A longitudinal study on knowledge organization publications: using hierarchical clustering and multidimensional scaling

Purpose The purpose of this study was a longitudinal study on knowledge organization (KO) realm structure and cluster concepts and emerging KO events based on co-occurrence analysis. Design/methodology/approach This longitudinal study uses the co-occurrence analysis. This research population includes keywords of articles indexed in the Web of Science Core Collection 1975–1999 and 2000–2018. Hierarchical clustering, multidimensional scaling and co-occurrence analysis were used to conduct the present research. SPSS, UCINET, VOSviewer and NetDraw were used to analyze and visualize data. Findings The “Information Technology” in 1975–1999 and the “Information Literacy” in 2000–2018, with the highest frequency, were identified as the most widely used keywords of KO in the world. In the first period, the cluster “Knowledge Management” had the highest centrality, the cluster “Strategic Planning” had the highest density in 2000–2018 and the cluster “Information Retrieval” had the highest centrality and density. The two-dimensional map of KO’s thematic and clustering of KO topics by cluster analysis method indicates that in the periods examined in this study, thematic clusters had much overlap in terms of concept and content. Originality/value The present article uses a longitudinal study to examine the KO’s publications in the past half-century. This paper also uses hierarchical clustering and multidimensional scaling methods. Studying the concepts and thematic trends in KO can impact organizing information as the core of libraries, museums and archives. Also, it can scheme information organizing and promote knowledge management. Because the results obtained from this article can help KO policymakers determine and design the roadmap, research planning, and micro and macro budgeting processes.