Page 217 - Journal of Library Science in China, Vol.47, 2021

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without mature academic discernment? Thus, the discipline should return to its roots, focusing
primarily on the construction of its core or foundational knowledge.
Consequently, Library and Information Science urgently needs to strengthen its core knowledge
and enhance its disciplinary knowledge hardness. By combining rigorous knowledge with soft
power, the discipline can assert its position in the academic landscape, thereby attracting future
scholars to contribute and continuously drive innovation.

5 Conclusion

Conclusively, a disciplinary knowledge hardness serves as a crucial metric to evaluate whether
the discipline possesses its unique core knowledge, which is a necessary indicator for quantifying
disciplinary backbone knowledge. Enhancing knowledge hardness should be regarded as a strategic
direction in disciplinary development. Drawing inspiration from the core knowledge of disciplines such
as Physics, Medicine, and Economics, Library and Information Science should prioritize strengthening
its core knowledge by increasing knowledge hardness in future. The discipline must advance the
fusion of knowledge hardness as well as depth, and on a broader scale, integrate and carve out core
knowledge that underscores its distinct characteristics. Within the vast spectrum of knowledge, LIS
should integrate and carve out its core knowledge that distinctly characterizes its essence.

Author contributions

R. J. Z. collected data, processed data and wrote the paper, F.Y.Y initiated the idea and wrote the
paper.

Additional Information

Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.

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