Information Studies 287/277

Information Institutions & Professions

Dr. Mary Niles Maack

CATALOG DESCRIPTION

IS 287/ 277 This seminar offers doctoral students an introduction to social theory and provides them with knowledge of several analytical frameworks that can be used to analyze the social, cultural and political roles of information institutions and the professionals who direct them.

DEFINITION & SCOPE

For the purpose of this seminar information institutions are organizations (or sub-units of organizations) that are charged with providing resources and services to meet the educational, informational, cultural and/or recreational needs of their clients. The mission of information institutions will differ significantly depending on variables such as the type of institution, its setting, its source of support and its clientele. Some information institutions, like public libraries, serve all four kinds of needs. Others, like school libraries, national archives, or art museums, may heavily emphasize one kind of function or role over others. Despite their differences, all information institutions employ highly trained professionals who, in addition to administering the organization, engage in three kinds of activities:

(1) collection development; this will include selecting, acquiring, preserving. and in some cases, weeding the collections.

(2) systematic organization and classification of resources in order to allow for their effective retrieval, use and/or enjoyment.

(3) provision of appropriate access to the collections by the primary clientele and other designated users.

EXAMPLES OF INFORMATION INSTITUTIONS

LIBRARIES

National, state, public, academic, school and special; co-operative systems, digital libraries.

ARCHIVES & MANUSCRIPT COLLECTIONS

Governmental (national, state, local), institutional, and privately held; digital archives.

MUSEUMS

Art (fine art and folk art), Historical, Ethnographic, Scientific, and Specialized (e.g. film & television, post office, miniatures)

ZOOLOGICAL & BOTANICAL PARKS

Zoological parks, urban zoos, botanical gardens, arboretums, aquariums,

Other kinds of information institutions that NOT within the scope of this course are:

(1) Those primarily engaged in producing information (e.g. book, magazine and newspaper publishers; producers of radio, film and television programs; universities and research laboratories; workshops or design studios; database and internet content providers).

(2) Those primarily engaged in disseminating information (e.g. book, magazine and newspaper wholesalers and retailers; radio and television broadcasters; film distributors; workshops or design studios; database and internet vendors and service providers).

THEMES & TOPICS

1. History and Contemporary Development of Information Institutions

2. Social Foundations of Information Institutions -- common good, communal heritage

3. Cultural Roles - validation, canon formation, elite vs democratic mission

4. Symbolic Roles-democracy, learning, culture

5. Architecture and Place-real, symbolic and virtual space

6. Collections and resources

7. Services-outreach, needs assessment and marketing

8. Implications of electronic technologies

9. Virtual presence, virtual collections and access; co-operation, convergence

10. Administrative context; organizations as bureaucracies

11. Information professionals - their roles, education

12. Information institutions and professionals- comparative perspectives

COURSE GOALS

• To become familiar with social science theory and to consider ways that various theoretical frameworks have been or can be applied to the study of information institutions.
• To gain an understanding of the social foundations of the information institutions and professions and an appreciation of their changing role in modern society.
• To develop a critical appreciation of prior research dealing with information institutions within their broader cultural, social , economic and/or political context.
• To further develop expertise in doing rigorous critical evaluation of social history and theoretical works as well as empirical studies.

ASSIGNMENTS

A. HISTORIICAL PORTRAIT OF AN INFORMATION INSTITUTION

SUGGESTED LENGTH: 8-10 pages DUE DATE: FEBRUARY 2ND

For this short historical essay you will be working with published materials It is important to select an institution about which a substantial body of literature exists. You should be sure to have access to publications from and about the institution (guides, annual reports, newsletters, articles, books) as well as a few articles relating to its history. Your first step will be the preparation of a chronology giving the highlights of the institution's growth, achievements and setbacks.

For your analytical essay consider the following questions :

1. How, when and why was this institution created? How was it funded? What was its intellectual, cultural, social and political context?

2. What individuals and groups were responsible for its initial creation. Who provided the leadership to ensure its growth and/or maintenance?

3. How was the initial mission expressed? Has this changed over time? If so why? (Possibilities might include: different or expanded clienteles, different administrative context , new funding sources, or changed social climate)?

4. What conflicts characterized the institution's history. How were these resolved? Who were the key stakeholders? Which issues appear to remain unresolved?

5. Conclude your essay by discussing the strenghts and limitations of the sources available to you for this project.

B. CRITIQUE OF A DISSERTATION

You my select any dissertation that centers on one or more information institutions as defined above. The study may be historical or contemporary (case study, policy analysis). A biographical dissertation may also be used, IF the subject 's career involved the leadership of a major information institution. In your critique you MUST consider the theoretical framework used, and analyze how that framework shaped the study's scope, methodology and conclusions. Also assess the quality of the literature review, the fullness of the data collected and presented, and the appropriateness of generalizations drawn from the study. If the author subsequently published a book from the dissertation, you should also compare the two treatments of the topic.

