Evaluation of the Position of Scientific Leadership of the Islamic Republic of Iran among the Regional Countries Based on 2010 to 2020 Data

This study aims to determine the position of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the scientific leadership and each of its constituent dimensions in comparison with the regional countries using a scientometric approach.

This study is practical in terms of purpose. In terms of approach, it is quantitative research, and in terms of the method of data collection, it is descriptive research. This study evaluated the position of the Islamic Republic of Iran in scientific leadership indicators during the years 2010 to 2020 and compared to some regional countries with a scientometric approach and indicators.

The research findings indicate that Iran has achieved different positions in different dimensions of scientific leadership and in the studied years. The three countries Israel, Saudi Arabia and Turkey are Iran's main competitors in the Middle East. One of the dimensions in which the Islamic Republic of Iran has performed well is scientific and practical investment to improve the educational and research status of its universities and their entry into international ranking systems.

The results of the present research show that there has been an extraordinary scientific progress in the recent era in Iran. The growth of the number of highly cited researchers indicates that there are good capabilities in the country in terms of human capabilities, but in international communication to implement joint research programs, it has performed weaker than other countries. The number of Iranian journals indexed in the Web of Science is lower compared to some countries in the region. In emerging research fields, there are also countries that have a better position than Iran and have been able to engage in scientific activity in the path of global science and leading subject areas. One of the dimensions in which Iran has performed well is planning to improve the educational and research status of its universities and their entry into international evaluation systems.