  Whereas the research program of the measurement of scientific communications
emerged in a context where the delineations among academia, government, and
industry were institutionalized, the systemic development of these relations
during the second half of the 20th century has changed the system of reference
for the evaluation of research. In a knowledge-based economy science fulfills
functions that change the definitions of what is considered research and
globalization has changed the relevance of national systems of reference.
Science, of course, has been internationally oriented from its very beginning,
but the entrainment of the research process in these global developments is
reflected in the research evaluation and the scientometric measurement. In
other words, the systems under study have become more complex. A complex
dynamics can analytically be decomposed in several subdynamics. The evolving
systems and subsystems communicate in different dimensions and the evaluation
has become part of the codification of these communications.
