Introduction to Documentation Studies

by Niels Lund

Overview

What do a composer, a writer, a painter, a historian, a political activist, and a social agency office have in common? They all create documents to communicate and inform the world, making documentation a necessity for any human interaction in society. Through six case-studies, the book shows how a complementary analysis of the intertwined processes of documentation, communication, and information in any kind of human interaction can be conducted. It demonstrates the relationships between the agents involved, the means chosen, and in which modes the resulting complexes of documents are created, regardless of the field.

The complementary analytical model and method is relevant not only for documentation, communication, and information scholars, but to a range of fields of research in humanities, social sciences and natural sciences/engineering and design.

Written by an expert in documentation, this book provides a solid theoretical and analytical framework for professionals in archives, libraries, and museums, and for all those who manage documents as part of their professional life in healthcare, transportation, education, production, and trade.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781783301898
Publisher:	Facet Publishing
Publication date:	01/25/2024
Series:	Foundations of the Information Sciences
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Niels Windfeld Lund became the first employee and full professor in Documentation Studies at the Department of Documentation Studies, University of Tromsø, Norway. Dr Lund was Associate Professor at the Royal School of Library and Information Science in Denmark and has twice been Visiting Professor at the University of California, Berkeley. In 2001 Dr Lund founded The Document Academy, an international network for Documentation studies organizing annual DOCAM conferences in North America and summer schools in Norway at the University of Tromsø. He is still active as professor emeritus, supervising graduate students and participating in research projects.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Part 1: DOCUMENTATION THEORY

1 Setting the Stage

2 A Complementary Theory of Documentation

3 A Model for a Complementary Documentation Analysis

Part 2: DOCUMENTATION IN PRACTICE

4 Music: A Requiem for Countess von Walsegg, aka Mozart's Requiem

5 Literature: "Indian Camp" - A Short Story by Ernest Hemingway

6 Art: The Girls on the Bridge - One Title - Many works

7 Science: "The Danish Revolution 1500-1800" - A Doctoral dissertation

8 Politics: The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom August 28, 1963

9 Identity Documentation: Name and number

Part 3: DOCUMENTATION IN THEORY AND PRACTICE

10: Documentation in a comparative perspective

11: A complementary discipline of documentation, information, and communication

Epilogue

Editorial Reviews

"A timely and important contribution to a flourishing scholarly field, Lund’s book on documentation theory aspires to offer a unifying approach to human communication and documentation. Building on key figures in communication and information theory, and elaborating on established concepts in the field as well as adjacent disciplines and traditions, he develops a theory and a model of documentation analysis which has the potential to synthesize the many diverse approaches found in existing theories of documentation and communication. It is historically informed, theoretically solid, and well done—a joy to read." 
— Professor Anne Mangen, Norwegian Reading Centre, University of Stavanger, Norway 

From the Publisher