Introduction to Information Science

Introduction to Information Science, written by David Bawden and Lyn Robinson, is a new work from Facet Publishing. Bawden is the editor for Journal of Documentation. Both Bawden and Robinson lecture at the School of Information, City University London and have published many articles and monographs together and separately.

In the preface, the authors state that their aim is “to describe in outline, and to set into context all the important topics within the information science discipline”. They warn the reader that since this is a broad area, they have not covered any topic in elaborate detail. Instead, they have “pointed out the topics and issues, described them briefly and shown how they fit together, explained the terminology, and shown where more detail can be found”.

All 15 chapters have a common structure. Each opens with a few selected quotations, and an introduction explains the general area and gives reasons for selecting sub‐chapters. It also suggests other general works for a better overview of the area. Sub‐chapters give an overview of the sub‐areas by presenting terminology in a straightforward yet not simplistic way, explaining the main theories or issues, and presenting the most prominent researchers. Each chapter ends with a summary presenting selected key issues in a small frame. All items on the short list of key readings following the summary are enhanced with a brief note, stressing the reasons for selection. A long list of references follows. At the end of a chapter, the authors often introduce the topic dealt with by the following chapter. Cross‐references between chapters are frequent and very clear. The style and terminology are also clear and consistent.

The first chapter discusses the question of what information science is. The second gives a historical perspective on the field by outlining the long tradition of documentation. Next, “Philosophies and paradigms of information science” presents the philosophical basics of the field. Philosophical positions (realism, constructivism and critical theory) and paradigms (system, cognitive, socio‐cognitive) are presented here and often referred to later on. Basic concepts of information science, such as data, information and knowledge are presented in the fourth chapter. Domain analysis (fifth chapter) is presented as “the central concept for information science, linking several other important aspects' linking together several other aspects described in other chapters”.

The sixth chapter, on information organization, presents topics such as controlled vocabularies, metadata, indexing and newer trends like tagging. Chapter seven presents information technologies for the creation, dissemination and retrieval. Applications for information organization are grouped by use to creation, dissemination, sharing, organization and retrieval, digital libraries and repositories, and finally preservation. Informetrics with the origins of bibliometrics, the main bibliometric laws and the application of informetrics to various areas are presented in the eighth chapter.

After this overview of information and its organization, the authors turn to analysis of the user. First, the main theories and models of user behaviour are introduced, followed by methods of studying information behaviour (including a short list of recent studies in addition to the key readings and references at the end of the chapter). Next, “Communicating information: changing contexts” presents the information lifecycle and communication chain, taking publishers into account as well. Chapter 11 discusses what an information society is and introduces the concepts of information policies, legal and ethical issues. Information management and policies are then discussed in more detail in the following chapter. Contexts of information management are grouped: document and content management, records and archives, libraries and repositories, museums and galleries, collection and knowledge management in other areas. The value, effectiveness, impact of information and support of creativity and information are also presented.

Digital literacy (chapter 13) is presented as a “broad and all‐encompassing concern for attitudes and values, as well as skills and understanding, in making good use of information.” Chapter 14 presents information science research by outlining the prominent research methods, again with separate lists of recently published examples applying these methods. In the last chapter the authors outline the current trends and suggest “to draw inspiration from histories of the future, from speculative writings, and even from science fiction”.

The authors conclude that:

[…] rather than attempting to defend their present disciplinary niche, academics and practitioners alike should concentrate on ensuring that the insights of information science are recognized and applied in wider contexts.

Bawden and Robinson's book is a handbook on how to do just this; not as a practical application, but as an overview of issues that the field has already dealt with and are ready to be used or need further research to become applicable in practice. It is also remarkable that the authors focus on the intellectual issues of the field, which remain fairly constant through time. This is likely a response to the fact that any book on information science may become obsolete rather quickly. The authors acknowledge this repeatedly.

While Rubin's (2010) Foundations of Library and Information Science focuses on US libraries, this book is more generally oriented and does not focus on libraries only. Compared to Davis and Shaw's (2011) Introduction to Information Science and Technology, it is not concerned with technology. It is a unique book in its comprehensiveness and focus on the intellectual processes. I can only recommend that students and scholars put this book on the “classics” shelf with other favourite books to be used frequently and for different reasons, e.g. for introductory study, refreshing of memory or inspiration.