publica ions and acili a e discussions abou au ho ship ha
help a oid au ho dispu es (Allen e al., 2019). Since i s launch, he CRediT axonomy is now used by
mo e han 40 di e en publishe s ac oss a wide ange o disciplines (h ps://c edi .niso.o g/). Thei
expansion no only has he po en ial o o e coming he limi a ions o using au ho ship as a “c edi ” in
esea ch assessmen bu can help us unde s and how science is done, how esea che s dis ibu e asks,
how his in luences au ho o de , and how i ela es o hei p es ige as e lec ed in he au ho byline o
publica ions (Haeussle & Saue mann, 2013).
Con ibu o ship has been s udied o some yea s now. C onin e al. (2003) aced hem e en
be o e hey appea ed in a special sec ion wi hin esea ch a icles by looking in o he acknowledgemen s
o Psychology and Philosophy h oughou he 20 h Cen u y. D awing on a mul idisciplina y da ase o
mo e han 80,000 documen s, La i iè e e al. (2016) examined he ela ionship be ween di ision o
labo , con ibu ion ypes and au ho s’ senio i y o p o ide e idence on he exis ence o concep ual
con ibu ions made by senio esea che s and echnical asks pe o med by younge schola s. La e ,
La i iè e e al. (2021) upda ed hei analysis using he CRediT axonomy o a se o mo e han 30,000
PLOS pape s and s udied he dis ibu ion o con ibu ions ac oss eams. O he ele an wo ks ha e
applied con ibu ions o look in o c edi alloca ion (Ding e al., 2021; Saue mann & Haeussle , 2017),
c edi bias (Ma heson, 2022), scien i ic ajec o ies (Robinson-Ga cia e al., 2020), and gende
di e ences (Macaluso e al., 2016; Sugimo o & La i iè e, 2023).
Howe e , much emains unknown since mos analyses ocus on speci ic disciplines and
publica ions, mainly Biomedical Sciences and PLOS jou nals. In addi ion, om a bibliome ic poin o
iew, he possibili ies o his s ill no el axonomy a e no ully explo ed. Mo e han one decade since
he bi h o CRediT, we now ha e enough da a o s a ge ing a glimpse o i s adop ion, pa e ns and
p ospec s. He e we p esen he i s c oss-disciplina y desc ip i e analysis on he use o con ibu ion
s a emen s. The aim o his desc ip i e pape is o ob ain u he insigh on con ibu ions by a a ie y o
ields, co e ing Heal h, Li e and Physical Sciences as well as Mul idisciplina y and Social Sciences,
om he la ges da ase used up o now, o he bes o ou knowledge. We analyze a se o o e hal a
million esea ch a icles belonging o Else ie and PLOS jou nals om all ields o science which we
combine wi h bibliome ic da a ex ac ed om he Scopus da abase. We look in o disciplina y
di e ences on he use o con ibu ions, hei o e all co e age and hei ela ionship wi h au ho posi ion
in pape s. We conclude by discussing he po en ial o his da a o open new enues o esea ch on ca ee
ajec o ies, scien i ic impac and ecogni ion, and he social o ganiza ion o he sciences.
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Da a & Me hods
In his s udy we examine a o al 714,732 jou nal a icles published be ween 2017 and 2024.
The da a was acili a ed by he ICSR Lab om Else ie as well as by PLOS. Else ie was one o he
i s publishe s adop ing he CRediT axonomy wi hin hei jou nal po olio (Else ie , 2024). Since
hen, hey p o ide he op ion o include such in o ma ion in hei Edi o ial Manage and a e wo king on
o e ing i as well h ough he ScienceDi ec jou nal pla o m (Geno a, 2023). The ICSR Lab p o ided
access o a o al o 633,443 unique a icles om 1,951 jou nals, au ho ed by a lis o 1,854,552 unique
au ho p o iles anging om 2017 o 2024. We conduc ed some manual quali y checks o ensu e he
eliabili y o he da ase which a e a ailable in he Appendix (see Table A1).
