An analysis of research strategies of articles published in Library Science journals: the example of Library and Information Science Research

The aim of the present study is to investigate the general trends of LIS research, using as source material the articles published in Library and Information Science Research in a five-year period (2005-2010). Library & Information Science Research was chosen because is a cross-disciplinary and refereed journal, which focuses on the research process in library and information science, covers a wide range of topicswithin the field, reports research findings and provides work of interest to both academics and practitioners. The authors review the findings from an examination of research articles published in the journal, giving emphasis on articles that used quantitative and/or qualitative research methods as an integral part of the author’s work. The paper examines the major topics and problems addressed by LIS researchers, the research approaches and the types of quantitative and qualitative research methods used in articles published during this period, in an effort to understand the characteristics of LIS research activities and to get an insight into the research perspectives of the field.

[1]  Kathy B. Enger,et al.  Statistical Methods Used by Authors of Library and Information Science Journal Articles, by Enger KB, Quirk G, Stewart JA , 1989 .

[2]  Marilyn Domas White,et al.  Content Analysis: A Flexible Methodology , 2006, Libr. Trends.

[3]  Clara M. Chu,et al.  A Survey of the Growth of Canadian Research in Information Science. , 1991 .

[4]  Edward G. Summers,et al.  Information Needs and Uses in Education , 1984 .

[5]  Pertti Vakkari,et al.  Content Analysis of Research Articles in Library and Information Science. , 1990 .

[6]  A. Alemna.  The periodical literature of library and information in Africa , 1996 .

[7]  S. Kumpulainen,et al.  Library and Information Science Research in 1975: Content Analysis of the Journal Articles , 1991 .

[8]  Aurora González-Teruel,et al.  Information needs and uses: an analysis of the literature published in Spain, 1990–2004 , 2007 .

[9]  Leif Kajberg,et al.  A content analysis of library & information science serial literature published in Denmark, 1957–1986 , 1996 .

[10]  Linda Shields,et al.  Content Analysis , 2015 .

[11]  Lloyd Houser,et al.  A Conceptual Analysis of Information Science. , 1988 .

[12]  Alexandra Dimitroff.  Research for Special Libraries: A Quantitative Analysis of the Literature. , 1995 .

[13]  Heidi Julien,et al.  A Longitudinal Analysis of the Information Needs and Uses Literature , 2000 .

[14]  Douglas W. Cooper.  Library Literature in Mainland China: A Content Analysis , 1987 .

[15]  L. Buttlar.  Analyzing the Library Periodical Literature: Content and Authorship. , 1991 .

[16]  Heidi Julien,et al.  Trends in information behavior research, 1999–2008: A content analysis , 2011 .

[17]  Stephen E. Atkins.  Subject Trends in Library and Information Science Research, 1975-1984 , 1988 .

[18]  Bluma C. Peritz,et al.  The Methods of Library Science Research: Some Results from a Bibliometric Survey. , 1980 .

[19]  Gloria S. Cline.  College & Research Libraries: Its First Forty Years , 1982 .

[20]  Julie A. Hersberger.  The Current State of Public Library Research in Select Peer-Reviewed Journals: 1996-2000 , 2009 .

[21]  Juris Dilevko,et al.  Inferential statistics and librarianship , 2007 .

[22]  A Dimitroff,et al.  Research in health sciences library and information science: a quantitative analysis. , 1992, Bulletin of the Medical Library Association.

[23]  Danny P. Wallace.  The use of statistical methods in library and information science , 1985, J. Am. Soc. Inf. Sci..

[24]  Heidi Julien,et al.  A Content Analysis of the Recent Information Needs and Uses Literature , 1996 .

[25]  Deborah Goodall.  It ain't what you do, it's the way that you do it: a review of public library research methodology , 1996 .

[26]  Zhang Haiqi.  Analysing the Research Articles Published in Three Periodicals of Medical Librarianship. , 1995 .

[27]  Patricia E. Feehan,et al.  Library and Information Science Research: An Analysis of the 1984 Journal Literature. , 1987 .

[28]  Pertti Vakkari,et al.  The Evolution of Library and Information Science 1965-1985: A Content Analysis of Journal Articles , 1993, Inf. Process. Manag..

[29]  V. Cano.  Bibliometric Overview of Library and Information Science Research in Spain , 1999, J. Am. Soc. Inf. Sci..

[30]  Gregory A. Crawford.  The Research Literature of Academic Librarianship: A Comparison of College & Research Libraries and Journal of Academic Librarianship , 1999 .