The Documentation Strategy Process: A Model and a Case Study

Abstract

How might the archival community strengthen its ability to analyze documentation needs and address these needs more efficiently? Is there a general approach to analysis and action that can help guide such work? This article describes a model addressing these goals and provides a case study illustrating the model at work. First the authors outline the case for broad, ongoing analysis of the adequacy of archival documentation and for coordinated action to improve the identification, retention, and treatment of records of enduring value. In the second section, Hackman presents an analytic model for an Archival Documentation Strategy Process, describing the development, refinement, and implementation of documentation strategies. The model suggests broader analysis, increased communication and coordination, and more active use of a range of sources of influence to shape archival selection policies and programs. As the archival community evaluates the feasibility and potential effectiveness of documentation strategies, it may be especially useful to consider a case study of an institution that has already employed many aspects of the model. In the third section, Warnow-Blewett reviews the motivations that led the American Institute of Physics to design an initial documentation strategy in the 1960s and outlines the refinement, extension, and effectiveness of that strategy during the past twentyfive years. In the closing section the authors outline some of the implications of the documentation strategy process for established archival theory and practice, and call for discussion and testing in other areas of documentation.