Scientometrics
Volume/Issue:
Volume 90: Issue 3
The organization of scientific knowledge: the structural characteristics of keyword networks
Authors:
Sangyoon Yi Department of Marketing and Management, University of Southern Denmark, Campusvej 55, 5230 Odense M, Denmark yi.sangyoon@gmail.com

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and
Jinho Choi School of Business, Sejong University, 98 Gunja-dong, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul 143-747, Korea

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Pages:
1015–1026
Online Publication Date:
24 Nov 2011
Publication Date:
01 Mar 2012
Article Category:
Research Article
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-011-0560-1
Keywords:
Organization of knowledge; Keyword network; Small-world network; Power-law distribution; Hierarchy
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Abstract

The understanding of scientific knowledge itself may promote further advances in science and research on the organization of knowledge may be an initiative to this effort. This stream of research, however, has been mainly driven by the analysis of citation networks. This study uses, as an alternative knowledge element, information on the keywords of papers published in business research and examines how they are associated with each other to constitute a body of scientific knowledge. The results show that, unlike most citation networks, keyword networks are not small-word networks but, rather, locally clustered scale-free networks with a hierarchic structure. These structural patterns are robust against the scope of scientific fields involved. In addition, this paper discusses the origins and implications of the identified structural characteristics of keyword networks.

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Cover Scientometrics
Scientometrics
Print ISSN:
0138-9130
Online ISSN:
1588-2861

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Scientometrics
Language English
Size B5
Year of
Foundation		 1978
Volumes
per Year		 1
Issues
per Year		 12
Founder Akadémiai Kiadó
Founder's
Address		 H-1117 Budapest, Hungary 1516 Budapest, PO Box 245.
Publisher Akadémiai Kiadó
Springer Nature Switzerland AG
Publisher's
Address		 H-1117 Budapest, Hungary 1516 Budapest, PO Box 245.
CH-6330 Cham, Switzerland Gewerbestrasse 11.
Responsible
Publisher		 Chief Executive Officer, Akadémiai Kiadó
ISSN 0138-9130 (Print)
ISSN 1588-2861 (Online)

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