Research Productivity of Pakistani Female LIS Authors, 1977 to 2020: A Bibliometric Analysis

Abstract

Women LIS researchers in Pakistan have been publishing their research since 1977. This paper provides a bibliometric analysis of the 43 years (1977–2020) of their research. This study conducted a bibliometric analysis of the data collected from four data sources, the Web of Science Core Collection, Scopus, LISA, and LISTA, to include the maximum number of scholarly publications by women Pakistani LIS researchers working in Pakistan or abroad. The study findings highlighted an upward trend in publications since 1977. It appears to have gathered momentum after the year 2003. The University of the Punjab was the top-ranked organization in publishing research by woman LIS researchers, and the Department of Information Management at the University of the Punjab was identified as being the most prolific in this regard. The researchers had published over 40% of their research in national journals and the rest in international journals of good repute. Kanwal Ameen led the list of woman researchers with over 100 research publications to her name. The main areas of research were academic libraries, information literacy, and evolving trends in LIS. This is the first research paper highlighting the different dimensions of Pakistani LIS women researchers since they started publishing in 1977. The findings of the study would help future researchers to understand trends and various bibliometric aspects of publications originating from women LIS researchers in Pakistan. The findings could also help LIS researchers and funding organizations in promoting the profession.