PACKAGING INFORMATION FOR PEER REVIEW : NEW CO-WORD ANALYSIS TECHNIQUES

This article reports on a study carried out with the Institute for Industrial Research and Standards (IIRS) in Dublin, Ireland. The goal of the study was to use co-word analysis techniques to develop aids for scientific and technological decision-making. Co-word analysis techniques are designed to monitor the flow of scientific and technical information entering into the world's largest data bases. They constitute a sounding device that can be systematically used to analyse publications and produce subject area profiles for a given research area. The work undertaken with the IIRS was aimed at defining the technical specifications of these profiles for use in fixing scientific and technological priorities. The results presented concern a study of patent applications in the field of industrial ceramics. This research was financed by a European Commission grant.