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Nonprofit · Pretoria · South Africa

Human Sciences Research Council

In research, Human Sciences Research Council stands highest in Social Sciences (#2,571 of 9,585 worldwide), Social Sciences (#2,469 of 5,988 worldwide) and Health Sciences (#5,278 of 9,902 worldwide), 2022-now.

hsrc.ac.za/enROR OpenAlex
World rank, 2022-now
#5,275
of 22,385 · #3,722 all time
Rank in South Africa
#32
of 75
Research works
2.2k
▼ 8% vs 2018-21
Citations
46k
20.5 per fractional work
Top-10% rate
14.6%
all institutions 10.0%
vs its own fields
1.08×
1.00× is exactly expected
Open access
46%
world 40%
International
20%
world 18%
Human Sciences Research Council

What is Human Sciences Research Council known for in research?

The fields where it stands highest, 2022-now, ranked among every institution above the floor in each field.

FieldWorld rankWhere that sitsTop-10% rateWorksAll time
Social SciencesDomain #2,571 of 9,585 15.3%209 #1896
Social SciencesField #2,469 of 5,988 15.1%127 #1462
Health SciencesDomain #5,278 of 9,902 14.1%69 #3985

Each strip is that field's whole ranked pool, with the notch where Human Sciences Research Council sits in it, in the colour of the band that rank falls in. The track under the rate is the rate itself: it carries no average mark, because the average differs by field (from about 6% in Dentistry to 21% in Economics).

Which of those standings moved

The same fields on both windows: where it stood over the whole record, and where it stands in 2022-now. The distance is the story, and it is the one thing the two rank columns above cannot show.

  1. Social Sciences#1,896 #2,571
  2. Social Sciences#1,462 #2,469
  3. Health Sciences#3,985 #5,278
all time2022-now, better2022-now, worse

A dot further right is a better standing. Fields it was not ranked in over the whole record are left out.

Which fields of science does Human Sciences Research Council work in?

In 2022-now, 63% of research at Human Sciences Research Council is in Social Sciences, 21% in Health Sciences. Its largest fields are Social Sciences (39%), Medicine (12%), Economics, Econometrics and Finance (9%). It does 2.5× the world's share of Social Sciences.

