The diffusion and influence of theoretical models of information behaviour : the case of Savolainen's ELIS model

PurposeTo ascertain the diffusion and influence of Savolainen's ELIS model and its use as a theoretical and/or methodological basis for research.Design/methodology/approachA context citation analysis was made of the work where this researcher published his model. Analysis covered the year of publication, the type of work and the subject matter of the citing documents concerned. In-context citations were analysed for their frequency in each citing text, style, location and content cited.FindingsThe ELIS model received 18.5 cites/year. 20.2 per cent of them corresponded to papers published in journals in other areas, mainly computer science. The average of cites per paper was 1.8; 64.5 percen…