Assessing Selective Exposure in Experiments: The Implications of Different Methodological Choices

Selective exposure has been studied for more than half a century, but little research has systematically analyzed the implications of various methodological choices inherent in these designs. We examine how four choices affect results in studies of selectivity in political contexts: including an entertainment option, including or excluding moderates, post-hoc adjustment of the subjects through a question about likelihood of selecting content in the real world, and assessing selectivity on the basis of issue attitudes or political ideology. Relying on a large experimental survey (N?=?2,300), we compare the effects of these choices on two results: probability of selective exposure to like-minded political news and predictors of selective exposure (attitude strength, political interest, knowledge, and participation). Our findings show that probability estimates and, to a lesser extent, predictors of selective exposure are sensitive to methodological choices. These findings provide guidance about how methodological choices may affect researchers’ assessments and conclusions.     

Design and process of a contextual study of information literacy: An Eisenhardt approach

This study demonstrates how case study research can be used to do a contextual and inductive study of information literacy (IL) and develop robust models of IL. First, it identifies several key characteristics of case study research as a qualified research methodology for studies that aim to build theories. Second, it rationalizes a need for case study research in the field of IL research. Drawing on that, it demonstrates how Eisenhardt's case study process was adopted to conduct a contextual study of IL and discusses the researcher's activities and tasks in each phase of the process. It uses the researcher's experience of the research journey to justify the validity and robustness of the research. This article contributes to current IL research methodologies and can be of value for LIS researchers and practitioners who wish to holistically gain deep insight into phenomena through case study research.     

Documenting Communities of Practice: Making the Case for Archival Ethnography*

This paper seeks to present a new direction for archival research: ethnographic fieldwork. The author argues that this set of qualitative methods presents new opportunities for researchers to study phenomena in archival settings. Using the author's research on competing definitions of value in the world of film preservation as a case study, this article gives readers unversed in ethnography and grounded theory a primer which may be used as a starting point for considering how to apply such qualitative methods to the design of new research agendas and to solve questions specific to the archival domain. This paper is a revised version of the methodological chapter of the author's dissertation:The Imperative to Preserve: Competing Definitions of Value in the World of Film Preservation, PhD dissertation (Los Angeles: UCLA, 2001).     

Ontology,Epistemology, Methodology,and Methods: Information for Librarian Researchers

Abstract

This article will help librarians understand how different philosophical stances influence the process of developing a research question and the different methodologies and methods available to help answer that question. Understanding this will help librarian researchers make appropriate choices regarding methods and methodology for the research questions they are seeking to answer. Also included is a table showing the two main types of inquiry (qualitative and quantitative) with their associated methodologies and methods, the basic assumptions underlying each, and the pros and cons of each methodology.     

Prevalence of methodological transparency in the use of mixed methods research in library and information science research in South Africa and Nigeria, 2009–2015

Methodological transparency facilitates rigorous, trustworthy, and reliable mixed methods research (MMR). Because divergent views on the conceptualization of mixed methods can create confusion for researchers, methodological transparency can help researchers to replicate methods in other studies and attract them to mixed methods research. Many studies have been conducted to assess the utilization of mixed methods research in several disciplines, but few in library and information science (LIS) have studied how authors describe the methods used. This study investigated the clarity and detail provided about methodology in mixed methods research articles in LIS, focusing on South Africa and Nigeria. Content analysis was used to assess 104 doctoral theses, of which 10 used mixed methods. Results suggest that methodological transparency in MMR research is underrepresented in LIS. This study contributes to the discussion on how LIS can enhance the quality of mixed methods research studies by underscoring the importance of methodological transparency in such studies. Researchers and LIS educators can use the gaps identified by this study to use and report mixed methods appropriately in future research.     

Audience Research in the Post-Audience Age: An Introduction to Barker and Morley

This article considers the contributions that Martin Barker and David Morley have made to the ongoing debate about the future of audience research in communications. Considering their positions on theory and method in the field, the article concludes that audience research in the future must incorporate a variety of different methodological perspectives. The article also notes the increasingly political nature of questions posed in the field of audience research and our necessity as researchers to acknowledge the political dimension of our field.     

When News is Everywhere

This article contends that not only journalism but also journalism studies can benefit from a stronger commitment to the public. While the bodies of literature on “popular journalism”, “public journalism” and “citizen/participatory journalism” have, in different contexts and from different angles, made a strong case in favour of a public-oriented approach to journalism, it is remarkable how few of the empirical studies on journalism are based on user research. As the control of media institutions over the news process is in decline, we should take the “news audience” more seriously and try to improve our understanding of (changing) news use patterns. Besides this rather obvious theoretical point, there are also societal and methodological arguments for a more user-oriented take on the study of journalism. Starting from a reflection on the key trends in news use in the digital age—participation, cross-mediality and mobility—this article attempts to show the theoretical and societal relevance of a radical user perspective on journalism and journalism research alike. Furthermore, we look at new methodological opportunities for news user research and elaborate on our arguments by way of an empirical study on changing news practices. The study uses Q-sort methodology to expose the impact a medium's affordances can have on the way we experience news in a converged and mobile media environment. The article concludes by discussing what the benefits of a radical user perspective can be both for journalism studies as for journalism.     

