IOE professor named in annual global list of influential researchers

UCL researchers were present in 10 of the 17 academic fields listed, with Professor Thomas being one of 17 researchers recognised in the ‘Cross-Field’ category, reflecting UCL’s engagement with cross-disciplinary activity.

Professor of Social Research and Policy, James Thomas is part of the UCL Social Research Institute, based in UCL Institute of Education. He is also Director of the EPPI-Centre’s Reviews Facility for the Department of Health, England, which undertakes systematic reviews across a range of policy areas to support the Department. Professor Thomas specialises in developing methods for research synthesis, in particular for qualitative and mixed methods reviews and in using emerging information technologies such as machine learning in research.

The ‘Highly Cited Researchers List’ identifies around 6,600 researchers across the world who have demonstrated significant influence in their chosen field(s) through the publication of multiple highly cited papers during the last decade.

The names are drawn from the publications that rank in the top 1% by citations for field and publication year in the Web of Science citation index, with the list also used to identify the research institutions and countries where the citation elite are based.

With 38 primary and 10 secondary affiliations, UCL has the third most in the UK behind the universities of Oxford and Cambridge - and ranks 4th in Europe and 26th in the world overall.

Professor David Price, UCL Vice-Provost (Research, Innovation & Global Engagement), said: “To be included in this list is a great achievement, and highlights the global influence of UCL’s brilliant researchers - as well as the dedication of our professional staff who play a role in this success.

“The broad citation impact across 10 academic fields, including a large number of ‘cross-field’ researchers, clearly reflects our university’s excellence in cross-disciplinary investigation and discovery.”