Open access (OA) means the removal of barriers from accessing scholarly research via the internet. However, there are some controversial points about the value of OA to ETDs. For example, we don't know whether OA to ETDs has the potential to accelerate recognition and dissemination. In particular, OA papers make published papers immediately freely available on the web site, but it is difficult to estimate whether this paper is cited because of OA. This paper will try to figure out the citation life cycle of OA ETDs and to compare the OA ETDs' citation life cycle between science and social research field.

National Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations in Taiwan (http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/) provides free on-line services to general public on theses and dissertation of academic degrees. This paper conducts a study on Taiwan ETDs through this system and is aimed at exploring the following questions:

• The development of OA ETDs in recent years in Taiwan
• The Immediacy Index of OA and Non-OA ETDs in Taiwan
• The citation life cycle of OA ETDs and Non-OA ETDs in Taiwan
• The citation life cycle of OA ETDs between science and social research field

Methods

The research data of this paper is based on bibliometric and citation analysis of OA and Non-OA ETDs published from 2006 to 2015. Our measurement of quantitative statistics is focused on citation count. The research setting is in the National Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations in Taiwan (http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/).

Anticipated outcome

• To identify the development of OA ETDs in recent years in Taiwan.
• The Immediacy Index is the average number of times an article is cited in the year it is published. We would like to compare the Immediacy Index of OA and Non-OA ETDs in Taiwan.
• To figure out and compare the citation life cycle of OA ETDs and Non-OA ETDs in Taiwan
• To compare the citation life cycle of OA ETDs between science and social research field
• The value of our research is that we try to demonstrate what the impact of OA could bring to ETDs.

On the authors:

Yi Shuan Huang is a PhD. Student in the Library and information science at the National Taiwan University and had worked as a librarian at Academia Sinica, where she was in charge of digital system development and management. 

Lee Chen Chen is an Associate Professor of Humanities and Science Education Center and Bao-Tzuoh Huang is a Professor of Applied Economics and management at Nation Ilan University.