Normalization of zero-inflated data: An empirical analysis of a new indicator family

Abstract: Recently, two new indicators (Equalized Mean-based Normalized Proportion Cited, EMNPC, and Mean-based Normalized Proportion Cited, MNPC) were proposed which are intended for sparse data. We propose a third indicator (Mantel-Haenszel quotient, MHq) belonging to the same indicator family. The MHq is based on the MH analysis - an established method for polling the data from multiple 2x2 contingency tables based on different subgroups. We test (using citations and assessments by peers) if the three indicators can distinguish between different quality levels as defined on the basis of the assessments by peers (convergent validity). We find that the indicator MHq is able to distinguish between the quality levels in most cases while MNPC and EMNPC are not.