Social Sciences: 230 fractional works · 62.8% of its workSocial Sciences: 141 fractional works · 38.5% of its workSociology and Political Science: 46 fractional works · 12.7% of its workEducation: 18 fractional works · 5.0% of its workPolitical Science and International Relations: 16 fractional works · 4.3% of its workAnthropology: 8 fractional works · 2.1% of its workGender Studies: 8 fractional works · 2.1% of its workUrban Studies: 8 fractional works · 2.1% of its workSafety Research: 7 fractional works · 1.9% of its workLaw: 7 fractional works · 1.9% of its workHealth: 5 fractional works · 1.5% of its workDemography: 5 fractional works · 1.4% of its workDevelopment: 3 fractional works · 0.7% of its workPublic Administration: 2 fractional works · 0.6% of its workLinguistics and Language: 2 fractional works · 0.5% of its workArcheology: 2 fractional works · 0.4% of its workTransportation: 1 fractional works · 0.4% of its workCultural Studies: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 2 fractional works · 0.5% of its workEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 31 fractional works · 8.6% of its workEconomics and Econometrics: 23 fractional works · 6.2% of its workFinance: 6 fractional works · 1.7% of its workGeneral Economics, Econometrics and Finance: 2 fractional works · 0.7% of its workBusiness, Management and Accounting: 24 fractional works · 6.6% of its workBusiness and International Management: 8 fractional works · 2.1% of its workManagement of Technology and Innovation: 6 fractional works · 1.5% of its workStrategy and Management: 5 fractional works · 1.3% of its workOrganizational Behavior and Human Resource Management: 3 fractional works · 0.9% of its workMarketing: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workManagement Information Systems: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 1 fractional works · 0.2% of its workPsychology: 20 fractional works · 5.5% of its workClinical Psychology: 10 fractional works · 2.7% of its workSocial Psychology: 6 fractional works · 1.5% of its workApplied Psychology: 2 fractional works · 0.4% of its workExperimental and Cognitive Psychology: 1 fractional works · 0.4% of its workDevelopmental and Educational Psychology: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workArts and Humanities: 9 fractional works · 2.5% of its workLiterature and Literary Theory: 3 fractional works · 0.7% of its workHistory: 2 fractional works · 0.5% of its workReligious studies: 2 fractional works · 0.4% of its workLanguage and Linguistics: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workMusic: 1 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 1 fractional works · 0.4% of its workDecision Sciences: 4 fractional works · 1.1% of its workManagement Science and Operations Research: 3 fractional works · 0.8% of its workSmaller subfields together: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workHealth Sciences: 77 fractional works · 20.9% of its workMedicine: 46 fractional works · 12.5% of its workInfectious Diseases: 12 fractional works · 3.2% of its workEpidemiology: 7 fractional works · 1.8% of its workPublic Health, Environmental and Occupational Health: 6 fractional works · 1.8% of its workPediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health: 5 fractional works · 1.5% of its workEmergency Medicine: 2 fractional works · 0.5% of its workObstetrics and Gynecology: 2 fractional works · 0.5% of its workPhysiology: 2 fractional works · 0.4% of its workEndocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism: 1 fractional works · 0.4% of its workReproductive Medicine: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSurgery: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workCardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workPsychiatry and Mental health: 1 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 5 fractional works · 1.3% of its workHealth Professions: 28 fractional works · 7.7% of its workGeneral Health Professions: 25 fractional works · 6.8% of its workPharmacy: 1 fractional works · 0.2% of its workHealth Information Management: 1 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 2 fractional works · 0.5% of its workNursing: 3 fractional works · 0.7% of its workNutrition and Dietetics: 3 fractional works · 0.7% of its workPhysical Sciences: 40 fractional works · 11.0% of its workEnvironmental Science: 16 fractional works · 4.3% of its workGlobal and Planetary Change: 4 fractional works · 1.1% of its workManagement, Monitoring, Policy and Law: 3 fractional works · 0.9% of its workPollution: 2 fractional works · 0.6% of its workHealth, Toxicology and Mutagenesis: 2 fractional works · 0.6% of its workEcology: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workWater Science and Technology: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workIndustrial and Manufacturing Engineering: 1 fractional works · 0.2% of its workEnvironmental Engineering: 1 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workEngineering: 10 fractional works · 2.7% of its workMedia Technology: 4 fractional works · 1.1% of its workBiomedical Engineering: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workBuilding and Construction: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workMechanical Engineering: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 3 fractional works · 0.7% of its workComputer Science: 8 fractional works · 2.3% of its workInformation Systems: 5 fractional works · 1.5% of its workArtificial Intelligence: 2 fractional works · 0.6% of its workSmaller subfields together: 1 fractional works · 0.2% of its workMathematics: 4 fractional works · 1.0% of its workModeling and Simulation: 1 fractional works · 0.4% of its workMathematical Physics: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workStatistics and Probability: 1 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workEnergy: 1 fractional works · 0.4% of its workRenewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workMaterials Science: 1 fractional works · 0.2% of its workPhysics and Astronomy: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workEarth and Planetary Sciences: 0 fractional works · 0.0% of its workChemistry: 0 fractional works · 0.0% of its workLife Sciences: 19 fractional works · 5.3% of its workAgricultural and Biological Sciences: 13 fractional works · 3.6% of its workEcology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics: 3 fractional works · 0.9% of its workPlant Science: 3 fractional works · 0.8% of its workGeneral Agricultural and Biological Sciences: 2 fractional works · 0.7% of its workFood Science: 2 fractional works · 0.4% of its workSoil Science: 1 fractional works · 0.4% of its workSmaller subfields together: 1 fractional works · 0.4% of its workBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 3 fractional works · 0.7% of its workMolecular Biology: 2 fractional works · 0.4% of its workSmaller subfields together: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workImmunology and Microbiology: 2 fractional works · 0.6% of its workVirology: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workNeuroscience: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workCognitive Neuroscience: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.0% of its workPharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workALL ITS WORKHuman SciencesResearch Council366fractional works, 2022-now
Life Sciences5%Physical Sciences11%Health Sciences21%Social Sciences63%

Each ring splits the one inside it: the four domains of science, their fields, their subfields. Size is fractional works in 2022-now. Every slice is a page; the interactive view zooms down to single topics and colours each by how much more of it this institution does than the world.

