Abstract Measurement of the effectiveness of science policies is analyzed as a multi-level problem. Journal-journal citations are discussed as a potential candidate for a domain beyond the control of policy-makers and authors or research groups and therefore may function as a relatively stable and easily accessible baseline for the calibration of outputs and outcomes of science policy. A method is developed, usingSCPsJCRs which is then applied to the two cases of water pollution and humanisation of labor. This method can also be used as a simple indicator for the development of journal-journal citation patterns over time.