Open Access Publication Trends at an R1 University: Using Data-Driven Strategies for Institutional Repository Promotion and Outreach

Introduction: This exploratory study examines five years of institutional publishing output of an R1 University, examining to what extent authors have utilized open access (OA) publishing opportunities. Literature Review: The literature review explores the concurrent benefits of (OA) publishing and institutional repositories, citing similar studies on bibliometrics and publishing trends and data-informed strategies for promoting library services relative to scholarly communications topics. Methods: Data was collected from Web of Science combined with the OA data from the UnPaywall Rest API and cleaned and analyzed in OpenRefine and Microsoft Excel. Results: The findings suggest that many university authors pursue OA publishing opportunities, with nearly half (45%) of the articles in the sample utilizing various OA publishing models and nearly one-third appearing in at least one OA repository. Discussion: The results of this study were used to better understand OA publication trends at the university and inform educational and outreach strategies. Conclusion: The authors conclude with recommendations for further study and ideas for promotion of The University of Alabama’s institutional repository utilizing the data from this research.