Comparative Investigation of Self-Citation Patterns in Information Science: A Pilot Study

This study is an exploratory investigation into the citation patterns in the field of Information Retrieval. Preliminary findings are based on a comparison of self-citation rates in JASIST, a leading journal in Information Retrieval, and a journal in an unrelated field. Although the sample size is small, the preliminary results suggest that there may be irregularities in the self-citation rates among Information Retrieval authors. The exploratory study found that self-citation rate in JASIST is nearly three times that of a journal in an unrelated field. Further study with a more robust sample is warranted to confirm the findings herein and to shed light on the motivations for self-citations.ye