PLOS da a was also acili a ed by he publishe h ough a da a use ag eemen . PLOS has s and
ou as one o he main d i e s on he expansion o con ibu ion s a emen s, by libe a ing hei
bibliog aphic da a and allowing he scien ome ic communi y o explo e i o be e unde s and eam
dynamics. Examples o such e o s a e he s udies conduc ed by La i iè e e al. (2016, 2021),
Saue mann and Haeussle (2017), Macaluso e al. (2016) and Robinson-Ga cia e al. (2020) o name
jus a ew. In his case hey p o ided con ibu ion da a om hei jou nal po olio ela ed o 97,819
publica ions o he 2018-2023 pe iod, om which 83.2% belonged o PLOS One. Along wi h he
au ho con ibu ion s a emen s assigned o e e y au ho , his da ase includes each a icle’s Digi al
Objec Iden i ie (DOI). A e a manual alida ion check (See Appendix, Table A2), he da ase was
me ged in o Scopus da a ia DOI and au ho s’ gi en name and su name. A o al o 81,289 eco ds we e
co ec ly ma ched, co esponding o 415,014 disambigua ed au ho s (based on Scopus Au ho P o ile).
Ou inal da ase esul ing om he me ging o he ScienceDi ec da a and he PLOS da a
con ains a o al o 1,965 jou nals and 714,732 bibliog aphic eco ds, au ho ed by a o al o 2,182,041
unique Scopus Au ho P o iles and published be ween 2017 and 2024. We ha e a minimum numbe o
au ho s pe pape o 1, and a maximum o 271. The ull Py hon code de eloped o me ge, compu e and
isualize he da a is eely a ailable in Di Césa e and Xiao (2024) and he supplemen a y ma e ial can
be accessed h ough González-Salmón e al. (2024). Nex , we conduc a desc ip i e analysis o he
da ase ocusing on he o e all co e age o he me ged da a, he dis ibu ion o au ho ship and
disciplines a pape le el, and he in e ac ions be ween con ibu ion s a emen s, au ho o de and
disciplines.
Resul s
Gene al o e iew
Figu e 1 p o ides an o e iew o he magni ude o he da ase analyzed in compa ison wi h he
o e all size o Scopus. The i s h ee yea s o he pe iod as well as 2024 p esen low co e age, bu he
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yea s 2020 o 2023 ep esen on a e age 6% o Scopus’ con en , wi h 2022 eaching he highes
co e age poin a 7.2% (208,207 a icles). Table S1 (Supplemen a y ma e ial) shows his compa ison
by discipline and ield. The lis o ields, disciplines and hei co esponding ac onyms is included in
he Appendix (Table A3).
Figu e 1. Co e age o ou me ged da ase compa ed o Scopus by yea .
Bo h in absolu e and ela i e e ms, he mos ep esen ed ield in ou da ase and compa ed o
Scopus is Physical Sciences (503,145 a icles, 5% o Scopus’ con en ). Wi hin i , he disciplines
Enginee ing (198,231), Ma e ials Science (161,105) and Chemis y (129,971) s and ou wi h he highes
numbe s o a icles o he whole pe iod. Mul idisciplina y as a ield is also p ominen because i
p esen s he highes pe cen ages o sha ed a icles be ween ou da ase and Scopus h oughou he yea s
(15% on a e age) (Supplemen a y ma e ial, Table S1). In addi ion, Table S2 (Supplemen a y ma e ial)
lis s he 1,965 jou nals ha o m ou me ged da ase wi h he numbe o a icles each one con ains pe
yea . The jou nal co e ing he la ges numbe o publica ions om ou da ase is PLOS One, wi h
almos 10% o he o al a icles.
Pape le el analysis
Figu e 2 shows he dis ibu ion o au ho s pe pape o e all and by majo ield. To ensu e
eadabili y, we include a cu -o h eshold o up o 50 au ho s pe pape . The mode o he whole se is
o 4 au ho s pe pape (113,991 pape s). When looking a numbe o au ho s ac oss ields, we obse e
na ow di e ences. Fo Social Sciences, he mos common numbe o au ho s is 3 (16,150 pape s),
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while o bo h Mul idisciplina y (9,772 pape s) and Physical Sciences (85,592 pape s) i is 4. In Heal h
Sciences and Li e Sciences mos pape s a e w i en by 5 au ho s (9,570 and 23,321 pape s espec i ely).
