Bibliometrics & Citation Analysis as a Tool

Bibliometrics is an important part of the LIS field and the Information Literacy toolbox (Larivière, 2012).

Bibliometric data is compiled using a citation index and the two leading ones are Thompson Reuters’ Web of Science or Elsevier’s Scopus (see e.g., WoS found at http://thomsonreuters.com /products_services/science/science_products/a-z/journal_citation_reports/) .  These two services look at citations of scholarly scientific articles and determine their “impact” by the number of times each is cited, where it is cited, and so forth.  Scholarly journals are also tracked this way (DeBellis, 2009; Larivière, 2012). 

While bibliometrics is a general term, there are other related metrics such as scientometrics.  “Scientometrics is the measurement of science communication, and bibliometrics deals with more general information processes” (Patra, Bhattacharya, & Verma, 2006). 

While it all sounds confusing, bibliometrics and scientometrics are widely used in the LIS field today.

Citation analysis helps researchers understand what are the best journals and resources from which to get their information.  I thinks its important today with the proliferation of open source journals and electronic publishing. 

As an analogy, I wouldn't know anything about buying a good car.  They all look the same.  Four tires, an engine, doors, etc.  However, there is a whole industry dedicated to telling us which are the best and safest cars. 

The same with citation analysis.  Which journals are the best?  Which academic discoveries (big or small) are firmly rooted in good science?   This is all done through citation analysis. 

It's also a good tool for self-evaluation.  Many times a journal will make an editorial decision based on an article's "impact factor".  This keeps out research that is done just to get published which is often the case when dealing with institutions that survive on grant money. 

Now, as the literature suggests (Larivière, 2012), citation analysis and bibliometrics is not as accurate in the social sciences and humanities field because the nature of scholarship is different.  SSH disseminates its knowledge differently than the natural sciences but it can still be a useful tool (Patra, Bhattacharya, & Verma, 2006). 

In the end, we should not think of citation analysis as "cheating" but an important part of Information Literacy.  How do we know the different between what is returned from an academic library search and a Google Scholar search, which doesn't do as well with citation analysis?  Tools like bibliometrics, scientometrics and citation analysis.

References 

De Bellis, N. (2009). Bibliometrics and Citation Analysis : From the Science Citation Index to Cybermetrics. Scarecrow Press. 

Larivière, V. (2012). The Decade of Metrics? Examining the Evolution of Metrics Within and Outside LIS. Bulletin Of The American Society For Information Science & Technology, 38(6), 12-17.

Patra, S., Bhattacharya, P., & Verma, N. (2006). Bibliometric Study of Literature on Bibliometrics. DESIDOC Bulletin Of Information Technology, 26(1), 27-32. 

 

Search behavior is an important field in library science.  LIS professionals are responsible for the classification, storage, and retrieval of information.  As each of these areas become more complex, search behavior and strategies are evolving into more sophisticated exercises with definable patterns (Ercegovac, 2008). 

A person’s search behavior or choice of strategy is based on four factors:  task, time, interest, and availability (Singer, 2012, p.1).  During a search, one factor can become dominant, affecting both the quality of the search and the behavior of the searcher. 

Rubin (2010) describes one model of search behavior in which individuals are classified into five different groups:  Horizontal Information Seeking, Navigators, Viewers, Squirreling Behavior, and Checkers.  Other researchers classify the way people search as strategies (Singer, 2012) and classify them as either steps or preferred methods.  

Academics focus on two competing models of search behavior or strategy (Baro, 2010).  According to Ellis (1989) a searcher uses six actions: starting, chaining, browsing, differentiating, monitoring, and extracting.  Kulthau’s (1994) Information search Process (ISP) utilizes six stages of searching:  initiation, selection, exploration, formulation, collection, and presentation.  

By understanding the way patrons search for information, we as librarians can tailor our services to meet their needs.  Of all the services we offer (eg., reference, job-search help, reading suggestions) I submit that the task of Information Literacy is the most important. 

Why?  With the proliferation of information now available on the web, most patron searches begin on the web (Zickuhr, 2012).  In addition, the mission statements of today’s libraries are now focusing on patron “self-reliance” (USF, 2007; Rubin, 2010).  Thus, if more people are becoming more self-reliant (as opposed to asking a librarian for the information directly) then I submit that our primary goal should be learning how our patrons search and our primary service should be helping them understand what is the best information to use. 

References 

Baro, E. E., Onyenania, G. O., & Osaheni, O. (2010). Information seeking behaviour of undergraduate students in the humanities in three universities in Nigeria. South African Journal of Libraries & Information Science, 76, 109-117. 

Ellis, D. 1989. A behavioral model for information retrieval system design, journal of Information Science, 15: 237-247. 

