Purpose The importance of scientific publications has enhanced the research activities at all aggregate levels. The purpose of this paper is to conduct an in-depth review of studies examined the factors that influence the publication productivity among researchers, institutions and countries. Design/methodology/approach This paper uses a systematic literature review approach that is based on relevant literature retrieved from two authentic and well-known databases named Web of Science and SCOPUS. Kitchenham protocol of systematic review was applied, and relevant studies were searched by selected keywords search. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were used to select high quality studies. A rigorous study selection procedure was designed. Findings Findings reveal that several factors play a significant role in the publication productivity growth. All of the identified factors were grouped into three categories. Most of the factors belong to personal category while two top dominant factors, funding and collaboration fall into situational category. Other most influential factors, time, academic rank and academic qualification are personal. Findings highlight that publication output at individual level is strongly influenced by personal factors while few environmental and situational factors also affect the number of publications. Publication productivity of institutes and countries is affected by environmental and situational factors. Originality/value This paper contributes by providing a detailed review to explore the influencing factors of scholarly publication of researchers, institutions and countries. This study will be supportive for researchers and policymakers for making strategies to stimulate the research publication practices at researchers, institutions and national level.

No abstract

Purpose This study aims to explore the development of cataloguing standards used to organize information sources in libraries and information centers. Its key objective is to assess the challenges faced by information professionals to apply new bibliographic standards in linked data (LD) environment. Design/methodology/approach This study is based on extensive review of scholarly literature. Several databases were searched to identify relevant literature. Keywords such as RDA, FRBR, MARC and BIBFRAME were used along with LD to conduct search. Related literature was consulted and reviewed accordingly. Findings Findings reveal that cataloguing standards are subsequently evolving with the advancement of information technology. Libraries have been publishing their legacy metadata into LD. Many tools are developed for mapping the library metadata into LD applications. The Library of Congress has developed BIBFRAME model to fulfill the requirements of new bibliographic standards by using LD technology. It is found that extensive use of MARC standards, complexity of LD technologies, non-availability of vocabulary and inconsistency of terminologies are the major challenges for libraries to adopt LD applications. Practical implications This review will be a valuable addition for LIS scholars to understand the challenges of LD application. This study would be significant for the library community and policymakers who are interested in implementing LD technologies. Originality/value This paper is a one of its kind, where the development in cataloguing models and standards is explained along with the challenges to adopt LD applications for legacy data.

No abstract

Purpose This study aims to map the “Desktop Research” (DR) output in Pakistan, as part of the growing field of research globally. It also ascertains the productive institutions and prolific authors along with their collaboration patterns. Design/methodology/approach Bibliometric techniques were used to quantitatively analyze the DR published in Pakistan. The publications from 1981 to 2021 were retrieved from Scopus. A total of 1,802 publications were retrieved and used for analysis. Findings Results indicated an unpredictable increase in DR output from approximately 100 to 400 records during the past five years. The year 2020 was most productive in DR research showing the excess use of secondary data by researchers in COVID-19. The focus of researchers towards DR was consistently rising. Medical journals were found to publish DR extensively. Majority of the publications were contributed by collaborative work and researchers of the USA were found as the most collaborative with Pakistani authors. Publications of single category journals, open access journals and international collaboration get more citations. Research limitations/implications The results of the analysis rely only on a single database, Scopus, for retrieving the publication data. Practical implications The study has practical implications for the policymakers and higher education development organizations to introduce the DR as a course in academic schools. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to review DR in the context of Pakistan through bibliometric analysis. This comprehensive overview provides a better understanding of the development of the field and possible practice implications.

No abstract

Purpose Assessing the research performance of researchers offers inducement toward excellence in research. This study aims to analyze the research productivity of the most prolific authors of Pakistan considering their trends toward publications, citations and collaboration. Design/methodology/approach Top 100 authors from the top 10 Pakistani universities from Web of Science over the 10 years with the rigorous data cleaning process were selected. Scientometric analysis techniques were carried out to evaluate the research profile of these authors. Findings The findings revealed that majority of the productive authors were male working in the position of Professor in the physical sciences area. The publications and citations gradually increase with time. They preferred to collaborate for their publications, while first authorship publications were found less in number. Moreover, the propensity to collaborate at the international level increases double-fold from the first five years to the next five years period. In addition, the position of the authors was explored among different performance metrics. The finding exhibits variation in the ranking of authors among them. The impact of numbers of authors, funding status, publication of articles, presence of collaboration and international collaboration on the dependent variable and citation count was insignificant. However, the publication of review papers has a significant impact on the citation counts. Practical implications Findings have significant implications for policymakers to make maximum opportunities for researchers to strengthen linkages for collaboration and increase the funding prospects. Originality/value Studies on this topic are scarce, and therefore, this study provides useful recommendations to researchers and institutes to improve research productivity.

No abstract