How Much Is Enough? Examining Computer Science and Civil Engineering Citation Data to Inform Collection Development and Retention Decisions in Three Large Canadian University Libraries.

Science and engineering libraries have an important role to play in preserving the intellectual content in research areas of the departments they serve. This study employs bibliographic data from the Web of Science database to examine how much research material is required to cover 90% of faculty c...

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Main Authors: Michelle Spence, Tara Mawhinney, Eugene Barsky
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: University of Alberta Library 2012-12-01
Series:Issues in Science and Technology Librarianship
Online Access:https://journals.library.ualberta.ca/istl/index.php/istl/article/view/1564
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author Michelle Spence
Tara Mawhinney
Eugene Barsky
author_facet Michelle Spence
Tara Mawhinney
Eugene Barsky
author_sort Michelle Spence
collection DOAJ
description Science and engineering libraries have an important role to play in preserving the intellectual content in research areas of the departments they serve. This study employs bibliographic data from the Web of Science database to examine how much research material is required to cover 90% of faculty citations in civil engineering and computer science. Bearing in mind the importance of access to current as well as past research, as well as the issue of space in libraries, the study evaluates citations from one year's worth of research output from faculty in three prominent Canadian universities with departments in civil engineering and computer science: University of Toronto, University of British Columbia and McGill University for the purpose of best aligning collection development activities with science and engineering research needs. The findings for all three institutions combined show that 25 years of computer science literature is needed to cover 90% of researchers' citations, whereas 30 years of materials are needed for civil engineering. We also found that the citation data is not only discipline specific, but also location specific, and a one-size-fits-all approach is not appropriate when making collections and retention decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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spelling doaj-art-9ab1e94c83ba42ccb46ad96c4ca65bf62025-07-25T20:27:05ZengUniversity of Alberta LibraryIssues in Science and Technology Librarianship1092-12062012-12-017110.29173/istl1564How Much Is Enough? Examining Computer Science and Civil Engineering Citation Data to Inform Collection Development and Retention Decisions in Three Large Canadian University Libraries.Michelle SpenceTara MawhinneyEugene Barsky Science and engineering libraries have an important role to play in preserving the intellectual content in research areas of the departments they serve. This study employs bibliographic data from the Web of Science database to examine how much research material is required to cover 90% of faculty citations in civil engineering and computer science. Bearing in mind the importance of access to current as well as past research, as well as the issue of space in libraries, the study evaluates citations from one year's worth of research output from faculty in three prominent Canadian universities with departments in civil engineering and computer science: University of Toronto, University of British Columbia and McGill University for the purpose of best aligning collection development activities with science and engineering research needs. The findings for all three institutions combined show that 25 years of computer science literature is needed to cover 90% of researchers' citations, whereas 30 years of materials are needed for civil engineering. We also found that the citation data is not only discipline specific, but also location specific, and a one-size-fits-all approach is not appropriate when making collections and retention decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] https://journals.library.ualberta.ca/istl/index.php/istl/article/view/1564
spellingShingle Michelle Spence
Tara Mawhinney
Eugene Barsky
How Much Is Enough? Examining Computer Science and Civil Engineering Citation Data to Inform Collection Development and Retention Decisions in Three Large Canadian University Libraries.
Issues in Science and Technology Librarianship
title How Much Is Enough? Examining Computer Science and Civil Engineering Citation Data to Inform Collection Development and Retention Decisions in Three Large Canadian University Libraries.
title_full How Much Is Enough? Examining Computer Science and Civil Engineering Citation Data to Inform Collection Development and Retention Decisions in Three Large Canadian University Libraries.
title_fullStr How Much Is Enough? Examining Computer Science and Civil Engineering Citation Data to Inform Collection Development and Retention Decisions in Three Large Canadian University Libraries.
title_full_unstemmed How Much Is Enough? Examining Computer Science and Civil Engineering Citation Data to Inform Collection Development and Retention Decisions in Three Large Canadian University Libraries.
title_short How Much Is Enough? Examining Computer Science and Civil Engineering Citation Data to Inform Collection Development and Retention Decisions in Three Large Canadian University Libraries.
title_sort how much is enough examining computer science and civil engineering citation data to inform collection development and retention decisions in three large canadian university libraries
url https://journals.library.ualberta.ca/istl/index.php/istl/article/view/1564
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AT eugenebarsky howmuchisenoughexaminingcomputerscienceandcivilengineeringcitationdatatoinformcollectiondevelopmentandretentiondecisionsinthreelargecanadianuniversitylibraries