Analytics2026-10-1610 min read

Self-cited researchers in Italy: Top 2% scientists 2026

Live Directory analytics: the Italy mean self_citation_pct is about 13.54% (rank 41 of 170). The Italy-scoped author ranking opens with Zanarini, Alessandro (79.35%, 92 citations).

By ABS Nexora

Which Italy Top 2% scientists have the highest self-citation share?

Direct answer: ABS Nexora ranks researchers by the native field self_citation_pct (Stanford–Ioannidis self%). Scoped to country=ita for the 2026 single-year listing, the author ranking opens with Zanarini, Alessandro (Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna; 79.35%; 92 total citations; global rank 254,992). That is a share of that author’s citations, not a claim that any named scholar engaged in misconduct.

The Italy country mean on rankings metric avg_self_citation_pct is about 13.54% across 8,537 listed scholars — rank 41 of 170 countries. That mean sits above Germany (11.77%; n=10,933), France (11.28%; n=5,911), and Canada (9.12%; n=8,510).

Small-n caveat: a high individual percentage is not a country-level verdict by itself, but Italy’s mean is high relative to Canada, the UK, and the United States (rank 41). The names at the top of this ranking are not the same names as the Italy top researchers rank_all panel. Read the author table and the country rank together.

Native field self_citation_pct (Stanford–Ioannidis self%) for the top of the Italy-scoped author ranking. Several leaders have modest total citation counts — read n and rank together. Source: ABS Nexora Directory analytics (self-citation author ranking scoped to country=ita; country rankings metric avg_self_citation_pct; single-year 2026).

What the Directory is actually ranking

Element	Native API field	Meaning
Per researcher	`self_citation_pct`	Stanford–Ioannidis self% for that author
Per country	`avg_self_citation_pct`	Mean of those percentages
Italy authors	`/api/analytics/self-citation/authors?scope=country&entity=ita`	Paginated Italy ranking
Country sort	`/api/analytics/rankings?metric=avg_self_citation_pct`	170 countries in this snapshot

This is not “most self-citations in absolute counts.” A researcher with 92 citations and a 79% self-share can outrank a researcher with 10,000 citations and a low self-share.

Top of the Italy self-citation author ranking

Researcher	Institution	Field	self_citation_pct	Citations (all)	Global rank
Zanarini, Alessandro	Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna	Physics & Astronomy	79.35%	92	254,992
Capolupo, Antonio	Università degli Studi di Salerno	Physics & Astronomy	76.81%	207	206,498
Casadei, Roberto	Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna	Information & Communication Technologies	70.95%	210	232,458
Di Giulio, Massimo	Genetic Code and tRNA Origin Laboratory	Biology	69.72%	109	181,757
Massaro, Gianlorenzo	Università degli studi di Bari Aldo Moro	Physics & Astronomy	69.32%	88	682,935
Pingaro, Natalia	Politecnico di Milano	Public Health & Health Services	67.03%	279	324,886
Lacasella, Giorgia Viola	Università degli Studi della Campania Luigi Vanvitelli	Clinical Medicine	66.50%	197	605,756
Fuscaldo, Walter	Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche	Information & Communication Technologies	64.37%	348	163,012
Badia, Leonardo	Università degli Studi di Padova	Information & Communication Technologies	61.04%	367	119,190
Aloisio, Roberto	Gran Sasso Science Institute	Physics & Astronomy	60.25%	634	135,215

Small-n caveat: several names near the top have under 400 total citations (Zanarini 92, Massaro 88, Di Giulio 109, Capolupo 207). Percentages swing hard on small denominators. Always read citations (all) and global rank next to self_citation_pct.

Higher-citation Italy names still high on self-citation %

Filtering the same Italy pull toward researchers with larger citation totals:

Researcher	Field	self_citation_pct	Citations (all)	Global rank
Sereno, Mauro	Physics & Astronomy	59.37%	1,179	36,084
Rosotti, Giovanni P.	Physics & Astronomy	57.24%	1,539	24,077
Andreon, S.	Physics & Astronomy	56.40%	1,445	61,120
Caponero, Michele Arturo	Physics & Astronomy	53.35%	1,074	244,926
Ettori, Stefano	Physics & Astronomy	53.10%	1,595	68,506
Brunetti, Gianfranco F.	Physics & Astronomy	52.97%	1,748	55,115

Sereno, Mauro (Physics) is a useful higher-citation example: 59.37% self-citation share, 1,179 citations, global rank 36,084. Brunetti, Gianfranco F. has 1,748 citations at 52.97%.

Rankings metric avg_self_citation_pct (mean of listed researchers’ self_citation_pct). Italy’s mean is about 13.54% — rank 41 of 170 countries, above Germany and France in this snapshot. Source: ABS Nexora Directory analytics (self-citation author ranking scoped to country=ita; country rankings metric avg_self_citation_pct; single-year 2026).

Italy’s mean is high among large systems — the tail is where percentages spike

Stat sentence: Among 170 countries ranked by avg_self_citation_pct, Italy is #41 at about 13.54%, with a 8,537-scholar cohort. That mean is above Germany, France, Canada, and the United Kingdom in this snapshot. High individual percentages exist in the tail; they do not by themselves prove misconduct, and they do not rewrite the Italy top researchers ranks.

How to use this metric responsibly

Prefer the profile over a screenshot of one percentage.
Compare all-citations vs excluding-self (ns) ranks on the same scholar page.
Do not treat a high self_citation_pct as proof of misconduct; field norms and collaboration patterns differ. Physics rows are common in this Italy higher-citation tail.
For named universities and field mix, use Italy top universities and Italy field strengths.
When you cite a paper, the Journal Quality Report is the journal-side companion.

Italy cluster and related Directory pages

FAQ

Who is the most self-cited Italy Top 2% scientist in this snapshot? On self_citation_pct, Zanarini, Alessandro leads the Italy-scoped author ranking at 79.35% (92 citations; rank 254,992).

Is Italy a high self-citation country? The Italy mean is about 13.54%, rank 41 of 170 — above Germany, France, and Canada in this file. A high individual tail is a separate fact from that country mean.

Why do some Italy names show 60–79% self-citation? The ranking is a percentage. Small citation totals produce large percentages. Physics is over-represented in the higher-citation tail. Read the citation column.

What API field should I quote? Quote self_citation_pct for a person and avg_self_citation_pct for Italy. Do not relabel them as “self-citation count.”

Does a high percentage mean the scholar is not influential? Not by itself. Check rank_all, rank_ns, field, and the full profile — e.g. Sereno, Mauro (1,179 citations) or Brunetti, Gianfranco F. (1,748 citations).

Where can I reproduce the Italy list? /api/analytics/self-citation/authors?scope=country&entity=ita&listing=single_year and the Italy country page analytics views.

How do I cite an Italy Top 2% scientist after checking self-citation? Follow how to find, verify, and cite: name, listing (single-year vs career), year, rank, and the live scholar URL.