ANALYZING THE LIBRARY PERIODICAL LITERATURE - CONTENT AND AUTHORSHIP

Sixteen library periodicals were analyzed with respect to various characteristics of their authors, including sex, occupation, affiliation, and geographic location. Subject coverage was also examined, as well as research methodologies employed (if any), and page length of the article. A total of 1, 725 articles are written by2, 072 authors, of whom 961 (47.83%) are male and 1, 048 (52.17%) are female. In spite of the fact that librarianship is female-dominated, there are almost as many articles written by men as by women, although a slow closing of the gap between the proportions of male and female contributors, especially among special librarians, is apparent. No differences in the percentages of research-based studies or non-research based writing by either sex are evident. Academic librarians account for the major share of publication activity (over 61%), although on a percentage basis, library school faculty are the most productive. Full professors publish the most in library schools, closely followed by assistant professors. The Northeast and the Midwest claim the largest share of authors, not too surprising with the large share of academic institutions and library schools located in these two geographic regions. Research-based articles are on the increase, with survey methodology reported the most frequently. The subjects of automation, management, and cataloging are still the most popular. Individual journal titles are also analyzed with respect to the types of authors they publish.