Abstract

Although the field of Communication Sciences has been slower to organize in Spain than in other European countries and the United States, in recent years it has shown a clear tendency to growth. One way to trace this process is by analyzing scientific production, and this paper focuses on this aspect. Using bibliometric methods, we analyze scientific journals and papers indexed in Thomson Reuter’s international database, the Social Science Citation Index (SSCI) for Communication. While the focus of the study is Spanish scientific output, the results are related to international activities in this field. The three Spanish journals included in SSCI in recent years: «Comunicar», «Comunicación y Sociedad» and «Estudios sobre el Mensaje Periodístico» were studied in detail. The results show that Spain plays an important role in Communcation journal publishing (4th in the world) and as a producer of scientific papers (6th in the world), with a remarkable evolution, in quantitative terms, especially in the last five years. The inclusion of these three Spanish journals in the international database has been an important contribution to the country's visibility in this field, but there is still a need to promote international collaboration to achieve greater impact and openness in the scientific community.

Abstract

In the last few years, the Library of the University of Navarra has taken on new librarian roles, mainly related to research support. Along with tasks such as on-demand training sessions and the promotion of open access to the Library’s repository, we have started several new lines of research support. These primarily focus on advising professors about accreditation processes and six-year research evaluations, and providing data review and item validation support for the institutional research management system. We analyze these new roles and tasks that have been undertaken, together with their impact on traditional tasks, their benefits, and new perspectives for the future.

Abstract

The thematic evolution of LIS research in Spanish between 1978 and 2019 is analyzed within the international context. To this end, relevant bibliographic references were retrieved from the Library and Information Science Abstracts (LISA) database, and their titles and abstracts were treated using the latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA) method, a statistical thematic modeling technique. Nineteen thematic sets were found and analyzed, labeled, and systematized in four main areas: processes, information technologies, libraries, and specialized documentations. Next, the results in Spanish were compared with international results obtained previously using the same methodology. In conclusion, LIS literature in Spanish mainly follows the international trends: during the last 50 years, the thematic focus of research has shifted from libraries and informational organizations to users and the development of specific systems and solutions. However, LIS research in Spanish also presents distinct characteristics: the importance of bibliometric research and biomedical documentation; research in the library area; and a certain delay in addressing technological, legal, and educational aspects. Although the selection of LISA articles depends on editorial decisions, the application of LDA to the peer-reviewed literature in Spanish provided results that are consistent with the international global trends, studies on other similar sources, and overall the state of the art.