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Papers on Information and Archival Studies III
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The Accessibility Conundrum
The Problematic Phenomenon of
Information Access and Accessibility
DR. GEERT-JAN VAN BUSSEL
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Papers on
Information and Archival Studies
III
The Accessibility Conundrum
The Problematic Phenomenon of
Information Access and Accessibility
Dr G.J. van Bussel
vi
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Bussel, G.J. van (2024). The Accessibility Conundrum. The Problematic Phenomenon of Infor-
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vii
The author
Geert-Jan van Bussel (1960) is an independent consultant, researcher and auditor
specializing in information governance, digital archiving and compliance. He is a
leading auditor of records management and archiving standards (ISO 15489, ISO
16175, ISO 23081 and ISO 16363). As a strategic consultant, he is sought after by
many (international) business and governmental organizations. He is a senior lectur-
er and researcher at the University of Applied Sciences in Amsterdam and an assis-
tant professor at the University of Amsterdam. He is a guest lecturer at several uni-
versities in Europe and one of the leading archival scholars in the Netherlands. He
was a member and president of the Special Commission for Archives (1998–2002;
2009–2011), a commission of the Cultural Council, the most important advisory
body of the Dutch government in the field of culture. He has been a (keynote)
speaker at a number of (international) seminars and conferences, mostly on the im-
pact and influence of information processing and information management on the
work of people. He has published extensively on information management, gov-
ernance, audit, compliance and digital archiving.
Writing style
Regarding the text’s redaction, I have employed AI-assisted technologies to enhance
readability, spelling, and grammar. However, I have not utilized AI to supplant my
own insights or to assess data. I have adhered to the conventions of Oxford English
while maintaining all citations and annotations in the language style employed by the
original authors.
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CONTENTS
Introduction 1
A problem of mass 8
Neglect 8
Access to and accessibilityof information 9
A growing mass of information 12
Paradoxes 17
Evaluation 23
2 Information Access in a hybrid world 25
The effects of digitalization 26
Code is law, law is code 28
Hybrid amalgamation 31
An inescapable loss of privacy 34
Doing business 38
Being literate 42
Divide(s) 42
Van Dijk’s model of access 47
Natives and immigrants 49
The need for literacy 54
Environmental concerns 63
Evaluation 70
3 Theoretical approaches to information access 75
Access to ‘things’ 76
An overview of research on information access
and accessibility 80
Assumptions 80
Information access disparity research 81
Information seeking research 88
Information retrieval research 95
Information quality research 99
Information security research 104
Information management research 107
Archival science research 112
*
1 The paradoxes of information access 7
x
Evaluation 124
4 Bottlenecks and requirements for
information access and accessibility 129
Eight bottlenecks for access and accessibility 130
A political bottleneck 130
A social bottleneck 135
An economic bottleneck 137
A legal bottleneck 140
An infrastructural bottleneck 141
An educational bottleneck 144
A personal bottleneck 145
An organizational bottleneck 147
Evaluation 149
Five requirements for access and accessibility 151
Searching for access requirements 151
Five requirements for information access 155
Requirement 1: Findability 157
Requirement 2: Availability 161
Requirement 3: Perceptibility 165
Requirement 4: Interpretability 169
Requirement 5: Contextuality 173
An evaluation and a checklist 177
5 The future of information acces 187
Perspectives of Artificial Intelligence 188
Three types of AI 189
Concerns 194
Three developments for enhancing access 197
A possible future for information access
and accessibility 202
6 Concluding remarks 207
1
INTRODUCTION
*
2
Over the course of several years, I have written a series of texts on
information access and accessibility in relation to the ‘Archive-as-Is’
framework that I developed in 2017.
1
I have revised these individual
texts for the purpose of publication in this book, in order to align the
footnotes, reduce the instances of overlapping information, and occa-
sionally cross-referencing. They are linked by a focus on access to and
accessibility of information, its meaning, importance, theoretical under-
pinnings, bottlenecks, and requirements. In mid-2024, I authored a new
text that addressed artificial intelligence and the future of information
access. The book concludes with a synthesis of the preceding arguments,
which is presented in the form of a conclusion.
The central thesis of this book is that access to information repre-
sents a vital aspect of contemporary society, encompassing participation,
accountability, governance, transparency, the production of products,
and the delivery of services. This view is widely shared, with commenta-
tors and scholars agreeing that access to information is a key factor in
maintaining societal and economic stability.
2
However, having access to
information does not guarantee its accessibility. Assuming that informa-
tion is (cognitively) interpretable is incorrect, as many practical examples
illustrate.
It is possible to distinguish between two levels of information access
and accessibility. The initial level of analysis concerns access to information
1
For the framework: G.J. van Bussel (2017). ‘The theoretical framework of the
‘Archive-as-Is.’ An organization-oriented view on archives. Part I. Setting the
stage: enterprise information management and archival theories. Part II. An ex-
ploration of the ‘Archive-as-Is’ framework,’ F. Smit, A. Glaudemans, and R.
Jonker (eds.), Archives in Liquid Times, SAP, ‘s-Gravenhage, pp. 16–41, pp. 42–
71.
2
OECD (2019). Enhancing Access to and Sharing of Data. Reconciling Risks and Benefits
for Data Re-use Across Societies, OECD Publishing, Paris, especially Chapters 2 (pp.
23–58) and 3 (pp. 59–76).
3
as a social phenomenon. It concerns the distinction between public (govern-
ment and/or legally disclosed) information and non-public (individual
or corporate) information. Access to public information is considered a
fundamental human right and is enshrined in Article 19 of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights. It is a fundamental right, as without access
to information it is impossible to exercise other human rights, including
the right to political participation (Article 21), a fair trial (Article 10),
freedom of conscience (Article 18) and health (Article 25.1). These rights
are reaffirmed in international treaties such as the International Cove-
nant on Civil and Political Rights and the American Convention on Hu-
man Rights.
3
This does not imply that public information will be imme-
diately accessible in its entirety; rather, the majority of such information
will become accessible over time, even if it is initially classified as secret
or confidential. Access to private information, whether belonging to an
individual or a corporation, is not as straightforward. Access to this in-
formation is contingent upon the following conditions: [1] an organiza-
tion or individual may grant access to information at their own discretion
and as a gesture of goodwill; [2] an organization may permit (commer-
cial) access to information on its website(s) for as long as it allows it to
be online (or is obliged to keep it accessible); [3] the law may permit
(limited) access to (certain types or parts of) this information, possibly
on the basis of payment of a fee. This permits, for example, government
3
Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948). Online source, retrieved 1 Novem-
ber 2024, from: https://www.un.org/en/about-us/universal-declaration-of-
human-rights. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966), 19.2.
Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/ccpr.aspx. The Ameri-
can Convention of Human Rights (1969), 13.1. Online source, retrieved 1 November
2024, from:
https://www.cidh.oas.org/basicos/english/basic3.american%20conven-
tion.htm.
4
investigators into alleged tax fraud to access business information, or
individuals to access personal information (as defined in the GDPR).
4
The second level concerns access to information as an organizational phe-
nomenon. The importance of access to public information for citizens
cannot be overstated. However, access to organizational information is
equally crucial for employees. The ability to access information is of ben-
efit to customers, as it allows them to receive better service. It fosters
trust between employees and their employers. It enables organizational
leaders to identify trends and bottlenecks, focus on the most serious is-
sues, and gain the insight to make informed decisions. This, in turn, de-
termines whether an organization succeeds or fails. There are numerous
impediments to effective information management, including behav-
ioural and governance issues that can impede access and accessibility.
5
The two levels are inextricably linked. Nevertheless, access to infor-
mation as a societal phenomenon exerts a significant influence on access
to and accessibility of information within organizations. My objective is
to examine information access and accessibility in the context of a highly
digitalized world. This book provides an overview of these concepts,
their context, and their requirements.
The book comprises of seven units, an introduction followed by six
chapters which offer insights into the challenge of access to information
in a digitalized world. The initial chapter, which is relatively brief, ad-
dresses the concepts of access and accessibility, elucidating their mean-
4
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), article 15, and recitals 63 and 64.
Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from: https://gdpr-info.eu/art-15-
gdpr/. Archived at: https://gdpr-info.eu/art-15-gdpr/
5
G.J. van Bussel (2020). A Sound of Silence. Organizational Behaviour and Enterprise
Information Management. Papers on Information and Archival Studies, I, Van Bus-
sel Document Services, Helmond; and G.J. van Bussel (2021). An Accountability
Puzzle. Organizations, Organizational Governance, and Accountability. Papers on Infor-
mation and Archival Studies, II, Van Bussel Document Services, Helmond.
5
ings and delineating the ways in which they are influenced by the expo-
nential growth of information. Furthermore, it examines how infor-
mation technology introduces a novel access paradox. The second chap-
ter examines the challenges to access to and accessibility of information
in a digitalized, hybrid world where code may be law, where there is an
inescapable loss of privacy, where doing business opens and restricts ac-
cess, where literacy is a necessity to survive ‘digital divides,’ and where
environmental concerns may have an adverse effect on high expecta-
tions. The third chapter presents a review of theoretical approaches to
access and accessibility from seven different research perspectives: in-
formation access disparity, information seeking, information retrieval,
information quality, information security, information management, and
archives management. My analysis of this research leads me to identify
six approaches to information access and accessibility: [1] social, eco-
nomic, and political participation; [2] ‘smart’ and evolving technology;
[3] power and control; [4] sense-making; [5] knowledge representations,
and [6] information survival. The fourth chapter addresses the bottle-
necks and requirements for information access and accessibility, culmi-
nating in a checklist for organizations to assess these requirements with-
in their own business processes. In the fifth, relatively brief chapter, I
present some perspectives on artificial intelligence and the future of in-
formation access. The sixth chapter represents my attempt to draw con-
clusions and to bring this book to a close.
Although I have tried my best to discuss the broad range of access
and accessibility, I have no illusions that I have succeeded. There may
be aspects that I was not aware of or approaches that I overlooked. Nev-
ertheless, I believe that I have covered the most important aspects of
access to and accessibility of information, and that I have provided a
solid and well-founded description of the problems involved. I only
hope that the reader enjoys these texts as much as I enjoyed researching
and writing them.
6
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1
THE PARADOXES OF
INFORMATION ACCESS
*
8
A PROBLEM OF MASS
**********
Neglect
Since the 1990s, organizations have been faced with the transforma-
tion to an information society and have had to manage technology-re-
lated issues such as organizational chains, interorganizational data ware-
houses, cloud computing, trusted computing, ecommerce, computer
mediated exchange, linked data, green computing, blockchains, big data,
data lakes, data analytics, machine learning, and artificial intelligence. Or-
ganizations were (and still are) reorganizing themselves in continuous
waves of hypes and technologies to meet new challenges and expecta-
tions in changing environments. They have used successive generations
of information technology to try to align their business processes. They
captured more structured data in their databases than ever before and
improved the way business transactions were documented. As a result,
the quality of the structured data improved. However, even in the face
of increasing information overload, they neglected the access of the un-
structured data they generated (some 80 to 95% of all their information).
Similarly, the information behaviour of employees and the challenges of
lifelong learning to address the literacy problems created by these waves
of technological innovation and the resulting information overload have
been ignored.
6
6
Van Bussel (2020), pp. 59–71. 80%: S. Grimes (2008). ‘Unstructured data and
the 80 percent rule,’ Clarabridge Bridgepoints newsletter, Q3, Experts Corner, Reston
(Va.). Online source, retrieved 1 September 2024, from:
http://breakthroughanalysis.com/2008/08/01/unstructured-data-and-the-80-
percent-rule/. Archived at: https://archive.fo/jQ87U. 95%: A. Gandomi and
M. Haider (2015). ‘Beyond the hype. Big data concepts, methods, and analytics,’
International Journal of Information Management, Vol. 35, No. 2, pp. 137–144.
9
Access to and accessibility of information
There has been a long history of research into information access —
how people find, obtain and accept (useful) information. In 2004, Leah
Lievrouw noted that ‘access is rarely explicitly defined, even by experts,’
a statement that is still true today.
7
Peter Lor and Johannes Britz noted
that ‘the right of access to information has become a dominant right in
the information and knowledge age.’
8
Michael Buckland noted that ‘ac-
cess is emerging as a recurring theme’ in information studies.
9
It has
been said that ‘exploration of the conceptual nature of access to infor-
mation has been limited.’
10
Buckland states that the concept of infor-
mation access is about six aspects: identification, availability, user prices,
provider costs, cognitive access (understanding the information), and ac-
ceptability (accepting the credibility of the source or content). The first
four aspects are relevant to ‘information-supplying systems,’ systems
that retrieve potentially informative things (information-as-thing), and
all six aspects are necessary for ‘systems that inform,’ systems that people
use to become informed and successful (information-as-knowledge).
11
Gartner’s interpretation of these aspects is primarily in terms of the tech-
7
L. Lievrouw (2004). ‘Integrating the research on media access. A critical over-
view,’ E. Bucy and J. Newhagen (eds.), Media Access. Social and Psychological Dimen-
sions of New Technology Use, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers, London,
Chapter 13, pp. 269–279, p. 269.
8
P.J. Lor and J.J. Britz (2007). ‘Is a knowledge society possible without freedom
of access to information?,’ Journal of Information Science, Vol. 33, No. 4, pp. 387−
397, p. 392.
9
M.K. Buckland (1991). Information and Information Systems, Greenwood Publish-
ing Group, Westport, p. 72.
10
G. Burnett, P.T. Jaeger, and K.M. Thompson (2008). ‘Normative behavior
and information. The social aspects of information access,’ Library & Information
Science Research, Vol. 30, No. 1, pp. 56−66, p. 56.
11
Buckland (1991), pp. 78−80. Quoations: p. 80. I use ‘information’ as general
term for data, records, and information based on this typology.
10
nological capabilities and requirements of information systems, as was
the ‘common’ interpretation of access.
12
Cognitive access was seen by
Gartner as the knowledge of how to use technology for access, since one
must rely on technology for access to information. This is a limited un-
derstanding of Buckland’s concept of cognitive access.
‘Access’ to information is defined in the Merriam-Webster as the
‘freedom or ability to obtain or make use of something’ and in the Cam-
bridge Dictionary as ‘the right or opportunity to use or look at some-
thing.’
13
Accessibility is defined as a ‘capability’ or a ‘quality’ of infor-
mation in being reached, obtained, or used.
14
Kay Mathiesen clarified
that information access is not primarily about access to information sys-
tems or services that organize and present information (information-as-
thing) but to information itself (information-as-knowledge.)
15
In my view, both access and accessibility have two meanings: [1] ac-
cess to information is about (a) the organizational and/or societal way
12
W. Andrews (2009). Magic Quadrant for Information Access Technology, Gartner
RAS Core Research Note G00169927, Gartner, Inc., Stamford (Ct.). This re-
source is not available online. Based on: D. Satterthwaite (2010). ‘Emerging
technologies to speed information access,’ Information Services and Use, Vol. 30,
No. 3−4, pp. 99−105.
13
Respecively: Merriam-Webster (2024). ‘Access.’ Online source, retrieved 1
November 2024, from: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/access,
and Cambridge Dictionary (2024). ‘Access.’ Online source, retrieved 1 Novem-
ber 2024, from: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/access.
14
Merriam-Webster (2024). ‘Accessible.’ Online source, retrieved 1 November
2024, from: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/accessibility, and
Cambridge Dictionary (2024). ‘Accessibility.’ Online source, retrieved 1 Novem-
ber 2024, from: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/accessi-
bility.
15
K. Mathiesen (2014). ‘Facets of access. A conceptual and standard threats
analysis,’ M. Kindling and E. Greifeneder, Proceedings of the iConference 2014, March
4-7, 2014, Berlin, iSchools, pp. 605−611, p. 607.
11
of finding and obtaining information using the technologies, methods
and skills available, and (b) the way in which users are enabled to cogni-
tively access information; and [2] accessibility of information is about (a)
the quality of information in terms of being easily found and obtained,
and (b) the quality of information in terms of its content being (cogni-
tively) interpretable by users. The two concepts are closely related but
distinct. Cognitive access and cognitive interpretation are, as Mathiesen
(and Buckland) claimed, mostly neglected. Both information-as-thing
and information-as-knowledge are acknowledged in this description.
As Mathiesen points out, access can be characterized as a relationship
between an individual (or a group of individuals) and a piece (or a set of
pieces) of information. Changes in this relationship can be achieved by
influencing the quality of information to make it more accessible (e.g.
making it easier to understand or verify) or by influencing individuals or
the environment to make it easier to access (e.g. learning information
seeking and computer skills or using better technology).
16
The definitions of access assume (but do not mention) this second
meaning. Buckland implies this meaning in his fifth and sixth aspects:
‘cognitive access’ (understanding information), and ‘acceptability’ (ac-
cepting the credibility of the information).
17
Mathiesen does so as well
in her definition of access: ‘the freedom or opportunity to obtain, make
use of, and benefit from that information.’
18
Adding ‘benefit’ empha-
sizes the added value the (cognitive) interpretability of information of-
fers. The assumption that accessibility is implied when access is realized
is widespread in (academic) literature.
My description of access (‘how people can find, obtain and accept
(useful) information’) needs to be adapted to a more detailed definition
that tries to combine both meanings of access and accessibility. I am
16
Mathiesen (2014), p. 607.
17
Buckland (1991), pp. 78−80.
18
Mathiesen (2014), p. 607.
12
defining information access as the way in which people’s rights, oppor-
tunities, and/or abilities to find and obtain information are realized in
such a way that they benefit from the added value that accessibility of
information (= having both the quality of being easily obtained and be-
ing (cognitively) interpretable) provides.
Opportunities, abilities, rights, and accessibility are not self-evident.
Access is affected by ‘how it is used, organizational policies around ac-
cess, and applicable laws governing access and disclosure,’ the literate
abilities of the individuals trying to gain access, and changes in (cogni-
tive) interpretability over time, caused by, for instance, deteriorating file
formats.
19
My definition of access considers the difference between pub-
lic (‘right’) and private information (‘opportunity.’)
A growing mass of information
We are confronted with an overwhelming quantity of information.
IDC predicted that the amount of information will increase from 33 zet-
tabytes in 2018 to 181 zettabytes by 2025.
20
The digital universe doubles
every two years due to the possibilities of internet publishing, wireless
sensor networks, global communications, mobile devices, cameras, and
the large-scale digitization of cultural heritage objects.
21
The examples
19
Quotation: G. Kozak (2015). ‘Access/Accessibility,’ L. Duranti and P.C.
Franks (eds.), Encyclopedia of Archival Science, Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham, p.
1. There is no definition of access in this article.
20
D. Reinsel, J. Rydning, and J.F. Gantz (2021). Worldwide Global Datasphere Fore-
cast, 2021
−
2025. The World Keeps Creating More Data. Now, What Do We Do With
It All?, IDC, Framingham (Ms.). The summary used is an online source, availa-
ble in a webarchive. Archived at: https://archive.ph/wip/C2d0i.
21
J. Gantz and D. Reinsel (2012). The Digital Universe in 2020. Big Data, Bigger
Digital Shadows, and Biggest Growth in the Far East, IDC, Framingham (Ma.), pp. 1.
Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://www.cs.princeton.edu/courses/archive/spring13/cos598C/idc-the-
digital-universe-in-2020.pdf.
13
presented serve to illustrate the quantity of information that has been
created. It was not possible to find recent estimates for older examples.
However, it is certain that the amounts have increased in recent years.
In 2014, eBay processed a total of 100 petabytes.
22
In a single flight
of approximately 30 minutes, a jet engine generates 10 terabytes of data.
Given that thousands of daily flights are conducted, the data generated
exceeds petabytes.
23
In order to study dark matter, 20 terabytes of im-
ages are captured every night by the Vera C. Rubin Observatory. In the
10 years of operation, the data set will reach a size of 500 petabytes.
24
In December 2023, over 28 billion shares were traded on the NASDAQ
stock market in 5 days.