Ercegovac, Z. (2008). Information Literacy : Search Strategies, Tools & Resources for High School Students and College Freshmen. Linworth Pub. 

Kuhlhau, CC. 1994. Seeking meaning: a proeess approaeh to library and information serviees. Nowood, N.J.: Abex.

Lesk, M. (2005). Understanding Digital Libraries. Elsevier. 

Rubin, R. E. (2010). Foundations of Library and Information Science (3^rd ed.). New York: Neal-Schuman. 

Singer, K., Singer, G., Lepik, K., Norbisrath, U., & Pruulmann-Vengerfeldt, P. (2012). Search Strategies of Library Search Experts, http://arxiv.org/abs/1206.2465, accessed on October 28, 2012. 

University of South Florida. (2007). USF Libraries Strategic Plan: 2007-2012. Tampa, Florida. 

Zickuhr, K., Rainie, L., Purcell, K., Madden, M., & Brenner, J. (2012). Libraries, patrons, and e-books. Pew Internet & American Life Project, June 22, 2012 http://libraries.pewinternet.org/ 2012/06/22/libraries-patrons-and-e-books/, accessed on September 9, 2012.

Missions of Libraries - USF and Pasco County

Public libraries have broad missions, visions, and values (Rubin, 2010, pp. 173-174).  These can differ based on the size of the population and the type of community they serve (p. 174). Pasco County, Florida, is a small rural community north of Hillsborough County and the metropolitan city of Tampa.  Similar to most systems, Pasco County administers its libraries through a cooperative.  The mission for the Pasco County Library Cooperative (2012) is one which: 

 “Attracts and satisfies customers through outstanding and responsive customer service, an excellent selection of materials and resources, and an environment that encourages personal and community betterment.” (p.15) 

Apart from the mission statement, Pasco County embraces six “strategic focus areas”:  discovery, collaboration, technology, creation, spaces, and awareness.  These strategic focus areas complement and expand upon the American Library Association’s eight roles for public libraries discussed in Rubin (pp. 173-174) without overextending itself. 

By focusing on spaces, Pasco Libraries are focusing on the library as “a community gathering place” (Rubin, p. 178).  Svanhild & Ragnar (2012) found that library patrons tended to socialize more than bookstore customers because they greater sense of “ownership” of the library and treated it as their own. 

The strategic focus of “create” is interesting in that Pasco County is not only seeking to store media content (Rubin, p. 11-8) but is striving to be a place where patrons can “create content” such as videos, presentations, music, and art  By focusing on collaboration, Pasco also is expanding its new role as an “e-government gateway” similar to other public library systems (Jaeger & Fleischnann, 2007) .  

In Summary, the vision, value and mission statement of the Pasco County Library Cooperative is consistent with a small community library that is well supported by the community. 

Academic libraries have a specific purpose to serve those students where the library is located (p. 200).  They also provide a service to the academic community at large by engaging in scholarship and building collections that go beyond the needs of the campus for which they serve (University of South Florida, 2007).  In fact, there is a trend for libraries to go “more global” (USF, 2007; Rubin, 2010, p. 200). 

The USF library system has five libraries and a budget of $17.5 million (USF, p. 1).  Its mission is “to become a globally recognized academic library system advancing knowledge through integrated resources, responsive services, research, and instruction” (p. 2).  It seeks to implement this mission through five strategic goals. 

A few of these strategic goals were interesting.  First, while there was an emphasis on “patron self-reliance” (p. 3) consistent with Outsell (2003a) described in Rubin (p.  200), there was no information literacy program specifically mentioned that would help achieve this goal.  Second, two of the strategic goals focused on the acquisition of interdisciplinary academic and special collections.  Again, this was consistent with Rubin (p. 200) but surprising in that the interdisciplinary academic collection goal was announced as late as 2007.  Regarding the specific special collection areas announced in the strategic goal, the focus has shifted away from “Floridiana” and others such as Medieval studies and cartography to holocaust and genocide studies (B.Lewis, personal communication, September 11, 2012).  This change was surprising. 

The most fascinating mission statement I found, however, was the fairly nondescript one from the Harry Ransom Center (2012) at the University of Austin.  It states: 

“The central mission of the Ransom Center is to advance the study of the arts and humanities. To this end, the Center: Acquires original cultural material for the purposes of scholarship, education, and delight; Preserves and makes accessible these creations of our cultural heritage through the highest standards of cataloging, conservation, and collection management; Supports research through public services, symposia, publications, and fellowships; Provides education and enrichment for scholars, students, and the public at large through exhibitions, public performances, and lectures.” 

