Information Interactions in Museums and Libraries Diana Bowers LIS , Professor Irene Lopatovska Pratt SILS Fall 2012 Edited for presentation at the Pratt SILS Student Showcase, May

A Shared Mission A 2008 study concluded that, “libraries and museums are the most trusted sources of information” (Yarrow et al., p. 10). Both libraries and museums have a service orientation, and “tend to articulate their usefulness to society in terms of value to individuals and to communities” (Madsen-Brooks).

Information-as-Thing “Anything human beings interact with or observe can be a source of information.” (Bates)

Information-as-Thing “Anything human beings interact with or observe can be a source of information.” (Bates) =

Information-as-Thing “Anything human beings interact with or observe can be a source of information.” (Bates) = “we are unable to say confidently of anything that it could not be information” (Buckland)

Encyclopedia of LIS The encyclopedia’s objective is to “reflect the growing convergence” between information institutions (Bates). Information professionals “need a broader perspective” as this convergence increases.

“the effective management of information… determines much of what can be known.” (Bates)

Communication: Presentation of Collections What is the difference between how libraries and museums present their collections to users? Source: php Source: corning.htm

Accessibility: User Relationships to Institutions As much as 90% of museum collections may be in storage Their digital catalogs are often not as fully available to users as those of libraries. Source:

Digital Collections Digital information access of library collections has driven a desire for the same from museums (Marty, “Museum Informatics,” 2009). It has been proven that use of online museum materials actually increases visits (Marty, “Museum Informatics,” 2009; Prochaska, p. 148). Museums need to follow libraries’ example and fully embrace digitization and digital sharing of their collections.

However, museums are known to have better education and outreach programs. How can these two types of institutions learn from each other, combining their respective strengths? Source: norris-on-museum-education-at-the-met.html Source:

Collaboration Links between museum and library activities to increase user access to/interaction with collections

Collaboration Links between museum and library activities to increase user access to/interaction with collections – Users don’t care what kind of institution their information comes from, as long as they can access it (and understand it) quickly and easily

Collaboration Links between museum and library activities to increase user access to/interaction with collections – Users don’t care what kind of institution their information comes from, as long as they can access it (and understand it) quickly and easily The goal? To “bring new users to collections” (Bischoff)

Digital examples abound: New York Heritage, Alabama Mosaic, Canadian Heritage Information Network “The human mind…operates by association.” (Bush) Source:

Collaboration  Convergence The “Collaboration Continuum” (Zorich et. al.): Contact  Cooperation  Coordination  Collaboration  Convergence

The Education Imperative Currently, “curriculum models still support traditional definitions of the roles, functions and audiences of archives, libraries and museums” (Trant, p. 1). Only ~18% of Museum Studies programs in the U.S. provide courses on information technology training Only 3 LIS programs in the U.S. offer courses on Museum Informatics

Museum Informatics 60% of 2013 Museums and the Web attendees identified as museum technologists Only 30% had formal technology training LIS not a common background for museums technologists

If we… Recognize museums as information systems, just as libraries are and Continue to push for collaboration and convergence between the two, both professionally and academically

“we'll thrive, just as our patrons will.”

Thank you! Questions? Comments?

References Bates, M.J. (2006). Fundamental forms of information. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 57(8), Bishoff, L. (2004). The collaboration imperative. Library Journal. Retrieved from Buckland, M. (1991). Information and information systems. New York, NY: Praeger. Bush, V. (1945). As we may think. The Atlantic Monthly, 176(1), Retrieved from Given, L. M., & McTavish, L. (2010). What’s old is new again: the reconvergence of libraries, archives, and museums in the digital age. The Library Quarterly, 80(1), Institute of Museum and Library Services. (n.d.). About us. Accessed Nov. 27, 2012 from Kim, J. (2012). Building Rapport Between LIS and Museum Studies. Journal of education for library and information science, 53(2), Latham, K. F. (2012). Museum object as document: Using Buckland's information concepts to understand museum experiences. Journal of Documentation, 68(1), Madsen-Brooks, Leslie. (2011). Museums. Encyclopedia of Library and Information Sciences, Third Edition. Retrieved from Marty, P.F. (2009). Museum informatics. Encyclopedia of Library and Information Sciences, Third Edition. Retrieved from Prochaska, A. (2003). Special collections in an international perspective. Library Trends, 52(1), Saracevic, T. (1999). Information science. Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 50(12), Trant, J. (2009). Emerging convergence? Thoughts on museums, archives, libraries, and professional training. Museum Management and Curatorship, 24(4), Waibel, G. & Erway, R. (2009). Think global, act local – Library, archive and museum collaboration. Museum Management and Curatorship, 24(4), Pre-print retrieved from: erway- mmc.pdf. Yarrow, A., Clubb, B., & Draper, J. L. (2008). Public libraries, archives and museums: Trends in collaboration and cooperation. International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions. Zorich, D. M., Waibel, G., & Erway, R. (2008). Beyond the silos of the LAMs: Collaboration among libraries, archives and museums. Dublin, OH: OCLC Programs & Research.