25
The University of Ontario’s Artemis cloud
platform facilitates the real-time streaming and analysis of data from ne-
onatal bedside monitors, with the potential to generate millions of data
points per patient per day. As an illustration, this results in the generation
of more than 1 gigabyte of drug infusion data from a single patient on a
22
C. Saran (2014). ‘Case study. How big data powers the eBay customer jour-
ney,’ ComputerWeekly.com, 29 April. Online Source, retrieved 1 November 2024,
from:
https://www.computerweekly.com/news/2240219736/Case-Study-How-big-
data-powers-the-eBay-customer-journey. Archived at:
https://archive.fo/teeXW.
23
I.J. Donaldson, S.C. Hom, T. Housel, I. Mun, and T. Silkey (2018). ‘Part A.
Visualization of big data. Current trends,’ A.B. Badiru and L. Racz (ed.), Hand-
book of Measurements. Benchmarks for Systems Accuracy and Precision, CRC Press, Boca
Raton, Chapter 17, pp. 316−330, p. 317.
24
G. Beckett (2022). ‘Preparing for an unprecedented astronomical data set.’
Epcc website. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://www.epcc.ed.ac.uk/whats-happening/articles/preparing-unprece-
dented-astronomical-data-set. Archived at: https://archive.ph/wip/NXJGs.
25
Nasdaq Daily Market Summary, 4-8 December 2023. Online source, retrieved 10
December 2023, available in a webarchive.
Archived at: https://archive.ph/nxUBi.
14
daily basis.
26
CERN manages 340 petabytes of information on tape,
which is equivalent to the storage capacity required to record 2000 years
of 24/7 high-definition video. In 2023, the organization’s tape archive is
estimated to contain 1 exabyte of information.
27
Google is processing
more information than the already staggering 24 petabytes per day in
2008.
28
In 2016-17, Google Photos stored approximately 14 petabytes
of images.
29
It was more (but not specified) in 2020, storing more than
4 trillion images.
30
YouTube is said to manage approximately 33 peta-
bytes of videos.
31
In 2024, the number of images and videos uploaded
per day on Instagram is estimated at approximately 95 million.
32
26
H. Khazaei, C. McGregor, M. Eklund, K. El-Khatib, and A. Thommandram
(2014). ‘Toward a big data healthcare analytics system. A mathematical modeling
perspective,’ Proceedings of the IEEE World Congress on Services, July 2014, Barcelona,
IEEE, New York, pp. 208−215, p. 208.
27
T. Smith (2023). ‘An exabyte of disk storage at CERN.’ Online source, re-
trieved 1 November 2024, from: https://home.web.cern.ch/news/news/com-
puting/exabyte-disk-storage-cern. Archived at: https://archive.is/0H33s.
28
J. Dean and S. Ghemawat (2008). ‘MapReduce. Simplified data processing on
large clusters,’ Communications of the ACM, Vol. 51, No. 1, pp. 107−113, p. 107.
29
A. Sabharwal (2016). ‘Google Photos, One year, 200 million users, and a
whole lot of selfies,’ The Keyword Google Blog. Online source, retrieved 1 Novem-
ber 2024, from: https://blog.google/products/photos/google-photos-one-
year-200-million/. Archived at: https://archive.ph/1csJt.
30
S. Ben-Yair (2020). ‘Updating Google Photos’ storage policy to build for the
future,’ The Keyword Google Blog. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024,
from: https://blog.google/products/photos/storage-changes/. Archived at:
https://archive.ph/PZZdS.
31
‘Estimate total storage capacity for all videos on YouTube,’ PMExercises, 30
December 2021. Online source, available in a webarchive. Archived at:
https://archive.fo/D6JAS.
32
J. Wise (2023). ‘How many pictures are on Instagram in 2023?, EarthWeb.
Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from: https://earthweb.com/how-
many-pictures-are-on-instagram/.
15
These examples are impressive, but do not illustrate growth. Re-
searchers, however, concur that the growth rate of information (as-
things) is remarkable. In 2002, the global storage capacity reached five
exabytes, while the distribution of information via radio, television, tel-
ephone, and the Internet reached an additional eighteen exabytes. The
quantity of stored information was increasing at an annual rate of ap-
proximately 30%.
33
In 2007, IDC estimated that the total amount of in-
formation in existence had exceeded the available storage capacity. The
figure had reached 800 exabytes by the year 2009. IDC anticipated a
compound annual growth rate of 40% through 2020. As previously
stated, IDC expects that 181 zettabytes will be generated in 2025, repre-
senting a 148 zettabyte increase from 2018.
34
In 2011, Martin Hilbert
and Priscila López found an average annual growth in storage of 23%
from 1986 to 2007 (when it was at 290 exabytes.) The information stor-
age capacity has doubled every 40 months since the 1980s, while com-
puting capacity has grown by 58% per year. In 2000, 25% of all infor-
Archived at: https://archive.ph/wip/eWQsy.
33
P. Lyman and H.R. Varian (2003). How much information? Berkeley, School of
Information Management and Systems, University of California. Website. On-
line source, available in a webarchive. Archived at:
https://webarchive.loc.gov/all/20200101194406/http://www2.sims.berke-
ley.edu/research/projects/how-much-info-2003/printable_report.pdf.
34
J.F. Gantz, D. Reinsel, and C. Chute (2007). The Expanding Digital Universe. A
Forecast of Worldwide Information Growth Through 2010, IDC, Framingham (Ms.).
Online source, available in a webarchive. Archived at:
https://web.archive.org/web/20230228180256/https://is-
suu.com/mpagaza/docs/expanding-digital-universe. See also: J.F. Gantz and
D. Reinsel (2009). As the Economy Contracts, the Digital Universe Expands, IDC,
Framingham (Ms.). Online source, available in a webarchive. Archived at:
https://perma.cc/V76L-ZFNL; Gantz and Reinsel (2012); and Reinsel, Ryd-
ning, and Gantz (2021).
16
mation was stored digitally, in 2007 it was 94%.
35
This illustrates the
evolution of digitalization from 2000 to 2010. The growth of the infor-
mation mass is undeniable, although it is difficult to provide precise fig-
ures. It seems probable that this considerable growth is also affecting
access to information-as-knowledge.
36
One consequence of the growing volume of information is the in-
creasing expenditure on storage systems. According to IDC, the market
for cloud resources and enterprise infrastructure grew by 34% between
April 2017 and March 2018.
37
As previously stated, this vast quantity of
information is influencing the manner in which organizations manage
and operate their business processes, engage with customers, create eco-
nomic value, analyse their markets, identify business trends, and deliver
value to their stakeholders. The expansion of regulatory frameworks
around the globe is placing increasing demands on the secure and trans-
parent processing of information, the protection of privacy, the genera-
tion of trusted information, and the realization of information access. In
the context of this information overload, organizations are confronted
with a deluge of data, which presents a significant challenge.
35
M. Hilbert and P. López (2011), ‘The world’s technological capacity to store,
communicate, and compute information,’ Science, Vol. 332, No. 6025 (april), pp.
60−65, and table 1, p. 63.
36
H.M.B. Feroz, S. Zulfiqar, S. Noor, and C. Huo (2021). ‘Examining multiple
engagements and their impact on students’ knowledge acquisition. The moder-
ating role of information overload,’ Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education,
Vol. 14, No. 1, pp. 366−393.
37
BusinessWire (2018). ‘Worldwide enterprise storage market grew 34.4 % dur-
ing the first quarter of 2018 according to IDC.’ Online source, retrieved 1 No-
vember 2024, from:
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180605006706/en/World-
wide-Enterprise-Storage-Market-Grew-34.4. Archived at:
https://archive.is/C33qE.
17
Paradoxes
Those who are citizens and consumers of public information face
similar challenges. The expansion of the quantity of public information
available serves to reinforce the paradoxes of information access that are
already inherent in the system. The first paradox, which is designated as
Paradox 1.0, is that despite the potential for individuals to access an in-
creasing amount of online public information, they are unable to do so
due to a lack of resources (for accessing technology) or skills (for access-
ing the Internet, software, or information). The second paradox, Para-
dox 2.0, is that in order to combat the phenomenon of information over-
load, information consumers accept ever-shrinking portions of accessi-
ble information. Individuals select information that closely aligns with
their personal views and values, with the assistance of curation services
that filter content according to their observed preferences. Consequent-
ly, individuals are exposed to an ever-narrowing range of ideological per-
spectives. The isolation of information bubbles, characterized by the ide-
ologies of groups or individuals, fragments societies and renders them
increasingly vulnerable to misinformation.
38
However, there is a third,
unacknowledged paradox: Paradox 3.0, which refers to the situation
where, even if access to information is possible, even if a piece (or
pieces) of information can be accessed and obtained by an individual (or
group of individuals), it may still be inaccessible. This may be due to the
information being in a degraded file format, or in a format that lacks the
software to make it accessible. It may be a victim of ‘bit rot.’ It may be
38
For paradox 1.0: W.A. Kellogg and A. Mathur (2003). ‘Environmental justice
and information technologies. Overcoming the information-access paradox in
urban communities,’ Public Administration Review, Vol. 63, No. 5, pp. 573–585.
For paradox 2.0: T. Abdelzaher, H. Ji, J. Li, C. Yang, J. Dellaverson, L. Zhang,
C. Xu, and B.K. Szymanski (2020). ‘The paradox of information access. Grow-
ing isolation in the age of sharing.’ arXiv preprint. Online source, retrieved 1 No-
vember 2024, from: https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2004.01967.
18
on a website that has been removed or rebuilt, with hyperlinks no longer
functional and not stored in a web archive. It may be part of an unin-
dexed dataset of images in file formats that make intelligent character
recognition difficult or impossible. It may be that the information is ac-
cessible, but that parts of it have been deleted, legally or not, or are in-
accessible due to legal considerations. It is possible that the information
is accessible, but that its meaning is difficult to discern due to it being
written in code or in an incomprehensible language. Access to informa-
tion does not necessarily imply that ‘cognitive access’ and ‘acceptability’
(two of Buckland’s six aspects) are feasible. Most accessibility issues can
be attributed to deficiencies in the information value chain, which is re-
sponsible for ensuring that the conditions for access are met.
39
Access
and accessibility are inextricably linked, but the assumption that access
implies (cognitive) interpretability, is not correct.
40
Several examples. In 2004, Science Direct responded to a query
about missing pages in scientific journals by saying that at least 2% of its
electronic journal content was missing. No one seems to know what
content is missing from which journals.
41
Almost 11% of social media
resources and 10% of tweets about the Arab Spring in 2010-11 did not
survive their first year of existence. Almost 8% of shared social media
resources disappeared from web archives before 2014.
42
Equally dis-
39
Van Bussel (2017), pp. 52−57.
40
See also: L. Jaillant (2022). ‘How can we make born-digital and digitised ar-
chives more accessible? Identifying obstacles and solutions,’ Archival Science, Vol.
22, No. 3, pp. 417−436.
41
D. Warner and J. Buschman (2005). ‘Studying the reader/researcher without
the artifact. Digital problems in the future history of books,’ Library Philosophy
and Practice, Vol. 7, No. 1. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1056&con-
text=libphilprac.
42
H.M. SalahEldeen and M.L. Nelson (2014). ‘Resurrecting my revolution. Us-
ing social link neighborhood in bringing context to the disappearing web,’ T.
19
turbing is a study by Paul Conway, who in 2013 assessed the accuracy
and authenticity of volumes in the Hathi Trust repository. Conway
found that 25% of the 1000 digitized volumes examined contained at
least one page that was ‘illegible.’ Only 65% of the volumes, he found,
were accurate and complete enough to be considered ‘reliably intelligible
surrogates.’
43
In a blog post in December 2013, Alex Wellerstein, an
associate professor at the Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken,
New Jersey, noted the disappearance of three web databases that were
crucial to his research on the history of nuclear technology in the United
States. The first database, which disappeared around September 2013,
was the Marshall Islands Document Collection. This was a collection of
civilian and military reports and correspondence about nuclear testing in
the Pacific. The other two web databases that disappeared (almost sim-
ultaneously) were the Hanford Declassified Document Retrieval System
(with security records from the Manhattan Project) and the Department
of Energy’s Digital Photo Archive (with photographs from the Manhat-
tan Project). The databases still exist, somewhere within the Department
of Energy’s infrastructure, but they have been deemed too costly, too
vulnerable in terms of security, or too politically dangerous. Whatever
the reason, they are still classified and have not reappeared online.
44
The
Chesapeake Digital Preservation Group’s analysis of link rot, in its 2013
Aalberg, C. Papatheodorou, M. Dobreva, G. Tsakonas, C.J. Farrugia (eds.), Re-
search and Advanced Technology for Digital Libraries. TPDL 2013. Lecture Notes in
Computer Science, vol 8092. Springer, Berlin-Heidelberg, pp. 333−345.
43
P. Conway (2013). ‘Preserving imperfection. Assessing the incidence of digital
imaging error in Hathi Trust,’ Preservation, Digital Technology and Culture, Vol. 42
No. 1, pp. 17−30.
44
A. Wellerstein (2013). ‘The year of the disappearing websites,’ Restricted data.
The Nuclear Secrecy blog, 27 December. Online source, retrieved 1 November
2024, from: https://blog.nuclearsecrecy.com/2013/12/27/year-disappearing-
websites/. Archived at: https://archive.is/oUSwO.
20
report, found that 44% of URLs from the original dataset (2007-08) were
no longer accessible. In their 2014 analysis, the number of non-accessi-
ble URLs increased to 51%.
45
More than 70% of URLs within three
Harvard law journals and 50% of URLs within US Supreme Court opin-
ions suffer from reference rot, meaning that the information originally
cited is no longer accessible.
46
Peter Burnhill, Muriel Mewissen, and
Richard Wincewicz assessed reference rot in a corpus of 6,400 theses
from five American universities published between 2003 and 2010. Of
the 46,000 URIs that pointed to the web at large, a third were subject to
link rot and were no longer available. Of these, only half were found to
have archived copies of their content in web archives. It is estimated that
18% of references are no longer accessible, as they are either not availa-
ble online or there is no evidence that they have been archived.
47
In
2022, Marshall Miller’s research identified a percentage of total broken
45
Ironically, the reports are only available in a webarchive: Chesapeake (2013).
‘Link Rot’ and Legal Resources on the Web. A 2013 Analysis, Chesapeake Digital
Preservation Group, Washington. Online source. Archived at:
https://web.archive.org/web/20160315140329/http://cdm16064.con-
tentdm.oclc.org/cdm/linkrot2013/. Chesapeake (2014). ‘Link Rot’ and Legal Re-
sources on the Web. A 2014 Analysis, Chesapeake Digital Preservation Group,
Washington. Online source. Archived at:
https://web.archive.org/web/20161109144504/http://cdm16064.con-
tentdm.oclc.org/cdm/linkrot2014/.
46
J. Zittrain, K. Albert, and L. Lessig (2014). ‘Perma. Scoping and addressing
the problem of link and reference rot in legal citations,’ Legal Information Manage-
ment, Vol. 14, No. 2, pp. 88−99; R. Liebler and J. Liebert (2012). ‘Something
rotten in the state of legal citation. The life span of a United States Supreme
Court citation containing an Internet link (1996-2010),’ Yale Journal of Law &
Technology, Vol. 15, No. 2, Article 2. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024,
from: http://digitalcommons.law.yale.edu/yjolt/vol15/iss2/2/.
47
P. Burnhill, M. Mewissen, and R. Wincewicz (2015). ‘Reference rot in schol-
arly statement. Threat and remedy,’ Insight, Vol. 28, No. 2, pp. 55−61.
21
links of 36%, ranging from 44% in business publications to 23% in sci-
ence, mathematics and technology, 42% in arts and humanities, 40% in
social sciences, and 33% in health and medicine. A cause for concern is
that 37% of links to a Digital Object Identifier are broken.
48
In sum-
mary, an explanation of access cannot be provided without also explain-
ing accessibility. It is possible to have access to websites, datasets or data
stores without having the desired information being accessible.
There are many similar examples: the 1960 United States census, a
database on combat air operations in Vietnam, a database of archaeo-
logical and artistic information on Pompeii, Mount Vesuvius and Na-
ples, and the 1960 Dutch census.
49
There are many lesser known exam-
ples, as Steve Knight mentioned in 2015. An engineer receives a request
for data stored on a 7-inch floppy disk, but there is no drive to run it on.
A search fails to find one and the data remains inaccessible. In a govern-
ment organization, information systems were configured to store email
in a proprietary file format. After migrating to a new software environ-
ment, the files turned out to be unreadable. They could only be opened
in an expensive legacy environment. And so on.
50
48
M.A. Miller (2022). The Putrefaction of Digital Scholarship. How Link Rot Impacts
the Integrity of Scholarly Publishing, Doctoral dissertation, Southeastern University,
Lakeland (Fl.). Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://firescholars.seu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1142&context=coe.
49
D. Waters and J. Garrett (1996). Preserving Digital Information. Report of the Task
Force on Archiving of Digital Information, Washington DC, Commission on Preser-
vation and Access; S. Ross and A. Gow (1999). Digital Archaeology. Rescuing Ne-
glected and Damaged Data Resources. A JISC/NPO study within Electronic Libraries
(eLib) Programme on the Preservation of Electronic Materials, Library Information
Technology Centre, London; and M.P.M. van den Berk and P.K. Doorn (2004).
The Reconstruction of the Digital Dutch Population Census of 1960, NIWI, Amsterdam.
50
S. Knight (2015). ‘Digital preservation as a service’ (March 30). Online source,
retrieved 1 November 2024, from: https://natlib.govt.nz/blog/posts/digital-
preservation-as-a-service. Archived at: https://archive.is/w0ziq.
22
These examples are often used to illustrate the failure of information
technology systems to preserve digital information and ensure its future
accessibility. This, it is said, could lead to a ‘digital black hole’ or a ‘digital
dark age’ resulting in a relative lack of written records in our time.
51
Vint
Cerf, vice-president of Google, fears that digital information is in danger
of disappearing once their current programs and computer formats are
obsolete.
52
Accessibility to information could be short-lived.
In 2008, Ross Harvey argued that the examples mentioned were
about recovery, not about loss. In almost all cases, the information was
recovered, albeit with considerable effort and expense.
53
The reasons
for the ‘disappearance’ of information are not (primarily) technological.
In 2014, David Rosenthal claimed that the main causes of data loss are
operator error, external attack, insider attack, economic failure, and or-
ganizational failure. Accessibility problems mainly result from organiza-
51
A. Bernhard (2023). ‘Shining a light on the Digital Dark Age,’ Ideas. A living
archive of long-term thinking, Long Now.org. Online source, retrieved 1 November
2024, from: https://longnow.org/ideas/shining-a-light-on-the-digital-dark-
age/. Archived at: https://archive.is/DOUWB.
52
K. Noyes (2015). ‘Vint Cerf fears a digital dark age, and your data could be at
risk,’ Computerworld. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://www.computerworld.com/article/2883759/vint-cerf-fears-a-digital-
dark-age-and-your-data-could-be-at-risk.html. Archived at:
https://archive.ph/UBA5v.
53
R. Harvey (2008). ‘So, where’s the black hole in our collective memory? A
provocative position paper.’ Online source, retrieved 1 September 2024, from:
https://digitalpreservationeurope.eu/publications/position/Ross_Har-
vey_black_hole_PPP.pdf. Archived at:
https://web.archive.org/web/20220924152943/https://digitalpreservationeu-
rope.eu/publications/position/Ross_Harvey_black_hole_PPP.pdf. Confirmed
by: L. Roland and D. Bawden (2012). ‘The future of history. Investigating the
preservation of information in the Digital Age,’ Library & Information History,
Vol. 28, No. 3, pp. 220−236.
23
tional failures in the information management process.
54
Surprisingly,
these errors are rarely reported, not even anonymously.
EVALUATION
**********
A wide variety of media, including bone, stone, clay, papyrus, parch-
ment, silk, and paper record the heritage of our societies. All these writ-
ing materials and the information recorded on them have their own ac-
cessibility challenges, but none of them require a different interpretive,
technological setting to enable access. This has changed in computerized
environments: information exists in digital form and always requires a
software environment to render it. The rapid pace of development and
change in information systems presents a significant challenge to the
continuity of access to information. Storage media, file formats, hard-
ware, and software become obsolete over time and present a significant
threat to the survival of information access, particularly when informa-
tion management practices do not consider human behaviour in main-
taining information accessibility. Although this problem is acknowl-
edged in many organizations, it is usually only recognized once an or-
ganization has experienced access and accessibility problems.
