Altmetrics, a subfield of informetrics, is still in development. The aim of this thesis is to explore; the significance altmetrics may have in the LIS field, and to define the new perspectives altmetrics offer in comparison to traditional metrics. The research questions are:- How can altmetrics affect research assessment?- How does altmetrics position itself towards traditional metrics?- How could altmetrics influence the LIS field?A qualitative content analysis was used as a method. The analysis of a sample of ten peer reviewed articles was based on a coding scheme with eleven codes. The sample was selected using Web of Science, Scopus, the Altmetrics Bibliography and chain search model. Kuhns paradigm concept was used as a theoretic framework together with the concepts Technologies of control (traditional metrics) and Technologies of narcissism (altmetrics) developed by Wouters and Costas.The results show a beginning of a paradigm shift in the research assessment field. Technologies of control with traditional metrics as measure of quality co-exist with the Technologies of narcissim using altmetrics for measuring a researchers impact on society. Altmetrics can be regarded as a complement to traditional metrics capable of evaluating research in four new perspectives: To evaluate the whole readership Potentially benefiting narrower fields Evaluation in realtime Evaluation of research productsThe significance altmetrics may have for the LIS field is to be used as an instrument for information mediation. / Program: Bibliotekarie

Altmetrics is a relatively new metric system compared to traditional bibliometric methods. The purpose of this bachelor thesis was to conduct a cross-sectional study of the altmetric usage in Swedish university libraries and to see if and how they use altmetrics and how it can benefit the scholarly communication between academic librarians and scholars. The research questions are;• Do Swedish university libraries use altmetrics, and if so, how? • How do the librarians experience the attitude from the researchers, regarding their opinions about altmetrics? • How can altmetric tools be an aid in the scholarly communication and what is altmetrics advantages and disadvantages according to the librarians?A survey was sent out to all universities in Sweden and their main libraries. For theoretical framework the concepts Technologies of Control and Technologies of Narcissism together with the concept Cognitive Authority were used. The results show that altmetrics is a tool that the academic libraries are familiar with but few are actually using. The scholars and PhD students think that altmetrics is something than can be used for “fun”, to see their own impact but not for evaluating. The librarians see altmetric as a tool that is a complement to traditional citations and not something that will replace it. Altmetrics can show a broader and faster impact but the altmetric data is unreliable and more studies have to be done.