The citations contained in research published in two British scholarly periodicals in the field of continuing education for the years 1986-1990 were analyzed. The analysis had two primary objectives: (1) to evaluate the potential of citation analysis as a quantitative method of studying the quality of research output; and (2) to determine whether citation counts would help establish the extent to which British adult education researchers are creating a distinctive body of literature. A total of 2,353 references (601 from "Studies in the Education of Adults" and 1,752 from the "International Journal of Lifelong Education") were classified according to their main subject focus and according to whether they represented primary, secondary, or tertiary literature. The following were determined: the most frequently cited texts; the 20 most frequently cited authors; the pattern of self-citation among the top 20 authors; and the balance among primary, secondary, and tertiary literature. The study results were seen as reinforcing the widespread skepticism regarding the effectiveness of citation counts a measures of research quality. The citation analysis did, however, result in a "map" of the current state of scholarship and research in British continuing education and was deemed useful for such purposes. (Contains 15 references.) (MN)