55
It takes
advance planning, deliberate action, and investment to keep information
54
D. Rosenthal (2014). ‘What could possibly go wrong?,’ DSHR’s Blog (7 April).
Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://blog.dshr.org/2014/04/what-could-possibly-go-wrong.html. Archived
at: https://archive.is/CKjB6. Also: Van Bussel (2020), pp. 61−65.
55
A.R. Kenney and N.Y. McGovern (2003). ‘The five organizational stages of
digital preservation,’ P. Hodges, M. Sandler, M. Bonn, and J.P. Wilkin (eds.),
Digital libraries. A Vision for the 21st Century. A Festschrift in Honor of Wendy Lougee
on the Occasion of her Departure from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (Mi.), Uni-
versity of Michigan Library, Ann Arbor, pp. 122−153.
24
accessible over time. It requires rigorous information governance, di-
recting information management in aligning information systems, per-
formance, and accountability to ensure access and accessibility of infor-
mation, now and in the future.
56
The paradoxes of access have a profound impact on information ac-
cess and accessibility. The first paradox is an ongoing challenge for many
users who lack the requisite resources or skills to make use of the vast
amount of accessible information. Those lacking the requisite resources
or skills to identify, assess, interprete and utilize information are unable
to access the information they require. The second paradox concerns
the use of software and tools to combat the information overload caused
by the problem of mass. This results in the definition of individual access
filters based on one’s own preferences, which can lead to the creation of
information bubbles in which users, convinced that the information
within the bubble is correct, will find a significant amount of necessary
information invisible. Even if resources and skills are available and ac-
cess is possible, there is no guarantee that the information itself is acces-
sible (the third paradox.) The paradoxes of access are more challenging
to resolve (if they can be resolved at all) due to the problem of mass.
56
Van Bussel (2021), pp. 31−35.
25
2
INFORMATION ACCESS
IN A HYBRID WORLD
This chapter is partly based on: G.J. van Bussel (2018). ‘Archivos
institucionales en el ‘Mundo 2.0.’ El marco de actuación para el
‘Archive-as-Is’ [Archivo-como-es],’ L. Esteve Casellas I Serra and
L. Hernández Olivera (eds.), Espacios de Memoria. Estrategias y Dis-
cursos para Archivos Históricos. Tabula. XII. Estudios Archivísticos
de Castilla y Léon, Asociación de Archiveros de Castilla y León,
Salamanca, pp. 41−79.
*
26
THE EFFECTS OF DIGITALIZATION
**********
The nature of society is undergoing a process of continuous change
and transformation. In recent times, the rate of change appears to have
accelerated, potentially as a consequence of the digitalization process.
This refers to the process of socio-economic change triggered by the
introduction of digital technology, the application systems based on it,
and their production networks. This process has profound implications
for socio–economic systems.
57
The process of digitalization can be divided into two distinct phases.
The first phase reached its zenith in the early 2000s, particularly in those
economic sectors that rely on intangible transactions and the utilization
of information (e.g. the entertainment industry or financial services).
Concurrently, the second phase of digitalization was in its nascent stages,
as evidenced by the previous chapter, and resulted in a rapidly increasing
amount of digital information that gradually threatened to overwhelm
the storage and processing capacities of existing technologies.
58
57
H. Hirsch-Kreinsen (2016). ‘Digitization of industrial work. Development
paths and prospects,’ Journal for Labour Market Research, Vol. 49, No. 1, pp. 1−14;
R. Avant (2014). ‘The third great wave,’ The Economist, 4 October. Online source,
retrieved 1 November 2024, from: https://www.economist.com/special-re-
port/2014/10/02/the-third-great-wave. Archived at:
https://archive.ph/kFRoh. I use ‘digitalization’ in stead of ‘digitization,’ which
is defined as ‘the action or process of digitizing; the conversion of analogue data
(esp. in later use images, video, and text) into digital form.’ See: J.S. Brennen and
D. Kreiss (2016). ‘Digitalization,’ K.B. Jensen, E.W. Rothenbuhler, J.D. Pooley,
and R.T. Craig (ed.), The International Encyclopedia of Communication Theory and Phi-
losophy, John Wiley and Sons, Chichester, pp. 1−11.
58
Hirsch-Kreinsen (2016), p. 2.
27
This second phase is the realization of the digitization of physical
objects of all kinds (i.e., information-as-thing.) Shoshana Zuboff views
digitalization as a second wave mutation of technological and socio-eco-
nomic changes in the capitalist system.
59
The emergence and accelerated
growth of this phase can be illustrated by the conclusions of Martin Hil-
bert and Priscila López in 2011, as previously mentioned. This accelera-
tion has been stimulated by the emergence of cyber-physical systems,
which can be defined as the ‘information technology interaction between
physical systems with embedded software on the one hand and global
data networks with distributed and interactive application systems on
the other.’ This has led to the creation of the ‘internet of things.’
60
Such
systems facilitate the interconnection of a diverse array of ‘smart’ ob-
jects, including medical devices, intelligent highways, and robotic sys-
tems, to global networks. This process, which can be described as the
‘datafication’ of ‘real-life social action,’ results in the generation of ‘big
data.’
61
In 2024, the majority of information is generated digitally. However,
prior to the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, the transition to paper
substitutes was still an accepted practice in many organizations.
62
The
59
S. Zuboff (2010). ‘Creating value in the age of distributed capitalism,’ McKinsey
Quarterly, Vol. 4, No. 3, pp. 45−55, especially pp. 50−53.
60
Hirsch-Kreinsen (2016), p. 2. The internet of things is ‘the networked inter-
connection of everyday objects, which are often equipped with ubiquitous in-
telligence.’ F. Xia, L.T. Yang, L. Wang, and A. Vinel (2012). ‘Internet of things,’
International Journal of Communication Systems, Vol. 25, No. 9, pp. 1101−1102.
61
U.A. Mejias and N. Couldry (2019). ‘Datafication,’ Internet Policy Review, Vol.
8, No. 4. Online resource, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://doi.org/10.14763/2019.4.1428. See: V. Mayer-Schönberger and K. Cu-
kier (2013). Big Data. A Revolution That Will Transform How We Live, Work and
Think, John Murray, London, Chapter 5, pp. 73−97.
62
M. O’Mara (2021). ‘How much paper is used in one day?’ (Update.) Online
source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
28
pandemic served as an accelerator for technologies that potentially alter
lifestyles, work patterns and business strategies. It served as a catalyst for
the acceptance and increasing use of digitization in organizations, alt-
hough this was tempered by external interests and opportunism, as well
as the impact on employee wellbeing and work-life balance.
63
There are
many reasons why a physical form (paper) is important, and why people
use it (despite technologies they cannot work or live without).
64
CODE IS LAW, LAW IS CODE
**********
Business practices and existing technologies, ways and methods of
communication are changing. Information and communication technol-
ogies are constantly in and out of fashion. Lorenzo Magnani fears that
the morphing nature of technology is changing the understanding of
moral values.
65
This is possible, as is Lawrence Lessig’s hypothesis that
https://www.recordnations.com/2016/02/how-much-paper-is-used-in-one-
day/. Archived at: https://archive.ph/xAkY2. Accepted practice: Adobe Com-
munications Team (2021). ‘Exploring documentation-heavy industries in a dig-
ital world,’ Adobe Blog. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://blog.adobe.com/en/publish/2021/11/17/exploring-documentation-
heavy-industries-in-a-digital-world#gs.m5ww9j. Archived at:
https://archive.ph/wip/zcGFl.
63
J. Amankwah-Amoah, Z. Khan, G. Wood, and G. Knight (2021). ‘COVID-
19 and digitalization. The great acceleration,’ Journal of Business Research, Vol. 136,
November, pp. 602−611.
64
A. Amir-Reza (2021). ‘Human-paper interaction in the digital era. Directions
for human-information interaction design,’ EAI Endorsed Transactions on Creative
Technologies, Vol. 8, No. 29, Article e2. Online resource, retrieved 1 November
2024, from: https://eudl.eu/doi/10.4108/eai.12-10-2021.171250.
65
L. Magnani (2009). Morality in a Technological World. Knowledge as Duty, Cam-
bridge University Press, Cambridge, p. xiii.
29
changes in information technology are leaving law and policy processes
behind. In Lessig’s view, the code, software and hardware that define
information systems, constitute the regulator of ‘cyberspace.’ This regu-
lator determines how ‘cyberspace’ is experienced, how privacy is pro-
tected, how speech is censored, how access to information is organized
and permitted, and how users are monitored. It is the process of regula-
tion that allows private actors to embed their values into technological
structures and artefacts, thereby constraining user actions, limiting ano-
nymity, freedom of speech, and individual control.
66
This represents a
threat to democratic values, given that popular platforms have a user
base that is significantly larger than that of nation states. In April 2024,
Facebook had three billion monthly users, followed by YouTube, Insta-
gram and WhatsApp with over two billion, and WeChat and TikTok
with almost one and a half billion. The algorithms employed by these
platforms determine the actions that users are able to take.
67
In accordance with Lessig’s proposal, governments utilize software
algorithms to define code-based rules that are enforced by the underly-
ing technology in advance of the occurrence of the event in question, or
as I previously termed it, pre factum.
68
Governments are increasingly
66
L. Lessig (2006). Code, and Other Laws of Cyberspace, Version 2.0., Basic Books,
New York, second edition, especially Chapters 1 (pp. 1−8) and 5 (pp. 61−82),
as well as Part III, pp. 157−280.
67
S. Kemp (2024). ‘Digital 2024 April Global Statshot Report,’ Dataportal, 24
April. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2024-april-global-statshot. Archived
at: https://archive.ph/XuNtx.
68
I used it in an organizational context, not in a social or legal one. In such a
context, the arrangement of law (or rules) in code (and thus in information sys-
tems) pre factum will have even more drastic effects: Van Bussel (2020), pp. 88−
92. My interpretation is based on: R.L. Heidelberg (2017). ‘Political accountabil-
ity and spaces of contestation,’ Administration & Society, Vol. 49, No. 10, pp.
1379−1402, p. 1387.
30
using code as a regulatory mechanism. Algorithms (in artificial intelli-
gence, machine learning, and blockchain) are being applied to regulation,
law enforcement, transport, and land registration.
69
Nevertheless, it is
imperative to recognize that code cannot be considered neutral, as it is
inherently imbued with political and value-laden implications. It has the
potential to have societal implications, as it can support certain political
structures or facilitate certain actions and behaviours.
70
With the intro-
duction of machine learning, some of the limitations of regulation by
code can be circumvented by using dynamic and adaptive code-based
rules.
71
Nevertheless, even with the advent of machine learning, the
value-laden nature of code remains, and the potential for bias to influ-
ence data-driven decision-making persists. The implementation of laws
derived from machine learning may result in the undermining of univer-
sal principles, the erosion of freedom, and the perpetuation of discrimi-
natory practices.
72
The practice of embedding law in code, as Lessig
proposes, is not without its own set of challenges and may ultimately
result in the very effects it is designed to prevent. That will be a challenge
69
E. Medina (2015). ‘Rethinking algorithmic regulation. Kybernetes, Vol. 44, No.
6/7, pp. 1005−1019, and Z. Engin and P. Treleaven (2019). ‘Algorithmic gov-
ernment. Automating public services and supporting civil servants in using data
science technologies,’ The Computer Journal, Vol. 62, No. 3, pp. 448−460. Online
source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://academic.oup.com/comjnl/article/62/3/448/5070384.
70
C. Aradau and T. Blanke (2022). Algorithmic Reason. The New Government of Self
and Other, Oxford University Press, Oxford. Also: K.E. Martin (2019). ‘Ethical
implications and accountability of algorithms,’ Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 160,
No. 4, pp. 835−850.
71
S. Hassan and P. De Filippi (2017). ‘The expansion of algorithmic governance.
From code is law to law is code,’ Field Actions Science Reports, Special Issue 17, pp.
88−90. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://journals.openedition.org/factsreports/4518.
72
Hassan and De Filippi (2017), p. 90.
31
in a cultural environment that is evolving into a hybrid environment, an
amalgam of tangible and intangible artefacts, interactivity, and connec-
tivity, where physical and online presences are (almost) inevitable.
HYBRID AMALGAMATION
**********
Individuals, communities, and organizations engage in interactions
with each other in both physical and digital spaces. These interactions
include the creation of knowledge, the sharing of information, the de-
sign, sale, and purchase of products, the sending of emails, the writing
of blogs, the sharing of images, the downloading of music, the creation
of videos, podcasts, and other forms of media, the playing of games, and
the gathering of news. Organizations and communities also establish in-
ternet presences to complement their existing activities in the physical
world. Business organizations are developing platforms and business
models to expand their markets in cyberspace, in addition to their exist-
ing ones. To benefit from both markets, they are integrating physical and
online marketing programmes. Hybrid customer/user information is an-
alysed to personalize advertisements, improve services, or sell this infor-
mation to partners. Start-up companies launch online activities special-
izing in renting out bedrooms, parking cars, buying and selling stocks,
and entertainment. Archives, libraries, and museums are digitizing their
collections and making them available online. Universities are dissemi-
nating recorded courses or developing online learning environments.
Television is accessible on mobile devices, multiple screens, and on de-
mand. News is disseminated through numerous news sites. The integra-
tion of real life and cyberspace into the personal lives of almost everyone
has become a reality. In the academic literature on the information soci-
32
ety, internet use is presented as a universal prerequisite for participation
in society and as a dividing line between success and exclusion.
73
Research questions this universal indispensability of the internet.
Many non-users claim they do not need it, and some users state that their
skillset is sufficient for their job performance despite lacking complex
digital skills.
74
Especially when only 67% of the world’s population is
online, a universal requirement for participation seems unlikely. Even in
the most highly digitalized regions of the world, such as Europe, the
Commonwealth of Independent States, and the Americas, where be-
tween 71% and 91% of the population use the internet, universal use,
which is defined by the International Telecommunication Union as in-
ternet penetration of at least 95%, has not been achieved.
75
The internet
is a crucial information and communication channel, but its use appears
to be more situation-specific and contextually determined than previ-
ously assumed. Internet and social media platforms are very important
means of communication, participation, collaboration, and innovation
but they are not yet pervasive in every aspect of life.
76
This partly explains
73
See: P. Lupač (2018). Beyond the Digital Divide. Contextualizing the Information So-
ciety, Emerald Publishing Limited, Bingley, Chapters 2 (pp. 7−16), 3 (pp. 17−44),
and 4 (pp. 45−131).
74
E.J. Helsper and A.J.A.M. van Deursen (2017). ‘Do the rich get digitally rich-
er? Quantity and quality of support for digital engagement,’ Information, Commu-
nication & Society, Vol. 20, No. 5, pp. 700−714. Also M. Pellizzari, F. Biagi, and
B. Brecko (2015). E-skills Mismatch. Evidence from International Assessment of Adult
Competencies (PIAAC), Institute for Prospective Technological Studies, Digital
Economy Working Paper 10, Luxembourg. Online source. Archived at:
https://web.archive.org/web/20220122051247/https://ec.eu-
ropa.eu/jrc/sites/default/files/JRC98228.pdf.
75
ITU (2023). Measuring Digital Development. Facts and Figures, ITU Publications,
Geneve, pp. 1−2. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://www.itu.int/itu-d/reports/statistics/facts-figures-2023/index/
76
Lupač (2018), Chapter 6, pp. 159−174.
33
why the cultural environment is a hybrid, combining both virtual and
physical elements.
This puts Fahri Karakas’s model of ‘World 2.0’ as a ‘digital ecosys-
tem’ into perspective. He identified five shifts between an ‘old’ and a
‘new’ world, his five Cs.
77
They are not specific to a ‘digital’ ecosystem,
however, but to a hybrid cultural environment in which they are inte-
grated into both the virtual and physical lives of most people. These five
Cs highlight the possibilities of this hybrid reality: [1] Creativity, finding
new hybrid ways to address social issues; [2] Connectivity, the ability to
connect to hybrid global information resources; [3] Collaboration, people
working and participating in hybrid projects; [4] Convergence, the merging
of new technologies and the hybrid connectivity these technologies en-
able; and [5] Community, using media for hybrid community benefits to
educate, organize, communicate, lobby, protest, raise funds, democratize
information, and raise social awareness.
The interpretation of World 2.0 as a hybrid amalgamation is rein-
forced by the ideal-type model of ‘Society 5.0.’ This is a human-centred
society that, through a fusion between cyberspace and physical space,
will balance economic progress with the resolution of social problems.
This will be achieved by providing goods and services that granularly
address latent needs, regardless of location, age, gender or language. The
objective is to ensure that all citizens can enjoy a high quality of life. This
concept defines an ideal situation towards which each country should
evolve in order to take advantage of the technological changes for the
benefit of its citizens.
78
In the context of cyberspace, people, things and
77
F. Karakas (2009). ‘Welcome to World 2.0. The new digital ecosystem,’ Journal
of Business Strategy, Vol. 30, No. 4, pp. 23−30, pp. 24−27.
78
A. Deguchi and O. Kamimura (2020). ‘Introduction,’ Hitachi-UTokyo Labor-
atory, Society 5.0. A People-Centric Super-Smart Society, Springer Open, Singapore,
pp. xi−xiv, p. xii. Also: S. Serpa and C. Ferreira (2018). ‘Society 5.0 and social
34
cyber-physical systems are connected and exchange information, which
is analysed by artificial intelligence. The results of this analysis are then
fed back into physical space, where they are used for the benefit of peo-
ple. All of Karakas’s Cs are reinforced in this ideal type of society.
79
The
concept of ‘Society 5.0’ is predicated on the premise of facilitating access
to cyber-physical information for artificial intelligence and ‘deep learn-
ing’ software, as well as ‘smart’ systems that are directly integrated into
the environments of individuals and the operations of government in-
stitutions. In order to achieve its stated objectives, ‘Society 5.0’ will re-
quire access to information that can be considered personal. The model
could be perceived as a threat to privacy, despite its stated idealistic goal
of ‘serving the people.’
AN INESCAPABLE LOSS OF PRIVACY
**********
Society has always relied on communication media to disseminate
information. Media (or information) richness is used to describe the abil-
ity of communication media to convey information in a way that changes
understanding. Traditionally, face-to-face interaction has been consid-
ered the most ‘information rich.’
80
Information richness is an important
part of Buckland’s ‘systems that inform,’ systems used to gain an under-
standing of what is being communicated (information-as-knowledge).
development. Contributions to a discussion,’ Management and Organizational Stud-
ies, Vol. 5, No. 4, pp. 26−31.
79
Something like ‘Society 5.0’ has been described by D.C. Korten (1984). ‘Stra-
tegic organization for people centered development,’ Public Administration Review,
Vol. 44, No. 4, pp. 341−352.
80
R.L. Daft (2013). ‘Information richness theory,’ E.H. Kessler (ed.), Encyclope-
dia of Management Theory, SAGE, Los Angeles-London, Vol. 1, pp. 369−372.
35
The better this ability, the richer the medium (and the information). The
expansion of technology is having a positive impact on the richness of
digital media. Individuals in the present era are more reliant on such me-
dia, and are less inclined to engage in personal interaction, even in the
presence of others.
81
As early as 1997, Maha El-Shinnaway and Mary
Lynne Markus concluded that, contrary to media (information) richness
theory, people use the leaner medium of email instead of the richer me-
dium of voice mail.
82
In 2017, Ina Blau, Orli Weiser and Yoram Eshet-
Alkalai concluded that face-to-face classrooms are not superior to online
classrooms, contrary to what media (information) richness theory pre-
dicts.
83
Other research has indicated that there are no significant differ-
ences between virtual and face-to-face teams in terms of performance.
However, virtual teams have been found to be more prone to conflict,
are perceived as less satisfying, and seem to have inferior decision-mak-
ing abilities.
84
These findings appear to indicate that digital information
is becoming increasingly capable of delivering meaningful information
81
E. Drago (2015). ‘The effect of technology on face-to-face communication,’
Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications, Vol. 6, No. 1. Online
source, retrieved 1 Novemmber 2024, from:
http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/a?id=1137 (2 pages.)
