scholarly journals Tracking Theory Building and Use Trends in Selected LIS Journals: More Research is Needed

2007 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 101
Author(s):  
Carol Perryman
Keyword(s):  
Interrater Reliability ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Measure Theory ◽  
Theory Development ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Time Span ◽  
Rate Of Change ◽  
Impact Factors ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Korean Society

Objective - The authors measure theory incidents occurring in four LIS journals between 1984-2003 in order to examine their number and quality and to analyze them by topic. A third objective, only identified later in the text of the study, was to compare theory development and use between Korean and international journals. Research questions asked include whether LIS has its own theoretical base as a discipline, and what characteristics the theoretical framework has. Design – Bibliometric study. Setting – Journal issues selected from four LIS journals for the time span from 1984 - 2003. Subjects – Two international journals, Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology (JASIST) and Library and Information Science Research (LISR) were selected based on their high ranking in the Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI) impact factors. Two Korean journals, Journal of the Korean Society for Information Management (JKSIM) and Journal of the Korean Society for Library and Information Science (JKSLIS) were selected. Methods - After having determined a definition of theory, and identifying different levels of theory, the authors set up rules for the identification of theory incidents, which are defined as “events in which the author contributed to the development or the use of theory in his/her own paper” (550). Content analysis of 1661 research articles was performed to measure theory incidents according to working definitions. Interrater reliability was ensured by conducting independent coding for “subfield classification, identification of theory incidents, and quality measurement” (555), using a sample of 199 articles (random selection not specified), achieving 94-97% interrater reliability. Incidents, once identified, were evaluated for quality using Dubin’s “efficiency of law” criteria, involving measures of relatedness, directionality, co-variation, rate of change, and “profundity,” defined as the depth to which theory is incorporated into the research study. Main Results - 21.79% (n=362) of the articles contained theory incidents that were analyzed and evaluated. Trend measurement indicated an overall increase, although a slight decrease was shown in the year range 1993-2003. International journals accounted for 61.33% of theory incidents, compared to 38.67% for the Korean journals. T-testing showed that differences in means between Korean and international journals were not statistically significant. Topical theory areas were ranked by frequency. The top five areas were shown to be nearly identical between Korean and international journals. ANOVA was performed with significant results in the difference between efficiency ratings. Conclusion – The authors find that the overall proportion of theory incidents including both theory development and use increased through the 20-year time span examined, and that LIS has established its own theoretical framework based upon the frequency of incidents.

scholarly journals Reading as dialogical document work: possibilities for Library and Information Science

2016 ◽  
Vol 72 (1) ◽  
pp. 127-139 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Hampson Lundh ◽  
Mats Dolatkhah
Keyword(s):  
Primary Schools ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Theoretical Perspective ◽  
Theory Development ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Social Contexts ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Social Significance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Information Behaviour

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to introduce a dialogically based theory of documentary practices and document work as a promising framework for studying activities that are often conceptualised as information behaviour or information practices within Library and Information Science (LIS). Design/methodology/approach – An empirical example – a lesson on how to read railway timetables – is presented. The lesson stems from a research project including 223 Swedish lessons recorded in Swedish primary schools 1967-1969. It is argued that this lesson, as many empirical situations within LIS research, can fruitfully be regarded as documentary practices which include document work such as reading, rather than instances of information behaviour. Findings – It is found that the theoretical perspective of dialogism could contribute to the theory development within LIS, and function as a bridge between different subfields such as reading studies and documentary practices. Research limitations/implications – The framework is yet to be applied on a larger scale. This would require a willingness to go beyond the entrenched idea of information as the core theoretical concept and empirical object of study within LIS. Social implications – The theoretical framework offers a view of the relations between individuals, documents, and social contexts, through which it is possible to explore the social significance of core LIS concerns such as reading, literacy, and document work. Originality/value – The theoretical framework offers an alternative to the monologist, information-based theories and models of people’s behaviours and practices prevalent in LIS.

Knowledge of use and type of references in Library and Information Science and Legal Medicine as support for specialized librarians

2017 ◽  
Vol 51 (3) ◽  
pp. 591-600
Author(s):  
Nerea Nieto-Pino ◽  
Cristina Faba-Pérez ◽  
Rocío Gómez-Crisóstomo
Keyword(s):  
Information Science ◽  
Legal Medicine ◽  
Impact Factors ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Environment Impact ◽  
Journal Citation Reports ◽  
Reliable Source ◽  
Science Community ◽  
Specialized Institutions ◽  
American Society

Librarians of specialized institutions need to have solid knowledge of the scientific environment (impact of publications, use of citations and scientific references, etc.) related to the group for which they work in order to properly manage the collection of their libraries. The present research analyses the evolution of the use and types of references cited by academics in Library and Information Science and in Legal Medicine as an aid for specialist librarians in this sense. The study has a dual aspect: one is to determine how the behaviour of references, especially Web references, in relation to accessibility and use has evolved over 15 years in alternating periods (1999, 2004, 2009, 2013) in these two areas, and the other is to determine from the type of references scientists of prestige use in their publications whether they consider the Internet to be a reliable source of information for their research. Two journals with high impact factors according to Journal Citation Reports were selected from each category: Journal of the American Society for Information Science & Technology (JASIST) and Information Processing & Management (IP&M) corresponding to Information Science, and Regulatory Toxicology & Pharmacology (RT&P) and Forensic Science International (FSI) corresponding to Legal Medicine. The results showed greater accessibility and use of Web references in the Information Science community, but also considerable progress in these aspects in recent years in Legal Medicine.

scholarly journals Core Journals in Library and Information Science: Developing a Methodology for Ranking LIS Journals

