Library and Information Science - Common Subfields

Common Subfields

Information science
General aspects
  • Information access · Information architecture
  • Information management
  • Information retrieval
  • Information seeking · Information society
  • Knowledge organization · Ontology
  • Philosophy of information
  • Science, technology and society
Related fields and sub-fields
  • Bibliometrics · Categorization
  • Censorship · Classification
  • Computer data storage · Cultural studies
  • Data modeling · Informatics
  • Information technology
  • Intellectual freedom
  • Intellectual property · Memory
  • Library and information science
  • Preservation · Privacy
  • Portal

An advertisement for a full Professor in information science at the Royal School of Library and Information Science, spring 2011, provides one view of which subdisciplines are well-established: ”The research and teaching/supervision must be within some (and at least one) of these well-established information science areas

  • a. Knowledge organization
  • b. Library studies
  • c. Information architecture
  • d. Information behavior
  • e. Interactive information retrieval
  • f. Information systems
  • g. Scholarly communication
  • h. Digital literacy (cf information literacy)
  • i. Bibliometrics or scientometrics
  • j. Interaction design and user experience”

There are other ways to identify subfields within LIS, for example bibliometric mapping and comparative studies of curricula. Bibliometric maps of LIS have been produced by, among others, Vickery & Vickery (1987, frontispiece), White & McCain (1998), Åström (2002, 2006 An example of a curriculum study is Kajberg & Lørring, 2005. In this publication are the following data reported (p 234): "Degree of overlap of the ten curricular themes with subject areas in the current curricula of responding LIS schools

  • Information seeking and Information retrieval 100%
  • Library management and promotion 96%
  • Knowledge management 86%
  • Knowledge organization 82%
  • Information literacy and learning 76%
  • Library and society in a historical perspective (Library history) 66%
  • The Information society: Barriers to the free access to information 64%
  • Cultural heritage and digitisation of the cultural heritage (Digital preservation)62%
  • The library in the multi-cultural information society: International and intercultural communication 42%
  • Mediation of culture in a special European context 26% "

There is often an overlap between these subfields of LIS and other fields of study. Most information retrieval research, for example, belongs to computer science; Knowledge management is considered a subfield of management studies.

Read more about this topic:  Library And Information Science

Famous quotes containing the word common:

    “Now that the election is over, may not all, having a common interest, re-unite in a common effort, to save our common country?”
    —Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)