Archived at: https://archive.ph/VQwMs and https://archive.ph/njKLF.
82
M. El-Shinnaway and M. Lynne Markus (1997). ‘The poverty of media rich-
ness theory. Explaining people’s choice of electronic mail vs. voice mail,’ Inter-
national Journal of Human-Computer Studies, Vol. 46, No. 4, pp. 443−467.
83
I. Blau, O. Weiser, and Y. Eshet-Alkalai (2017). ‘How do medium naturalness
and personality traits shape academic achievement and perceived learning? An
experimental study of face-to-face and synchronous e-learning,’ Research in
Learning Technology, Vol. 2017. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
http://dx.doi.org/10.25304/rlt.v25.1974.
84
S. Gera, G. Aneeshkumar, S. Fernandez, G. Gireeshkumar, I. Nze, and U.
Eze (2013). ‘Virtual teams versus face-to-face teams. A review of literature,’
IOSR Journal of Business and Management, Vol. 11, No. 2, pp. 1−4.
36
that can alter understanding and perceptions. However, one potential
drawback of richer media is that it may necessitate the collection and use
of personal information, which could raise concerns about privacy.
85
Nowadays, information is easily and mostly automatically captured,
recorded, and stored for later retrieval. However, this can become prob-
lematic when collection, recording, and use of information occurs with-
out the knowledge or consent of users, potentially resulting in a loss of
individual privacy.
86
When browsing the internet, visits to websites are
recorded by browsers. Websites store information on user visits and
leave data on their computers for future use. It is possible to track which
websites or web pages users have visited and for how long. Social media
platforms record all posted messages. The organizations behind these
platforms use this information to enhance communication, personalize
advertising, and contextualize user experience. The information col-
lected and stored by ‘smart’ systems and devices is shared with the busi-
ness organizations that designed and produced them, governments,
other paying organizations, and artificial intelligence initiatives (such as
‘Society 5.0’). This process occurs behind the scenes on a continuous
basis, without the user’s knowledge or consent. The information is
stored in order to be analysed and used to create profiles or identify pat-
85
B. Plomion (2022). ‘Lost Art. Why digital advertisers should swap their data
addiction for a new wave of creative flair,’ Forbes, 24 February. Online source.
Archived at: https://archive.ph/wip/iUdrA.
86
The problem of personal privacy in an information age is a much-debated
subject. As an introduction: H. Nissenbaum (2010). Privacy in Context. Technology,
Policy, and the Integrity of Social Life, Stanford University Press, Stanford; K.K. Styl-
ianou (2010). ‘Hasta la vista privacy, or how technology terminated privacy,’ C.
Akrivopoulou and A. Psygkas (eds.), Personal Data Privacy and Protection in a Sur-
veillance Era. Technologies and Practices, IGI Global, Hershey (Pa.), Ch. 3, pp. 44−57;
J. van de Pas and G.J. van Bussel (2015). ‘Privacy lost — and found? The infor-
mation value chain as a model to meet citizens’ concerns,’ Electronic Journal of
Information Systems Evaluation, Vol. 18, No. 2, pp. 199−209.
37
terns and trends.
87
In China, for example, a network of monitoring and
big data analysis systems is used to monitor and identify individual citi-
zens. Facial recognition software is employed to record instances of jay-
walking and cyclists breaking traffic rules.
88
The storage of information on remote servers operated by third par-
ties is a defining feature of cloud computing. This may result in a reduc-
tion in the connection that users have with their information. When a
user’s personal information is being hacked, sold, shared, or made pub-
lic, this would constitute a severe violation of privacy. Third-party cloud
service providers must acknowledge their obligation to protect this in-
formation. Individuals permit organizations to use their personal infor-
mation in exchange for relationships based on trust, integrity, and ethical
behaviour. The failure to fulfil these obligations will inevitably result in
a loss of trust that will be difficult to repair.
89
New technologies may enhance the capabilities, richness, and influ-
ence of media. Nevertheless, there is a potential for breaches of privacy
as a consequence of inappropriate or unethical use of information. Or-
ganizations must assume responsibility for the algorithms employed by
third parties in their operations. In the event that these algorithms are
found to be biased and result in discrimination, accountability needs to
be established: to whom should the blame be attributed?
90
87
M. Westerlund, D.A. Isabelle, and S. Leminen (2021). ‘The acceptance of dig-
ital surveillance in an age of Big Data,’ Technology Innovation Management Review,
Vol. 11, No. 3, pp. 32−44. Online source, retrieved on 1 November 2024, from:
http://doi.org/10.22215/timreview/1427.
88
J.P. Cabestan (2020). ‘The state and digital society in China. Big brother Xi is
watching you!,’ Issues & Studies, Vol. 56, No. 1, 2040003, pp. 1−30.
89
G. Davies and I. Olmed-Cifuentes (2016). ‘Corporate misconduct and the loss
of trust,’ European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 50, No. 7−8, pp. 1426−1447.
90
Martin (2019), pp. 835−837; Aradau, and Blanke (2022), Chapter 7, pp. 160−
181.
38
DOING BUSINESS
**********
The subject of the ‘digital economy’ is a topic frequently discussed in
management research literature. It is believed that the digital economy
grows rapidly and enhances the efficiency and productivity of traditional
industries. However, a recent report indicates that the evidence support-
ing this claim is limited, despite not widely observable indications of pro-
ductivity growth.
91
Deloitte defines the digital economy as the economic
activity resulting from billions of everyday online connections among
people, businesses, devices, information, and processes.
92
The economy
in question is a hybrid phenomenon that incorporates both the real and
virtual worlds. It is more accurate to refer to this hybrid phenomenon as
a ‘digitalized’ or ‘hybrid economy,’ in which the physical and virtual com-
ponents merge to create economic value. This economy challenges many
traditional ideas about organizational interactions and consumer access
to services, information, and goods.
91
B. van Ark, K. de Vries, and A. Erumban (2019). Productivity & Innovation Com-
petencies in the Midst of the Digital Transformation Age. A EU–US Comparison. Euro-
pean Economy-Discussion Papers 2015-119, Luxembourg. Online source, re-
trieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://economy-finance.ec.europa.eu/system/files/2019-10/dp119_en.pdf.
92
Deloitte (2021) ‘What is Digital Economy? Unicorns, transformation and the
internet of things,’ Deloitte. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://www.deloitte.com/mt/en/Industries/technology/research/mt-what-
is-digital-economy.html. Archived at: https://archive.ph/Wrb5D. For defini-
tions: R. Bukht and R. Heeks (2017). Defining, Conceptualising and Measuring the
Digital Economy. Development Informatics Working Paper no. 68, Centre for
Development Informatics and Global Development Institute, SEED, Univer-
sity of Manchester. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3431732.
39
Information technology has the capacity to change economic struc-
tures, a phenomenon that has been observed many times in economic
history.
93
The advent of writing, printing, and mass media has had an
impact on economic and social structures, influencing the formation of
value chains and the emergence of products and services.
94
This digital-
ized economy is sustained by two elements: hyperconnectivity, the in-
terconnectedness of people, organizations and machines, and access to
and accessibility of information. These factors stimulate the develop-
ment of distinctive characteristics that distinguish the digitalized econ-
omy from its predecessors. These characteristics include the mechaniza-
tion of the information process, the establishment of distributed virtual
environments, the development of new ‘infotainment’ products, and the
shift from production management to communication management.
95
In 1996, Donald Tapscott defined twelve characteristics of this econ-
omy.
96
He began with ‘knowledge’ as the most important characteristic,
largely based on access to and accessibility of information. A second
characteristic, ‘digitization,’ enables the transformation of physical infor-
mation into digital substitutes, facilitating a real-time global flow of in-
formation. ‘Virtualization’ is changing social relationships, business
models and the nature of economic activity, along with the next five
93
Hirsch-Kreinsen (2016).
94
A. Reamer (2014). The Impacts of Technological Invention on Economic Growth. A
Review of the Literature, The George Washington University, Washington, Chapter
2, pp. 6−30. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://gwipp.gwu.edu/sites/g/files/zaxdzs2181/f/down-
loads/Reamer_The_Impacts_of_Invention_on_Economic_Growth_02-28-
14.pdf.
95
B.F. Schmid (2001). ‘What is new about the digital economy?,’ Electronic Mar-
kets, Vol. 11, No. 1, pp. 44−51.
96
D. Tapscott (1996). The Digital Economy. Anniversary Edition. Rethinking Promise
and Peril in the Age of Networked Intelligence, McGraw Hill, New York, Chapter 2,
pp. 51−82.
40
characteristics: ‘disintermediation’ (the ‘end of the middleman’), ‘conver-
gence’ (the interactive increase in computing, communication, and in-
formation), ‘molecularization' (agile, smaller, and flexible organizations),
‘integration’ (of suppliers, customers, and competitors) and ‘prosump-
tion’ (the overlapping of producers and consumers). The ninth and tenth
characteristics, ‘innovation’ (the development and creation of new prod-
ucts and services) and ‘immediacy’ (the shortening of the time between
order and delivery), are linked to ‘convergence.’ The eleventh character-
istic, ‘globalization,’ recognizes that there is only one global economy,
even if organizations continue to operate at a local level. The twelfth
characteristic is ‘discordance,’ which refers to resistance and slow adap-
tation to change. Tapscott recognized that privacy and security would
become critical priorities in an age of global access to information.
But instead of becoming smaller, more flexible, and more agile, many
organizations are becoming bigger, inflexible, and bureaucratic. They are
using information technology not to transform and innovate, but to re-
inforce existing structures and outdated practices. Resistance to change
is strong and slows down the impact of information technology.
97
The
transformation to a digital economy (as with the transformation to a dig-
ital society) has not yet been fully realized.
One of the most significant impacts of digitalization is the ability to
conceal and manipulate information due to the disregard for information
behaviour.
98
Although the concept of the digitalized economy is widely
accepted, organizations engage in self-interested information behaviour
in their day-to-day operations. It is not acceptable to hinder access and
accessibility, or to manipulate, hide, modify, or destroy information for
97
S.I. Akbar (2017). ‘Business process reengineering and change management
strategy to overcome the resistance to change.’ Online source, retrieved 1 No-
vember 2024, from:
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3502035.
98
Van Bussel (2020), pp. 61−71.
41
colleagues, clients, governments, or the public, while pretending to meet
public expectations of transparency and accountability. Unfortunately,
these principles have been violated many times in the past decades, re-
sulting in a global increase in the number of regulations, guidelines, and
standards to enforce them. Kimberly Barata and Piers Cain demon-
strated that transparency and accountability cannot be achieved without
access to trusted information as evidence of past organizational policies,
decisions, products, actions, and transactions.
99
Most organizations try to meet public expectations of accountability,
transparency, information access, security, and privacy. According to
Lauren Edelman and Shauhin Talesh, organizations comply with the
meaning they have constructed of public expectations, laws, and regula-
tions. Because organizational governance is concerned with society’s
conception of the scope of organizational responsibility and accounta-
bility, governance is based on institutionalized interpretations of society’s be-
liefs about legality, morality, and rationality. Such interpretations may
differ from one organization to another and may lead to different imple-
mentations of governance structures and accountability mechanisms.
100
Significant costs arise from the ‘three lines of defence’: owning and
managing risk, overseeing compliance and risk management, and prov-
iding independent assurance.
101
The validity of information is critical to
99
K. Barata and P. Cain (2001). ‘Information, not technology, is essential to
accountability. Electronic records and public-sector financial management,’ The
Information Society, Vol. 17, pp. 247−258.
100
L.B. Edelman and S.A. Talesh (2011). ‘To comply or not to comply − that
isn’t the question. How organizations construct the meaning of compliance,’ C.
Parker and V. Lehmann Nielsen (eds.), Explaining Compliance. Business Responses
to Regulation, Edward Elgar Publishing, Cheltenham, Chapter 5, pp. 103−122.
101
The Institute of Internal Auditors (2021). The IIA’s Three Lines Model. An
Update of the Three Lines of Defense, Lake Mary (Fl.), IIA. Online source, retrieved
1 November 2024, from:
42
the effectiveness of any line of defence. Without access to and accessi-
bility of information, it is impossible to assess its validity and the lines
of defence will fail. Transparency, accountability and public trust can be
irreparably damaged.
102
BEING LITERATE
**********
Divide(s)
The digititalization of society is evolving and creates paradoxes. De-
spite the growing possibilities for accessing technology and information,
the amount of information created, the pace of innovative technologies,
and the challenges posed by failing organizational behaviour make ac-
cess and accessibility difficult. Research into information access is con-
cerned with the resulting economic, social, and technological disparities.
The unequal distribution of information and communication technology
has an impact on social, economic, political, and cultural factors. This
research concentrates on access to technology and access disparities in
society, but hardly on the (cognitive) interpretability of information it-
self. It is assumed but not discussed.
Martin Hilbert highlights that research on diffusion inequality has
long been a part of innovation diffusion research.
103
Innovations grad-
ually spread through society via social networks, with each innovation
https://www.theiia.org/globalassets/site/about-us/advocacy/three-lines-
model-updated.pdf. Archived at: https://perma.cc/7RBS-9SXX.
102
A. Dikopoulou and A. Mihiotis (2012). ‘The contribution of records man-
agement to good governance,’ The TQM Journal, Vol. 24, No. 2, pp. 123−141.
103
M. Hilbert (2015). ‘Digital Divide(s),’ R. Mansell and P.H. Ang, The Interna-
tional Encyclopedia of Digital Communication and Society, Wiley Blackwell, Hoboken
(NJ), Vol. 1, pp. 141−147. Also: E.M. Rogers (1962). Diffusion of Innovations, Free
Press, New York. Used in its fifth edition, Free Press, New York, 2003.
43
creating a divide (or divides) between actors in the network.
104
Hilbert
argues that such a divide is a ‘permanent structural social characteristic’
of our societies, which ‘reopens with each digital innovation.’
105
The
study of inequality as problems of access to technology and the Internet,
and as differences between those who benefit from technologies and
those who do not, emphasizes the relationship with the diffusion of in-
novation. Bridging inequalities refers to efforts to provide access to in-
ternet infrastructure, applications, and services for the benefit of eco-
nomic and social (information) equality. This includes technologies such
as artificial intelligence, robotics and the internet of things.
106
Innovation adoption is a process in which some individuals are more
inclined or better equipped to adopt an innovation than others, resulting
in a divide between social network participants. Each innovation creates
a new divide that may also apply to other network participants. Multiple
innovations may occur simultaneously, each creating a divide among
network participants that may or may not overlap with other divides.
Carl Cuneo identifies twelve different theoretical perspectives for stud-
ying a divide: geographical, demographic, gerontological, feminist, psy-
chological, educational, economic, sociological, labour, cultural, disabil-
ity and political. Each perspective can create its ‘own’ divides and de-
velop its ‘own’ definitions of what a divide is.
107
104
Rogers (2003), Chapters 1 and 5.
105
Quotation: Hilbert (2015), p. 146.
106
S. Mann and M. Hilbert (2020). ‘AI4D. Artificial intelligence for develop-
ment,’ International Journal of Communication, Vol. 14, pp. 4385−4405; É. Berde
(2019). ‘Digital divide and robotics divide,’ D. Gu and M. Dupre (eds.), Encyclo-
pedia of Gerontology and Population Aging, Springer, Cham, pp. 1434−1438; A.J. van
Deursen and K. Mossberger (2018). ‘Any thing for anyone? A new digital divide
in internet-of-things skills,’ Policy & Internet, Vol. 10, No. 2, pp. 122−140.
107
C. Cuneo (2002). Globalized and Localized Digital Divides Along the Information
Highway. A Fragile Synthesis Across Bridges, Ramps, Cloverleaves, and Ladders. Univer-
44
These observations apply to the concept of the ‘digital divide,’ which
was introduced in the 1990s to highlight the problems of access to in-
formation technology for groups such as the elderly, the socially disad-
vantaged, and the disabled. The result was a divide between those who
had access and those who did not. It refers to the gap reinforced by
Lawrence Lessig’s ‘code,’ which is the regulation of cyberspace infra-
structure dominated and controlled by private actors such as Facebook.
This regulation restricts users’ actions and access to information.
The ‘digital divide’ is a concept that is difficult to define. According
to Martin Hilbert, there are four classes of variables that have been used
to define the concept: [1] the subject: individuals, organizations, countries,
in short: who?; [2] the characteristics: income, education, geography, age,
gender, type of ownership, etc., in short: which?; [3] the sophistication of
access and use: the tangible impact of technology, based on user skills and
capabilities, cultural attitudes, strategic choices, and social reorganiza-
tion, in short: how?; and [4] the type of technology: phone, internet, com-
puter, etc., in short: what?
108
The ‘digital divide’ is a term that encompasses multiple divides cre-
ated by technological innovation, such as the divide between early and
late adopters of technology, between developed and developing coun-
tries, between people with and without the skills to use technology, be-
tween people with and without the skills to use information, or between
people with and without the financial means to pay for access. The con-
cept is a cascade of many ‘digital divides,’ a ‘multi-divide’ concept en-
compassing many access divides resulting from technological innova-
tion. The denominator of the concept focuses on access to information
sity of Saskatchewan 33rd Annual Sorokin Lecture. Delivered 31 January 2002.
Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://artsandscience.usask.ca/sociology/documents/33rd-annual-sorokin-
lecture.pdf.
108
Hilbert (2015), pp. 141−143.
45
technology and the ways in which it is used to combat inequalities and
realize participation in society.
109
It concentrates primarily on informa-
tion access as societal phenomenon, and on information-as-things.
Benjamin Compaine argues that bridging a divide is an evolving chal-
lenge due to the continuous development of information technology. As
Hilbert emphasized, an innovation is a structural phenomenon, making
a divide a ‘moving target.’
110
A ‘bridge’ may solve the current divide, but
a new technology will require a new ‘bridge.’ Using the same approach
to bridge gaps between different issues, characteristics, technologies, or
skills will not be effective. The ‘bridges’ may be related, but they are not
identical.
111
For example, a ‘bridge’ designed to promote equal oppor-
tunities will be different from one designed to promote democratic par-
ticipation, improve health outcomes, or address social inequalities. Each
divide requires consideration of different factors: the parties involved
(‘who’), the characteristics (‘which’), the way in which technology is ac-
cessed and used (‘how’), and the type of technology involved (‘what’).
According to Amelia Potter, the concept is not helpful. Digital di-
vides are symptoms, not causes of socio-economic inequalities. They reflect
social, cultural, racial, economic, and educational divides. Having access
to technology or the internet, which acts as a ‘bridge’ between the tech-
nological ‘haves’ and ‘have nots,’ does not solve these much more prob-
lematic issues.
112
Efforts to stimulate access to technology have failed
to address social inequality because they neglect the preconditions for
109
Lupač (2018), Chapters 5, pp. 90−115.
110
B. Compaine (2001). ‘Preface,’ B. Compaine (ed.), The Digital Divide. Facing a
Crisis or Creating a Myth?, MIT Press, Cambridge (Ms.), pp. xiii, 146.
111
D.J. Gunkel (2003). ‘Second thoughts. Toward a critique of the digital divide,’
New Media & Society, Vol. 5, No. 4, pp. 499−522, p. 504.
112
A.B. Potter (2006). ‘Zones of silence. A framework beyond the digital divide,’
First Monday, Vol. 11, No. 5. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://doi.org/10.5210/fm.v11i5.1327. Also: Gunkel (2003), p. 504.
46
successful adoption of technology.
113
This does not diminish the impor-
tance of access to information technology. Jan van Dijk established the
concept of the ‘digital divide’ as a key tenet of information and network
society theories. The internet and information technology play a crucial
role as material infrastructure in the transformation to a network society.
However, as Lupač pointed out, this ‘pivotal position’ may be more sit-
uation-specific and contextual than Van Dijk assumed, and may not be
a prerequisite for every aspect of life.
114
Tim Unwin states a relationship
between technology, internet access, and socio-economic inequalities is
hardly discussed in inequality discussions and is not self-evident. He
highlights the rise of social tensions resulting from the appropriation of
new, more expensive technologies by the middle classes.
115
Van Dijk
acknowledges that technologies do not solve inequalities. There is evi-
dence that they may be deepening existing socio-economic inequalities.
