Exploration of the social function and cognitive significance of acknowledgments in scholarly articles focuses on a study that bibliometrically analyzed all formal acknowledgments in research articles in the "Journal of the American Society for Information Science" from 1970-90. The use of acknowledgments in addition to citations in…

Proposes a formula for the ranking of scientists based on diachronous citation counts. Generalizes the fact that the citation-generation potential is not the same for all papers, and states that the proposed method of ranking does not replace peer review, but rather acts as an aid for them. (Author/LRW)

Argues that the difficulties of identifying and estimating the size of any pools of citable items are so great that comparisons of citation counts are rarely valid, and that the relationship between the value of a work and its citation can only be assessed by careful study of the citing paper. (four references) (CLB)

Argues for precision (consistency) in citing, proposing an approach to citation analysis that ranks citation-signallers according to usefulness. Suggests that it is misguided to classify citation-signallers by the nature of the motivations inferred to underlie their use. (JKP)

An analysis of the acknowledgments accompanying scholarly articles in 4 information and library science journals over a 20-year period showed that a small number of individuals are acknowledged frequently whereas most individuals are infrequently acknowledged. A positive correlation between frequency of acknowledgments and citations was found.…

Discussion of methodologies for online citation analysis focuses on a study of seven library-and-information-science journals that analyzed international characteristics on the basis of correlations between the geographical distribution patterns of authors, citations, and subscriptions. Also discusses Journal Impact Factor (JIF) as a measure of…

The reciprocal relationship between bibliographic references and citations in the context of the scholarly communication system is examined. Semiotic analysis of referencing behaviors and citation counting reveals the complexity of prevailing sign systems and associated symbolic practices. (Author)

Proposes a new definition of the nuclear zone of a Bradford or Leimkuhler curve. The mathematical rationale is outlined, and examples of the application of this technique to citation analysis are given. (15 references) (CLB)

Describes a study that examined characteristics of author self-citations in the library and information science literature based on a sample of 1,058 articles from 28 journals. Specific factors examined include frequency of self-citations, self-citations compared to total citations, professional characteristics of the authors, and subject…

Presents a user-oriented interface for generalized informetric analysis and demonstrates how informetric calculations can be specified through advanced data modeling techniques. Topics include bibliographic data; online information retrieval systems; citation networks; query interface; impact factors; data restructuring; and multi-level…

Offers a brief analysis of citation practice in 25 American sociological journals, in an attempt to explore claims that citation may show gender bias. Findings suggest that there is gender bias in citation in sociology, and hypotheses are offered to explain the phenomenon. (JKP)

This study used citation analysis to investigate the characteristics of library and information science (LIS) literature published in Denmark from 1957 to 1986. The information exchange between the Danish library and information profession and LIS communities in other countries is examined, and the large proportion of hidden references is…

Using the "Arts & Humanities Citation Index" and the "Social Sciences Citation Index," a citation analysis of 116 monographs in the humanities and social sciences published between 1973-90 found that scholarly monographs have greater impact than articles; that each discipline has a core group of monographs; and that a…

Investigates the advantages of graphical mapping of national research publication and citation profiles from scientific fields in order to provide additional information with respect to research performance. By means of a multi-dimensional scaling techniques national social science profiles from 17 countries and two periods, 1989-1993 and…

The Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) graded research output of academic departments in the United Kingdom. A citation study of anatomy, genetics, and archaeology articles (1988-1992) found a relationship between the total number of citations received, or average number of citations per faculty member, and the RAE score, suggesting that citation…