Theory Development in the Information Sciences / / ed. by Diane H. Sonnenwald.

• MitwirkendeR: Bates, Marcia J.,; Bawden, David,; Buckland, Michael K.,; Carroll, John M.,; Chang, Shanju Lin,; Crew, Hilary S.,; Dillon, Andrew,; Järvelin, Kalervo,; Kuhlthau, Carol Collier,; Mcgann, Jerome,; Meadows, Jack,; Nardi, Bonnie,; Olson, Gary M.,; Olson, Judith S.,; Saracevic, Tefko,; Sonnenwald, Diane H.,; Thelwall, Mike,
• HerausgeberIn: Sonnenwald, Diane H.,
• Place / Publishing House: Austin : : University of Texas Press, , [2021]; ©2016
• Year of Publication: 2021
• Language: English
• Physical Description: 1 online resource

Emerging as a discipline in the first half of the twentieth century, the information sciences study how people, groups, organizations, and governments create, share, disseminate, manage, search, access, evaluate, and protect information, as well as how different technologies and policies can facilitate and constrain these activities. Given the broad span of the information sciences, it is perhaps not surprising that there is no consensus regarding its underlying theory—the purposes of it, the types of it, or how one goes about developing new theories to talk about new research questions. Diane H. Sonnenwald and the contributors to this volume seek to shed light on these issues by sharing reflections on the theory-development process. These reflections are not meant to revolve around data collection and analysis; rather, they focus on the struggles, challenges, successes, and excitement of developing theories. The particular theories that the contributors explore in their essays range widely, from theories of literacy and reading to theories of design and digital search. Several chapters engage with theories of the behavior of individuals and groups; some deal with processes of evaluation; others reflect on questions of design; and the rest treat cultural and scientific heritage. The ultimate goal, Sonnenwald writes in her introduction, is to “encourage, inspire, and assist individuals striving to develop and/or teach theory development.”

Table of Contents

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Figures -- Tables -- Acknowledgments -- Chapter 1 EXPLORING THEORY DEVELOPMENT: LEARNING FROM DIVERSE MASTERS -- Part 1 BEHAVIOR OF INDIVIDUALS AND GROUPS -- Chapter 2 MANY PATHS TO THEORY: THE CREATIVE PROCESS IN THE INFORMATION SCIENCES -- Chapter 3 REFLECTIONS ON THEORY CONSTRUCTION IN HUMAN INFORMATION BEHAVIOR: A THEORY OF BROWSING -- Chapter 4 REFLECTIONS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF A THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVE -- Chapter 5 CONVERGING ON THEORY FROM FOUR SIDES -- Part 2 EVALUATION -- Chapter 6 DRAWING GRAPHS FOR THEORY DEVELOPMENT IN BIBLIOMETRICS AND RETRIEVAL -- Chapter 7 TWO VIEWS ON THEORY DEVELOPMENT FOR INTERACTIVE INFORMATION RETRIEVAL -- Chapter 8 RELEVANCE: IN SEARCH OF A THEORETICAL FOUNDATION -- Chapter 9 THE STORY OF A COLONY: THEORY DEVELOPMENT IN WEBOMETRIC RESEARCH -- Part 3 DESIGN -- Chapter 10 THEORIZING THE UNPRECEDENTED -- Chapter 11 APPROPRIATING THEORY -- Chapter 12 THEORY FOR DESIGN: THE CASE OF READING -- Part 4 CULTURAL AND SCIENTIFIC HERITAGE -- Chapter 13 THE POVERTY OF THEORY; OR, THE EDUCATION OF JEROME MCGANN -- Chapter 14 ILLUMINATING DAUGHTER-MOTHER NARRATIVES IN YOUNG ADULT FICTION -- Chapter 15 THE NOBLEST PLEASURE: THEORIES OF UNDERSTANDING IN THE INFORMATION SCIENCES -- Chapter 16 APOLOGIA PRO THEORIA SUA -- Chapter 17 SUPPORTING FUTURE THEORY DEVELOPMENT -- Notes on the Contributors -- Index