The knowledge base and research front of information science 2006–2010: An author cocitation and bibliographic coupling analysis

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This study continues a long history of author cocitation analysis (and more recently, author bibliographic coupling analysis) of the intellectual structure of information science (IS) into the time period 2006 to 2010 (IS 2006–2010). We find that web technologies continue to drive developments, especially at the research front, although perhaps more indirectly than before. A broadening of perspectives is visible in IS 2006–2010, where network science becomes influential and where full‐text analysis methods complement traditional computer science influences. Research in the areas of the h‐index and mapping of science appears to have been highlights of IS 2006–2011. This study tests and confirms a forecast made previously by comparing knowledge‐base and research‐front findings for IS 2001–2005, which expected both the information retrieval (IR) systems and webometrics specialties to shrink in 2006 to 2010. A corresponding comparison of the knowledge base and research front of IS 2006–2010 suggests a continuing decline of the IR systems specialty in the near future, but also a considerable (re)growth of the webometrics area after a period of decline from 2001 to 2005 and 2006 to 2010, with the latter due perhaps in part to its contribution to an emerging web science.