A bibliometric analysis of emergency management using information systems (2000-2016)
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/OIR-05-2017-0142 |
| Published date | 14 August 2017 |
| Pages | 454-470 |
| Date | 14 August 2017 |
| Author | Helen S. Du,Xiaobo Ke,Samuel K.W. Chu,Lok Ting Chan |
| Subject Matter | Library & information science,Information behaviour & retrieval,Collection building & management,Bibliometrics,Databases,Information & knowledge management,Information & communications technology,Internet,Records management & preservation,Document management |
A bibliometric analysis of
emergency management using
information systems (2000-2016)
Helen S. Du and Xiaobo Ke
School of Management, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou, China and
Institute of Big Data Strategic Research, Guangdong University of Technology,
Guangzhou, China
Samuel K.W. Chu
Department of Education, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong, and
Lok Ting Chan
Faculty of Arts, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong
Abstract
Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to present a statistical analysis of research into emergency
management (EM) using information systems (IS) for the period 2000-2016.
Design/methodology/approach –In this study, research trends in the area of EM using IS are analysed using
various parameters, including trends on publications and citations, disciplinary distribution, journals, research
institutions and regional cooperation. Througha keyword co-occurrence analysis, this study identifies the evolution
of the main keywords in this area, and examines the changes and developments in the main focus of scholars in this
period. The study also explores the main research orientations in the field by analysing and integrating the results
of two cluster analyses conducted from keyword- and reference-based perspectives, respectively.
Findings –The area of EM using IS has received increased attention and interest by researchers and
practitioners.It is suggested that more cooperation among researchinstitutions is requiredto help facilitate the
furtherdevelopment of the area. Sixmain research orientationsare identified: namelyWeb 2.0-enabled research,
geographic information technology (IT), IT-based research, the contextual use of IT, crisis collaboration
research and mass mediacommunication research, since the researcharea first became popular in 2006.
Originality/value –This study is the first to comprehensively map the landscape of EM by conducting a
bibliometric analysis of the research using IS. The authors’findings can help academics and emergency
managers gain a comprehensive understanding of the research area, and guide scholars towards producing
more effective findings.
Keywords Information systems, Bibliometrics, Emergency management, Science mapping
Paper type Literature review
Introduction
The recent increase in incidents and hazards (such as the 9/11 terrorist attack, the 2008
Wenchuan earthquake and the 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident) has caused severe social
destruction and a huge loss of human life. This highlights the importanceof addressing how our
abilities to handle natural and manmade emergency situations can be improved. The field of
emergency management (EM) has thus emerged to study how to cope with various crises and
disasters, reduce and minimise the loss of lives and property, help governments and victims to
recover from tragedies and reconstruct society to restart their lives after accidents (Waugh and
Streib, 2006). Emergencies by nature require organisations and emergency managers to
communicate and collaborate effectively. Hence, EM can refer to the capabilities of a person, a
communityoraninstitutionindealingwithurgentsituationsinvariousEMphases(Dusseet al.,
2016; Waugh and Streib, 2006). Under chaotic and unknown conditions, emergency managers
must make informed and immediate decisions based on current information, and to engage
citizens and local communities in joint efforts to prepare, respond and recover from emergency
Online Information Review
Vol. 41 No. 4, 2017
pp. 454-470
© Emerald PublishingLimited
1468-4527
DOI 10.1108/OIR-05-2017-0142
Received 9 May 2017
Revised 31 May 2017
Accepted 30 June 2017
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/1468-4527.htm
This paper was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 71572050).
454
OIR
41,4
situations (Comfort et al., 2004; Fleischer, 2013; Manoj and Baker, 2007). In view of this, broad
and sufficient information sources relating to the incident along with various information
systems (IS) are crucial for emergency managers to accomplish their tasks and to achieve
effective collaboration in emergency situations (Dusse et al., 2016; Yang et al., 2012).
Effective and efficient use of IS and related information technology (IT) is essential when
dealing with unexpected emergency events (Chen et al., 2013; Van de Walle and Turoff, 2008).
Hence, many emergency departments have adopted various advanced IS to improve their
capabilities in EM (Engelbrecht et al., 2011; Sutcliffe et al., 2006). Correspondingly, EM using IS
has received increasing attention from scholars, and the number of research papers published
demonstrates this rapid development, as the potential for IS to enhance EM is realised
(e.g. Hu and Kapucu, 2014; Han et al., 2015; Chou et al., 2014; Ling et al., 2015; Lu and Yang, 2011).
Research into EM using IS is thus an expanding area, and systematic and comprehensive
information is required for its further development and to help scholars understand the current
status of the field (Peng et al., 2013). Dusse et al. (2016) mapped the landscape of virtualised IT
for EM, providing insights for researchers and developers in EM systems. Leidig and Teeuw
(2015) examined the characteristics of geographic information software used in a disaster
context, providing insights for further studies. Garg and Kumar (2016) reviewed research on the
role of social media in spreading information and attracting attention during emergency
situations. However, these studies focussed solely on one specific IT, and comprehensive
research mapping the landscape of the research area is still lacking.
To bridge this gap, we conducta bibliometric analysis of EM using IS to gainan extensive
and comprehensiveunderstanding of the area,strengthen the contributions ofspecific studies
and enable scholarsto extend the research (Akhavan et al.,2016). This study can therefore be
of particular valueto scholars and practitioners in the EM and IS fields.The specific research
questions that examine the intellectual mapping of the area are as follows:
RQ1. What is the general state of the current research of EM using IS?
RQ2. What are the popular keywords, and how have they evolved over time (2000-2016)
in the research of EM using IS?
RQ3. What are the main research orientations in the research of EM using IS?
In summary, by analysing a bibliometric data set of 743 articles retrieved from the Web of
Science (WoS) (apps.webofknowledge.com), this study offers a comprehensive overview of
the current research landscape, discusses the main keywords and their evolution over time
and provides six main research orientations as outcomes.
Research methods
Bibliometric analysis refers to the combining of different frameworks, tools and methods to
study and analyse the literature (Ponce and Lozano, 2010) and provides statistical analysis that
summarises research publications. According to various descriptors and indicators, it allows
researchers to generate quantitative information from large amounts of historical data
(Gireesh and Gowda, 2008). Data and patterns within the bibliographic records of a network of
scientific documents are mapped out with statistical and mathematical tools (Santos and
Kobashi, 2009; De Bellis, 2009). The analysis in this study refers to the workflow proposed by
Cobo et al. (2011a) and Heradio et al. (2016),which includes data retrieval, filteringand analysis.
Data retrieval
Relevant articles for this research were gathered from the WoS platform, as this is the most
authoritative of the scholarship databases, offering powerful features and covering a wide
variety of subjects in various disciplines (Meho and Yang, 2007). The core collection
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Bibliometric
analysis
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