Publication analysis
About the publication
Title: Journal of Documentation
ISSN: 0022-0418 (Print) and 1758-7379 (Online)1
Purpose, objective, or mission: “The Journal of Documentation (JDoc) is one of the longest established academic journals in library and information science, providing a unique focus on theories, concepts, models, frameworks and philosophies.”2
Website: http://www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com/products/journals/journals.htm?id=jd
Target audience: Primary readership includes educators, scholars, researchers, and advanced scholars in information science fields.3
Publisher: Emerald Publishing Limited4
Peer reviewed? Yes5
Type: LIS scholarly,6 as indicated by the target audience, a “rigorous peer review process,” and the focal areas of the content: “theories, concepts, models, frameworks, and philosophies in the information sciences.”7 Many of the articles are highly research oriented and follow a typical format, including sections for literature review, methods, results, discussion, and conclusion. Journal of Documentation is an ISI ranked journal.8
Medium: Print and online9
Content: The journal publishes research papers, critical and scholarly reviews, and short speculative articles.10
Frequency of publication: Bi-monthly11
About the publication’s submission guidelines
Location of submission guidelines: http://www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com/products/journals/author_guidelines.htm?id=jd
Types of contributions accepted: Research papers, critical and scholarly reviews, short speculative articles12
Submission and review process: Article length is restricted to 4,000 – 10,000 words. Title must be 16 words or less, and the submission must include a structured abstract following their “How to . . . Write an Abstract” guide. All articles are subject to a double blind peer review.13
Editorial tone: Scholarly14
Style guide used: Harvard style references15
Conclusion: Evaluation of publication’s potential for LIS authors
The Journal of Documentation is a highly regarded journal of research, review, and evidence-based practice. It claims a rigorous peer-review process and would be a credit to an LIS writer seeking to publish for tenure and career advancement. Potential works may take the forms of research reports, scholarly reviews, articles on research methodology, historical articles, and “reviews of the evidence base for professional practice.”16
Audience analysis
About the publication’s readers
Publication circulation: Circulation not listed.
Audience location and language or cultural: Journal of Documentation is published in English in the United Kingdom.17 A good amount of professional jargon will be familiar to most readers, depending more upon their professional discipline than upon their native tongue.
Reader characteristics: Given the content of the journal, it is likely that its readers work in a variety of library settings. This readership expects thoughtful, well-articulated conceptual work alongside evidence-driven research and practical approaches to problem-solving.18
Knowledge of LIS subject matter: Indications are that LIS subject matter knowledge among this readership is very high, and often specific to a particular area of practice or research. Readers may be experts in some other domain but interested in its relationship to LIS disciplines and have a high degree of comfort dealing with that material.19
Conclusion: Analysis of reader characteristics and their potential impact on authors
These readers will be knowledgeable about most LIS concepts and experts in specific areas. They will be critical readers and will want thoughtfulness in presentation along with evidence and sound reasoning in discussions and conclusions.
Last updated: May 15, 2017
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