Data for Invisible Contributors: libraries as key development institutions
Description
This study investigates the perceived invisibility of libraries in Development Studies (DS) by adapting the keyword and citation cluster analysis framework developed by Madrueno and Tezanos (2018). Their framework is designed to detect discursive relations in development studies and is a useful method for “identifying relevant footprints of the related research interests” in academic journals. This study modifies the framework to identify studies in prominent peer-reviewed DS and LIS journals surrounding the development role and impact of cultural institutions such as libraries, archives, museums and information centers. Following Madrueno and Tezanos (2018), this author assumes that “peer-reviewed journals are representative of the knowledge production of DS, as they are an influential mechanism for disseminating the scientific development discourse.” A cluster analysis was employed to determine the active research topics in DS and LIS. The research topics were then surveyed to identify the articles with the highest citation rates in both fields and to identify in cross-references between DS and LIS publications. The research topics were then surveyed using a keyphrase analysis to identify studies on the development impact of libraries. The Scopus and SciVal (2019) databases were used “to retrieve … information on abstracts, keywords, authors, institutional affiliations and cited references” (Madrueno & Tezanos 2018). This study used SciVal “to visualize … identify and analyze new, emerging research trends, and create uniquely tailored reports.” The CiteScore metric was used to determine the journals with the highest impact ratings in Development Studies (DS) and Library and Information Science (LIS). The journals that consistently ranked in the top 25% percentile were then surveyed for studies pertaining to libraries and development. Additionally, Scopus and SciVal were used to determine if LIS articles received citations in prominent DS journals.