Mapping global research on expert systems

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of the study is to conduct a scientometric analysis of expert systems literature indexed in the Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE) of the Web of Science database for a period of ten years (2011-2020). Design/Methodology: The study collected data from the Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE) of the Web of Science (WoS) database from 2011-2020. The synonymous, broader and related terms of Expert Systems were selected from the Dewey Decimal Classification Scheme and Sears List of Subject Headings. A string of these terms was employed to retrieve data in the advanced search mode of the database. The harvested data was analyzed using scientometric techniques. Besides, the Microsoft Excel and VOSviewer software were used to represent and map the research productivity on expert systems. Findings: The results indicated inconsistent fluctuations in the annual number of publications from 396 in 2011 to 463 in 2020 and a decline in the number of citations from 8344 in 2011 to 520 in 2020. Further, it is divulged that China, the USA, and Spain are the three top countries contributing to expert system research published 16.36%, 14.96%, and 8.95% of literature respectively. While analysing institutional performance, the results revealed that most of the institutions are from China (6), followed by Iran (4), Spain (3) and India (2) /Malaysia (2) respectively. Further, by clustering the network map for keywords co-occurrence, it was found that expert systems, fuzzy logic, knowledge-based systems, machine learning, and artificial intelligence are the most common keywords and hence the hot topics of research in the area. Practical implications: The findings of the study may help researchers, information scientists and technologists to identify the research progress in the field of expert systems. Besides, it will help librarians to know the hot topics of research, prominent publications and prolific authors in expert systems. This will be helpful in the collection development of expert systems and artificial intelligence in libraries and information centres. Research limitations: The database studied for the work does not represent the total literary output available on expert systems as data in other databases like Scopus, Compendex, IEEE Xplore, arXiv, etc. haven’t been harvested. Originality/Value: The study is based on current literature on expert systems and will highlight new research trends in the said field.