O e all
Heal h Sciences
Li e Sciences
Mul idisciplina y
Physical Sciences
Social Sciences
Figu e 2. Dis ibu ion o numbe o au ho s (<= 50) by numbe o a icles and ield, log scale.
Simila ly, in Figu e 3 we examine he dis ibu ion on he numbe o con ibu ion ypes pe pape
o e all and by ield. All ields excep o Mul idisciplina y ollow a simila pa e n, in which he numbe
o pape s dec eases a e eaching an a e age peak o 9 con ibu ion ypes pe pape . In Social Sciences
he maximum numbe o con ibu ion ypes pe pape is 8, whe eas Physical Sciences has 9, Heal h
Sciences and Li e Sciences ha e bo h 10, and Mul idisciplina y 11 con ibu ion ypes. Thus, Social
Sciences is he ield wi h he ewes con ibu ion ypes, while Mul idisciplina y p esen s almos 40%
mo e con ibu ion ypes.
O e all
Heal h Sciences
Li e Sciences
Mul idisciplina y
Physical Sciences
Social Sciences
Figu e 3. Dis ibu ion o numbe o CRediT con ibu ion ypes pe pape , o e all and by ield.
The a e age p opo ion o con ibu ion ypes by discipline can be seen in Figu e 4. Some
pa icula s a emen s, like Concep ualiza ion, Me hodology, W i ing – o iginal d a and W i ing –
e iew & edi ing, a e clea ly p esen in all disciplines a a high a e. O he s, such as Resou ces, P ojec
adminis a ion and Funding acquisi ion, a e con e sely seldom p esen . In be ween, we ind a ew mixed
scena ios whe e he same con ibu ion, o ins ance So wa e, Da a cu a ion and Fo mal analysis, has a
high p opo ion o usage in some disciplines bu e y low in o he s.
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Figu e 4. A e age p opo ion o CRediT con ibu ion ypes by discipline.
Au ho le el analysis
Figu e 5 shows he a e age numbe o con ibu ion ypes each au ho con ibu es wi h on
a e age pe ield. In his way, we show how dis ibu ed a e asks by ield. Fo example, in Physical
Sciences au ho s con ibu e on a e age wi h one ask in 13.84% o he a icles, whe eas in 30.40% o
hem hey conduc an a e age o 2 di e en asks. In Heal h, Li e and Physical Sciences he mos
common scena io is ha o 2 con ibu ions pe au ho (26.52%, 27.80% and 30.40% espec i ely), while
in Mul idisciplina y and Social Sciences each au ho pe o ms 3 asks in 20.30% and 23.20% o he
pape s. I we look a highe numbe s o con ibu ions pe au ho , we ind ha Heal h, Li e and Physical
Sciences a e less ep esen ed in hose g oups ( o ins ance, in less han 3% o hei a icles au ho s
con ibu e wi h up o 7 di e en asks), while Mul idisciplina y and Social Sciences ha e a sligh ly
mo e signi ican ep esen a ion he e (6.28% and 4.59%). The e o e, we obse e a highe dis ibu ion
o asks in ields such as Heal h, Li e and Physical Sciences. On he opposi e side we ind he
Mul idisciplina y ield and Social Sciences, whe e au ho s a e in ol ed on a highe numbe o asks on
a e age.
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Figu e 5. A e age numbe o CRediT con ibu ion ypes by au ho in ol ed pe a icle and ield.