Examining nonsuicidal self-injury content creation on TikTok through qualitative content analysis

Qualitative content analysis is a methodological approach for the subjective interpretation of data. Using empirical research to illustrate the methodological advantages and disadvantages of qualitative content analysis, this article examines the suitability of qualitative content analysis for the field of LIS and illustrates how the method can be used to inform LIS information practices research of marginalized populations through emerging information and communication technologies (ICTs). Specifically, this article examines the suitability of qualitative content analysis through its application in an ongoing study exploring how individuals who engage in nonsuicidal self-injury circumnavigate algorithmic exclusion in the emerging ICT TikTok. Qualitative content analysis can advance LIS research and practice by refuting deficit thinking and understanding information creation practices in context. Methodological shortcomings relate to the reduction of data and the inability to determine cause-and-effect relationships. The author recommends that researchers supplement qualitative content analysis with additional qualitative approaches to address these limitations.     

Voices from the Ground Up: Transfer of Learning within the Context of Research and Study Activities

A mid-sized university library system conducted a large-scale mixed-methods research project intended to understand better the student library experience and ways to enhance it. One aspect of the project included a detailed and iterative analysis of interview data. Using a grounded theory (GT) approach, researchers analyzed empirical data from student interviews and identified patterns of behavior. The results of data analyses suggested that students used knowledge and interactions from library class to inform them of how to study academic content and complete non-research tasks and vice versa. As a result, researchers generated an inductive (emerging from the data) theory that asserts that some research and study activities are mutually informative. The article describes the approach used to develop the theoretical construct in hopes that it will provide a deeper understanding of the relationship between research and studying behaviors and how academic libraries contribute to the greater academic landscape in ways not previously recognized.     

THE DIGITAL TURN

Advances in digital technology have made the recent past seem like a foreign country. Media historians did things very differently in 2002. In the last decade, hundreds of historical newspapers and periodicals have been digitised and made available to researchers via online archives. Whilst the emergence of these resources has generated contrasting responses from historians, an increasing number of researchers are now embracing the new methodological possibilities created by keyword-searchable digital archives. As the first examples of this scholarship begin to appear on the horizon, this paper considers whether media history is on the cusp of a ‘digital turn’. It outlines the existing responses to digital methodologies, deconstructs digital newspapers in order to explore how they differ from their paper originals and uses case studies drawn from my own research into the late-Victorian transatlantic press to demonstrate how new methodologies might be applied.     

面向人文研究的“数据基础设施”建设--试论图书馆学对数字人文的方法论贡献

数字人文不仅革新了人文研究的范式,还意味着全新的知识生产方式和知识交流模式。联合各领域的研究者和研究机构,包括各类美术馆、图书馆、档案馆、博物馆(GLAM)等文化记忆机构建设数字人文基础设施,以支撑新的研究范式、知识生产方式和知识交流模式,已经成为共同的呼声。探讨如何建设数字人文基础设施,厘清各种责任主体尤其是GLAM机构在数字人文基础设施建设中扮演何种角色、承担何种任务、做出何种贡献,有利于帮助图书馆找准角色定位,发挥自身优势,成为整个数字人文基础设施建设中不可或缺的有机构成单位。利用文献调研、需求分析、案例调研、实践验证等方法,将"数据基础设施"从"研究基础设施"中剥离出来并作出定义;分析面向人文研究的"数据基础设施"的一般性功能需求和技术规范,包括跨机构的共建共享、跨网域的开放获取、跨领域的知识融通、跨时空的版本迭代四个方面。以上海图书馆的数字人文实践为例,从原理和实践两个层面论证图书馆的书目控制、规范控制、知识组织、文献循证方法和关联数据、知识图谱、大数据等技术结合起来,有望为"数据基础设施"的建设提供一定的方法论贡献。联合各类机构加强新技术的应用,推进数据开放互联和知识融通,建设公共性、开放性、持续性的"数据基础设施",是GLAM机构在数字人文大潮中应尽而可尽的责任。图2。参考文献28。     

Utility, library priorities, and cataloging policies

This paper seeks to provide a philosophical framework for choices made about library priorities and cataloging policy, the contexts in which they are made, and the consequences they have for users. The authors invoke the notion of utility as a philosophical backdrop for dealing with competing library choices and the fallout from those prioritizations. They then look at how general utilitarian principles can contextualize the layers of wants, needs, and resource allocations in the research library environment. Finally, they examine issues and recent developments at the Cornell University Library as a case study with which to illustrate some of these principles.     

