A study on the structure of the Chinese information policy domain framework

Information policies, the guidelines and standards for the macro information management of a nation, play an important role in the course of informationization in China. Owing to the absence of an authoritative framework of Chinese information policies, this research generated a comprehensive, three-level classification of information policy domains, based on policy data collected from Chinalawinfo.com, owned by the Legal Information Centre of Peking University. We constructed the first level with general domains derived from the theory of information’s life cycle. The second- and third-level domains were then determined according to the results of our clustering analysis, and their keywords were enriched and standardized using the Chinese Classification and Subject Headings System. The significance of this research is not only that it has identified blind spots existing in information policy making and research, but also that the new Chinese information policy domain framework will help regulate informationization in China.