The need for standardization, the nature of such standardization, and the work carried out by the Technical Committee on Documentation of the International Organization for Standardization are described. (Author/AB)

A general theory and taxonomy of human communication is discussed within which the information handling propensities of the special librarian can be evaluated for relevance to the axioms of library and information science. (Author)

This critique of prevalent conceptual methodologies in research in library administration examines the current research methodologies, relates them to the positivistic orientation of some social scientists, indicates why they are inappropriate, and suggests how research in library administration can be made more meaningful and relevant.…

Reviews and assesses the level and type of research activity in school librarianship and discusses the use of the experimental, historical, and descriptive approaches by researchers in the field. Research that builds on prior efforts and the use of statistics are also described. A 60-item reference list is attached. (Author/JL)

Includes annotated entries for several hundred associations and organizations headquartered in North America whose interests are in some manner significant to the fields of instructional technology/educational media, library and information science, communication, computer technology, and others. They are organized into two geographic areas, the…

Outlines current ideas about the use of focus groups in library and information science and considers advantages and disadvantages of different types of focus group discussions. Discusses reasons for choosing this research method. (AEF)

Includes annotated entries for several hundred associations and organizations headquartered in North America whose interests are in some manner significant to the fields of instructional technology/educational media, library and information science, communication, computer technology, and others. They are organized into two geographic areas, the…

Discusses the implications of factors inhibiting the advancement of research in library and information science in Nigeria, such as poor dissemination of research findings, noncollaborative research with those in other fields, academic and professional ineptitude, inadequate funding, societal indifference to research, and inefficient use of…

Examines the origins and parallel uses of the concept of "facet" in bibliographic classification theory and behavioral research. Suggests that social sciences in general were receptive to conceptual borrowing, but that library and information science as a discipline was relatively isolated. (contains 108 references) (Author/AEF)

Examines the application of the Fishbein and Ajzen model of attitude-behavior consistency to research in library and information science (LIS). The components of the model are explained, two examples of LIS research are presented, and there is a brief review of areas in LIS that could benefit from attitude-behavior consistency research. (Contains…

Describes the evolution of computerized information storage and retrieval from its mid-nineteenth century beginnings in theoretical works on logic by George Boole, to the applications of Boole's logic to switching circuits by Claude Shannon in the 1930s, to the development of coordinate indexing by Mortimer Taube in the 1940s and 1950s. (Contains…

A metatheoretical framework is reviewed, and the qualitative/quantitative dichotomy, prevalent in library and information science (LIS), is critiqued. Standpoint epistemology, as a critique of existing power-knowledge relationships, is discussed as a research strategy that can provide a starting point for re-conceptualizing LIS research. (AEF)

This study used citation analysis to investigate the characteristics of library and information science (LIS) literature published in Denmark from 1957 to 1986. The information exchange between the Danish library and information profession and LIS communities in other countries is examined, and the large proportion of hidden references is…

This column assesses the state of library and information studies (LIS) research. Researchers and practitioners in various LIS fields address questions related to the research front and agenda for collection development; what the field needs to advance further; whether it needs a more sophisticated conceptual or theoretical framework; operational…

Critiques the model of information literacy as a central purpose of librarianship. Reviews the appropriateness of the "learning methodology" of the information literacy model. Outlines the challenge of relating information literacy to workplace competencies. Proposes that information literacy be refocused away from information toward learning, and…