Co-Citation of Co-Citations: Structuring the Subset of Scientific Documents Reflecting Modern Bibliometric Methods

A cluster analysis of the 100 most cited scientific papers on bibliometrics (scientometrics and informetrics) is carried out. The main bibliometric methods are identified, which make it possible to distinguish between the subject areas of their application. Co-citation of scientific papers and co-citation of their authors are still common. The analysis of scientific vocabulary (co-occurrence of words) complements the noted techniques. More often, in recent years, a set of bibliometric methods is used as a result of the application of modern computer programs to the statistical processing of bibliographic data. The fields of development and the application of bibliometrics related to separate clusters include nonmatching groups of various research topics in combination with different bibliometric methods. The use of bibliometrics in soft science (such as the social sciences) research is widespread, and in recent years it has not come at an inferior rate to its more traditional use in the natural sciences. The statistics on documents, references, and other indicators, to some extent, form the soft sciences themselves and delineate the areas of relevant studies.