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ORCID

ORCID, which stands for Open Researcher and Contributor ID, is a nonproprietary alphanumeric code to uniquely identify scientific and other academic authors and contributors. The ORCID system was launched in 2012 and is maintained by the ORCID organization, a non-profit entity. The primary purpose of ORCID is to provide a persistent digital identifier that distinguishes researchers from one another, thereby solving the problem of name ambiguity in scholarly communications.

History

The concept of ORCID was developed in response to the growing need for a reliable and comprehensive system to track authorship and contributions in the academic world. Before ORCID, researchers often faced challenges in distinguishing their work from others with similar names, especially in large databases and citation indexes. The ORCID initiative was officially launched in October 2012, and since then, it has gained widespread adoption across the globe.

Structure

An ORCID iD is a 16-digit number that is compatible with the ISO Standard (ISO 27729), also known as the International Standard Name Identifier (ISNI). The format of an ORCID iD is a URI, such as "https://orcid.org/0000-0001-2345-6789". This identifier is unique to each researcher and remains constant throughout their career, regardless of changes in name, institution, or field of study.

Functionality

ORCID provides a platform where researchers can create a profile that includes their ORCID iD, biographical information, and a list of their publications and other scholarly activities. This profile can be linked to other systems, such as manuscript submission systems, grant application systems, and institutional repositories, to streamline the process of author identification and attribution.

Adoption

ORCID has been widely adopted by publishers, research institutions, and funding agencies. Many journals now require authors to provide their ORCID iD during the submission process. This helps ensure that the correct authorship is attributed and facilitates the tracking of research outputs. Funding agencies also use ORCID to track the impact of the research they support.

Benefits

The use of ORCID offers several benefits:

• Disambiguation: It helps distinguish researchers with similar names and ensures that their work is correctly attributed.
• Interoperability: ORCID integrates with various research systems, reducing the need for repetitive data entry.
• Visibility: Researchers can increase the visibility of their work by linking their ORCID iD to their publications and other outputs.
• Compliance: Many publishers and funding bodies require ORCID iDs, making it easier for researchers to comply with submission requirements.

Criticisms

While ORCID has been largely successful, it is not without criticism. Some researchers have expressed concerns about privacy and the potential misuse of personal data. Additionally, the effectiveness of ORCID depends on widespread adoption and integration with other systems, which can be a challenge in some regions or institutions.

Also see

• Digital Object Identifier
• ResearcherID
• International Standard Name Identifier
• Academic publishing
• Bibliometrics