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Nonprofit · Pretoria · South Africa

Human Sciences Research Council

In research, Human Sciences Research Council stands highest in Social Sciences (#4,270 of 10,521 worldwide), Social Sciences (#3,176 of 6,365 worldwide) and Health Sciences (#8,219 of 11,982 worldwide), 2022–2025.

hsrc.ac.za/enROR OpenAlex
World rank, 2022–2025
#10,654
of 28,054 · #8,359 all time
Rank in South Africa
#42
of 87
Research works
2.2k
▼ 6% vs 2013–17
Citations
46k
20.5 per fractional work
Top-10% rate
26.0%
record average 16.5%
Open access
46%
world 28%

What is Human Sciences Research Council known for in research?

The fields where it stands highest, 2022–2025, ranked among every institution above the floor in each field.

FieldWorld rankWhere that sitsTop-10% rateWorksAll time
Social SciencesDomain #4,270 of 10,521 26.3%209 #1637
Social SciencesField #3,176 of 6,365 25.2%127 #1062
Health SciencesDomain #8,219 of 11,982 24.4%69 #6340

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 world mark, because the world rate differs by field (from about 6% to 21% in this record).

Which of those standings moved

The same fields on both windows: where it stood over the whole record, and where it stands in 2022–2025. The distance is the story, and it is the one thing the two rank columns above cannot show.

  1. Social Sciences#1,637 #4,270
  2. Social Sciences#1,062 #3,176
  3. Health Sciences#6,340 #8,219
all time2022–2025, better2022–2025, worse

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

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: 0.73× its world share, 12 worksAgricultural and Bio…Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 0.14× its world share, 2 worksBiochemistry, Geneti…Immunology and Microbiology: 0.59× its world share, 2 worksImmunology and Micro…Neuroscience: 0.17× its world share, 1 worksNeurosciencePharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 0.24× its world share, 0 worksPharmacology, Toxico…Chemistry: 0.03× its world share, 0 worksChemistryComputer Science: 0.31× its world share, 8 worksComputer ScienceEarth and Planetary Sciences: 0.03× its world share, 0 worksEarth and Planetary …Energy: 0.38× its world share, 1 worksEnergyEngineering: 0.17× its world share, 9 worksEngineeringEnvironmental Science: 0.90× its world share, 15 worksEnvironmental ScienceMaterials Science: 0.03× its world share, 0 worksMaterials ScienceMathematics: 0.86× its world share, 3 worksMathematicsPhysics and Astronomy: 0.01× its world share, 0 worksPhysics and AstronomyHealth Professions: 2.96× its world share, 26 worksHealth ProfessionsMedicine: 0.63× its world share, 40 worksMedicineNursing: 1.57× its world share, 2 worksNursingVeterinary: 0.15× its world share, 0 worksVeterinaryArts and Humanities: 0.93× its world share, 9 worksArts and HumanitiesBusiness, Management and Accounting: 2.11× its world share, 23 worksBusiness, Management…Decision Sciences: 1.13× its world share, 4 worksDecision SciencesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 3.95× its world share, 28 worksEconomics, Econometr…Psychology: 1.88× its world share, 19 worksPsychologySocial Sciences: 3.02× its world share, 127 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.

Who are the top researchers at Human Sciences Research Council?

Ranked on the composite score, Ivan Turok, Leickness C. Simbayi and Olive Shisana lead among researchers whose main affiliation is Human Sciences Research Council.

  1. 1 Ivan Turok · #18,702 worldwide 519 citations · 88 works
  2. 2 Leickness C. Simbayi · #107,486 worldwide 161 citations · 34 works
  3. 3 Olive Shisana · #133,813 worldwide 155 citations · 28 works
  4. 4 Nancy Phaswana‐Mafuya · #154,807 worldwide 112 citations · 26 works
  5. 5 Linda Richter · #169,283 worldwide 209 citations · 69 works
  6. 6 Charles Nhemachena · #216,607 worldwide 163 citations · 20 works
  7. 7 Peter Jacobs · #244,784 worldwide 75 citations · 42 works
  8. 8 Khangelani Zuma · #283,982 worldwide 91 citations · 22 works
  9. 9 A. Davids · #350,567 worldwide 99 citations · 16 works
  10. 10 Glenda Kruss · #385,092 worldwide 88 citations · 29 works
All ranked researchers at Human Sciences Research Council

Which keywords describe research at Human Sciences Research Council?

