Analysis of Doctoral Thesis Citation Patterns: A Case Study of the Sam Jonah Library, Ghana

Abstract

The use of bibliometrics as an essential tool for collection development is well acknowledged by many researchers because it employs quantitative methods when seeking to measure and assess the output of scientific publications. A quantitative evaluation of publications and citations can be beneficial for effective collection development. The purpose of this study was to conduct an in-depth analysis of the citation patterns in the PhD dissertations submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Cape Coast between 2005 and 2016. A total of 35 PhD theses were submitted within this time period and were obtained from the Africana section of the Sam Jonah Library. The reference section from each thesis was photocopied and manually examined. Overall, 6,458 citations were analysed. Journal articles were the most cited publications, followed by books, reports and web resources. The findings also showed that a majority (73.3%) of the journals cited by PhD students could be accessed through Sam Jonah Library’s subscribed online databases. The study concludes that although the use of these databases is high among PhD students, there is a need for greater awareness and training in the use of these databases.