Understanding information policy: concepts, frameworks and research tools

Abstract

This paper considers the need for a more systematic and critical approach to the academic study of information policy at national and international level. It reviews the complex, multifaceted nature of large-scale information policy problems and considers some of the main sources of confusion in the journal literature. It is argued that while information policy has been largely technology-driven, the consideration of information policy issues has, for histor ical reasons, typically been discipline-bounded. This has contributed to a fragmentation of research effort and a lack of consensus on the most appropriate home discipline for the study of information policy. In the search for a more critical scientific understanding of information policy issues, a brief review is made of the strengths, limitations and applicability of the broad theoretical and methodolog ical approaches which have been adopted, often implicitly, by writers reporting in the library and information science literature. The paper concludes with a consideration of some desirable characteristics for the design of information policy studies.