Applications in teaching bibliometrics

Abstract

In recent discussions of library and information science (LIS) educators, reducing heterophily, the lack of similarity between two groups or individuals, among LIS researchers and practitioners has b een emphasized. Two researchers with different backgrounds, one in bibliometrics and the other in case study, have observed and discussed applications of bibliometrics and case study as used in teach ing research methods. The main thrust is in providing tools for teaching these research methods so that the gap between research and practical application could be narrowed. Dr. Leena Siitonen discus ses in her paper applications in teaching case study research methods. Bibliometric methods are seldom used by librarians in practical work. Still these methods grow more important when planning information provision in research libraries. New subject fields develop and the number of interdisciplinary publications have during the last decades grown exponentially. It is, though, difficult to organise information in new fields, when the classification systems, used f or instance by journal services, have a discipline based structure. The need to organize this information and help the user to identify relevant documents grows more important, and at the same time t he huge amount of available documents give great possibilities to apply bibliometrics easily and in the frame of practical work. Bibliometrics provide a tool for getting the core for developing a loc al collection in a new field. Teaching bibliometric methods could be developed by 1. seminars, where the students learn the methods and also learn to interprete their results by comparing with other studies, and 2. by use of online systems which give good bases for different bibliometric methods.