A standard procedure for Bradford analysis and its application to the periodical literature in systems librarianship

Fei Xu

doi:10.1108/07378831111189813

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Library Hi Tech

ISSN: 0737-8831

Online from: 1983

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A standard procedure for Bradford analysis and its application to the periodical literature in systems librarianship

Document Information:
Title:	A standard procedure for Bradford analysis and its application to the periodical literature in systems librarianship
Author(s):	Fei Xu, (Hilton M. Briggs Library, South Dakota State University, Brookings, South Dakota, USA)
Citation:	Fei Xu, (2011) "A standard procedure for Bradford analysis and its application to the periodical literature in systems librarianship", Library Hi Tech, Vol. 29 Iss: 4, pp.751 - 763
Keywords:	Bibliographies, Bradford analysis, Bradford's law, Library management, Library systems, Linear regression, Systems librarianship
Article type:	Research paper
DOI:	10.1108/07378831111189813 (Permanent URL)
Publisher:	Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Abstract:	Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop a standard procedure for Bradford analysis: export citations from research databases to a bibliographic management tool, separate the desired citation fields with bibliographic output styles, and then manipulate the empirical data, formulate graph and analyze linearity with Microsoft Excel. Design/methodology/approach – The methodology mainly employed by the paper is to test the theory of Bradford's law of scattering. Based on research work and experiments, a standard procedure for Bradford analysis is to be developed. Findings – A standard procedure for Bradford analysis is developed. The study also shows that the literature in systems librarianship follows Bradford distribution. Originality/value – Many fields or disciplines of literature have been found to follow Bradford's law, which seems to offer a great potential promise for solving library problems. However, empirical Bradford analysis demands tedious computation, and sophisticated graphical formulation. This paper develops an easy operational procedure for Bradford analysis, which will shed light on problem solving in a similar bibliometric analysis.