An economic analysis of the demand for scientific journals

Sanford Berg

Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 1972, vol. 23, issue 1, 23-29

Abstract: The purpose of this study is to demonstrate that economic analysis can be useful in modeling the scientific journal market. Of particular interest is the efficiency of pricing and page policies. For example, would the community be better off if more copies or pages are produced, or similarly, should the journal be produced at all? In order to calculate losses due to the inefficiencies, demand parameters are statistically estimated and used in a discussion of market efficiency. Although more refinement is needed for both the specification of the demand functions and proxies for variables, the techniques used permit the establishment of lower bounds on the net benefits stemming from journals (assuming that there are additional social benefits). The responses of individuals and institutions to changes in pages are shown to differ. Thus, the analytic framework facilitates the evaluation of current trends toward the selective dissemination of information to individuals.

Date: 1972
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:bla:jamest:v:23:y:1972:i:1:p:23-29

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