As Basbanes (1995) points out, the HRC went on a buying spree funded by Texas oil money from 1956 to where in 1970 it was considered one of the top 5 libraries.  Today it boasts one of the largest collections of manuscripts and letters from the great nineteenth and twentieth century writers.  Its policy of aggressive acquisition has led some to criticize the HRC but, in the end, it ranks as one of the greatest repositories of modern literature. 

References 

Harry Ransom Center, University of Texas at Austin. (2012). Mission and History. Retrieved October 5, 2012, from http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/about/mission/ 

Jaeger, P. T., & Fleischmann, K. R. (2007). Public libraries, values, trust, and e-Government. Information Technology & Libraries, 26, 34-43. 

Pasco County Library Cooperative. (2012).  2012-2015 strategic vision.  Retrieved October 5, 2012, from www.pascolibraries.org/PascoLibraryStratPlanFinal2.pdf 

Rubin, R. E. (2010). Foundations of Library and Information Science (3^rd ed.). New York: Neal-Schuman. 

Svanhild, A., & Ragnar, A. (2012). Use of library space and the library as place. Library And Information Science Research, 34,138-149. 

University of South Florida. (2007). USF Libraries Strategic Plan: 2007-2012. Tampa, Florida.

New Series of Posts

Beginning today I will be publishing a series of posts based on the discussions we have as MLIS students.  I will try and cover those opportunities and challenges affecting the profession such as Web 2.0 functionality, the internet, Google, DRM, and others as they arise.

Even though they are conversations, I will endeavour to add the appropriate citations and references whenever possible.

23 Things Tech Post - Historypin

Imagine an interactive access point or gateway into your academic library's digital collection that is both interesting and tied to social networking.  One such site is called Historypin and it can be found at http://www.historypin.com.

Here is an example of London in the HistoryPin window.  Images are sorted by location, sometimes with several at one place, and easily accessible.  Once you find an interesting photo, you can click on it.

Here for example is a photo of Crosby Hall in Chelsea.  You can add descriptive data to the photograph.  For our purposes, however, the most important feature is the ability to hyperlink back to your collection.  This allows people to access your digital collection without having to duplicate it over several websites.

Here is the Historypin map for Tampa, Florida.

What's also exciting is that Historypin allows several types of multimedia images to be used.  Below is a movie clip about the destruction of the old Tampa Stadium in 1999.

Historypin is a powerful tool that can be used by libraries to create multiple access point into any number of digital collections.  It is an excellent example of Web 2.0 and how the internet can supplement, and not replace, libraries.

23 Things Tech Post - 2012 Pew Library Report

Two interesting studies seem to echo most of the concerns in this class week’s discussion.  I mention them because they are relatively recent, something necessary in our quickly changing environment. 

The first is a study by the Pew Internet & American Life Project titled “Libraries, Patrons, and E-books” [Pew Report] (2012).  There were some interesting trends that mirror some of the positions stated in the discussions. 

Based the Pew Report’s findings, a strong argument could be made that libraries need to do a better job in updating their image as an agency ready for the 21^st Century.  For example, 58% of library card holders were not aware that e-book lending was available at their library even though 76% of libraries do lend e-books.  Fifty-three percent of tablet users, such as an iPad or Kindle Fire, do not know if the library loans e-books.  Similarly, 48% of e-reader owners did not know whether their libraries loaned e-books.  Finally, 47% of those who read an e-book within the past year did not know about library e-book lending (Pew Report, 2012). 

Libraries are still important, however, to most Americans.  Fifty-eight percent of Americans have a library card and 69% of those people state that the library is important to them (Pew Report, 2012, p.6).  Of those who own library cards, e-books habits are nearly equal:  46% prefer to buy e-books while 45% want to borrow them (Pew Report, 2012, p. 7).   

One disturbing trend is for those 16-17 years of age.  Fort-five percent of these people indicated that the library was “not important” to them (Pew Report, 2012, p.12).  Whether this changes as their needs become more complex is one trend to study closely, perhaps as a temporal cohort study. 

The data that includes interactions with librarians show that 20% receive research help from a librarian.  However, of that 16-17 year old group that responded about libraries being not very important to them, 43% did get research help from a librarian.  Also, specific comments from librarians indicate that technology support is becoming more important in their jobs (Pew Report, 2012, p. 35). 

I’ll post about the second report later. 

Reference 

Zickuhr, K., Rainie, L., Purcell, K., Madden, M., Brenner, J., & Pew Internet & American Life, P. (2012). Libraries, Patrons, and E-Books. Pew Internet & American Life Project.

