Background
and Aim: Scientific journals are the most
major tools in disseminating research findings. With the increasing number and price of scientific journals, libraries
need to select journals. Citation analysis is a practical method in identifying
the best titles to be subscribed. This study was to identify core journals in
the field of dentistry using citation analysis.
Materials
and Methods: Two hundered and seventy six
documents including dentistry theses (241 titles) and faculty papers (35
titles) indexed in Science Citation Index (SCIE) were selected and their
references were extracted and evaluated using citation analysis methods. The
distribution frequency of journals confirmed the Bradford’s Law of Scattering
representing core dentistry journals.
Results:
Eleven thousand
twenty three references were totally extracted. Average reference per theses
and papers was 39/25 and 44/74, respectively. English journals and books were
the most frequent referred documents having 95% of total references approximately.
The most updated references were in English dated during 2001-2005 and
2006-2010. Using the Bradford’s Law, five journals were introduced as core
dentistry journals.
Conclusion: Selecting and subscribing core
journals leads into cost-effectiveness in libraries and plays an important role
in meeting user’s needs. While having
many challenges in accessing scientific resources, core journals selection and
subscription is an intelligent action
resulting in effective use of financial resources.