Co-occu ence o con ibu ions by pape
He e we in es iga e he le el o co-occu ence be ween con ibu ion ypes, ha is, how common
i is o a con ibu ion o be conduc ed by he same au ho in he same publica ion (Figu e 6). The mos
common con ibu ion co-occu ences ake place be ween Concep ualiza ion and Me hodology (0.40),
W i ing - e iew & edi ing (0.35), and W i ing - o iginal d a (0.34). Fu he mo e, W i ing - o iginal
d a , also ends o co-occu wi h Me hodology (0.34) and Fo mal analysis (0.31). The con ibu ions
ha appea oge he he leas a e mos ly ela ed o So wa e and o he s a emen s (e.g. Funding
acquisi ion, Supe ision and P ojec adminis a ion). The pai s o med by Funding acquisi ion and Da a
cu a ion, Funding acquisi ion and Visualiza ion, and Supe ision and Da a cu a ion a e also no usual
con ibu ions done by he same au ho wi hin a publica ion (0.07 ac oss all o hem). The e seems o be
a highe co-occu ence o concep ual con ibu ions whe eby hose who a e in ol ed in managemen
ela ed con ibu ions (e.g. Resou ces and P ojec adminis a ion) do no ypically pe o m echnical
asks (e.g. Da a cu a ion and So wa e). When looking in o speci ic ields, we obse e ha Me hodology
and Concep ualiza ion is he mos common combina ion in he Social (0.52), Heal h (0.41) and Physical
Sciences (0.39), while W i ing - e iew & edi ing oge he wi h Concep ualiza ion co-occu s he mos
in Mul idisciplina y (0.46) and Li e Sciences (0.37). In gene al, he e is a highe co-occu ence o
con ibu ions in he Social Sciences and Mul idisciplina y ields han in he es . This inding is
consis en wi h he esul s shown in Figu e 5, which indica e ha au ho s in hese ields a e mo e likely
o con ibu e o mul iple oles simul aneously.
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O e all
Heal h Sciences
Li e Sciences
Mul idisciplina y
Physical Sciences
Social Sciences
Figu e 6. Co-occu ence o CRediT con ibu ion ypes by ield.
Rela ion be ween au ho o de and con ibu ion ype
Finally, we analyze he ela ion be ween con ibu ions and au ho posi ions. We do so by
looking a he pe cen age o i s , middle and las au ho s ha pe o m each con ibu ion o e all and by
ield (Figu e 7). Fi s au ho s pe o m a highe numbe o con ibu ions (37% on a e age) han las
au ho s (27%) o middle au ho s (19%). The mos common con ibu ion among i s au ho s is W i ing
- o iginal d a (83.5%), ollowed by Me hodology (67.2%), Concep ualiza ion (63.3%) and
In es iga ion (58.1%). Con e sely, he con ibu ions in which i s au ho s pa icipa e he leas a e
Resou ces (9%), Funding acquisi ion (10.8%), Supe ision (10.9%) and P ojec adminis a ion (11.5%).
In he case o las au ho s, hei mos common con ibu ions a e W i ing - e iew & edi ing (66.3%) and
Supe ision (51%), while hei leas common con ibu ions a e So wa e (6.9%) and Visualiza ion
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(10.7%). As o middle au ho s, hey pa icipa e he mos in W i ing - e iew & edi ing (45%) and
In es iga ion (32.6%), bu con ibu e e y li le o any o he es (16% on a e age).
The esul s by ield display a simila pa e n whe e i s au ho s always conduc a highe numbe
o con ibu ions. In all cases hei main con ibu ion is W i ing - o iginal d a , ollowed by
Concep ualiza ion (all ields bu Mul idisciplina y), Me hodology (in Heal h, Social Sciences and
Mul idisciplina y) and In es iga ion (only in Li e and Physical Sciences). The leas common asks
among i s au ho s a e he mos common ones among las au ho s, such as Supe ision (ac oss all
ields) and Funding acquisi ion (in Heal h, Li e Sciences and Mul idisciplina y). S ill, las au ho s
pa icula ly s and ou in W i ing - e iew & edi ing and Concep ualiza ion. Las ly, middle au ho s’ main
con ibu ions a e W i ing - e iew & edi ing (all ields bu Mul idisciplina y), Concep ualiza ion (e en
wi h i s au ho s in Heal h Sciences), In es iga ion and Me hodology (especially in Mul idisciplina y
and Social Sciences), bu hey almos do no pa icipa e in So wa e, Visualiza ion and Funding
acquisi ion (wi h he excep ion o Physical Sciences in he la e ).
Figu e 7. Rela ion be ween CRediT con ibu ions and au ho posi ions by ield.
Discussion
This pape p esen s he i s c oss-disciplina y analysis o con ibu ion s a emen s pe o med.
