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.

Abstract

This work presents a current map of scientific research on Communication in Spain, identifying both the research fronts of the publications with the greatest impact over the last three years (2019–2021) and the authors who led such work and their universities of reference. The original methodology applied herein focuses on an analysis of the cited authors. After a careful selection process, we work with a corpus of more than 800 articles, using Scopus and the VOSviewer software to generate a co-referencing map and throw light on the structure of the Communication field. On the basis of that analysis, we identify nine thematic clusters, with a particular grouping structure, leading authors, and relationships around fields of study such as communication, democracy and power, audiences and media consumption, the media industry, journalistic practice, fact checking and disinformation, journalistic innovation, and SEO journalism. The ranking of cited authors, where Ramón Salaverría and Rasmus K. Nielsen hold equal first position and the Chilean Claudia Mellado is the only woman at the head of a strong group, is put into context by analyzing their scientific production and the normalized impact in Communication of their institutions. The comparative analysis reveals the elite Spanish authors in Communication (Xosé López-García, Ignacio Aguaded, Andreu Casero-Ripollés, Lluís Codina, and Ramón Salaverría) and shows how universities in Madrid maintain their importance in terms of production but that those in Catalunya have the lead in terms of impact. The research is completed with a map of keyword co-occurrence that confirms the barrage of studies around the Covid crisis and the parallel and growing number of hoaxes (fakes). The research confirms the relevance of and opportunity to apply scientometric techniques to the Communication field.