Open Access Library and Information Science (LIS) Journals Indexed in the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ): An Analytical Study

Abstract

The study examines the trends and current status of Open Access (OA) research journals listed in the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) in the field of Library and Information Science (LIS) from 2003 to mid-2026. It investigates the profile of OA LIS journals, publishing trends, publishing practices, open access policies, licensing practices and journal scope through thematic analysis of keywords. The study identified 231 OA LIS journals published in 32 languages by 200 publishers across 55 countries globally. The study adopted a descriptive research approach and data were collected from the DOAJ and verified through the official journal websites where required. The collected data were compiled, organised, tabulated and analysed using Microsoft Excel. The findings provide insights into the growth of LIS journals, geographical distribution, publishers, language profile, publication mode, peer-review practices, article processing charges (APCs), copyright ownership, Creative Commons licensing, self-archiving policies, digital preservation mechanisms, Digital Object Identifier (DOI) availability and other publishing infrastructure adopted by OA LIS journals. Additionally, thematic analysis of journal keywords identifies the major subject areas and research focus of the OA LIS journals. The analysis provides an extensive overview of the present situation of DOAJ-indexed OA LIS journals and contributes to a better understanding of their publishing practices, policy adoption and technological infrastructure, thus offering useful evidence for researchers, librarians, publishers and policymakers.