Local Journals and Misleading Metrics: a Quantitative Analysis of Publication Activity of LIS Postgraduate Students in Ukraine

Abstract

The Ukrainian library and information science/studies (LIS) accumulated many problems that impede the quality training of library staff. In the process of reforming education and science in Ukraine, several initiatives have been implemented at the legislative level for improving quality of research and its presentation by Ukrainian scientists, including research in the library science. The paper presents the results of the study of the publishing activity of PhD students in the Ukrainian library science (2015-2017). The results indicate that Ukrainian LIS PhD students published their papers in the journals with a limited reader audience, mainly in Ukrainian journals and regional journals of the countries bordering with Ukraine. In the article, the reasons for it are discussed, and some recommendations for overcoming the undesirable practice are provided.