Data Science and Professional Training in Library Science: A Textual Analysis and Curriculum Review in Ibero-America

Abstract

Current digital environments and the increasing information explosion have transformed the work of professionals, leading to the need for significant changes in higher education to develop competencies in the era of big data. The literature reveals how the traditional activities of library science professionals have evolved to face new challenges and emerging techniques and trends such as data science. This article presents a theoretical and methodological approach to the impending ontological impact on the discipline and its implications during the educational preparation in the field. The objective is to know the inclusion of data science courses in library science programs based on a review of undergraduate curricula from Ibero-American countries. Also, to identify research trends on big data management and related librarian profiles, as examined in scientific publications retrieved from the Web of Science database between 2015-2022, focusing on terms such as “data science,” “big data,” “data scientist,” “databrarian,” “databrarianship,” and “data librarian” within the fields of library and information science, followed by a content analysis using co-occurrence techniques and principal component analysis.