23 Things Tech Post - oops!

I wanted to write something about e-books and libraries for my 23 Things Report.  I found this interesting report. This is the cite in APA style:

Zickuhr, K., Rainie, L., Purcell, K., Madden, M., Brenner, J., & Pew Internet & American Life, P. (2012). Libraries, Patrons, and E-Books. Pew Internet & American Life Project,

Here is the abstract:

This report explores the world of e-books and libraries, where libraries fit into these book-consumption patterns of Americans, when people choose to borrow their books and when they choose to buy books. It examines the potential frustrations e-book borrowers can encounter when checking out digital titles, such as long wait lists and compatibility issues. Finally, it looks at non-e-book-borrower interest in various library services, such as preloaded e-readers or instruction on downloading e-books. To understand the place e-reading, e-books, and libraries have in Americans' evolving reading habits, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has given the Pew Internet Project a grant to study this shifting digital terrain. Libraries have traditionally played a key role in the civic and social life of their communities, and this work is aimed at understanding the way that changes in consumer behavior and library offerings might affect that unique relationship between libraries and communities. Findings include: (1) 12% of readers of e-books borrowed an e-book from the library in the past year. But a majority of Americans do not know that this service is provided by their local library; (2) E-book borrowers appreciate the selection of e-books at their local library, but they often encounter wait lists, unavailable titles, or incompatible file formats; (3) Many Americans would like to learn more about borrowing e-books; (4) 58% of Americans have a library card, and 69% say that their local library is important to them and their family; (5) Library card holders are more than twice as likely to have bought their most recent book than to have borrowed it from a library. Many e-book borrowers purchase e-books, too; (6) Library card holders use more technology, and they report that they read more books; and (7) Leading-edge librarians and patrons say that the advent of e-books has produced a major transformation in book searching and borrowing at libraries. (Contains 66 footnotes.)

When I read the abstract, I thought that this report would be relevant and up to date.  It does not appear to have a print version available at USF.  This wasn't important to me because this was a project on the Web 2.0 paradigm and an electronic version would seem to fit what I was trying to describe in the first place.

A full online version of this 80 page report was available only through ERIC, the Education Resource Information Center.  The USF catalogue record had a link to the report.  When I clicked on it, this is what I got instead of my report:

Dear ERIC Community,
In early August we discovered that sensitive personally identifiable information appeared in some full text documents contained in the ERIC collection. Specifically, social security numbers and other highly sensitive information were found in multiple documents and in a way that could not easily be isolated. For that reason, we had to temporarily disable access to many full text documents.
Although these documents had been publicly available in microfiche for many years, the advent of Internet search engines has made it easier to find this information. Our number one concern is to ensure that any full-text documents we provide do not violate any individual's privacy. We believe that if any of us were to have our privacy compromised by an ERIC document, we would want the same consideration.
We are seeking to restore access to documents as soon as possible. In order to restore access to ERIC, we have to check every document to see if it contains personally identifiable information. Due to the quality of many of the documents, a large portion of the search has to be done by hand. This is a large undertaking and we are in the process of hiring a team to help restore access in a fast and responsive manner. We hope to get this team in place by late September and releasing large numbers of ERIC documents by the end of October. We will continue to release documents after that point on a rolling basis.
To minimize the burden on our users, we will prioritize searching the documents that users request. If you would like to request a PDF to be returned online, please email ERICRequests@ed.gov with the record number (such as ED263102). Documents will be returned on a rolling basis and may take several weeks, but we are working as fast as possible.
We are sorry for the inconvenience and want to thank you for bearing with us through this unexpected delay.
The ERIC Team

This seemed to be a perfect example for many things Web 2.0.  First, with digital media, searching through documents is easier, faster, and more efficient than searching through traditional text resources.  Second, the ease and efficiency of digital text search also makes it easier to find a person's private information, also making it easier to commit identity theft.  Three, digital information is not always available.  Four, digital information can be made unavailable quickly.  Any sense of permanance is wielded by the person or group in charge of the data, usually at a centralized location.

However, like all librarians do, I did find the information.  Here's the link to the report:

http://libraries.pewinternet.org/2012/06/22/libraries-patrons-and-e-books/

Library Observation: Go Local?

I have been doing some thinking about our second major research project requiring us to observe two libraries and interview two librarians.  I actually did this inadvertantly one time when I was applying for library positions (they hired in-house).  I went to my local brach and asked some questions about the nature of today's library and the effects of e-books on lending.  I discovered a whole new "virtual" Pasco Public Library System (http://pascolibraries.org/) after my discussion which left me excited about the future of librarianship.  I also leanrned about Tumblebooks!

Our library branch is new, modern, neat, and clean.  This makes finding books a pleasurable experience.  This made me wonder about other types of libraries where the sensibilities of the public is not a major concern.  This is probably going to be my focus on this project in the future.