By fractional works in 2022–2025, weighted toward what it does more of than the world: Mental Health, South Africa, Colonialism, Inequality, Social Impact, Gender-based Violence, Social Movements 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 2022–2025 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 Health21▲ 4.4×22 topics
  2. Sustainability17▲ 2.1×24 topics
  3. South Africa16▲ 179×3 topics
  4. Colonialism16▲ 10×12 topics
  5. Climate Change15▲ 1.73×33 topics
  6. Public Health14▲ 3.0×29 topics
  7. Globalization14▲ 2.2×39 topics
  8. Economic Growth13▲ 4.8×13 topics
  9. Sustainable Development13▲ 2.5×18 topics
  10. Human Rights12▲ 3.6×12 topics
  11. Inequality12▲ 15×5 topics
  12. Social Impact12▲ 8.8×5 topics
  13. Gender-based Violence11▲ 60×3 topics
  14. Risk Factors11▲ 3.0×15 topics
  15. Social Movements11▲ 11×5 topics
  16. Antiretroviral Therapy10▲ 20×6 topics
  17. Race10▲ 28×3 topics
  18. Economic Development10▲ 3.7×14 topics
  19. Nationalism10▲ 6.4×13 topics
  20. economic empowerment10▲ 188×1 topic
  21. protests10▲ 380×1 topic
  22. Social Determinants of Health9▲ 12×3 topics
  23. Poverty Alleviation9▲ 27×2 topics
  24. Development9▲ 7.5×6 topics
  25. Entrepreneurship8▲ 6.5×5 topics
  26. HIV Transmission8▲ 34×2 topics
  27. Mortality Rates8▲ 25×2 topics
  28. Preexposure Prophylaxis8▲ 48×1 topic
  29. Stigma and Discrimination8▲ 48×1 topic
  30. Viral Load8▲ 30×2 topics
  31. Adolescent Health8▲ 27×2 topics
  32. Global Warming8▲ 5.7×6 topics
  33. HIV Prevention8▲ 38×2 topics
  34. Sexual Behavior7▲ 61×1 topic
  35. Youth Risk Behavior7▲ 61×1 topic
  36. Environmental Governance7▲ 34×3 topics
  37. Poverty Reduction7▲ 16×5 topics
  38. Emerging Markets7▲ 30×2 topics
  39. Risk Perception6▲ 7.3×4 topics
  40. Gender Inequality6▲ 14×6 topics

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

By volume in 2022–2025: South African History and Culture, HIV/AIDS Research and Interventions, Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health and Innovation and Socioeconomic Development.

South African History an…10South African History and Culture: 10 fractional worksHIV/AIDS Research and In…8HIV/AIDS Research and Interventions: 8 fractional worksAdolescent Sexual and Re…7Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health: 7 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…4HIV/AIDS Impact and Responses: 4 fractional worksPoverty, Education, and Child Welfare: 4 fractional worksGlobal Maternal and Child Health: 4 fractional worksICT Impact and Policies4ICT Impact and Policies: 4 fractional works
Sociology and Political ScienceInfectious DiseasesGeneral Health ProfessionsBusiness and International Management6 others

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

  1. 1 South African History and CultureSociology and Political Science 10 works
  2. 2 HIV/AIDS Research and InterventionsInfectious Diseases 8 works
  3. 3 Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive HealthGeneral Health Professions 7 works
  4. 4 Innovation and Socioeconomic DevelopmentBusiness and International Management 6 works
  5. 5 Legal Issues in South AfricaLaw 6 works
  6. 6 African history and culture studiesAnthropology 5 works
  7. 7 HIV/AIDS Impact and ResponsesEconomics and Econometrics 4 works
  8. 8 Poverty, Education, and Child WelfareSafety Research 4 works
  9. 9 Global Maternal and Child HealthPediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health 4 works
  10. 10 ICT Impact and PoliciesMedia 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: 28% of research is openly available.

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

World: 19% is written across borders.

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

Output in 2018–2022 was 6% lower than in 2013–2017.

1990200020102020
grewheldshrank

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

Other research institutions in Pretoria

All research institutions in Pretoria

Research measures only: rankings here say nothing about teaching, admissions or student experience. Comparable institutions and collaboration partners are in the interactive view on the map.