Abstract |
Research fronts represent areas of cutting-edge study in specific fields. They not only provide insights into current focuses and future trends, but also serve as important indicators for government policymaking with regard to technology. Since the concept concerning research fronts has not been quite common in library and information science in Taiwan, this study intends to briefly introduce this concept, hoping that people can have more in-depth understanding about research fronts. This paper is divided into five parts. The first part is research fronts’ meaning and its related concept. The second explores the basis to detect the research fronts. The third concerns research fronts’ related indicator. The fourth studies the empirical research related to the research fronts, with focus on using the research methods of bibliographic coupling, co-citation, and various citation analysis. Finally, this study proposes some recommendations for the future research.
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