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Evaluation of Scientific Disciplines in Turkey:
A Citation Analysis Study
Zehra Taşkın and Güleda Doğan
Hacettepe University, Department of Information Management, 06800, Ankara, Turkey
{ztaskin,gduzyol}@hacettepe.edu.tr
Abstract.
This study focuses on Turkish scholars' information use. Using
citation analysis, it investigates a total of 197,687 publications in our main
scientific disciplines (pure sciences, engineering, social sciences and arts &
humanities) extracted from Web of Science (1928-2009). Authors (at least one
of them) of these publications were all affiliated with Turkish institutions.
Differences between these disciplines and between their sub-disciplines in
terms of average author number, multiple authorship, half-life, publication
types, journals characteristics were determined. Findings of this study can be
helpful for national-level policy making on scientific productivity that will help
Turkish scholarship to reach international level.
Keywords:
Information behavior, Turkish scholars, scientific disciplines, pure
sciences, social sciences, engineering, arts and humanities.
1
Introduction
Each individual from any working area or academic discipline retrieves, analyzes, and
synthesizes information in different ways. Consequently, it is important to understand
information behaviors of individuals, groups or disciplines. Information behaviors can
be identified by using surveys or questionnaires. Additionally, it is also possible to
evaluate publications and citations with the aim of revealing behaviors.
Information behaviors in specific disciplines are the subject of many studies in the
literature. These studies concentrated on pure scientists and engineers at the
beginning. After the Second World War ended, controlling material production by
scientists and engineers became vital for countries [1]. Thus, the first information
behavior studies written in these years were for scientists and engineers. Even Wilson
claimed that “the study of information-seeking behavior can be said to be the study of
scientists' information-seeking behavior” in that period [2]. Studies on social scientists
began with INFROSS project in 1967 at Bath University [3]. At last, the studies
focused on the people working in the arts and humanities fields. Therefore, it is
possible to say that understanding people's information needs and behaviors has
become important to customize information services according to people's needs.
The main aim of this study is to evaluate the scientific disciplines comprising of
the pure sciences, engineering, social sciences and art & humanities in Turkey by
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