Where AJLS Scholars Come From

Geographic Distribution
About This Visualization
Methodology

This visualization maps the geographic origins of AJLS conference presenters, revealing the institutional diversity of the field across 26 years (1999–2025). The packed circle display groups institutions by region — Ivy League, UC System, Big Ten+, other US private and public universities, Japanese institutions, Canadian universities, and European/UK/Australian schools — with circle size reflecting total presentation count.

Period filters allow comparison across different eras of AJLS conference participation.

Data Source

Institution data comes from presenter affiliations in AJLS conference programs (1999–2025), normalized through canonical mapping (191 aliases).

Regional Classification

Institutions are classified into 9 regions using keyword matching: Ivy League (8 schools), UC System (10 campuses), Big Ten+ (14 schools), and others classified by public/private status and country. Packed circle layout uses D3.js hierarchical packing with region grouping.

Diversity Metrics

  • HHI (Herfindahl-Hirschman Index): Σ(share²) measures concentration. Lower values indicate greater diversity; values above 0.25 indicate high concentration.
  • Top-5 share: percentage of presentations from the five most-represented institutions.
  • International %: presentations from non-US institutions.

Limitations

  • Institution names are self-reported and may vary across years.
  • Some affiliations are ambiguous (e.g., “visiting scholar at X” vs. home institution).
  • Independent scholars appear without institutional affiliation.
  • The regional classification is coarse and may not capture meaningful distinctions within categories.