Linked open data and research knowledge management: an exploratory search and visualization framework

This paper describes and evaluates an exploratory search and visualization framework that enables non-expert users to interact and intuitively explore academic and bibliographic information. The framework, called the ‘Linked Open Data Visualizations Suite’ (LOD/VizSuite), uses the Linked Open Data (LOD) of RILOD, a database with academic bibliographic data from heterogeneous sources on research in Flanders (northern part of Belgium), and supports exploratory search and data analysis by means of interactive graph-based visualizations. First a literature review on (Linked) Open Data and exploratory search is presented. Second, we describe LOD/VizSuite and its goals. Third, we investigate the impact and quality of the visualization with test users (n=36) using a multi-method approach. Results show that a flow of graph-based visualizations is feasible with Linked Open Data and that users perceived that they found relevant insights about the researchers or disciplines they were exploring or looking for. We conclude that search and visualization frameworks on Linked Open Data and LOD/VizSuite in specific, can be supportive for scholars in academia as well as for policymakers in the research field.