Publication analysis
About the publication
Title: IFLA Journal [International Federation of Library Associations]
ISSN: 0340-0352 (Print) and 1745-2651 (Online)
Website: www.ifla.org/publications/ifla-journal (1992-2002 archived at http://www.ifla.org/V/iflaj/index.htm)
Purpose, objective, or mission: “IFLA Journal is an international journal publishing peer reviewed articles on library and information services and the social, political and economic issues that impact access to information through libraries. The Journal publishes research, case studies and essays that reflect the broad spectrum of the profession internationally.”1
Target audience: Library professionals around the world, especially those interested in library services in developing areas2
Publisher: Sage Publications3
Peer reviewed? Yes4
Type: LIS scholarly5
Medium: Online open access6
Content: The journal publishes articles on “library and information services and the social, political and economic issues that impact access to information through libraries.”7
Frequency of publication: Quarterly8
About the publication’s submission guidelines
Location of submission guidelines: https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/journal/ifla-journal#submission-guidelines
Types of contributions accepted: “The Journal publishes research, case studies and essays that reflect the broad spectrum of the profession internationally.”9 Though the journal publishes primarily original research, case studies on successful and unsuccessful projects and opinion pieces on library issues are also accepted.10 Articles should be between 3,000 to 8,000 words and accompanied by an abstract of no approximately 150 words. Authors whose primary language is not English should not be inhibited from submitting, as correction of minor errors and revision to standard English is considered standard editorial procedure.11
Submission and review process: IFLA requests submissions be sent as an email attachment, preferably as MS Word document. Expect approximately six weeks for the editorial committee to review submissions.12
Editorial tone: The tone of IFLA Journal is academic,13 but attempts to use unbiased language to make examples and practices applicable to library staff from around the world.14
Style guide used: References should be written in Harvard style.15
Conclusion: Evaluation of publication’s potential for LIS authors
For authors wishing to convey current and upcoming library innovations to developing areas, this journal is well regarded. It presents issues that smaller libraries and countries are dealing with as compared to the United States and Europe. Well-researched articles about procedures that have been tested at large libraries are highly valuable to librarians in developing countries. Some services may be beyond the technology of small countries, but writers should strive to keep the theories simple and useful.
Audience analysis
About the publication’s readers
Publication circulation: No specific numbers provided, but the journal is promoted to IFLA members16 and is available online.17
Audience location and language or cultural considerations: The journal is published in the United Kingdom,18 but the editorial board is international.19 Although most articles are published in English, some are published in other major languages such as Spanish, Russian, French, or German, when appropriate.20 Potential authors should take care to describe a specific system or local procedure, because the reader may be familiar with LIS terms in general but not with local practice.
Reader characteristics: While most librarians in the United States are women, the author should keep in mind that some restrictions are put on women in other countries so this demographic may be different among IFLA Journal readers. Librarians in most countries have college or graduate degrees, and are considered professionals. Though many readers of IFLA Journal work in libraries in developing countries, there is a genuine desire to learn about practices in major libraries throughout the world. In terms of education and professional skills, there may be emphasis placed on less technical aspects of librarianship.21
Knowledge of LIS subject matter: It may be assumed that the readers of this journal understand LIS jargon and current issues. Despite the scholarly tone of the journal, library services are still developing in some countries, so discussion of current-generation digital technologies and digital information may have to be explained or simplified.22
Conclusion: Analysis of reader characteristics and their potential impact on authors
Potential authors for IFLA Journal should be prepared to do academic research into their topics, and to thoroughly study the region or country they are addressing. Readers might range from a librarian or teacher in a one-room school in Kenya with limited resources to a LIS professor in Germany with digital access.23 An author from the United States should be careful not to “preach” about advanced services which may not be relevant to developing countries. The members of IFLA are likely to be curious about policies and practices that are successful in other regions, especially when discussed in factual, not proscriptive way.
Last updated: May 13, 2017