SUGGESTED LENGTH: 5 -7 pages DUE DATE: FEBRUARY 28

C. TERM PAPER (20%)

For your term project you may either prepare a historical research paper or a case study of an information institution. It is important to plan your time carefully so that the project can be completed by the end of the quarter. It is therefore essential to make certain early in the term that you have access to adequate source materials.

If certain items you need are only available through interlibrary loan ( ILL ), you may be able to receive them if you make your request between the second and fourth week of class. However, you must not base your proposal on the hope of getting material critical to your paper though ILL.

`SUGGESTED LENGTH: 15 -20 pages DUE DATE: MARCH 21

D. CLASS PARTICIPATION (20%)

The quality of any seminar is dependent on the quality of the participation of all class members. Each student is expected to have done all readings in advance and be prepared to respond to discussion questions.

Required texts and readings

Barker, Emma, ed. 1999. Contemporary Cultures of Display. New Haven , CT :Yale University Press.

Clemens, Elisabeth S and James M.Cook (1999) Politics And Institutionalism: Explaining Durability and Change. Annual Review of Sociology p. 441 MELVYL MAGS

Douglas, Mary. 1986. How Institutions Think . Syracuse . NY: Syracuse University Press, 1986. Series title: The Frank W. Abrams lectures

Ingram, Paul and Karen Clay. 2000. "The Choice-Within-Constraints New Institutionalism and Implications for Sociology" Annual R eview of Sociology p. 525 - MELVYL MAGS

March, James G. 1996. Continuity and Change in Theories of Organizational Action." Administrative Science Quarterly , (40 th Anniversary Issue) 41:278-288. MELVYL MAGS

Molz, Redmond Kathleen, and Phyllis Dain. (1999.) Civic Space/Cyberspace : The American Public Library In The Information Age. Cambridge , Mass. : MIT Press,

Scott, W. Richard. 1995. Institutions and Organizations . Thousand Oaks , CA : Sage Publications

Resaldo, Renato. 1989. "The Erosion of Classic Norms." from Culture and Truth. The Remaking of Social Analysis. Boston : Beacon Press, pp. 25-41.

Wilson, Patrick. 1980. Limits to the Growth of Knowledge: the Case of the Social and Behavioral Sciences. Library Quarterly 61:4-21.

277 CALENDAR & READINGS

WINTER 2001

WEEK 1. JANUARY 10

Introduction: Defining Information Institutions; Models, Paradigms and Disciplinary Perspectives.

WEEK 2. JANUARY 17

How Institutions Think. The History of Information Institutions.

Discussion of Douglas (1986), Resaldo (1989) and Wilson (1980).

WEEK 3. JANUARY 24

Institutions and Organizations

Discussion of Scott (1995) ALSO skim Ingram and Clay (2000) and Clemmens & Cook

WEEK 4. JANUARY 31

**Historical Report on an Information Institution

WEEK 5 FEBRUARY 7

The Public Library as an Information Institution

Discussion of Dain and Molz (1999).

WEEK 6 FEBRUARY 14

CASE STUDIES: American Library in Paris ; San Francisco Public Library

National Libraries and National Archives: Cultural, Intellectual & Symbolic Roles

WEEK 7 FEBRUARY 21

**Dissertation Critique

WEEK 8 FEBRUARY 28

Cultures of Display: Museums as Information Institutions

readings from Baker

WEEK 9 MARCH 7

Information Professionals -Their Roles and Responsibilities

Supplementary readings:

Holley, Edward G. 1976. ALA at 100. In The ALA Yearbook: A Review of Library Events 1975 . Edited by R. Wedgeworth, 1-32. Chicago : ALA.

Maack, Mary Niles. 1997. Toward a new model of the information professions: Embracing empowerment. Journal of Education for Library and Information Science 38: 283-302. [LIS 200 Reader: Volume II, Chapter 7B] HANDOUT

O'Toole, James M. 1990. The history of the archives profession. In Understanding Archives and Manuscripts, 27-47. Chicago : Society of American Archivists. [LIS 200 Reader: Volume II, Chapter 7A]

Shera, Jesse and Donald Cleveland. 1977. History and foundations of information science. In Annual Review of Information Science and Technology. Edited by M. Williams, 249-275. [LIS 200 Reader: Volume II, Chapter 7A]

WEEKS 10 & 11 MARCH 14 and MARCH 21

STUDENT PRESENTATIONS OF FINAL PROJECTS