Its 4 domains and 24 fields, with their numbers
    1. Social Sciences14138.5%
    2. Economics, Econometrics and Finance318.6%
    3. Business, Management and Accounting246.6%
    4. Psychology205.5%
    5. Arts and Humanities92.5%
    6. Decision Sciences41.1%
    1. Medicine4612.5%
    2. Health Professions287.7%
    3. Nursing30.7%
    4. Veterinary00.0%
    1. Environmental Science164.3%
    2. Engineering102.7%
    3. Computer Science82.3%
    4. Mathematics41.0%
    5. Energy10.4%
    6. Materials Science10.2%
    7. Physics and Astronomy00.1%
    8. Earth and Planetary Sciences00.0%
    9. Chemistry00.0%
    1. Agricultural and Biological Sciences133.6%
    2. Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology30.7%
    3. Immunology and Microbiology20.6%
    4. Neuroscience10.3%
    5. Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics00.1%
All of science, and how each field's share has moved since 1950: the Science domain explorer

Field profile

Location quotient across every field it publishes in: outside the ring is more than an institution of this size would be expected to publish, inside it is less.

Agricultural and Biological Sciences: 0.75× its world share, 13 worksAgricultural and Bio…Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 0.14× its world share, 3 worksBiochemistry, Geneti…Immunology and Microbiology: 0.62× its world share, 2 worksImmunology and Micro…Neuroscience: 0.18× its world share, 1 worksNeurosciencePharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 0.22× its world share, 0 worksPharmacology, Toxico…Chemistry: 0.02× its world share, 0 worksChemistryComputer Science: 0.29× its world share, 8 worksComputer ScienceEarth and Planetary Sciences: 0.03× its world share, 0 worksEarth and Planetary …Energy: 0.41× its world share, 1 worksEnergyEngineering: 0.18× its world share, 10 worksEngineeringEnvironmental Science: 0.86× its world share, 16 worksEnvironmental ScienceMaterials Science: 0.05× its world share, 1 worksMaterials ScienceMathematics: 0.85× its world share, 4 worksMathematicsPhysics and Astronomy: 0.06× its world share, 0 worksPhysics and AstronomyHealth Professions: 2.93× its world share, 28 worksHealth ProfessionsMedicine: 0.65× its world share, 46 worksMedicineNursing: 1.44× its world share, 3 worksNursingVeterinary: 0.13× its world share, 0 worksVeterinaryArts and Humanities: 0.86× its world share, 9 worksArts and HumanitiesBusiness, Management and Accounting: 2.05× its world share, 24 worksBusiness, Management…Decision Sciences: 1.17× its world share, 4 worksDecision SciencesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 4.01× its world share, 31 worksEconomics, Econometr…Psychology: 1.79× its world share, 20 worksPsychologySocial Sciences: 3.04× its world share, 141 worksSocial Sciences1×world share
more than its size predictsabout as predictedless

Rings at 0.5×, 1× and 2×. Widest outward: Economics, Econometrics and Finance, 4.0×. Every wedge is a field page.

All 24 fields, with their numbers
  1. Economics, Econometrics and Finance4.01×31 works
  2. Social Sciences3.04×141 works
  3. Health Professions2.93×28 works
  4. Business, Management and Accounting2.05×24 works
  5. Psychology1.79×20 works
  6. Nursing1.44×3 works
  7. Decision Sciences1.17×4 works
  8. Environmental Science0.86×16 works
  9. Arts and Humanities0.86×9 works
  10. Mathematics0.85×4 works
  11. Agricultural and Biological Sciences0.75×13 works
  12. Medicine0.65×46 works
  13. Immunology and Microbiology0.62×2 works
  14. Energy0.41×1 works
  15. Computer Science0.29×8 works
  16. Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics0.22×0 works
  17. Neuroscience0.18×1 works
  18. Engineering0.18×10 works
  19. Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology0.14×3 works
  20. Veterinary0.13×0 works
  21. Physics and Astronomy0.06×0 works
  22. Materials Science0.05×1 works
  23. Earth and Planetary Sciences0.03×0 works
  24. Chemistry0.02×0 works

Who are the top researchers at Human Sciences Research Council?

