The ECOOM group at UAntwerp is responsible for the implementation and technical maintenance of the Flemish Academic Bibliographic Database for the Social Sciences and Humanities (VABB-SHW). The VABB-SHW indexes all scholarly publications of researchers affiliated to a Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) unit at a Flemish university. These publication data are used in the Flemish funding system, for (international) benchmarking, and for research purposes.
ECOOM-Antwerp investigates the characteristics and evolution of publication patterns within the SSH – such as publication language, publication types, collaboration, (broader) impact, and interdisciplinarity. In addition, ECOOM-Antwerp also studies publication patterns from an international comparative perspective, often in collaboration with colleagues in other countries.
ECOOM-Antwerp technically supports the Authoritative Panel of the VABB-SHW and provides services based on the VABB-SHW to the Flemish Government and the Flanders Research Foundation (FWO).