116
Van Dijk accepts that unequal skills are rooted in socio-economic ine-
qualities.
117
Recognizing the significance of user skills and capabilities
113
Lupač (2018), p. 90.
114
See p. 32 and note 76. J.A.G.M. van Dijk (2005). The Deepening Divide. Inequality
in the Information Society, SAGE, Thousand Oaks (Ca.), and J.A.G.M. van Dijk
and A.J.A.M. van Deursen (2014). Digital Skills. Unlocking the Information Society,
Palgrave Macmillan, New York, pp. 45−52.
115
T. Unwin (2019). ‘Can digital technologies really be used to reduce inequali-
ties?,’ OECD Development Matters, 28 February. Online source, retrieved 1 No-
vember 2024, at: https://oecd-development-matters.org/2019/02/28/can-dig-
ital-technologies-really-be-used-to-reduce-inequalities/. Archived at:
https://archive.ph/wip/1c8VQ.
116
J.A.G.M. van Dijk (2020). The digital divide, Polity, Cambridge, Chapter 8. M.
Jiménez, A. Julca, H. Kawamura, M. Kind, Y.F. Lee, J. Perry, and J. Pewitt (eds.)
(2020). World Social Report 2020. Inequality in a Rapidly Changing World, United Na-
tions Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Washington, Chapter 2, pp.
57−79.
117
Van Dijk (2005), Chapters 7 and 8.
47
led to the hypothesis that providing access to information technology
constituted a ‘first’ digital divide, and that a ‘second’ digital divide was
about the effective and efficient use of technology and user skills.
118
Technology-oriented research assumes that access and use of information
technology resolves the issue of information access. This may be true for
accessing information-as-things but very unlikely for information-as-
knowledge.
Van Dijk’s model of access
Most sorts of access to information technology mentioned in ‘digital
divide’ research to bridge the many existing divides are incorporated in
a comprehensive model developed by Jan van Dijk as part of his ‘re-
sources and appropriation theory,’ a theory of technology acceptance as
foundation for participation in society. It includes both the ‘first’ and
‘second’ digital divides. Van Dijk presents his model as a behavioural
model. Firstly, individuals must be motivated. Secondly, they must acquire
technology. Finally, they must learn to use technology by developing rele-
vant skills. There is a close relationship with the innovation diffusion
theory. Van Dijk’s model focuses on individuals within social networks
and their adoption or non-adoption of technological innovations. Van Dijk
adheres to largely a technology-oriented view.
119
118
J. Katz and P. Aspden (1997). ‘Motives, hurdles, and dropouts,’ Communica-
tions of the ACM, Vol. 40, No. 4, pp. 97−102.
119
Van Dijk (2005), Chapters 4–7. The model was elaborated and specified in:
Van Dijk and Van Deursen (2014), p. 2, and Figures 1.1 and 1.2. Also: Van Dijk
(2020), Chapter 2, paragraph ‘Theories concerning the digital divide.’ Van Dijk
argues that inequalities in society produce unequal distribution of resources
leading to unequal access to information technology, which as a result, prevents
participation in society; A.J. van Deursen and J.A.G.M. van Dijk (2019). ‘The
first-level digital divide shifts from inequalities in physical access to inequalities
in material access,’ New Media & Society, Vol. 21, No. 2, pp. 354−75, p. 356.
48
Van Dijk identifies four consecutive levels of access as part of a con-
tinuous process, rather than a single activity of obtaining a technology.
An individual becomes a user only after passing all levels, and the pro-
cess is repeated for every new technological innovation, albeit under dif-
ferent circumstances. Van Dijk defines motivational access as the desire to
own computers or communication devices, or to be connected to the
internet. Acceptance of technologies depends on the motivation, atti-
tude, and expectations of potential users towards acquiring, learning, and
using them. This mental and behavioural condition determines the adop-
tion of innovations.
120
However, motivation is not a form of access, but
rather a prerequisite for access. This is acknowledged by Van Dijk, who notes
that motivation ‘is the initial condition of the whole process of new media
120
J.A.G.M. van Dijk (2006). ‘Digital divide research, achievements and short-
comings,’ Poetics, Vol. 34, No. 4−5, pp. 221−235, p. 226; J.A.G.M. van Dijk
(2017). ‘Digital Divide. Impact of access,’ P. Rossler (ed.), The International Ency-
clopaedia of Media Effects, Wiley, London, pp. 1−11.
Figure 1. Updated version of Van Dijk’s Model of Successive Types of Access.
Source: Lupač (2018), p. 98.
49
access and appropriation of the technology.’
121
It enables different
forms of access, ranging from the decision to purchase information
technology and an Internet connection (material access) to the acquisition
of content and media skills (skills access) and the use of software applica-
tions (usage access). Lupač argues that information technologies have be-
come indispensable, depending on context. They are integrated into dai-
ly routines and are challenging to avoid due to limited availability and
high costs of alternatives. Motivation is no longer the precondition to
access technology it used to be.
122
Rather than distinguishing between
four types of access, however, it is preferable to distinguish between four
factors of access: motivation, material access, information literacy, and
use, which need not be fully sequential. However, the question arises as
to whether ‘use’ can be considered as a form or a factor of access, or as a
consequence thereof. The use of software applications could be considered
material or skills access.
123
Skills are a sigificant topic in ‘digital divide’ research, partly prompted
by statements about the skills of the ‘net generation’ which were as-
sumed to create a generational divide between ‘natives’ and ‘immigrants.’
Natives and immigrants
During the first decade of the 21st century, there were positive com-
ments regarding the familiarity of young people with information tech-
121
Van Dijk (2005), p. 43 (my italics.)
122
Lupač (2018), Chapter 6, especially p. 161, and I. Mariën, R. Heyman, K.
Salemink, and L. Van Audenhove (2016). ‘Digital by default. Consequences, cas-
ualties and coping strategies,’ J. Servaes and T. Oyedemi (eds.), Social Inequalities,
Media and Communication. Theory and Roots, Rowman and Littlefield, London, pp.
167−188.
123
Following: A. Durand, T. Zijlstra, N. van Oort, S. Hoogendoorn-Lanser, and
S. Hoogendoorn (2022). ‘Access denied? Digital inequality in transport services,’
Transport Reviews, Vol. 42, No. 1, pp. 32−57, p. 36−37.
50
nology and their approbation of hyperconnectivity. The future value of
‘digital natives,’ ‘millennials,’ or the ‘net generation’ for organizational
performance has been hyped in popular literature. This generation was
described using adjectives such as ‘immersed,’ ‘surrounded,’ and ‘bathed
in bits.’
124
According to Marc Prensky, the younger generation does not
differ from its predecessors in terms of values or lifestyles.
125
However,
their processing of information is different because they are ‘fluent’ in
the language of computers, video games and the Internet.
126
Prensky
argues that young people have technological skills that set them apart
from ‘older people,’ whom he calls ‘digital immigrants.’ The latter were
born before 1985, were introduced to technology later in life, and have
adopted its use. The ‘immigrants’ have limited appreciation for the skills
that the natives have acquired and perfected through years of interaction
and practice. These skills are almost entirely alien to immigrants, who
themselves learned them ‘... slowly, step by step, one thing at a time,
individually, and above all, seriously.’
127
The notion of ‘digital natives’ and the arguments put forth by Pren-
sky and popular literature lack empirical or theoretical evidence. Evi-
dence is often based on informal ‘anecdotes, conjecture, and specula-
124
M. Prenksy (2001a). ‘Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants,’ On the Horizon, Vol.
9, No. 5, pp. 1−6; M. Prenksy (2001b). ‘Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants, Part
II. Do they really think differently?,’ On the Horizon, Vol. 9, No. 6, pp. 1−6; N.
Howe and W. Strauss (2000). Millennials Rising. The Next Greatest Generation, Vin-
tage Books, New York; and D. Tapscott (1998). Growing up Digital. The Rise of the
Net Generation, McGraw-Hill, New York.
125
Prensky (2001a), p. 1.
126
M. Prensky (2005). ‘Listen to the natives,’ Educational Leadership, Vol. 63, No.
4, pp. 8−13, p. 8.
127
Prensky (2001a), p. 2. According to Danah Boyd (in: It’s Complicated. The Social
Lives of Networked Teens, Yale University Press, New Haven and Londen, 2014,
p. 177−178), the notions of ‘natives’ and ‘immigrants’ were first used by John
Barlow and Douglas Rushkoff in 1996.
51
tion.’
128
According to Neil Selwyn, commentators who use the term
‘digital native’ do not document young people’s use of information tech-
nology. Instead, they focus on the practices that are supported and facil-
itated by technology in their lives.
129
The provided commentary lacks
objectivity and accuracy regarding young people’s digital skills.
130
Self-assessments of multitasking abilities among young people have
been proven to be unrealistic.
131
The distribution of digital skills across
age groups does not support the existence of a ‘digital generation.’
132
The technological engagements of young people are diverse and unre-
markable. They are based on ‘a misplaced technological and biological
determinism.’
133
The issue of such determinism is that it disregards the
social context and individual characteristics of the person, treating them
as detached learners, unaffected by their surroundings.
134
Eszter Har-
gittai suggested that the abilities of young people to access technology
128
S. Bennett and L. Corrin (2018). ‘From Digital Natives to student experiences
with technology,’ M. Khosrow-Pour (ed.), Advanced Methodologies and Technologies
in Modern Education Delivery, IGI Global, Hershey, Chapter 29, pp. 356− 366, p.
357.
129
N. Selwyn (2009). ‘The digital native — myth and reality,’ Aslib Proceedings.
New Information Perspectives, Vol. 61, No. 4, pp. 364−379, p. 366.
130
S. Bennett, K. Maton, and L. Kervin (2008). ‘The ‘Digital Natives’ debate. A
critical review of evidence,’ British Journal of Educational Technology, Vol. 39, No.
5, pp. 775−786.
131
M.L. Courage, A. Bakhtiar, C. Fitzpatrick, S. Kenny, and K. Brandeau (2015).
‘Growing up multitasking. The costs and benefits for cognitive development,’
Developmental Review, Vol. 35, March, pp. 5−41.
132
E.J. Helsper and R. Eynon (2010). ‘Digital natives. Where is the evidence?,’
British Education Research Journal, Vol. 3 No. 3, pp. 503−520.
133
Selwyn (2009), p. 364.
134
C. Kuhn Hildebrandt (2022). An Exploration of the Underlying Generative Mecha-
nisms that Shape University Students’ Agency in their Educational Digital Practices. PhD
thesis, Bath Spa University, Bath, p. 46.
52
are determined by socio-economic status, social class, gender, and geog-
raphy, and are very differentiated in terms of skills.
135
In terms of access and literacy, there are differences between young
people.
136
The use of technology appears to be limited, with a focus on
gaming, text messaging, online shopping, online music and movie re-
trieval, and social media. The interaction of young people with technol-
ogy is typically passive, sporadic, unspectacular, and often solitary.
137
The use and familiarity with advanced technologies and services, such as
virtual worlds and personal web publishing, is low.
138
Despite having
technical skills, they may not be information literate. Young people often
lack the skills to manage information overload, collaborate effectively,
use information legally and ethically, and conduct successful internet re-
search. Additionally, they may not fully understand how to make infor-
mation work for them. According to relatively recent research, they are
incapable of finding, verifying, and utilizing information, often relying
on the first piece of information they find and exhibiting a ‘snatch and
grab’ behaviour with little interpretation of search results.
139
The emer-
135
E. Hargittai (2010). ‘Digital na(t)ives? Variation in internet skills and uses
among members of the ‘net generation,’ Sociological Inquiry, Vol. 80, No. 1, pp.
92−113, pp. 106−108. Also in: C. Jones, R. Ramanau, S. Cross, and G. Healing
(2010). ‘Net generation or digital natives. Is there a distinct new generation en-
tering university?,’ Computers and Education, Vol. 54, No. 3, pp. 722−732.
136
Selwyn (2009), p. 372; Bennet, Maton, and Kervin (2008), p. 779; Bennett
and Corrin (2018), pp. 358−359.
137
Selwyn (2009), p. 372; Lupač (2018), p. 118.
138
J.B. Caruso and R. Kvavik (2005). ECAR Study of Students and Information Tech-
nology 2005. Convenience, Connection, Control, and Learning, Educause. Online source,
retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://library.educause.edu/-/media/files/library/2005/10/ers0506w-
pdf.pdf. Archived at: https://ghostarchive.org/archive/h3SV6.
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L.J. Burton, J. Summers, J. Lawrence, K. Noble, and P. Gibbings (2015).
‘Digital literacy in higher education. The rhetoric and the reality,’ M.K. Harmes,
53
gence of large language models, such as GPT-4, illustrates a similar ten-
dency towards unthinking replication. This is a common practice among
many students, without even mentioning the use of such a model.
140
Although young people may be more confident when using information
technology, questions and concerns remain regarding their competence.
141
The use of the metaphors natives and immigrants can have unin-
tended consequences. ‘It allows some to eschew responsibility for help-
ing youth and adults navigate a networked world.’ Metaphors can make
it difficult to recognize that young people do not all have the same level
of technological and information skills. Not all young people are equally
prepared for the digitalized world, and the concept of being a native
implies privilege.
142
The assumption that students do not require sup-
port, guidance, or education in digital practices due to the ‘false belief’
of the ‘digital native’ is flawed.
143
Despite the continued popularity of
H. Huijser, and P.A. Danaher (eds.), Myths in Education, Learning and Teaching,
Palgrave Macmillan, London, pp. 151−172; A. Sorgo, T. Bartol, D. Dolnicar,
and B.B. Podgornik (2017). ‘Attributes of digital natives as predictors of infor-
mation literacy in higher education,’ British Journal of Educational Technology, Vol.
48, No. 3, pp. 749−767.
140
M. Khalil and E. Er (2023). ‘Will ChatGPT get you caught? Rethinking of
Plagiarism Detection,’ arXiv preprint. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024,
from: https://doi.org/10.48550/arxiv.2302.04335. Also: A. Basic, A. Banovac,
I. Kruzic, and I. Jerkovic (2023). ‘Better by you, better than me, ChatGPT-3.5
as writing assistance in students’ essays. arXiv preprint. Online source, retrieved
1 November 2024, from: https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2302.04536.
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L. Kerslake and J. Hannam (2022). ‘Designing media and information literacy
curricula in English primary schools. Children’s perceptions of the internet and
ability to navigate online information,’ Irish Educational Studies, Vol. 41, No. 1,
pp. 151−160, p. 151.
142
Boyd (2014), pp. 179−180. Quotation: p. 197.
143
Pointed out by H. Jenkins (2007). ‘Reconsidering digital immigrants,’ Henry
Jenkins Confessions of an ACA–fan, 4 December. Online source, retrieved Novem-
ber 1, 2023, from:
54
the term ‘digital natives’ (with 15,700 results on Google Scholar in 2023),
there are well-documented issues with regards to accessing technology
and information.
144
Critical knowledge to search, find, and interpret in-
formation is more important than familiarity with technology.
145
For
both natives and immigrants, lifelong learning is required. For accessing
information in today’s digitalized world, transliteracy is essential.
The need for literacy
Martin Hilbert notes that despite the staggering amount of informa-
tion available, the relative dominance of text and images remains.
146
People lead both digital and physical lives, accessing information from
digital environments, the physical world, and analogue technologies.
Transliteracy, the ability to apply skills, knowledge and competences in
different settings and to move from one (textual) context to another, is
not new. However, technology has added to its complexity.
147
http://henryjenkins.org/blog/2007/12/reconsidering_digital_immigran.html.
Archived at: https://archive.ph/I9yeI. Also: R. Eynon (2020). ‘The myth of
the digital native. Why it persists and the harm it inflicts,’ T. Burns and F. Gott-
schalk (eds.), Education in the Digital Age. Healthy and Happy Children, OECD Pub-
lishing, Paris, Chapter 9, pp. 131−143.
144
The concept is detached from its original (metaphorical) meaning and func-
tions as an ‘empty signifier’ that scholars use and employ for various purposes.
See: P. Mertala, S. López-Pernas, H. Vartiainen, M. Saqr, and M. Tedre (2024).
‘Digital natives in the scientific literature. A topic modeling approach,’ Computers
in Human Behavior, Vol. 152, March, 108076. Online source, retrieved 1 Novem-
ber 2024, from: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2023.108076.
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Boyd (2014), p. 180.
146
M. Hilbert (2014). ‘What is the content of the world's technologically medi-
ated information and communication capacity? How much text, image, audio,
and video?,’ The Information Society, Vol. 30, No. 2, pp. 127−143, p. 138.
147
S. Sukovic (2016). Transliteracy in Complex Information Environments, Chandos
Publishing, Amsterdam, p. 2.
55
As previously stated, even if an individual succeeds in gaining access
(the information can be made available), that still does not mean that the
(cognitive) interpretability of the information itself is guaranteed. Eszter
Hargittai emphasizes that having access to information technology does
not necessarily mean that users can understand and use the information
they (possibly) discover. She highlights the significance of skills for ‘cog-
nitive access,’ suggesting that acquiring skills to understand and use in-
formation enables information access.
148
In his later research, Van Dijk
agrees with Hargittai’s arguments and emphasizes the importance of
possessing the necessary knowledge, skills, and competences to access
and understand information itself.
149
However, these statements ignore
the fact that understanding is not self-evident. Understanding infor-
mation is a consequence of (cognitive) interpretability. Even if informa-
tion is available, this does not necessarily mean that it is interpretable.
The term ‘digital literacy’ refers to the ability to read, write, analyse,
and understand information, as well as the ability to use the technologies
of the time to deal with it.
150
As Paul Gilster noted, literacy is not about
technologies, but about the ideas within which skills operate and about
148
E. Hargittai (2002). ‘Second-level digital divide. Differences in people’s on-
line skills,’ First Monday, Vol. 7, No. 4, pp. 1-20. Online source, retrieved 1 No-
vember 2024, from: https://doi.org/10.5210/fm.v7i4.942. See also Mathiesen
(2014), p. 607.
149
Van Dijk and Van Deursen (2014), and: E. van Laar, A.J.A.M. van Deursen,
J.A.G.M. van Dijk, and J. de Haan (2017). ‘The relation between 21st-century
skills and digital skills. A systematic literature review,’ Computers in Human Behav-
ior, Vol. 72, pp. 577−588.
150
D. Bawden (2008). ‘Origins and concepts of digital literacy,’ C. Lankshear
and M. Knobel (eds.), Digital Literacies. Concepts, Policies and Practices, Peter Lang,
New York, pp. 17−32, p. 18. There are many various, often overlapping, terms
used, such as informacy, ICT literacy, e-competence, and computer skills. The
term ‘digital literacy’ was common in the debates about skills in the first decades
of the 21st century.
56
information and information resources, in whatever format.
151
Gilster
highlights the significance of a discerning approach towards information
found on the internet, identifying knowledge assembly, internet search-
ing, hypertextual navigation, and content evaluation as core competen-
cies.
152
Yoram Eshet-Alkalai argues that ‘digital literacy’ is a mindset,
rather than just the ability to use digital information effectively. To be
digitally literate, a user needs to create new and meaningful information,
construct knowledge through nonlinear and hypertextual navigation,
evaluate the quality and validity of information, and understand the
‘rules’ of a digital environment.
153
In our hybrid world, knowledge, skills, and competences need to be
applied in various settings and contexts, sometimes utilizing technology
as a means to an end. According to UNESCO, literacy now goes beyond
reading, writing, and counting, and is ‘a means of identification, under-
standing, interpretation, creation, and communication in an increasingly
digital, text-mediated, information-rich, and fast-changing world.’
154
Transliteracy combines many concepts of literacy, including digital liter-
acy, information and media literacy, and computer literacy.
155
It is a mul-
151
P. Gilster (1997). Digital literacy, Wiley, New York, p. 15.
152
Gilster (1997), p. 230. Also: M. Fieldhouse and D. Nicholas (2008). ‘Digital
literacy as information savvy,’ C. Lankshear and M. Knobel (eds.), Digital Liter-
acies. Concepts, Policies and Practices, Peter Lang, New York, Chapter 3, pp. 43−72.
