Knowledge Sharing: A Bibliometric Analysis of Open-Access Knowledge Management Journals

Background - The multidisciplinary nature of Knowledge Management (KM) as a field of study has been the topic for investigation by previous researchers in traditional published journals and books, but not in the newly-emerged channel of open access journals (Ponzi and Koenig 2002, Wilson 2002, Serenko and Bontis 2004, Schlogl 2005, Timonen and Paloheimo 2008). Recently, the rapid growth of online open access journals across all fields of knowledge has also seen 4 electronic journals covering the field of KM. This growth of KM open access journals signals an important development of the discipline, that of knowledge sharing - one of the principles much advocated by interested parties in the field of KM. Aim of the study-This paper examines the various characteristics of KM literature that is shared on open access journals in order to identify certain growth pattern, subject components, authors and organizations contributing to the literature, and the extent of internationalization as well as collaboration among authors in the field of KM. Method-The study employs the bibliometric approach to analyze characteristics of articles published in the 4 KM open access journals from the first issue in 1998 up to Dec 2009. These journals are: Electronic Journal of Knowledge Management (EJKM), ActKM Online Journal of Knowledge Management, Journal of Knowledge Management Practice (JKMP), and Interdisciplinary Journal of Information, Knowledge and Management (IJIKM). Research Questions-The study seeks answers to the following research questions: To what extent is the multidisciplinary aspect of KM in terms of subject components? Who are the authors, countries and organizations contributing to the growth of open access KM literature? What is the extent of internationalization and author collaboration in KM as a field of research? Significance of findings-The findings should add a new perspective to our understanding of KM and widens our knowledge about the various subjects that make up the field of KM, about the many authors and organizations that have been active in the growth of KM literature in the open access. The fact that more articles are published via open access journals is also a reflection of the practice of knowledge sharing on the rise, the practice befitting the principle of KM.