A methodological framework for studying visual information practices

Visual information dominates our modern information landscape and plays a critical role in the production of knowledge. However, research in information studies has not fully considered how people engage with visual information, in the form of images, visualization software and instruments, as well as audiovisual media, at the level of visual information in practice. This gap is addressed by first outlining the methodological challenges visual information practices pose to research, then reviewing recent information practices research projects that consider visual information, and concluding by offering a methodological framework drawn from the author's dissertation research for studying visual information practices, with suggestions provided for researchers who are interested in conducting research in this area.     

Developing the methodological toolbox for information literacy research: Grounded theory and visual research methods

The growing complexity of information environments calls for a reconsideration of the ways in which grounded theory method is employed within library and information science (LIS). This methodological discussion explores the synergies between grounded theory, information literacy and visual research to establish a research agenda for the extension of grounded theory method within LIS. The discussion draws upon recent theoretical and methodological advances to outline the challenges and opportunities of the proposed shift in focus for the development of a LIS researchers methodological toolbox. The ongoing exploration of grounded theory method is vital for the creation of richer and more complex theorising about the ways in which people engage with information within evolving settings and spaces.     

Mapping mixed methods research in library and information science journals in Sub-Saharan Africa 2004–2008

The purpose of this article is to explore the use of mixed methods research (MMR) in articles published in library and information science (LIS) journals in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) from 2004 to 2008. A mixed methods research framework provided in the methodological literature is used to determine how this method was practiced within the LIS scientific community in SSA. Six hundred and eighty five articles published in nine peer-reviewed LIS journals in SAA were reviewed, finding the dominant research methods in these journals to be survey designs and historical research. The use of MMR was limited: 48 out of 685 articles used the mixed methods approaches that were identified in the methodological literature. A paradigm shift and a change of mindset are recommended for LIS researchers in SSA so that they may exploit the advantages offered by mixed methods research in conducting their studies.     

理清比较图书馆学研究的脉络

At present, the research papers on comparative librarianship in China lack the studies of living examples. There are too many approaches to pure theories. On account of the lack of the support from practices, merely depending and drawing on the experience from other countries,it is very hard for the achievements made to guide the practices. Thus, theory and practice would split and break up sooner or later. Besides, some researchers are eager for quick success and instant benefit, trying to accomplish in one move.In addition,narrow knowledge of the researchers and the irrational structure of knowledge also affect the researchers to make a thorough study.     

图书馆学及其对象的层次结构研究

关于图书馆学及其对象研究,应在图书馆学对象、图书馆学研究者、图书馆学的关系基础之上寻求研究者的视域融合。按照图书馆学研究者的认识层次的划分,图书馆学对象有本体论、认识论、方法论层次,相应图书馆学学科也呈现现象学、元学、方法学层次或形态。从根本上讲,图书馆学对象是所谓"图书馆性",图书馆学呈现现象学形态,是对图书馆现象的本质、内在联系、社会功能、发展规律等方面认识成果的系统化和理论化。这种系统化和理论化是图书馆学人对图书馆发生发展现象的理解与解释。     

Report of the UNESCO “Training the Trainers in Information Literacy” (“TTT”) Workshop Ankara,Turkey, September 3–5, 2008

The purpose of this article is to explore the use of mixed methods research (MMR) in articles published in library and information science (LIS) journals in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) from 2004 to 2008. A mixed methods research framework provided in the methodological literature is used to determine how this method was practiced within the LIS scientific community in SSA. Six hundred and eighty five articles published in nine peer-reviewed LIS journals in SAA were reviewed, finding the dominant research methods in these journals to be survey designs and historical research. The use of MMR was limited: 48 out of 685 articles used the mixed methods approaches that were identified in the methodological literature. A paradigm shift and a change of mindset are recommended for LIS researchers in SSA so that they may exploit the advantages offered by mixed methods research in conducting their studies.     

Awareness of,and Attitudes Towards the Paradigm Shifts Among Library and Information Science (LIS) Faculty Staff in Zimbabwe

The study is informed by the Punctuated Equilibrium Theory and the Diffusion of Innovation Theory. The integrative theoretical approach allowed for methodological pluralism and enabled the researcher to discuss two distinct types of change, namely evolutionary change and revolutionary change. Both qualitative and quantitative methodologies were employed. The qualitative methodology was dominant, while the quantitative methodology was supplementary. The study integrated case study and survey research methods within a single research design. Respondents in the case study were surveyed using survey questionnaires and in-depth interviews. The population of the study comprises all LIS faculty staff, Deans/Heads of Departments (HODs) in higher education institutions (HEIs) offering LIS education in Zimbabwe. The study found that LIS faculty members have high awareness levels and optimism about paradigm shifts in the fields of library and information science. Despite this awareness, knowledge and optimism, LIS faculty staff are victims of paradigm effects and paradigm paralysis. This suggests that for any change initiatives to succeed, LIS faculty members need to break the chains of paradigm effects and paralysis. Until the chains are broken no meaningful evolutionary or revolutionary change can happen in LIS education and training in Zimbabwe. The findings provide fundamental information for decision makers at national and institutional levels. The information can be used for the purpose of analysis, advocacy and strategic planning for educational reforms.