153
Y. Eshet-Alkalai (2004). ‘Digital literacy. A conceptual framework for survival
skills in the digital era,’ Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia, Vol. 13,
No. 1, pp. 93−106.
154
UNESCO (2022). ‘Literacy.’ UNESCO Website. Online source, retrieved 1
November 2024, from: https://www.unesco.org/en/literacy/need-know. Ar-
chived at: https://archive.ph/90JiM.
155
I use transliteracy instead of metaliteracy. They are largely identical, but me-
taliteracy places greater emphasis on self-reflection and self-assessment, as fol-
lows from T.P. Mackey and T.E. Jacobson (2014). Metaliteracy. Reinventing Infor-
mation Literacy to Empower Learners, Nael-Schuman, Chicago, p. 2. Metaliteracy as
57
tiplicity of concepts, making it unnecessary to define new literacies when
new technology appears that seems to require new skills. Suzana Sukovic
posits a concept of transliteracy that captures dynamic relationships be-
tween different types of literacies, technologies, and social and cultural
contexts.
156
Transliteracy requires knowledge, skills, and competences
to use both analogue and digital technologies, modes, and protocols to
[1] search for, evaluate, and work with information, [2] collaborate and
participate in social networks, and [3] communicate meanings and
knowledge using different genres, tones, and media. Transliteracy in-
volves the ability to identify, evaluate, understand, and contextualize in-
formation using various media styles. It enables users to connect and
present information for analysis and interpretation.
157
The knowledge,
skills, and competences for transliteracy are derived from information
and media literacy, as defined by UNESCO: ‘the ability to access the
media [new and old] and other information sources, to understand and
evaluate critically their contents and functions and to critically use them
to create communications in a variety of contexts including teaching and
learning, self-expression, creativity and civic participation.’
158
Frameworks for the knowledge, skills, and competences required in
a digitalized world are numerous. One of the most frequently cited is
a not fully developed concept: Sukovic (2016), and S. Thomas, C. Joseph, J.
Laccetti, B. Mason, S. Mills, S. Perril, and K. Pullinger (2007). ‘Transliteracy.
Crossing divides,’ First Monday, Vol 12, No. 12. Online source, retrieved 1 No-
vember 2024, from: https://doi.org/10.5210/fm.v12i12.2060.
156
Sukovic (2016), p. 7.
157
M.K. Dunaway (2011). ‘Connectivism. Learning theory and pedagogical prac-
tice for networked information landscapes,’ Reference Services Review, Vol. 39, No.
4, pp. 675−685, especially pp. 679, 680−683.
158
A. Grizzle, P. Moore, M. Dezuanni, S. Asthana, C. Wilson, F. Banda, C.
Onumah (2013). Media and Information Literacy. Policy and Strategy Guidelines. United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Paris, p. 175. For in-
formation literacy also: Sukovic (2016), pp. 3−5.
58
Van Dijk’s model of successive types of access. However, frameworks
for transliteracy skills are scarce. Many studies on transliteracy refer to
existing frameworks for digital literacy or information literacy.
159
In 2014, Jan van Dijk en Alexander van Deursen defined two sets of
skills: medium-related skills and content-related skills. The first set of
skills comprises operational and formal skills, technical skills necessary to
use a computer and to navigate the internet. The second set of skills
consists of four components: information skills, communication skills, content-
creating skills, and strategic skills. Information skills involve finding, sort-
ing, evaluating, and critically assessing information. Communication
skills involve ‘the ability to encode and decode messages to construct,
understand, and exchange meaning in all interactive applications.’ Con-
tent-creating skills involve designing and publishing websites, recording
or assembling pictures, videos, and audio programs, or compiling a pro-
file and producing messages on a social networking site. Strategic skills
are the most complex skills, involving the ability to use a range of avail-
able resources such as knowledge, money, rules and laws, social net-
159
Sukovic (2016), pp. 4−5, states that the ACRL framework is significant and
frequently utilized: Association of College and Research Libraries (2016). Frame-
work for Information Literacy for Higher Education, ACRL, Chicago. Online source,
retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://www.ala.org/acrl/standards/ilframework. In addition to this frame-
work, I used three recent papers for my analysis: Van Laar, Van Deursen, Van
Dijk, and De Haan (2017) (based on an analysis of 75 articles); C. Iordache, I.
Mariën, and D. Baelden (2017). ‘Developing digital skills and competences. A
quickscan analysis of 13 digital literacy models,’ Italian Journal of Sociology of Edu-
cation, Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 6−30 (analysis of 13 frameworks of digital skills); and
T. Durán-Becerra, and J. Lau (2020). ‘MIL competency framework. Mapping
media and information competencies,’ Anagramas — Rumbos y Sentidos de la Co-
municación, Vol 19, No. 37, pp. 49−67 (an analysis of 21 papers discussing differ-
ent frameworks of information and media literacy knowledge, skills, and com-
petences).
59
works, traditions, and technology ‘for the general goal of improving
one’s position in society’ and to participate in social processes.
160
The
communication and content-creating skills are additional to Van Dijk’s
basic model, as defined in 2005.
Acquiring content-related knowledge, skills, and competences, par-
ticularly information and strategic skills, can be very challenging. How-
ever, they are less susceptible to rapid changes compared to medium-
related skills, which require lifelong learning to keep up with fast-paced
technological advancements.
161
The analysis conducted by Catalina Iordache, Ilse Mariën, and Do-
rien Baelden on thirteen digital literacy models revealed 39 indicators,
which were divided into 5 categories. These categories were largely iden-
tical to Van Dijk’s model of successive types of access, including opera-
tional, technical and formal, information and cognition, digital communication, digi-
tal content-creation, and strategic skills. As part of these strategic skills, they
recognize the ability to identify gaps in digital competences. For the de-
velopment of knowledge, skills, and competences, individuals need to
take personal responsibility. This requires the ability to reflect on their
level of competence and identify areas for development.
The literature review by Ester van Laar, Alexander van Deursen, Jan
van Dijk, and Jos de Haan adds core skills related to collaboration, critical
thinking, and problem solving to Van Dijk’s 2014 model. The review also
defines several contextual skills, including ethical and cultural awareness, flex-
ibility, self-direction, and lifelong learning. However, strategic skills are not in-
cluded in this mix of skills, despite their importance in Van Dijk’s ‘re-
sources and appropriation theory.’ This review juxtaposes the techno-
logically inspired frameworks of skills, knowledge and competences with
the traditional media and information management inspired frameworks
160
Van Dijk en Van Deursen (2014), pp. 6−7. Quotations: p. 30.
161
Iordache, Mariën, and Baelden (2017), p. 17.
60
as shown in the literature review by Tomás Durán-Becerra and Jesús
Lau. These frameworks relate both to processes of understanding and
using information and to the use of information technology. The com-
petences emphasize critical understanding to enable informed decision-
making and an understanding of how media and technology work. Du-
rán-Becerra and Lau include the ethical use of media and technology and
their potential to empower citizens. The combination of these two
frameworks provides an overview of the knowledge, skills and compe-
tences needed in a transliterate society (see Table 1).
Dimensions of translit-
eracy knowledge,
skills, and competences
The skills, knowledge, and competences….
Technical
To use technology responsibly to accomplish tasks and navigate
online environments (understanding technology characteristics,
basic application operations, access resources)
Information Manage-
ment
To efficiently identify information needs, and to (ethically) search,
locate, access, select, analyse, organize, systematize, contextualize,
evaluate, recover, store, share, and use information to make in-
formed decisions about (1) suitable sources of information, and (2)
problems within a given task.
Content-creation and
content-monitoring
To efficiently and responsibly use available resources and services
to contribute new information (as speech, writing, or any of various
arts) to any (digital) media for an end-user/audience (interactive)
experience in specific contexts, and monitoring the effects of con-
sumed media and information.
Communication
To transmit efficiently and responsibly information to others (by
using communication tools, social networks, or traditional media),
ensuring that the meaning is expressed effectively.
Collaboration
To participate in a social network and collaborate in a team, to ex-
change information, negotiate agreements, and make decisions with
mutual respect for each other towards achieving a common goal.
Critical Comprehen-
sion
To make informed judgements and choices about obtained infor-
mation and communications using reflective reasoning and suffi-
cient evidence to support claims.
Table 1 Dimensions of transliteracy skills
61
Dimensions of translit-
eracy knowledge,
skills, and competences
The skills, knowledge, and competences….
Problem Solving
To cognitively process and understand a problem situation in com-
bination with the active use of knowledge (about regulations, the
political environment, the social mores, human behaviour, etc.) to
find a solution to a problem.
Strategy
To use problem solving and critical thinking to analyse complex sit-
uations, solve problems arising from those situations, and plan for
the future (including the further development of skills), based on
the active use of knowledge about political, socio-economic, and
organizational contexts.
Table 1 Dimensions of transliteracy skills
Strategic skills enable the strategic use of information and informa-
tion technology in society, promoting participation, innovative thinking,
and creative problem solving. However, determining a necessary level of
knowledge, skills, and competences for real-life situations can be chal-
lenging. In 1984, Sylvia Scribner stated that literacy is often assumed to
be a personal attribute, according to her research on characterizations of
literacy. Table 1 provides such personal attributes. Scribner emphasized
that literacy also is a social achievement, a result from cultural transmis-
sion. Individuals acquire literacy skills through participation in socially
organized activities involving written language. Social literacy practices
vary over time and space, and individual literacy varies accordingly.
162
Functional literacy refers to the necessary level of literacy an individual
requires to function in society.
163
The required knowledge, skills, and
competences depend on contextual and situational circumstances. Func-
tional literacy refers to the ability to understand and use communication
162
S. Scribner (1984). ‘Literacy in three methaphors,’ American Journal of Educa-
tion, Vol. 93, No. 1, pp. 6−21, p. 7, pp. 7−8.
163
Scribner (1984), p. 8.
62
media for searching, using, adapting, creating, and understanding infor-
mation for action and communication in daily life.
164
Learning to apply
knowledge in real-life situations is especially important for functional lit-
eracy as it forms the foundation for individual competence and compet-
itiveness.
165
Determining the necessary level of transliteracy skills for
functional literacy, however, can be challenging. The required skills for
job performance differ from those needed for functioning in society,
and they are specific to contexts and situations, varying across geo-
graphic regions. To be functionally literate today, more than basic read-
ing and writing skills are required for using information-as-knowledge in
a digitalized world. This may pose a problem.
The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) states
that reading is no longer solely about extracting information, but also
about constructing knowledge, thinking critically, and making well-
founded judgments. As information technology allows for greater access
to information, the ability to understand and make sense of it becomes
increasingly important. Functionally literate individuals in a digitalized
society require higher-level skills. According to the 2018 and 2022 PISA
results, less than ten per cent of students worldwide demonstrated these
higher-level skills, indicating a potential problem for economic and so-
cial participation.
166
While information access requires a range of skills,
164
V. Korhonen (2010). ‘Dialogic literacy. A sociocultural literacy learning ap-
proach,’ A. Lloyd and S. Talja (eds.), Practising Information Literacy. Bringing Theories
of Learning, Practice and Information Literacy Together, N.S.W. Centre for Information
Studies, Wagga Wagga, Chapter 10, pp. 211−226
165
R. Ali, S. Dossanova, K. Kulambayeva, A. Sadykova, and T. Tazhibayev
(2020). ‘Functional literacy in the context of human capital development,’ Uni-
versal Journal of Educational Research, Vol. 8, No. 3, pp. 1017−1026, p. 1020.
166
A. Schleicher (2018). PISA 2018. Insights and Interpretations, OECD, Paris, p.
14. The definition of ‘reading’ agrees with the UNESCO definition: see p. 57,
158. The 2022 PISA findings reveal a general decline in mathematics, reading
and science scores since 2018, which can be attributed to both the COVID-19
63
traditional literacy skills remain crucial, particularly in the meaning em-
ployed by UNESCO and PISA. In 2019, only 34% of the population in
Western Europe, one of the most digitalized regions of the world, had
above basic literacy skills.
167
While these individuals possess the digital
skills to access information technology and the internet, they may lack
the necessary skills to fully understand the information they access, de-
pending on situational context. Transliteracy is crucial for accessing in-
formation in today’s hybrid, digitalized world and for succeeding in so-
ciety and employment. And even the most advanced skill level cannot
cope with information that can be obtained but is not (cognitively) in-
terpretable. While literacy represents a significant challenge in our hybrid
world for information access, it is not the only one.
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS
**********
The advent of the hybrid world has resulted in an increase in the
demand for ores and minerals, accompanied by a rise in energy con-
sumption, greenhouse gas emissions (especially CO2) and ewaste gener-
ation.
168
These developments are caused by the information technology
pandemic and long-term problems within education systems. See: A. Schleicher
(2022). PISA 2022. Insights and Interpretation, OECS, Paris, p. 8.
167
R. van Kessel, B.L.H. Wong, I. Rubinić, E. O’Nuallain, and K. Czabanowska
(2022). ‘Is Europe prepared to go digital? Making the case for developing digital
capacity. An exploratory analysis of Eurostat survey data,’ PLOS Digital Health,
Vol. 1, No. 2. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pdig.0000013.
168
H. Molin (2022). The Impacts of Digitalization in the Water-Energy Nexus. Tech-
nical report, Division of Industrial Electrical Engineering and Automation,
Lund University, Lund. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://www2.iea.lth.se/publications/Reports/LTH-IEA-7292.pdf. See also:
A. Timchenko, I. Kucheva, and L. Silakova (2024). ‘Assessing the negative im-
64
infrastructures that provide for the dynamism of the hybrid world. This
dynamism depends on information access and is determined by three
factors: the user equipment, the data centres responsible for storage, and
the data transmission networks facilitating dissemination.
Information systems are facing pressure to demonstrate energy effi-
ciency and sustainable manufacturing. The information technology in-
dustry is facilitating the energy efficiency of other industries, a process
known as ‘greening by IT.’ It contributes to climate change monitoring,
environmental mitigation, the development of intelligent energy grids,
climate prediction modelling, energy efficiency, and waste management.
However, it is also challenged by environmental issues and it needs to
reduce its direct environmental impact (‘greening of IT’).
169
pact of the IT sector on the environment. A call for sustainable solutions,’ D.
Nazarov and A. Juraeva (eds.), Proceedings of the Tenth International Annual Confer-
ence Industrial Technologies and Engineering (ICITE 2023), Shymkent, Kazakhstan, No-
vember 9
−
10, 2023, EDP Sciences, Les Ulis, Vol. 474, No. 03026. Online source,
retrieved 1 November 2024, from: https://www.e3s-conferences.org/arti-
cles/e3sconf/pdf/2024/04/e3sconf_icite2023_03026.pdf. For greenhouse gas
emissions: H. Ritchie, P. Rosado, and M. Roser (2023). ‘CO₂ and greenhouse
gas emissions,’ OurWorldInData.org. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024,
from: https://ourworldindata.org/co2-and-greenhouse-gas-emissions.
Archived at: https://archive.ph/W1NLx.
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For the distinction between ‘greening of IT’ and ‘greening by IT’ see: E.
Curry and B. Donellan (2014). ‘Sustainable IT,’ H. Topi and A. Tucker (eds.),
Computing Handbook. II. Information Systems and Information Technology, Chapman
and Hall and CRC, London, Chapter 50, pp. 1−20; M. Rathee, and A. Bala
(2024). ‘Digital technologies and environmental impact,’ World Journal of Ad-
vanced Engineering Technology and Sciences, Vol. 12, No. 1, pp. 116−120, and D. Al
Kez, A.M. Foley, D. Laverty, D.F. Del Rio, and B. Sovacool (2022). ‘Exploring
the sustainability challenges facing digitalization and internet data centers,’ Jour-
nal of Cleaner Production, Vol. 371, No. 133633. Online source, retrieved 1 No-
vember 2024, from: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2022.133633.
65
Improvements in energy efficiency of computers and other devices
have helped to moderate the growth in energy demand from data centres
and data transmission networks.
170
In their analysis of the literature,
Alexandr Timschenko, Irina Kucheva and Liubov Silakova identified the
following figures for the period 2019-21: [1] the global information tech-
nology industry’s annual electricity consumption is estimated to be ap-
proximately 2 trillion kilowatt-hours; [2] data centres and networks ac-
count for up to 3% of global electricity consumption; [3] the global water
consumption by data centres is approximately 980 million m³ per year,
almost 3 million m³ per day; [4] the contribution to global greenhouse
gas emissions of the information technology industry is approximately
4%; [5] the amount of annual ewaste is approximately 50 million tons,
of which 20% is recycled.
171
In 2019, there were a total of 34 billion user
devices in use. The manufacturing of this equipment has the most sig-
nificant impact on the environment, accounting for 30% of the global
energy balance, 39% of the greenhouse gas emissions, and 74% of the
water consumption. When the electricity produced for their use is also
taken into account, user equipment is responsible for a significant pro-
portion of the environmental impact of the information technology in-
dustry, with estimates ranging from 59% to 84%. The manufacturing
and power consumption of equipment for users represent the two most
significant sources of impact.
172
170
International Energy Agency (2023). ‘Data centres and data transmission net-
works,’ IEA Website. Online source, retrieved on 1 November 2024, from:
https://www.iea.org/energy-system/buildings/data-centres-and-data-trans-
mission-networks.
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Timchenko, Kucheva, and Silakova (2024), pp. 3−4.
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F. Bordage (2019). The Environmental Footprint of the Digital World, GReenIT.fr,
p. 11. Online source, retrieved November 1 2024, from:
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loads/2019/11/GREENIT_EENM_etude_EN_accessible.pdf. Archived at:
66
The development of artificial intelligence initiatives since 2012 has
resulted in an increase in energy and water consumption as well as in
greenhouse gas emissions.
Several examples to illustrate these environmental effects. The com-
puting power needed to train artificial intelligence models has doubled
every 3½ months from 2012 onward, resulting in a notable increase in
CO₂ emissions.
173
The training of ChatGPT-3 has been found to re-
quire the consumption of 1.3 gigawatt hours of electricity, resulting in
the generation of 550,000 kg of CO2. The energy consumption necessary
for training is only 40% of that required for operational purposes. The
training process also requires the consumption of approximately 700,000
litres of water for the purpose of computer cooling, equivalent to that
which would be required by a nuclear power plant cooling tower.
174
In
2023, data centres operated by Google extracted a total of 24 billion li-
tres of water from the environment, a 14% increase compared to 2022.
Two-thirds of this quantity was comprised of potable water. In 2022,
https://web.archive.org/web/20240529233630/https://www.greenit.fr/wp-
content/uploads/2019/11/GREENIT_EENM_etude_EN_accessible.pdf.
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D. Amodei and D. Hernandez (2018). ‘AI and compute,’ Open AI Blog, 16
May. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024: https://openai.com/index/ai-
and-compute/#modern. Archive: https://archive.ph/B6Jdc#40%.
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S. Ghaffary (2024). ‘Big Tech’s climate goals at risk from massive AI energy
demands,’ Bloomberg Newsletter, 11 July. Online source, retrieved 1 November
2024, from: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2024-07-11/big-
tech-s-climate-goals-at-risk-from-massive-ai-energy-demands. Archived at:
https://archive.ph/BCKWu. Also: P. Li, J. Yang, M.A. Islam, en S. Ren (2023).
‘Making AI less ‘thirsty.’ Uncovering and addressing the secret water footprint
of AI models.’ arXiv preprint. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://arxiv.org/pdf/2304.03271; and D. Patterson, J. Gonzalez, Q. Le, C.
Liang, L.M. Munguia, D. Rothchild, D. So, M. Texier, and J. Dean (2021). ‘Car-
bon emissions and large neural network training.’ arXiv preprint. Online source,
retrieved 1 November 2024, from: https://arxiv.org/pdf/2104.10350.
67
Microsoft’s CO₂ emissions increased by 34% from 2020-21, while
Google’s emissions increased by 48% from 2019-24.
