ERIC Number: EJ931265
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2011-Jul
Pages: 24
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0024-2519
EISSN: N/A
What Is Library "Use"? Facets of Concept and a Typology of Its Application in the Literature of Library and Information Science
Fleming-May, Rachel A.
Library Quarterly, v81 n3 p297-320 Jul 2011
The "use" of library resources and services is frequently presented in library and information science (LIS) literature as a primitive concept: an idea that need not be defined when it is being measured as an operational variable in empirical research. This project considered representations of library "use" through the Evolutionary Concept Analysis (ECA) method, developed by nursing scholar Beth L. Rodgers to explore the significance of concepts within specific disciplinary, chronological, and theoretical contexts. Analysis of a 200-item sample of the LIS journal literature revealed that "use" is not a monolithic concept but, in fact, has multiple facets of meaning that are deployed in diverse contexts across the LIS publication spectrum. In addition to reviewing key discussions of library "use" in the LIS literature, this article presents a typology of its conceptual facets. (Contains 2 tables and 6 footnotes.)
Descriptors: Information Science Education, Classification, Periodicals, Information Science, Library Science, Librarians, Users (Information), Predictor Variables
University of Chicago Press. Journals Division, P.O. Box 37005, Chicago, IL 60637. Tel: 877-705-188; Tel: 773-753-3347; Fax: 877-705-1879; Fax: 773-753-0811; e-mail: subscriptions@press.uchicago.edu; Web site: http://www.press.uchicago.edu
Publication Type: Information Analyses; Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: N/A
Audience: Media Staff
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A