2014 ◽  
Vol 75 (1) ◽  
pp. 66-90 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judith M. Nixon
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Information Science ◽  
The United States ◽  
Library Science ◽  
Academic Disciplines ◽  
Impact Factors ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
University Libraries ◽  
Short List ◽  
Science Field

In the library science field, there is no professionally accepted tiered list of journals in the United States to guide librarians, as there is in other academic disciplines. This situation creates a challenge for both new and experienced librarians who wish to make a serious contribution to librarianship by publishing articles. This article outlines a methodology used at the Libraries of Purdue University, which could be adapted by other university libraries, to create a tiered list of journals tailored to the institution. The article begins with a literature review that identifies a short list of top-level journals. This is followed by the methodology that uses expert opinion surveys, acceptance and circulation rates, impact factors, h-indexes, and journals with local faculty articles. Tables with the journals ranked into three tiers are included.

Published errors and errata in library and information science journals

2019 ◽  
Vol 38 (3) ◽  
pp. 61-67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammadamin Erfanmanesh ◽  
Marzieh Morovati
Keyword(s):  
Information Science ◽  
Impact Factors ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Time Interval ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Journal Citation Reports ◽  
Significant Relationships ◽  
Subject Categories ◽  
The Usa

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the characterization of corrections to the papers published in Library and Information Science (LIS) journals during 2006-2015. It studies the frequency and location of the published errors, time interval between the publication of the original papers and their corrections, as well as associations between journals’ impact factors (IF) and their correction rates. Design/methodology/approach The population of the study comprised of 369 errata published in 50 LIS journals. The data were obtained from Clarivate Analytics’ Web of Science (WoS) and Journal Citation Reports. Findings The results of the study revealed a correction rate of 0.37 per cent for LIS journals, which is substantially lower than that of 124 subject categories with at-least one erratum in the WoS. Among the countries with the highest number of errata in LIS journals, the USA ranked first, followed by China and England. However, the greatest share of errata to overall LIS publications of the country was seen in Kazakhstan, Russia and Botswana. Results showed that no statistically significant relationships existed between the journals’ IF and their correction rates. The highest proportion of errors published in LIS literature was occurred in authors’ information, references, tables and figures. Moreover, the average time from publication of the original articles to their corresponding errata was found to be 8.7 months. Social implications Correcting the unintentional mistakes in scholarly articles is an ethical responsibility of researchers and journal editors. Originality/value The current research tries to investigate the characteristics of errata in the LIS field.

scholarly journals Inhibitors and Promoters of Quality Research Outputs for Women in the Library and Information Science (LIS) Profession in Africa

2020 ◽  
pp. 150-172
Author(s):  
Nomusa Zimu-Biyela
Keyword(s):  
Literature Review ◽  
Research Methodology ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Research Output ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Specific Reference ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Problem Statement ◽  
Quality Research ◽  
Women Researchers

This chapter aims to explore inhibitors and promoters of quality research output for women in general and with specific reference to the library and information science (LIS) discipline and profession in Africa. It is envisaged that findings might help influence established, novice and potential women researchers in Africa to engage in collaborative production of quality research outputs, particularly women in the LIS profession. The chapter is organized into sections. First, the introduction and background, in which the uneven global bibliometrics about women in the research profession is highlighted. Then problem statement, research aims, and research methodology are described. After which, a theoretical framework, a literature review including inhibitors and promoters, are discussed. The chapter recommends women to work towards positioning themselves on the global scholarly landscape.

scholarly journals Adding the information literacy perspective to refugee integration research discourse: a scoping literature review

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eeva-Liisa Eskola ◽  
◽  
Khadijah Saeed Khan ◽  
Gunilla Widén ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Literature Review ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Theory Development ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Research Knowledge ◽  
Research Areas ◽  
Review Articles ◽  
Scoping Literature Review ◽  
Other Information

Introduction. There is a substantial amount of research on refugees and integration. Also in library and information science there are studies focusing on refugees. However, this research knowledge doesn’t easily transfer between disciplines. This paper is a scoping literature review on main perspectives studied within integration research. The aim is to explore how the information perspective is represented and if there is a need for bringing the information perspective more actively into the integration research discourse. Method.Review articles were retrieved from the Web of Science core collection indexes using Boolean search strings. Analysis. (1) The retrieved review articles were categorised into the research areas with content description through keywords. (2) Thematic analysis of the review articles with information related perspectives was conducted. Results. The analysis showed that most integration related research is done within public environmental and occupational health. In library and information science there is relevant theory development and important research on information literacy and other information related phenomena. Conclusion. It is important to bring information literacy to the common integration frameworks as a (meta)facilitator of integration. Better communication is needed across the disciplines to guarantee the contribution of research results to successful integration.

scholarly journals Theory Building for the Profession of Teacher Librarianship: An Application of Meta-Ethnography

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nancy Everhart ◽  
Melissa P. Johnston
Keyword(s):  
Information Science ◽  
School Library ◽  
Theory Development ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
Theory Building ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Library Research ◽  
Complex Relationships ◽  
Theoretical Foundations

The lack of theoretical foundations for research in the field of library and information science is well documented and leads researchers to borrow from other fields. In the case of school library research, the tendency is to borrow from the field of education. While many theories from education and other disciplines are applicable to school library research, there needs to be development of theory among school library researchers in order to give practitioners understanding of the complex relationships involved in school libraries and guide future research efforts. Meta-ethnography uses findings reported in previous studies as building blocks for gaining deeper understanding of a particular phenomenon and is highly applicable for the initial stages of theory development. This paper provides a thorough description of the meta-ethnography method and an example of how meta-ethnography can be applied for theory building in school library research.

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