Ranked on the quality score, Ivan Nicholas Turok, Khangelani K Zuma and Thomas M Rehle lead among researchers whose main affiliation is Human Sciences Research Council.

  1. 1 Ivan Nicholas Turok South Africa · #262,666 worldwide 8k citations · 325 works
  2. 2 Khangelani K Zuma South Africa · #263,820 worldwide 8.6k citations · 175 works
  3. 3 Thomas M Rehle South Africa · #302,358 worldwide 7k citations · 95 works
  4. 4 Alastair van Heerden South Africa · #324,381 worldwide 2.8k citations · 214 works
  5. 5 Sean Jooste South Africa · #387,336 worldwide 6.9k citations · 100 works
  6. 6 Inbarani Naidoo South Africa · #455,719 worldwide 3.2k citations · 75 works
  7. 7 Andreas Scheba South Africa · #471,032 worldwide 1k citations · 54 works
  8. 8 Ronel Sewpaul South Africa · #482,117 worldwide 5.8k citations · 116 works
  9. 9 Heidi van Rooyen South Africa · #590,046 worldwide 4.7k citations · 180 works
  10. 10 Nompumelelo Precious Zungu South Africa · #667,415 worldwide 4.7k citations · 84 works
All ranked researchers at Human Sciences Research Council

What are the most cited papers from Human Sciences Research Council?

The most cited paper from Human Sciences Research Council is "Maternal and child undernutrition: consequences for adult health and human capital" (Cesar Gomes Victora, Linda S. Adair, Caroline H. D. Fall et al., 2008), with 4,015 citations. Next come "Developmental potential in the first 5 years for children in developing countries" (3,673) and "Differences Between Tight and Loose Cultures: A 33-Nation Study" (3,323).

Most cited papers
#PaperReleasedCitations
1 Maternal and child undernutrition: consequences for adult health and human capital Cesar Gomes Victora, Linda S. Adair, Caroline H. D. Fall et al. · The Lancet Open access 2008 4,015
2 Developmental potential in the first 5 years for children in developing countries Sally Grantham‐McGregor, Yin Bun Cheung, Santiago Cueto et al. · The Lancet Open access 2007 3,673
3 Differences Between Tight and Loose Cultures: A 33-Nation Study Michele Joy Gelfand et al. · Science Open access 26 May 2011 3,323
4 Inequality in early childhood: risk and protective factors for early child development Susan P. Walker, Theodore D. Wachs, Sally Grantham‐McGregor et al. · The Lancet Open access 23 Sep 2011 1,788
5 Articular mobility in an African population. Peter Beighton, Louis P. Solomon, Colin Lionel Soskolne · Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases Open access Sep 1973 1,744
All 60 most cited papers, with filters and sorting

Which keywords describe research at Human Sciences Research Council?

By fractional works in 2022-now, weighted toward what it does more of than the world: South Africa, Mental Health, Colonialism, Inequality, Gender-based Violence, Social Impact, Antiretroviral Therapy and Economic Growth.

▲ more of its work than of the world's◆ about the world's share▼ less than the world's

Size is fractional works in 2022-now in the topics tagged with each word; colour is the word's share of this institution's work against its share of the world's. The 40 words are chosen for being large and distinctive. Each links to the topic it comes from most.

