Negotiating change: Transition as a central concept for information literacy

Abstract

Transition forms a dynamic concept that has been underexplored within information literacy research and practice. This article uses the grounded theory of mitigating risk, which was produced through doctoral research into the information literacy practices of language-learners, as a lens for a more detailed examination of transition and its role within information literacy. This framing demonstrates that information literacy mediates transition through supporting preparation, connection, situatedness and confidence within a new setting and facilitating a shift in identity. This article concludes by discussing the important role that time and temporality, resistance and reflexivity play within transition as well as outlining implications for information literacy instruction and future research into time, affect and materiality.

Seeing information: Visual methods as entry points to information practices

“…Noting that photovoice provides a useful way to mediate the challenges of research with participants from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, Lloyd and Wilkinson’s (2016, 2017) use of photovoice also draws attention to the social practices that form the foundation of learning during re-settlement. Findings from Lloyd and Wilkinson’s studies as well as from ongoing doctoral work into the information literacy practices of language-learners (Hicks, in progress) will be used as guiding studies to demonstrate these implications further.…”

“…The second study (Hicks, in progress) that informs this paper uses photo-elicitation methods to inform ongoing doctoral research into the information literacy practices of English-speaking undergraduate students who are learning a language abroad. Exploring how transition within a new cultural context is mediated through the enactment of information literacy practices, this study’s focus on everyday experiences meant that photo-elicitation constituted a way to explore the nuances of student meaning-making as they established themselves within a new setting.…”

“…The paper will start by providing an overview of visual research methods and how they have been used within library and information science. The paper will then use the example of studies into the information literacy practices of refugees (Lloyd and Wilkinson, 2016, 2017) and language learners who are studying abroad (Hicks, in progress) to focus more concretely on the affordances and limitations of photographic visual methods within information practices research. The paper will finish by discussing implications and recommendations for the future directions of visual methods within library and information science.…”

An information behavior theory of transitions

“…Dealing with these complex life transitions has led to a recent growth of Information Science interest in the general area of life transitions, including significant work on migration (Bronstein, 2018;Lloyd, 2017;Oduntan & Ruthven, 2019), parenting (Greyson et al, 2017;Ruthven et al, 2018b), work transitions (Willson, 2019), language learners (A. Hicks, 2021), getting a new job (Jablin, 2001), and gender transition (Haimson, 2018;.…”

“…Many other disciplines are also interested in transitions and, as Hicks perceptively notes, transitions have most often been studied by disciplines that mediate change (A. Hicks, 2021). Information Science is arguably one of these disciplines and many authors have reported the value of appropriate information support during transitions.…”