175
This expansion negates a considerable proportion of the gains of the
‘greening of IT’-initiatives. There is a pressing need to intensify efforts
to limit ecological effects. However, the most effective actions will inev-
itably affect commercial interests and are therefore likely to be difficult
to realize. A number of the following actions have already been imple-
mented, or are currently in the process of being implemented. It is im-
perative that these actions be intensified in light of the ecological conse-
quences of artificial intelligence initiatives. The most important of these
actions are: [1] the implementation of virtualization and clustering of
virtual servers, which serves to reduce the physical infrastructure;
176
[2]
175
Google Environmental report, 2023. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024,
from: https://www.gstatic.com/gumdrop/sustainability/google-2023-environ-
mental-report.pdf. Archived at:
https://web.ar-
chive.org/web/20240716233656/https:/www.gstatic.com/gumdrop/sustaina-
bility/google-2023-environmental-report.pdf; Google Environmental report, 2024.
Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://www.gstatic.com/gumdrop/sustainability/google-2024-environmen-
tal-report. Archived at:
https://web.ar-
chive.org/web/20240728112227/https://www.gstatic.com/gumdrop/sustain-
ability/google-2024-environmental-report.pdf. Microsoft Environmental sustainabil-
ity report, 2022. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://news.microsoft.com/wp-content/up-
loads/prod/sites/42/2023/05/2022-Environmental-Sustainability-Report.pdf.
Archived at: https://web.archive.org/web/20240621093848/https:/news.mi-
crosoft.com/wp-content/uploads/prod/sites/42/2023/05/2022-Environ-
mental-Sustainability-Report.pdf.
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K. Hwang, G.C. Fox, and J.J. Dongarra (2012). Distributed and Cloud Compu-
ting. From Parallel Processing to the Internet of Things, Elsevier-Morgan Kaufmann,
Waltham, Chapter 3, pp. 129−187.
68
the reduction of under-utilization of hardware leading to using more
power than necessary;
177
[3] the deployment of energy-efficient chips
utilizing multi-core technology, which is of importance for all user de-
vices, including smartphones, tablets and computers; [4] the utilization
of low-power hardware, including processors, solid-state drives, and
supplies; [5] the implementation of enhanced cooling systems, based on
other cooling fluids than potable water; [6] improved data centre loca-
tions, where natural, renewable resources can be employed in the gener-
ation of electricity or where it is feasible to generate and store electricity;
and [7] improving traditional recycling practices to diminish ewaste.
178
Although challenging, further actions are required. The possibility of
extending the scope of recycling practices needs to be considered in or-
der to achieve the objective of ‘zero ewaste landfills.’ This would reduce
the amount of waste produced, an increase in the recovery of resources,
and the fostering of a mindset conducive to a circular economy.
179
In
manufacturing, there is a need to reduce or eliminate the use of environ-
mentally critical materials. Equipment needs to be designed with longev-
ity in mind, to conserve energy and to implement effective end-of-life
177
A. Choudhary, G. Makesh, and K. Pal (2023). ‘Energy-efficient load-balanced
server consolidation in cloud computing environment.’ Online source, retrieved
1 November 2024, from: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4356696.
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G.J. van Bussel (2024). ‘The ecological footprint of Artificial Intelligence.’
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M. Chen and O.A. Ogunseitan (2021). ‘Zero E-waste. Regulatory impedi-
ments and blockchain imperatives,’ Frontiers of Environmental Science & Engineering,
Vol. 15, pp. 1−10. Also: N. Pajunen and M.E. Holuszko (2022). ‘Circular econ-
omy in electronics and the future of e-waste,’ M.E. Holuszko, A. Kumar, and
D.C.R. Espinosa (eds.), Electronic Waste. Recycling and Reprocessing for a Sustainable
Future, Wiley-VCH, Weinheim, Chapter 13, pp. 299−314.
69
management strategies. The materials used should be easily recycable.
180
The development of ‘green software’ allows for more environmentally
friendly computational efficiency, data efficiency, context awareness,
and idle efficiency, based on software sustainability metrics.
181
Another approach would be to reduce the quantity of stored infor-
mation based on its informational value, as proposed by Geert−Jan van
Bussel, Nikki Smit, and John van de Pas in 2015. Their objective was to
investigate a methodical reduction in the quantity of stored information,
utilizing retention levels and retention schedules. The term ‘retention
level’ is used to describe the organizational level that is responsible for
the collection, processing, analysis, and storage of information as well as
the implementation of the retention schedule. This schedule explicitly
defines the economic, social, cultural, financial, administrative, fiscal, le-
gal and/or historical value of the information retained at every retention
level, which is defined as the time (in years) after which the information
should be irreparably destroyed. Duplicate information at other reten-
tion levels can be permanently deleted without delay. The utilization of
retention levels and the removal of duplicate information does have a
significant impact. Case studies demonstrated a reduction in two key ar-
eas: firstly, the amount of information was reduced by 45%, and second-
ly, the electricity consumption for information storage was reduced, re-
sulting in a calculated cost reduction of 35% and a subsequent reduction
180
A.P. Kumar and S.S. Kannegala (2012). ‘Green devices and hardware,’ S.
Murugesan and G.R. Gangadharan (eds.), Harnessing Green IT. Principles and Prac-
tices, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., Chichester, Chapter 2, pp. 23−38.
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B. Steigerwald and A. Agrawal (2012). ‘Green Software,’ S. Murugesan and
G.R. Gangadharan (eds.), Harnessing Green IT. Principles and Practices, John Wiley
& Sons, Ltd., Chichester, Chapter 3, pp. 39−62; F. Albertao (2012). ‘Sustainable
software decelopment,’ S. Murugesan and G.R. Gangadharan (eds.), Harnessing
Green IT. Principles and Practices, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., Chichester, Chapter 4,
pp. 63−84.
70
in CO2 emissions.
182
Combining this approach with the use of tape stor-
age for long-term preservation would result in a further reduction in the
emissions as well as in lower costs of operation.
183
It is questionable
whether creation of awareness among users of the more than 34 billion
devices in use (computers, tablets, and smartphones) will prove suffi-
cient to address the vast scale of this challenge. However, the energy
consumption of these devices is markedly higher than that of all data
centres globally. It is important to recognize this effect of global infor-
mation access.
EVALUATION
**********
The world around us is not purely digital, but rather a hybrid amal-
gamation of virtual and physical elements. It can best be described as a
world, in which all facets of that physical world are presented in virtual
appearances that live a ‘life of their own,’ that are constantly evolving
themselves, and that constantly interact with ‘real-life.’ People live both
virtual and physical lives simultaneously; it is impossible to do otherwise.
This digitalized world has both benefits and drawbacks. Let’s start
with the benefits. Firstly, it is convenient as it enables people to communi-
182
G.J. van Bussel, N. Smit, and J. van de Pas (2015). ‘Digital Archiving, Green
IT and environment. Deleting data to manage critical effects of the data deluge,’
Electronic Journal of Information Systems Evaluation, vol. 18, No. 2, pp. 187−198. For
permanently deleting information see also: Al Kez, et al (2022), pp. 3−6.
183
J. Koomey, K. Brill, P. Turner, J. Stanley, and B. Taylor (2007). A Simple Model
for Determining True Total Cost of Ownership for Data Centers. Uptime Institute White
Paper, Santa Fe, version 2. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/docu-
ment?repid=rep1&type=pdf&doi=94b97a8b200a30303c26a2796c039342f089
a838.
71
cate, interact, shop, and access information from anywhere. Secondly, it
promotes connectivity, allowing people to connect globally, communicate
and collaborate worldwide, and facilitate business, cultural exchange,
and knowledge sharing. Thirdly, the internet provides people with in-
stant access to information through search engines, conversational artificial
intelligence, and online libraries, offering unprecedented possibilities for
research and education. Fourthly, it has become easier to innovate and
create by using online platforms to develop new applications, games, ser-
vices, shops, and online products, which allows for continuous business
and technological advancement. Fifthly, email, social media, and instant
messaging enable real-time interaction regardless of geographical dis-
tances, enhancing personal and professional communication. Sixthly, digital
technologies facilitate possible economic growth by creating a parallel econ-
omy through ecommerce, online marketing, and services that are seam-
lessly integrated with the real-world economy. And, last but not least, a
wide range of entertainment options, including streaming services, online
gaming, social media platforms, and digital art, enrich people’s leisure
time.
There ar several drawbacks. The first one are privacy concerns. Large
amounts of user information are collected, which puts personal infor-
mation in the hands of government and business organizations. Users
are often unaware of how this information is managed, processed, used
(to build user profiles, for instance), secured, and to whom it is sold.
Secondly, the value of (personal) information leads to information security
threats. Viruses, malware, phishing, and ransom-ware infiltrate informa-
tion infrastructures to compromise sensitive information, steal personal
information, and disrupt services. The third and fourth drawbacks are
related to problematic access to and accessibility of information. This is where
Paradox 2.0 and 3.0 come into play. The sheer volume of information
that can be made available leads to information overload. To manage the
constant influx of information, individuals use tools to filter information
72
based on their preferences or search queries. However, this can result in
information bubbles and difficulties in accessing accurate information.
Information bubbles can make people more susceptible to misinforma-
tion, leading to misunderstandings when participating in society. In ad-
dition, rapid technological developments can leave information vulner-
able to obsolescence, resulting in probable availability without the pos-
sibility of interpretation due to poor accessibility. The fifth drawback
also affects information access, but its consequences are more far-reach-
ing. It emerges from the organizational power of Laurence Lessig’s ‘code is
law’ principle. Proprietary ‘code,’ including architectures, infrastructures,
software, and artificial intelligence algorithms, defines how everything
people do in the virtual world is experienced, protected, censored, and
monitored. It also determines how information access is permitted,
managed, and organized. The organizations that own this ‘code’ inte-
grate their own values into their technological structures, which can con-
strain user actions and limit information access, anonymity, freedom of
speech, and individual control. This can be extremely dangerous for
democratic values. Sixth, not everyone has equal access to information
and information technologies, leading to digital divides. Socio-economic
disparities limit access to information, education, jobs, and essential ser-
vices. Seventh, it could lead to social isolation when reliance on digital me-
dia leads to a lack of face-to-face interactions and even addiction due to
excessive use of digital devices, social media, and online entertainment.
This hampers interpersonal relationships and mental and physical health.
Eight, there are economic and legal challenges. The technological advance-
ments in economic markets have outpaced the regulatory legal frame-
work in terms of content and effectiveness. This is evident in areas such
as cross-border business, international trade, taxation, consumer privacy,
and security. Economic issues include property rights to information, a
shortage of highly qualified personnel, the replacement of medium and
low skilled workers with robots and automatic machines, as well as prob-
73
lematic governance, accountability, and analysis. And lastly, the digitali-
zation of society has resulted in an acceleration of environmental problems,
largely due to a notable increase in greenhouse gas emissions (especially
CO2), ewaste, and the utilization of potable water for cooling.
Examining the benefits and drawbacks of this hybrid world, it is clear
that the advantages primarily relate to convenience and commercial capabilities,
while the disadvantages primarily concern societal issues that are exacer-
bated by the digititalization of society. As previously stated, technology
does not bridge divides but rather exacerbates or creates them. All these
issues (probably except social isolation) relate to access and accessibility
of information. Privacy concerns not only involve the collection of per-
sonal information but also the restriction of access to it. Information
security is primarily concerned with safeguarding infrastructures to pre-
vent access to personal and sensitive information. Information overload
and technological obsolescence both hinder access to information. The
principle of ‘code is law’ concerns the definition of what individuals are
permitted or prohibited from doing, and grants the owners of digital
infrastructures the power to permit or deny access to information. Dig-
ital divides are predominantly about access to information technology
and information. They tear society apart and play different groups off
against each other, with the least advantaged falling further and further
behind when it comes to acquiring information technology, information
access, information skills, and participation in society. Legal and eco-
nomic issues often revolve around access to information, particularly
property rights and governance, accountability, and analysis. The accel-
eration of environmental problems is largely attributable to the unprec-
edented growth in the utilization of a multitude of digital devices that
demand considerable amounts of power to facilitate information access.
The legal frameworks have not kept pace with technological advance-
ments and innovation, leaving business platforms with significant leeway
74
in their platform regulations. While this is unavoidable, it is also unde-
sirable.
Information access is crucial in a hybrid world. The use of search
engines and (conversational) artificial intelligence language models have
helped in this regard. Although the hybrid world has made access to
information more convenient and has opened up many libraries to con-
sult, the drawbacks are severe and far-reaching. These issues are not eas-
ily solved as solutions would interfere heavily with private business prac-
tices. Nevertheless, these business practices should comply with existing
laws and regulations and be obliged to prove their compliance.
Rapidly evolving technology can make access and accessibility chal-
lenging. Therefore, it is crucial for individuals to have transliteracy skills
to identify important information that can help solve their problems.
Additionally, literacy is crucial for interpreting and understanding the in-
formation they have access to. This allows information-as-thing to trans-
form to information-as-knowledge, a concept often overlooked in the
issues discussed in this chapter. For this to be realized, the information
should be presented in a (cognitively) interpretable format. However,
most people and organizations are not aware of the vulnerability of in-
formation due to these continuous format changes.
The study of information access and accessibility is a topic of great
interest across various disciplines. In the next chapter, I will analyse sev-
eral theoretical approaches to the access to and the accessibility of infor-
mation.
75
3
THEORETICAL APPROACHES TO
INFORMATION ACCESS
*
76
ACCESS TO ‘THINGS’
**********
Lor and Britz claim that access to information is a ‘dominant right.’
However, this ‘right’ is characterized by significant inequalities in access
to information within society. Differences in access to information and
the necessary facilities lead to information inequality, which is reflected
in the digital divide(s) and the associated differences in behaviour, skills
and knowledge. This inequality affects both business and government
organizations.
184
This overview of theoretical approaches to information access begins
in a different context, that of property management, natural resource
analysis, and physical environment. Jesse Ribot and Nancy Peluso com-
bined sociological, anthropological, and geographical approaches to ac-
cess in a multi-disciplinary one, focusing on access as ‘the ability to ben-
efit from things — including material objects, persons, institutions, and
symbols.’ They assert that ‘by focusing on ability, rather than rights as in
property theory, this formulation brings attention to a wider range of
social relationships that can constrain or enable people to benefit from
resources without solely focusing on property relations alone.’
185
Alt-
hough they focus on natural resources, their theoretical framework can
be applied to information access as well. This is because Buckland’s con-
cept of information-as-thing can be associated with the ‘things’ in ques-
tion.
Ribot and Peluso argue that access emerges within structures of
power, focuses on the abilities of actors (individuals and organizations)
to benefit from ‘things,’ and is embedded in social relations of control
184
Lor and Britz (2007), p. 392.
185
J. Ribot and N.L. Peluso (2003). ‘A theory of access,’ Rural Sociology, Vol. 68,
No. 2, pp. 153−181, pp. 153−154 (my italics.)
77
and maintenance.
186
Social access relations are constantly changing, de-
pending ‘on an individual’s or group’s position and power within various
social relationships.’
187
Ribot and Peluso suggest locating this power
within the social and political-economic contexts that shape abilities of
individuals and oganizations to benefit from resources. Power relations
are present in all structural and relational mechanisms of access, includ-
ing technology, capital, markets, labor, knowledge, authority, identity,
and social relations.
188
Ribot and Peluso's explanations regarding access to knowledge, au-
thority, and social identity are noteworthy when considering information
access. Access to knowledge determines ‘who can benefit from resources’
and shapes economic, social, and political purposes. Access to informa-
tion provides (potentially) privileged access to knowledge. However,
control over information also limits access and the potential benefits of
this resource.
189
Access to authority refers to ‘an individual’s ability to ben-
efit from resources,’ from ‘things,’ which tends to be selective along eco-
nomic and social lines. Authorities act as nodes of access control, and
their approval is necessary to gain and maintain access to resources.
190
Social identity plays a crucial role in obtaining approval, and access is me-
diated by factors such as membership in a community or workforce, or
belonging to a specific social stratification.
191
Authority, knowledge, and social identity are important concepts in
the social sciences. These concepts, along with power and ownership
(key arguments for access in Ribot and Peluso’s paper), are considered
central to explaining inequalities in access to information. ‘A Theory of
186
Ribot and Peluso (2003), pp. 158−159.
187
Ribot and Peluso (2003), pp. 155−159. Quotation: p. 158.
188
Ribot and Peluso (2003), pp. 164−172.
189
Ribot and Peluso (2003), pp. 168−169. Quotation: p. 168.
190
Ribot and Peluso (2003), pp. 170.
191
Ribot and Peluso (2003), pp. 171−172.
78
Access’ presents a structural approach while at the same time recogniz-
ing the agency of individuals, although it is noted that agency could have
been more strongly emphasized.
192
The paper is perceived as very influ-
ential (1464 citations), but it has never been discussed or cited in (or in
relation to) the most important theories of information access.
193
This
is surprising given the relationship between access to physical objects
and access to information, as described by Buckland’s concept of infor-
mation-as-thing.
Patrick Fougeyrollas and his colleagues developed a conceptualiza-
tion of access dimensions, focusing on the physical environment (built
framework, public spaces, and infrastructure) and social environment
(services, attitudes, representations, and social relations). They argue that
access and accessibility are used interchangeably, but that they are dis-
tinct concepts. ‘Access’ is a general notion defined by five dimensions:
availability, accessibility, acceptability, affordability, and usability.
194
The
192
J. Koch (2008). Perspectives on Access to and Management of Natural Resources, DIIS
Working Paper, Danish Institute for International Studies, Copenhagen, No. 8,
p. 6. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/44687/1/56526527X.pdf.
193
R. Myers and C. Pilegaard Hansen (2020). ‘Revisiting A Theory of Access. A
review,’ Society and Natural Resources, Vol. 33, No. 2, pp. 146−166, state it has
1600 citations. According to the website of Rural Sociology, the paper has been
cited 1464 times (1 November 2024).
194
P. Fougeyrollas, D. Fiset, L. Dumont, Y. Grenier, N. Boucher, and S. Ga-
mache (2019). ‘Réflexion critique sur la notion d’accessibilité universelle et ar-
ticulation conceptuelle pour le développement d’environnements inclusifs,’ Re-
vue Développement Humain, Handicap et Changement Social / Journal of Human Devel-
opment, Disability, and Social Change, Vol. 25, No. 1, pp. 161−175, pp. 167−169.
Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://doi.org/10.7202/1085774ar; and P. Fougeyrollas, L. Noreau, N. Bou-
cher, D. Fiset, Y. Grenier, M. Philibert, D. Hazard (2015). ‘Handicap, envi-
ronnement, participation sociale et droits humains. Du concept d’accs sa me-
79
access concept encompasses ‘a complete continuum, from the design of
measures to their practical application,’ including the way to gain access
and the use of information in real-life.
195
Accessibility is the ‘state of the
physical, spatial, architectural, and technological components of the en-
vironment that enable a person or group of people to carry out their
activities, according to their abilities or preferences.’
196
It is a characteristic
of the object that a group or individual is attempting to access.
In 2023, Marie Michèle Grenon and colleagues applied the concept
of physical access to information access, using the definitions and clas-
sifications Fougeyrollas, et al presented. They stress the importance of
accessibility, stating that information can (and will) be presented in var-
ious formats and should be robust to ensure accessibility. Accessibility
should be ensured through standards (although there is no consensus on
them), by the availability of ‘older’ technology, and by regularly assessing
the accessibility of the information.
197
The acceptance of access and ac-
cessibility as different but related concepts, as I have presented earlier in
distinguishing between two different meanings of the term, is an impor-
tant lesson from this brief journey into another domain’s interpretation
of access and accessibility.
sure,’ Revue Développement Humain, Handicap et Changement Social / Journal of Human
Development, Disability, and Social Change, Special issue, April, pp. 5−28. Online
source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from: https://doi.org/10.7202/1086792ar.
195
Fougeyrollas (2019), p. 166. Translated from: ‘d’un continuum complet,
s’amorçant avec la conception de mesures jusqu’ leur utilisation concrte.’
196
Fougeyrollas (2019), p. 167. Translated from: ‘état des composantes phy-
siques spatiales, architecturales et technologiques de l’environnement permet-
tant, selon leurs capacités ou préférences, à une personne ou à un groupe de
population de réaliser leurs activités.’
197
M.M. Grenon, J. Ruel, P. Fougeyrollas, C.L. Normand, A.C. Moreau, A.
Romero-Torres, and S. Gravel (2023). ‘Conceptualizing access to and under-
standing of information,’ Universal Access in the Information Society, Vol. 22, pp. 83–
94.