All 40 words, with their numbers
  1. Mental Health23▲ 4.3×22 topics
  2. South Africa19▲ 188×4 topics
  3. Sustainability18▲ 2.0×26 topics
  4. Globalization17▲ 2.4×43 topics
  5. Climate Change17▲ 1.69×34 topics
  6. Colonialism17▲ 9.7×12 topics
  7. Public Health16▲ 2.9×29 topics
  8. Economic Growth15▲ 4.9×13 topics
  9. Sustainable Development14▲ 2.5×20 topics
  10. Inequality13▲ 16×6 topics
  11. Risk Factors13▲ 3.2×15 topics
  12. Human Rights13▲ 3.5×13 topics
  13. Gender-based Violence12▲ 59×3 topics
  14. Social Impact12▲ 8.6×6 topics
  15. Antiretroviral Therapy12▲ 20×6 topics
  16. Economic Development11▲ 3.9×17 topics
  17. Social Movements11▲ 11×5 topics
  18. Race11▲ 25×3 topics
  19. Social Determinants of Health11▲ 14×3 topics
  20. economic empowerment10▲ 179×1 topic
  21. protests10▲ 366×1 topic
  22. Development10▲ 7.7×6 topics
  23. Nationalism10▲ 6.1×13 topics
  24. Poverty Alleviation9▲ 27×2 topics
  25. Adolescent Health9▲ 31×2 topics
  26. HIV Transmission9▲ 33×2 topics
  27. Entrepreneurship9▲ 6.3×5 topics
  28. HIV Prevention9▲ 42×2 topics
  29. Mortality Rates9▲ 26×2 topics
  30. Sexual Behavior9▲ 68×1 topic
  31. Youth Risk Behavior9▲ 68×1 topic
  32. Viral Load9▲ 31×2 topics
  33. Preexposure Prophylaxis9▲ 49×1 topic
  34. Stigma and Discrimination9▲ 49×1 topic
  35. Global Warming8▲ 5.5×6 topics
  36. Environmental Governance8▲ 31×3 topics
  37. Poverty Reduction8▲ 16×5 topics
  38. Policy8▲ 9.5×8 topics
  39. Emerging Markets7▲ 30×2 topics
  40. Employment7▲ 56×3 topics

Which research topics does Human Sciences Research Council publish most on?

By volume in 2022-now: South African History and Culture, Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health, HIV/AIDS Research and Interventions and Innovation and Socioeconomic Development.

South African History an…10South African History and Culture: 10 fractional worksAdolescent Sexual and Re…9Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health: 9 fractional worksHIV/AIDS Research and In…9HIV/AIDS Research and Interventions: 9 fractional worksInnovation and Socioecon…6Innovation and Socioeconomic Development: 6 fractional worksLegal Issues in South Africa: 6 fractional worksAfrican history and culture studies: 5 fractional worksHIV/AIDS Impact and Resp…5HIV/AIDS Impact and Responses: 5 fractional worksGlobal Maternal and Child Health: 4 fractional worksPoverty, Education, and Child Welfare: 4 fractional worksICT Impact and Policies4ICT Impact and Policies: 4 fractional works
Sociology and Political ScienceGeneral Health ProfessionsInfectious DiseasesBusiness and International Management6 others

Area is fractional works; colour is the subfield each topic belongs to.

  1. 1 South African History and Culture Sociology and Political Science 10 works
  2. 2 Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health General Health Professions 9 works
  3. 3 HIV/AIDS Research and Interventions Infectious Diseases 9 works
  4. 4 Innovation and Socioeconomic Development Business and International Management 6 works
  5. 5 Legal Issues in South Africa Law 6 works
  6. 6 African history and culture studies Anthropology 5 works
  7. 7 HIV/AIDS Impact and Responses Economics and Econometrics 5 works
  8. 8 Global Maternal and Child Health Pediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health 4 works
  9. 9 Poverty, Education, and Child Welfare Safety Research 4 works
  10. 10 ICT Impact and Policies Media Technology 4 works

How open and international is its research?

Against the world's own shares: the tick on each track. Both are shares of its output, so they sit on one scale and can be read against each other as well as against the world.

openly available46.5%not open53.5%

World: 40% of research is openly available.

with international co-authors20.0%domestic only80.0%

World: 18% is written across borders.

How has Human Sciences Research Council's research output changed?

Output in 2022-2025 was 8% lower than in 2018-2021.

still counting1990200020102020
grewheldshrank

The same series as a ribbon: one cell per year, darker for more. The line above answers how much; this answers when.

Its share of all research

Growing output can still be a shrinking share: all of science grows. This is Human Sciences Research Council as a percentage of every work published that year, 0.0022% in 2024.

still counting0.0020%0.0040%0.0060%Human Sciences Research Council0.0013% in 202519801990200020102020

Fractional works of Human Sciences Research Council over all fractional works that year. How the balance of science has shifted.

How much of it reaches the world top 10%

Year by year, against all institutions in the same year.

still counting10%20%Human Sciences Research Council16.9% in 2025all institutions10.0% in 2025200020102020

Of each year's output, the share that reached the world's 10% most cited for its field and year. Peak 18.9% in 2015.

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Human Sciences Research Council on Science Explorer

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