Harwood, N (Harwood, Nigel) Citers' use of citees' names: Findings from a qualitative interview-based study JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR INFORMATION SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, 59 (6): 1007-1011 APR 2008

[Eugene Garfield]

E-mail Address: nharwood at essex.ac.uk

Author(s): Harwood, N (Harwood, Nigel)
 
Title: Citers' use of citees' names: Findings from a qualitative interview-
based study 

Source: JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR INFORMATION SCIENCE AND 
TECHNOLOGY, 59 (6): 1007-1011 APR 2008 

Language: English 

Document Type: Article 

Keywords Plus: CITATION 

Abstract: This article focuses on why academic writers in computer science 
and sociology sometimes supply the reader with more details of citees' 
names than they need to: Why do citers name citees when using the Footnote 
System, and why do citers include citees' first names when using the 
Harvard System? These questions were investigated as part of a 
qualitative, interview-based study of citation behavior. A number of 
motivations were advanced by informants, including the desire for 
stylistic elegance, for informality, to make the text accessible to less 
informed readers, to mark a close relationship between citer and citee, to 
alert readers to a little known citee, and to acknowledge seminal sources. 
In a number of cases, however, informants were unable to offer any 
motivation, reporting that their behavior had been unconscious or 
accidental. The study underlines B. Cronin's (1984, 2005) argument that 
citation is a private and subjective process, and shows that interview-
based studies afford the analyst insights into writers' citing practices 
which alternative methodologies cannot. 

Addresses: Univ Essex, Dept Language & Linguist, Colchester CO4 3SQ, 
Essex, England 

Reprint Address: Harwood, N, Univ Essex, Dept Language & Linguist, 
Wivenhoe Pk, Colchester CO4 3SQ, Essex, England.
 
E-mail Address: nharwood at essex.ac.uk 

Cited Reference Count: 19 

Times Cited: 0 

Publisher: JOHN WILEY & SONS INC 

Publisher Address: 111 RIVER ST, HOBOKEN, NJ 07030 USA 

ISSN: 1532-2882 

29-char Source Abbrev.: J AM SOC INF SCI TECHNOL 

ISO Source Abbrev.: J. Am. Soc. Inf. Sci. Technol. 

Source Item Page Count: 5 

Subject Category: Computer Science, Information Systems; Information 
Science & Library Science 

ISI Document Delivery No.: 279OF 

BARZUN J
WRITING EDITING PUBL : 103 1986 

BORGMAN CL
Scholarly communication and bibliometrics 
ANNUAL REVIEW OF INFORMATION SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY 36 : 3 2002 

BROOKS TA
PRIVATE ACTS AND PUBLIC OBJECTS - AN INVESTIGATION OF CITER MOTIVATIONS 
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR INFORMATION SCIENCE 36 : 223 1985 

CHARLES M
Phraseological patterns in reporting clauses used in citation: A corpus-
based study of theses in two disciplines 
ENGLISH FOR SPECIFIC PURPOSES 25 : 310 DOI 10.1016/j.esp.2005.05.003 2006 

COHEN L
RES METHODS ED : 2000 

CRONIN B
CITATION PROCESS ROL : 1984 

CRONIN B
HAND SCI ACAD WRITIN : 2005 

GILBERT GN
REFERENCING AS PERSUASION
SOCIAL STUDIES OF SCIENCE 7 : 113 1977 

HARWOOD N
IN PRESS SCIENTOMETR : 

HARWOOD N
Political scientists on the functions of personal pronouns in their 
writing: An interview-based study of 'I' and 'we' 
TEXT & TALK 27 : 27 DOI 10.1515/TEXT.2007.002 2007 

HARWOOD N
UNPUB INTERVIEW BASE : 2007 

HARWOOD N
(In)appropriate personal pronoun use in political science - A qualitative 
study and a proposed heuristic for future research 
WRITTEN COMMUNICATION 23 : 424 DOI 10.1177/0741088306293921 2006 

HOLSTEIN JA
ACTIVE INTERVIEW : 1995 

HYLAND K
Academic attribution: Citation and the construction of disciplinary 
knowledge 
APPLIED LINGUISTICS 20 : 341 1999 

ODELL L
RES WRITING : 221 1983 

SHADISH WR
AUTHOR JUDGMENTS ABOUT WORKS THEY CITE - 3 STUDIES FROM PSYCHOLOGY 
JOURNALS 
SOCIAL STUDIES OF SCIENCE 25 : 477 1995 

SWALES JM
GENRE ANAL ENGLISH A : 1990 

THOMPSON P
J ENGLISH ACAD PURPO 4 : 307 2005 

WHITE MD
A qualitative study of citing behavior: Contributions, criteria, and 
metalevel documentation concerns 
LIBRARY QUARTERLY 67 : 122 1997