Library and Information Research (LIR)
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Elaborations of Grounded Theory in Information Research: Arenas/Social Worlds Theory, Discourse and Situational Analysis
Get PDFThis paper explores elaborations of Grounded Theory in relation to Arenas/Social Worlds Theory. The notions of arenas and social worlds were present in early applications of Grounded Theory but have not been as much used or recognised as the general Grounded Theory approach, particularly in the information studies field. The studies discussed here are therefore very unusual in information research. The empirical contexts of these studies are those of (1) the role of discourse in the organisational adaptation in information systems, (2) discourses on Organizational Interoperability in eGovernment and (3) situational analysis and discourses on coping with long term illness. Despite having a common focus on discourse and combining Grounded Theory with the Arenas/Social Worlds Theory, these three studies represent different elaborations of Grounded Theory. The structure of the analytical processes adopted range from a looser application of the constant comparative method to a much more structured analytical approach informed by Situational Analysis. The theoretical implications of the studies are explored. It is concluded that the Arenas/Social Worlds theoretical approach and the use of discourse and situational analysis are particularly appropriate for library and information research and provide a flexible and adaptable research approach for explaining and mapping complex and dynamic domains
RUECKER, Stan, RADZIKOWSKA, Milena and SINCLAIR, Stéfan. Visual interface design for digital cultural heritage: A guide to rich-prospect browsing. Farnham: Ashgate Publishing. 2011.
Get PDFNAN SI, Shi and GILBERT SILVIUS, A.J. (eds). Enterprise IT governance, business value and performance. Hershey, Pennsylvania: IGI Global. 2011.
Get PDFThe onus on us? Stage one in developing an i-Trust model for our users.
Get PDFThis article describes a Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC)-funded project, conducted by a cross-disciplinary team, examining trust in information resources in the web environment employing a literature review and online Delphi study with follow-up community consultation. The project aimed to try to explain how users assess or assert trust in their use of resources in the web environment; to examine how perceptions of trust influence the behavior of information users; and to consider whether ways of asserting trust in information resources could assist the development of information literacy. A trust model was developed from the analysis of the literature and discussed in the consultation. Elements comprising the i-Trust model include external factors, internal factors and user\u27s cognitive state. This article gives a brief overview of the JISC funded project which has now produced the i-Trust model (Pickard et. al. 2010) and focuses on issues of particular relevance for information providers and practitioners
Research support in a research assessment environment: The experience of ‘new’ universities
Get PDFThe role of libraries in research support has attracted increasing notice in the past decade. This paper contributes another perspective on the topic by reporting on a study that used qualitative research methods to examine research support at six ‘new’ universities, all of which had significantly improved their ranked position after the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise. The study found that the influence of individuals and institution-wide initiatives are important in gaining a place in the discussions and activities surrounding research support, and a range of approaches to collection management are being implemented to maximize resources and information access. In the future, libraries will have to consider how best to develop expertise and skills in areas that add value to the services provided to researchers. They will also need to develop strategies for engaging and meeting the needs of new researchers
RUTHVEN, I. and KELLY, D. (eds.) Interactive information seeking, behaviour and retrieval. 2011.
Get PDFThe "principles" paper: some thoughts on an unusual hybrid
Get PDFFor years, ‘principles’ papers have made an important contribution to LIS literature and their influence on subsequent writers has been considerable. They make a series of concise claims in relation to a topic, which are usually supported by a variety of evidence and are pertinent across time and space. These claims have emerged from the literature or are derived directly from the author’s own experience. In writing such a piece, research students may seek to enhance their abstract thinking abilities, whilst practitioners benefit from considering their work more critically and from contextualising their day-to-day experience in terms of wider knowledge. Although ‘principles’ papers are difficult to construct, a would-be writer should not be deterred, as readers are likely to appreciate the ease with which the main claims can be seen, and the paper may form a significant step towards the creation of higher order work
Using quantitative and qualitative unit profiling for identifying the contribution of library resources to teaching quality
Get PDFThis paper presents the development and application of a new methodology incorporating both quantitative and qualitative profiling to help discern the characteristics of units of study that are the differentiators of student ratings of library resource quality. From the sub-set of those units with an ‘unremarkable’ rating for teaching quality, those units with the ‘extreme’ library resource quality ratings were selected for investigation. Examination of the handbook descriptions for those units suggests that units of study which explicitly incorporate student interaction with the wider literature and other information resources beyond those provided within the unit environment may lead students to engage with the library in deeper ways that highlight the value of library resources, and hence lead to higher mean ratings of library resource quality. This finding suggests potential areas for intervention to enhance student perceptions of the quality of library resources
