• 제목/요약/키워드: Journal of Information Science Theory and practice

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A Systematic Review on the Application of the Theory of Information Worlds

  • Park, Sungjae;Lee, Jisue;Hollister, Jonathan M.
    • Journal of Information Science Theory and Practice
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    • 제10권4호
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    • pp.87-109
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    • 2022
  • Previous studies have found that the use or development of theory in library and information science (LIS) research is comparatively low and may be trending downward. LIS has also been criticized for relying on theories imported from other disciplines rather than applying or developing theories from within. The theory of information worlds, a social information behavior theory originally introduced in 2008, represents a newer LIS theory whose level of adoption is understudied. This study features a systematic literature review of peer-reviewed research articles which cited or used the theory of information worlds from 2008 to early 2022 to identify trends related to levels of theory use, publication venues, author affiliations, countries, and collaborations, as well as research methods, topics, and populations. Findings suggest that both awareness and use of the theory of information worlds are positively trending, though at slower rates for higher levels of theory use, such as full applications of the theory to guide the collection and analysis of empirical data. The theory has also been used by researchers from around the world and across disciplines, most often with mixed and qualitative methods. While the growth of a new LIS theory is promising, the authors echo calls for increased use and development of the theory of information worlds, and other LIS theories more broadly, and as more interdisciplinary collaboration.

Developing a Theory in Academic Research: A Review of Experts’ Advice

  • Dankasa, Jacob
    • Journal of Information Science Theory and Practice
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    • 제3권3호
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    • pp.64-74
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    • 2015
  • Despite the number of developed theories, it still remains a difficult task for some established and emerging scholars in various academic fields to clearly articulate new theories from research studies. This paper reviews and collates the views of scholars on what a theory is and how a good theory can be developed. It explains the concept of a theory, and the different components that make up a theory. The paper discusses the different processes of theory development by emphasizing what theory is and what theory is not. This review found that scholars differ in their definition of a theory, which leads to using terms such as model, paradigm, framework, and theory interchangeably. It found the lack of theoretical constructs in a study to be one of the factors which explains why articles are rejected for publication. This paper may be of benefit to established researchers who may be struggling with theory development, and especially younger academics who are the future of scholarship in various academic fields, particularly in information science.

A Study on the Dimension of Quality Metrics for Information Systems Development and Success : An Application of Information Processing Theory

  • An, Joon M.
    • 정보기술과데이타베이스저널
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    • 제3권2호
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    • pp.97-118
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    • 1996
  • Information systems quality engineering is one of the most problematic areas in practice and research, and needs cooperative efforts between practice and theory [Glass, 1996]. A model for evaluating the quality of system development process and ensuing success is proposed based on information processing theory of project unit design. A nomological net among a set of quality variables is identified from prior research in the areas of organization science, software engineering, and management information systems. More specifically, system development success was modelled as a function of project complexity, system development modelling environment, user participation, project unit structure, resource availability, and the level of iterative nature of development methodology. Based on the model developed from the information processing theory of project unit design in organization science. appropriate quality metrics for each variable in the proposed model are matched. In this way, a framework of relevant systems development and success quality metrics for controlling systems development processes and ensuing success is proposed. The causal relationships among the constructs in the proposed model are proposed as future empirical research for academicians and as managerial tools for quality managers. The framework and propositions help quality manager to select more parsimonious quality metrics for controlling information systems development processes and project success in an integrated way. Also this model can be utilized for evaluating software quality assurance programmes, which are developed and marketed by many vendors.

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A Theory of Public Knowledge

  • Miksa, Shawne D.;McLain, Chinami
    • Journal of Information Science Theory and Practice
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    • 제7권2호
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    • pp.54-64
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    • 2019
  • A theory of public knowledge is offered for the purposes of defining more clearly its role in information systems and classification schemas. Public knowledge is knowledge intended to be available for use in a public system. It is knowledge accessible to the public or knowledge in the public arena as opposed to the other seemingly multitudinous ways to describe knowledge. Furthermore, there are many different public arenas or small worlds. Public knowledge, irrespective of these different arenas, has four important overlying characteristics: It is consensual, it does not imply complete truth or certainty, it is autonomous, and it has a constant renewal of old knowledge with new knowledge. Each of these attributes has been culled from a study of the works of Patrick Wilson, Karl Popper, and John Ziman.

Information Professionals Going Beyond the Needful User in Digital Humanities Project Collaboration

  • Engerer, Volkmar P.
    • Journal of Information Science Theory and Practice
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    • 제8권1호
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    • pp.6-19
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    • 2020
  • When information professionals deal with other disciplines in the course of digital humanities projects, they often assume that they are dealing with 'needful users' who have an 'information gap' to fill. This paper argues that the traditional view that information/knowledge is transferred from an information specialist donor to a domain specialist receiver is no longer appropriate in the digital humanities context, where the gap-and-search (or gap-and-filler) approach to information has given way to more direct, explorative engagement with information. The paper asks whether information science and the practising profession are ready for this paradigm shift and examines information science conservatism in two common collaboration scenarios, library support and digital development. It is shown that information science theory still assumes a traditional donor role in both scenarios. How information scientists deal with conservatism in practice is discussed in the example of the Prior project, in which the information science team exerted an ambiguous, hybrid approach with both conservative and non-conservative elements. Finally, two rather hypothetical answers are offered to the question of how information professionals should approach scholarly collaboration in the digital humanities context, where users have ceased to be supplicants. From a purely pragmatic perspective, information scientists need to shift their focus from information needs to research practices and the implications of these practices for digital information systems. More fundamentally, the emergence of digital humanities challenges information professionals to transform information systems designed for searching into digital objects that can be explored more freely by the digital humanities community.