Research: Concept, Purpose, Functions, Scope and Ethics
Research in LIS shares the general concept, purpose, and ethical obligations of research anywhere (see Paper I, Unit II), applied specifically to information behaviour, systems, and institutions. It is classed as Basic (theory-building, e.g., modelling information-seeking behaviour) or Applied (e.g., evaluating a specific library's services), and as Interdisciplinary (drawing on computer science, sociology, management) or Multidisciplinary (addressed from several disciplinary angles side by side).
Research Methods
| Method | Typical LIS application |
|---|---|
| Historical | Tracing the evolution of a library system, classification scheme, or institution |
| Descriptive | Surveys of user needs, satisfaction, or collection usage |
| Experimental | Testing the effect of an interface design or search algorithm on retrieval performance |
| Delphi | Structured, iterative consultation of an expert panel to build consensus (e.g., forecasting future library trends) |
Research Design: Problem, Literature, Hypothesis, Sampling
- Selection of the research problem — identifying a gap that is significant, feasible, and researchable.
- Review of literature — situates the study within existing scholarship and refines the research question.
- Hypothesis — a testable statement predicting a relationship between variables; may be null or alternative, and is tested for statistical significance.
- Sampling techniques — probability methods (simple random, stratified, cluster, systematic) ensure representativeness; non-probability methods (convenience, purposive, snowball) are used when a full sampling frame is unavailable.
Methods of Data Collection
| Method | Description |
|---|---|
| Questionnaire | A structured set of written questions distributed to respondents, good for large samples |
| Interview | Direct verbal interaction, allowing depth and follow-up (structured, semi-structured, unstructured) |
| Observation | Recording behaviour or events as they naturally occur |
| Library records | Using existing circulation/usage data as a data source |
| Scales and Checklists | Standardised instruments (e.g., Likert scales) for measuring attitudes or verifying presence of features |
Data Analysis, Presentation and Statistical Packages
Data is presented through tables, charts, and summary statistics (mean, median, mode, standard deviation), and analysed with inferential techniques (t-test, chi-square, correlation, regression) depending on the hypothesis being tested. Common statistical packages/tools include SPSS (general statistical analysis), Bibexcel (bibliometric data processing), and R (open-source statistical computing and visualisation).
Research Report Writing and Citation Tools
A research report typically follows a standard structure (see Paper I, Unit II — IMRaD) and must comply with a chosen style manual (APA, MLA, Chicago). Online citation and reference management tools (Zotero, Mendeley, EndNote) automate citation formatting, and anti-plagiarism tools (Turnitin, Urkund) verify originality before submission or publication. Evaluation of a research report considers its methodological rigour, clarity, and contribution to the field.
Metric Studies in LIS
| Metric study | Focus |
|---|---|
| Bibliometrics | Quantitative analysis of published literature — citation counts, authorship patterns, publication trends |
| Scientometrics | Quantitative study of science itself — growth of disciplines, research output, scientific collaboration |
| Webometrics | Quantitative analysis of web-based information structures — hyperlinks, web visibility |
| Altmetrics | Alternative, web-based indicators of research impact — social media mentions, downloads, blog citations |
Impact Factors and Author-level Metrics
- Journal Impact Factor — average number of citations received by articles in a journal over a defined period.
- Institutional and Author Impact — aggregated citation performance of an institution or individual researcher.
- h-index — the largest number h such that an author has h papers each cited at least h times.
- g-index — gives more weight to highly-cited papers than the h-index.
- i10-index — the number of an author's publications with at least 10 citations each (used by Google Scholar).
Trends in Library and Information Science Research
Current directions include data-driven and computational LIS research, growing interest in information behaviour in digital/social media contexts, open science and reproducibility practices, use of altmetrics alongside traditional citation metrics, and increased application of AI/machine learning to bibliometric and retrieval studies.