JASIS and library and information science journal rankings: A review and analysis of the last half-century

The concept of journal ranking is explained along with the theoretical and practical significance of ranking journals. An eight-variable model for classifying journal-ranking studies is outlined. A review of LIS journal rankings of the last half-century identifies 178 published between 1952 and 1997. The majority of these used some type of citation measure, followed by rankings based on production, subjective judgment, and reading, respectively. Analysis of JASIS's, and its immediate predecessor, American Documentation's, position in these rankings, found that they were logically excluded from 18. In the remaining 160, they ranked first in 20 and in the top five in 88. It is noted that JASIS also appears on many lists of “core” LIS journals, and that it has been the object of investigation in numerous studies.