The no el y o his esea ch lies in he unique da ase we analyze, which is he la ges used so a o
compa e esul s a he ield, discipline and au ho le els. Fu he mo e, we include a la ge sample o
Fi s
Middle Las Fi s Middle Las Fi s Middle Las
714671
2590052 701041 73723 364654 72821 164330 713629 162339
Concep ualiza ion
63.3 21.8 48.0 68.3 23.4 62.5 61.9 60.5 42.7
Da a cu a ion
38.9 19.8 12.2 43.8 24.5 17.1 41.5 19.7 13.1
Fo mal analysis
49.0 21.0 16.5 57.9 21.0 21.9 56.1 21.8 18.6
Funding acquisi ion
10.8 10.2 32.6 11.9 8.0 33.0 11.5 9.9 42.7
In es iga ion
58.1 32.6 19.2 54.2 29.0 22.8 62.2 29.1 19.8
Me hodology
67.2 27.8 30.1 65.3 29.0 40.4 66.4 29.4 33.8
P ojec adminis a ion
11.5 8.4 25.8 17.2 8.4 29.2 12.2 7.6 32.7
Resou ces
9.0 14.7 20.9 10.9 15.9 21.3 8.7 15.8 23.8
So wa e
25.4 9.2 6.9 18.2 7.2 5.7 19.8 8.1 12.1
Supe ision
10.9 19.2 51.0 12.0 16.0 59.1 9.4 16.4 61.2
Valida ion
24.7 15.6 16.7 20.9 13.2 17.1 15.8 13.2 15.4
Visualiza ion
29.4 10.6 10.7 32.0 9.9 12.9 41.9 10.2 12.1
W i ing – o iginal d a
83.5 14.1 18.8 86.4 15.6 27.0 85.1 13.4 24.2
W i ing – e iew & edi ing
39.9 45.0 66.3 47.9 54.5 75.0 41.9 43.6 72.0
Li e Sciences
% o au ho s
by CRediT
Au ho numbe
Au ho posi ion
Field
O e all
Heal h Sciences
Fi s
Middle Las Fi s Middle Las Fi s Middle Las
69564
305681 68416 503129 1654716 493423 69912 160627 67060
Concep ualiza ion
72.0 30.5 70.7 61.2 40.6 40.6 77.5 46.4 46.4
Da a cu a ion
61.9 31.1 26.1 34.7 17.0 9.3 38.0 20.4 15.0
Fo mal analysis
74.5 27.6 33.1 42.7 19.3 12.7 54.1 21.7 19.4
Funding acquisi ion
20.2 10.5 40.7 36.6 28.1 30.3 15.5 11.9 23.0
In es iga ion
66.0 36.3 34.1 56.8 30.9 16.3 47.1 32.1 20.2
Me hodology
75.5 37.3 49.9 54.5 24.9 24.9 76.0 32.1 35.6
P ojec adminis a ion
32.2 12.7 36.9 7.3 12.6 23.0 15.5 9.7 17.3
Resou ces
18.0 16.0 26.8 36.8 14.0 19.7 10.7 12.2 15.7
So wa e
9.0 8.0 15.7 36.8 10.2 21.9 31.0 11.1 9.3
Supe ision
20.7 21.7 71.0 14.2 20.0 54.1 14.1 22.0 34.2
Valida ion
16.3 16.3 25.5 14.4 16.3 16.3 16.1 16.1 17.8
Visualiza ion
37.1 9.8 15.7 27.5 10.8 9.3 30.9 12.1 11.6
W i ing – o iginal d a
91.5 18.2 37.4 81.6 12.2 13.6 83.6 22.7 23.6
W i ing – e iew & edi ing
64.6 0.1 82.8 34.6 34.6 61.7 48.9 56.5 67.9
Au ho numbe
% o au ho s
by CRediT
Social Sciences
Physical Sciences
Mul idisciplina y
Field
Au ho posi ion
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16
Social Sciences
A s and Humani ies
ARTS
Business Managemen and Accoun ing
BUSI
Decision Sciences
DECI
Economics, Econome ics and Finance
ECON
Psychology
PSYC
Social Sciences
SOCI
Mul idisciplina y
MULT
