Research
School of Information Studies researchers engage in work that makes meaningful cultural, social, educational and economic contributions to society. Our research is located at the intersection of information, people, and technology, often with a particular focus on GLAM institutions - galleries, libraries, archives and museums. The research at our school is impactful, engages with regional, national, and international stakeholders, and was rated Above World Standard in the most recent Excellence in Research Australia exercise
Resilient People
The School of Information Studies’ research contributes to developing educated, healthy and resilient people by:
1. Helping develop informed community of information, library, archives, and records professionals and knowledge managers to make empowered decisions and conduct effective work using universally acceptable and socially focused ethical and moral principles.
2. Developing a theoretically authenticated evidence base around student learning experiences across the breadth of educational settings.
3. Helping communities understand the dynamic challenges of contemporary literacies in a variety of settings such as education and health in order to develop independent, lifelong learners.
Research projects:
- Digital equity and the role of IT in prison education delivery (Jane)
- The role of reading to support reform in Australian penal history (Jane)
- The role of libraries in supporting the well being of prisoners (Jane)
- Role of technology in online learning environments (Afzal)
- Guided inquiry in school libraries (Garrison)
- Developing assessments and e-resources for online environments (Asim)
- Indigenous information practices and information technology use (Yi)
Researchers:
Dr Waseem Afzal
Dr Kasey Garrison
Dr George Yi
Dr Asim Qayyum
Dr Jessie Lymn
Dr Jane Garner
Flourishing Communities
The School of Information Studies’ research contributes to developing communities that will be thriving economically, with strong social frameworks, and where diversity and harmony reside by helping to ensure equitable and effective access to all kinds of information. To this end, the aims of its research includes:
1. Identifying social frameworks related to information access and use needed for inclusive and diverse communities, including making informed decisions based on relevant and reliable information.
2. Collaborating with keeping places such as libraries, archives and museums to collect, preserve and make accessible records representing all communities including those whose stories have not traditionally been collected.
3. Developing scholarly communities by improving information access and communication, and understanding the factors influencing research evaluation and impact assessment.
4. Helping education communities to extend knowledge and understanding of information services and knowledge networks, including the significance of digital scholarship for learning and teaching.
Research projects:
- The role of reading and libraries in correctional facilities (Jane)
- Legal information seeking behaviour of Australian adult prisoners (Jane)
- Open-access mega-journals and the future of scholarly communication (Simon)
- Open access in theory and practice (Simon)
- Developing scholarly communities by improving information access (Hider)
- Open access publishing and data management (Kennan)
- Refugees and information practice (Kennan, Qayyum, Thompson)
- Use of academic social networks by academics (Jamali)
- Effect of multi-disciplinary research on research performance (Jamali)
- Information needs and human behavior (Afzal)
- Role of informational properties in shaping human perception (Afzal)
- Disability and public libraries (Bec Muir, Thompson, Qayyum)
- International research collaboration and cultural capitalism (Thompson, Garrison)
- Diverse communities and information flows (Lymn)
- Education communities and knowledge networks (O’Connell, Combes, Carroll)
- Casual and serious leisure information behavior (Mansourian)
- Best practices in leadership, management, and marketing in information organizations (Yi)
- Cultural diversity and global representation in literature for and about children and youth adults (Garrison)
Researchers:
Professor Philip Hider
A/Professor Mary Anne Kennan
Dr Jessie Lymn
Dr Hamid Jamali
Dr Mary Carroll
Judy O’Connell
Dr Waseem Afzal
Dr Yazdan Mansourian
Dr George Yi
Dr Kasey Garrison
Dr Asim Qayyum
Dr Jane Garner
Dr Simon Wakeling
Sustainable Environments
The School of Information Studies’ research contributes to the development of sustainable solutions in agriculture and water resources while enhancing the biodiversity of our environments and strengthening ecosystems by ensuring individuals and communities have the capacity to play an active role in the process of collecting, organising, reporting, analysing and disseminating data and information about our environment.
Research projects:
- Research data management (Kennan)