Defining Key Concepts in Information Science Research: The Adoption of the Definition of Feature

Abstract

This paper analyzes the definitions of the concept feature in the information science literature. The concept of feature has been defined in various ways over the last three decades. To be able to obtain a common understanding of a feature in information science, it is important to conduct a thorough analysis of the definitions that can be used in research and in practice. The main contribution of this paper is a categorization of the existing definitions, which highlights similarities and differences. By means of a Concept Definition Review process, we gather a total of 23 definitions from Google Scholar using five search queries complemented by backward snowballing. Our analysis organizes the definitions according to their level of abstraction and the taken viewpoint. Within the range of analyzed definitions, we do not wish to argue that one is better or worse than another. We provide, however, guidelines for the selection of a definition for a given goal. These guidelines include: popularity based on the citations count, the research field, the abstraction level, and the viewpoint.