80
AN OVERVIEW OF RESEARCH
ON INFORMATION ACCESS AND ACCESSIBILITY
**********
Assumptions
In the field of information science, seven research approaches have
been identified as being pertinent to the issues of access and accessibility.
These are: disparity, seeking, retrieval, quality, security, management and
archiving. These approaches encounter, more or less, challenges in ac-
cepting the technical, social, and psychological aspects of information
access as interdependent parts.
198
They, more or less, focus on access
to information-as-things and are based on four assumptions.
The initial assumption is that information is socially constructed. It is
created by someone for somebody else or collectively, accepted, trusted,
believed, and communicated through social network interactions. It is
always influenced by cultural and social contexts, even if this context is
presented as a ‘black box.’
199
The second assumption is that information
is always created and used within situational contexts, which imbue in-
formation with its meaning, and, together with technological factors, in-
fluence the dynamics of accessing information, even when a psychologi-
198
Based on: ‘all the great problems that face our world today have both tech-
nical and human content — the one intermingled inseparably with the other.’
The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 1978. Her-
bert A. Simon at the Nobel Banquet, 10 December 1978. Online source, retrieved 1
November 2024, from: https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/economic-sci-
ences/1978/simon/speech/. Archived at: https://archive.ph/wip/QyE8i.
199
C. Castelfranchi (2002). ‘The social nature of information and the role of
trust,’ International Journal of Cooperative Information Systems, Vol. 11, No. 3−4, pp.
381−403, especially p. 384. See also: J. Seely Brown and P. Duguid (2017). The
Social Life of Information, Harvard University Press, Boston, second edition.
81
cal or cognitive perspective is dominant.
200
The third assumption is that
information is ‘located’ somewhere and can be ‘found’ using skills, systems,
and tools.
201
The fourth assumption is that when information is found,
its (cognitive) interpretability and usability are assured.
These assumptions lead to the conclusion that the main concerns of
information access are understanding contexts and users, designing in-
formation systems for specific contexts, and connecting users to these
information systems. However, research on information access should
not only focus on gaining access using information systems and tools, but
also on the accessibility of information itself. This research overview indi-
cates that (cognitive) interpretability of information is often overlooked.
Information access disparity research
Access inequalities have various explanations, including structural
(social, socio-economic) and human agency. These explanations are not
mutually exclusive. Structural explanations also consider human agency,
and vice versa.
202
The structural approach provides four explanations for access dis-
parity. The initial explanation is based on political economy, where cap-
200
E. Chatman (2000). ‘Framing social life in theory and research,’ L. Hoglund
and T. Wilson (eds.), The New Review of Information Behaviour Research. Studies of
Information Seeking in Context, Taylor Graham, Cambridge, Vol. 1, No. 1, pp. 3−
17; R. Savolainen (2021). ‘Information landscapes as contexts of information
practices,’ Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Vol. 53, No. 4, pp. 655−
667.
201
M. Lee and B.S. Butler (2019). ‘How are information deserts created? A the-
ory of local information landscapes,’ Journal of the Association for Information Science
and Technology, Vol. 70, No. 2, pp. 101–116.
202
L. Yu, W. Zhou, and J. Wang (2020). ‘A structure-agency integrative frame-
work for information access disparity. Rediscovery of practice in dividing soci-
ety’s information rich and poor,’ Journal of Documentation, Vol. 76, No. 4, pp. 829−
848, p. 830.
82
ital enters the information domain for profit, leading to the privatization
of information infrastructures, an alliance between political and eco-
nomic interests in developing information policies, and a dependence on
economic resources for information access. This explanation confirms
the power of capitalism to control information access and to reduce gov-
ernment support for public information infrastructures, resulting in ine-
qual access.
203
The second explanation is based on social stratification
theories. This theory views society as a system that is stratified, with dif-
ferent strata having varying resources and capabilities to access, acquire,
and use information. Access to information infrastructures is dependent
on individual positions in a stratified system, which explains the exist-
ence of knowledge gaps.
204
Expanding on social stratification, the con-
cept of social exclusion provides a third structural explanation for infor-
mation access disparities. Social participation can be limited by various
factors such as poverty, unemployment, health, sexual orientation, and
gender. Such individuals are excluded from social networks and events,
and/or exist at the margins of society. They may live in social isolation
in areas where poverty and crime rates are high and public services are
limited. The isolation experienced by these individuals hinders access to
information, which in turn strengthens their exclusion. Social exclusion
explains access divides and a lack of public support.
205
Lastly, the expla-
203
L. Yu (2019). ‘Towards structure-agency integrative theories for information
access disparity. Lessons from within and beyond LIS,’ Journal of Documentation,
Vol. 75, No. 3, pp. 458−477, p. 461; G. Murdock and P. Golding (1989). ‘Infor-
mation poverty and political inequality. Citizenship in the age of privatized com-
munications,’ Journal of Communication, Vol. 39, No. 3, pp. 180−195.
204
D.B. Grusky (2011). ‘Theories of stratification and inequality,’ G. Ritzer and
J. Michael Ryan (eds.), The Concise Encyclopedia of Sociology, Wiley-Blackwell, Ho-
boken, pp. 622−624.
205
T.S. Molala and J.C. Makhubele (2021). ‘The connection between digital di-
vide and social exclusion. Implications for social work,’ Humanities & Social Sci-
ences Reviews, Vol. 9, No. 4, pp. 194−201.
83
nation of social networks contends that individuals always participate in
networks and depend on them for the exchange of information. Indi-
viduals’ adoption of technology and acceptance of information are in-
fluenced by the networks in which they participate. The diffusion of
technology and information is limited without relevant social networks,
which restricts information access and participation.
206
These four explanations are related and share one defining compo-
nent: an individual’s position in society. The effects of social stratifica-
tion and the socialization of its members are dominant in all explana-
tions. An individual’s habitus, as introduced by French sociologist Pierre
Bourdieu, is largely defined by deeply ingrained habits, feelings, disposi-
tions, and forms of knowledge due to social background, culture, and
life experiences, which are offered by the social group to which individ-
uals (and their family) belong.
207
All these explanations are ultimately
dependent on social stratification to explain access. An individual’s so-
cial standing can influence the availability of resources, such as technol-
ogy or income. This is also true for the issue of social exclusion, which
can be caused by prevailing ideas, values, and behavioural norms within
206
Yu (2019), pp. 461−462. F. Pichler and C. Wallace (2009). ‘Social capital and
social class in Europe. The role of social networks in social stratification,’ Euro-
pean Sociological Review, Vol. 25, No. 3, pp. 319−332.
207
P. Bourdieu (1972). Esquisse d’une théorie de la pratique, précéde de trois études d’eth-
nologie kabyle, Librairie Droz, Genève, used in de reprint of 2000 by Éditions du
Seuil, Paris, pp. 256−300. An ‘habitus’ is largely developed during primary so-
cialization of children. Also called: ‘the software of the mind’ according to G.
Hofstede, G.J. Hofstede, and M. Minkov (2010). Cultures and Organizations. Soft-
ware of the Mind. Intercultural Cooperation and its Importance for Survival, McGraw Hill,
New York, third edition, pp. 4−7. From a different perspective: A.S.R. Manstead
(2018). ‘The psychology of social class. How socioeconomic status impacts
thought, feelings, and behaviour,’ The British Journal of Social Psychology, Vol. 57,
No. 2, pp. 267−291.
84
certain social strata, as well as the opportunities provided by social net-
works.
208
Human agency explanations focus on an individual’s ability to con-
trol their own goals, actions, and destiny.
209
This research focuses on
motivations, interests, values, attitudes, and worldviews as factors that
determine information needs and behaviour. It is believed that ‘what is
within people that determines what they do with information.’
210
As
emphasized by Steven Hitlin and Charisse Long, individuals make choic-
es that serve to reproduce social structures with the potential for inno-
vation.
211
William Sewell views agency as a constituent of structure, ra-
ther than opposed to it. An individual is ‘capable of exerting some degree
of control over the social relations in which one is enmeshed, which in
turn implies the ability to transform those social relations to some de-
gree.’ Agents do have the possibility to act with or against others by using
familiar structures. Agency is formed by ’a specific range of cultural sche-
mas and resources available in a person’s particular social milieu.’ It is
inseparable of structures, reproducing them but also transforming and
208
Pichler and Wallace (2009), pp. 325−329.
209
M. Schlosser (2019). ‘Agency,’ E.N. Zalta, The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
(Winter 2019 edition), The Metaphysics Research Lab, Philosophy Department,
Stanford University, Stanford (Ca). Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024,
from: https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/win2019/entries/agency/; S. Hitlin
and G.H. Elder Jr (2007a). ‘Time, self, and the curiously abstract concept of
agency,’ Sociological Theory, Vol. 25, No. 2, pp. 170−191, and S. Hitlin and G.H.
Elder Jr (2007b). ‘Agency. An empirical model of an abstract concept,’ R. Mac-
Millan (ed.), Constructing Adulthood. Agency and Subjectivity in Adolescence and Adult-
hood, Advances in Life Course Research, Volume 11, JAI Press, Oxford-Boston,
pp. 33−67.
210
Yu (2019), p. 462.
211
S. Hitlin and C. Long (2009). ‘Agency as a sociological variable. A preliminary
model of individuals, situations, and the life course,’ Sociology Compass, Vol. 3,
No. 1, pp. 137−160.
85
changing them. It is agency that is, for a part, responsible for innova-
tions.
212
Human agency, thus, reproduces structures but allows for be-
havioural changes that could transform them over time.
Combining structure and agency when considering information ac-
cess is a challenging task. None of the theories that integrate structures
and agency mention Sewell’s or Hitlin and Long’s research, although
they all use Anthony Gidden’s structuration theory. Most of them reach
the same conclusions in the end. However, accepting Sewell’s statement
that agency is implied by the existence of structures does not necessarily
imply an understanding of how structure and agency interact, or which are
the dominant factors. Several studies have attempted to explain the fac-
tors that influence the interaction between structure and agency.
Jan van Dijk, for example, has highlighted that networks not only
restrict but also facilitate human agency, including the ability to modify
aspects of network structures. In his model of access, it is not fully un-
derstood how structures and agency interact.
213
Mun-Cho Kim and
Jong-Kil Kim identify three levels: media accessibility, information mo-
bilization, and information consciousness, corresponding with three
stages of development: opportunity (economic access to media), utiliza-
tion (social use of information resources), and reception (receiving infor-
mation to gain knowledge). Three factors influence these stages: eco-
nomic capital, network capital, and cultural capital. Economic capital
212
W.H. Sewell Jr (1992). ‘A theory of structure. Duality, agency, and transfor-
mation,’ American Journal of Sociology, Vol. 98, No. 1, pp. 1−29. Quoations: p. 20.
Also: Hitlin and Long (2009), pp. 137−160 (following Sewell (1992), pp. 2−3,
pp. 22−23.) Sewell follows: A. Giddens (1984). The Constitution of Society. Outline
of the Theory of Structuration, Polity Press, Oxford, pp. 2−3, pp. 5−16.
213
Van Dijk (2006), p. 226. S. Hjarvard (2020). ‘Networks of change. The
sociology of network media,’ J. Hunsinger, M. Allen, L. Klastrup (eds.), Second
International Handbook of Internet Research, Springer, Dordrecht, pp. 239−267, p.
244.
86
constrains the ability to purchase media, network capital is the participa-
tion of individuals in social networks generating different social sup-
ports, and cultural capital is the cultural and educational possibilities to
utilize information and gain knowledge. The first two stages are charac-
terized by structure, while the third stage is characterized by human
agency. Kim and Kim imply interactions between structure and agency,
but do not discuss them.
214
Leah Lievrouw defines information access as a feature of commu-
nity-based ‘information environments.’ These are social settings where
information resources, communication relations, and enabling technol-
ogies are part of a ‘structuration-type process of change called inform-
ing.’ This process involves ‘mutually and recursively shaped’ relation-
ships between structure and agency.
215
These environments consist of
two interacting aspects: institutional and personal/relational. They con-
tinuously organize, disorganize, and reorganize knowledge and informa-
tion.
216
The process of ‘informing’ ensures the availability, relevance,
accessibility, capacity, and usability of information. Institutions deter-
mine which information can be made available and which media should
be developed or restricted. People decide to adopt certain types of tech-
nology while ignoring others. Both choices have an impact on the ability
to seek and share information, as well as the decision to remain within
214
M.C. Kim and J.K. Kim (2001). ‘Digital divide. Conceptual discussions and
prospect,’ W. Kim, T.W. Ling, Y.J. Lee, S.S. Park (eds.), The Human Society and
the Internet. Internet-Related Socio-Economic Issues. Proceedings of the First International
Conference, Human.Society@Internet 2001 Seoul, Korea, 4-6 July. Lecture Notes in
Computer Science 2105, Springer, Heidelberg, pp. 78−91.
215
L.A. Lievrouw (2000). ‘The information environment and universal service,’
The Information Society. An International Journal, Vol. 16 No. 2, pp. 155−159; L.A.
Lievrouw (2001). ‘New media and the ‘pluralization of life-worlds.’ A role for
information in social differentiation,’ New Media & Society, Vol. 3, No. 1, pp. 7−
28. Quoations: p. 12.
216
Lievrouw (2001), p. 13.
87
or leave the networks created by the information environment.
217
Lie-
vrouw’s theory expands on Sewell’s by providing an explanation of the
interactions between structure and agency, but it does not clarify the in-
teraction between their different factors.
Liangzhi Yu, Wenbo Zhou, and Junli Wang have rediscovered prac-
tices (‘organized activities of a group of individuals’) as a structural force
that shapes information access for individuals.
218
They argue that indi-
vidual behaviour is embedded in social practices, and as a result, infor-
mation environments will differ between individuals. Practices are influ-
enced by society’s material, institutional, and cultural features, structural
forces that affect individual behaviour and information access. The way
information access is structured by social practices is influenced by fac-
tors of human agency, including responses to a practice, strategic moves
between practices, experiential returns of information, and the individual
state of knowing based on subjective understandings and beliefs.
219
Yu,
Zhou, and Wang’s research contributes to the social stratification theo-
ries mentioned earlier and enriches Sewell’s theory with an explanation
of the interactions between structure and agency. This research confirms
the proposition of Hitlin and Long that human agency reproduces social
structures. Additionally, there is a link with the concept of ‘social iden-
tity,’ which largely depends on an individual’s social standing.
Information disparity research mostly concerns societal access to infor-
mation. Information access in organizational settings is only marginally
addressed and is mostly viewed as a direct consequence of existing dis-
parities in society.
217
Lievrouw (2001), pp. 15–16.
218
Yu, Zhou, and Wang (2020), pp. 829−848, p. 829, pp. 833−836, p. 842. For
practice theories see: T.R. Schatzki (2001). ‘Introduction. Practice theory,’ T.R.
Schatzki, K.K. Cetina, and E. von Savigny (eds), The Practice Turn in Contemporary
Theory, Routledge, London, pp. 10−23. Also: Bourdieu (1972), pp. 256−300.
219
Yu, Zhou, and Wang (2020), pp. 839−842 and pp. 843−844.
88
Information seeking research
This second research strand focuses on human information behav-
iour, including ‘accidental encountering of, needing, finding, choosing,
using, and (even) avoiding information.’
220
It studies ‘how people need,
seek, give, and use information in different contexts,’ aiming to under-
stand group or individual characteristics in information access.
221
This
research strand not only considers information as ‘things’ but also as
‘knowledge.’ What distinguishes it from disparity research is that, alt-
hough it overlaps, it is not concerned with differences between social
groups in inequalities in access but focuses on understanding patterns of
information seeking and use driven by information needs. It does not
assume comparability of groups and individuals in access because it em-
phasizes the situated nature of information needs and criteria for rele-
vance.
222
It emphasizes agency while accepting individuals as parts of
larger structures. Numerous theories and models have been proposed
regarding information seeking.
223
Early research on information seeking
was mostly system-centred, focusing on library use, retrieval system per-
formance, and interface design.
224
From the 1970s onwards, the indi-
vidual as an information seeker, creator, and user has become increas-
220
T.D. Wilson (2000). ‘Human information behaviour,’ Informing Science, Vol. 3,
No. 2, pp. 49−55; and D.O. Case and L.M. Given (2016). Looking for Information.
A Survey of Research on Information Seeking, Needs and Behavior, Emerald, Bingley,
4th edition, p. 4 (quotation.)
221
K.E. Pettigrew, R. Fidel, and H. Bruce (2001). ‘Conceptual frameworks in
information behavior,’ Annual Review of Information Science and Technology, Vol. 35,
No. 1, pp. 43−78, p. 44.
222
Yu (2019), p. 464.
223
K.E. Fisher, S. Erdelez, and L. McKechnie (eds.) (2005). Theories of Information
Behaviour, Information Today, Inc., Medford (NJ). Also: Case and Given (2016),
pp. 141−176, pp. 190−210, and: N. Ford (2015). Introduction to Information Behav-
iour, Facet Publishing, London, pp. 141−167.
224
Case and Given (2016), p. 8.
89
ingly important.
225
This approach aims to comprehend how individuals
interact with information. There are two research accentuations: cogni-
tive (or psychological) and contextual (or social).
226
The research on cognition emphasizes individual user attributes when
seeking information and examines ‘cognitive and emotional motivations
for information behaviour that carry across context or are independent
of context.’
227
It is concerned with how an individual perceives, inter-
prets, modifies, or transfers information and how ‘knowledge templates’
are applied to ‘processes of needing, seeking, giving, and using infor-
mation.’
228
This research accentuation has been prevalent in most user–
centred studies and has led to many (overlapping) typologies, such as [1]
Robert Taylor’s typology of information needs, which argues that the
perception of need often differs from its expression in words and that
questions and answers need to be ‘negotiated.’
229
Another example is
[2] Marcia Bates’ ‘berrypicking model,’ stating that information is gath-
ered by ‘bits and pieces’ through various search techniques and refor-
mulated queries, without the use of search strategies.
230
[3] Sandra Er-
225
N.K. Agarwal (2017). Exploring Context in Information Behavior. Seeker, Situation,
Surroundings, and Shared Identities. Synthesis Lectures on Information Concepts,
Retrieval, and Services, Morgan & Claypool Publishers, San Rafael (Ca.), p. 5.
226
Contrary to Pettigrew, Fidel, and Bruce (2001), who recognize three ap-
proaches: cognitive, social, and multifaceted. My interpretation based on: Agar-
wal (2017).
227
Pettigrew, Fidel, and Bruce (2001), p. 46 (quotation.)
228
J.P. Walsh (1995). ‘Managerial and organizational cognition. Notes from a
trip down memory lane,’ Organization Science, Vol. 6, No. 3, pp. 280−321, p. 281.
For quotation: Pettigrew, Fidel, and Bruce (2001), p. 47.
229
R.S. Taylor (1968). ‘Question-negotiation and information seeking in librar-
ies,’ College and Research Libraries, Vol. 29, No. 3, pp. 178−194.
230
M.J. Bates (1989). ‘The design of browsing and berrypicking techniques for
the online search interface,’ Online Review, Vol 13, No. 5, pp, 407−424, p. 410, p.
421.
90
delez’s theory of ‘accidental information encountering’ argues that infor-
mation seeking is an organic process in which most information is en-
countered accidentally.
231
[4] David Ellis’ information seeking process
model consists of eight steps: starting, chaining, browsing, differentiat-
ing, monitoring, extracting, verifying, and ending. This model is intended
for use in information system design and evaluation.
232
[5] Thomas Wil-
son has developed a series of general models on information seeking
behaviour, based on an individual’s perception of information needs and
influencing factors such as the systems used and available information
(sources).
233
[6] Carol Kuhlthau's information search process model in
seven steps recognizes the thoughts, feelings of uncertainty and ambi-
guity, and actions of users. These steps include task initiation, topic se-
lection, prefocus exploration, focus formulation, information collection,
presentation, and search assessment.
234
In his analysis, Naresh Agarwal
231
S. Erdelez (1997). ‘Information encountering. A conceptual framework for
accidental information discovery,’ P. Vakkari, R. Savolainen, and B. Dervin
(eds.), Information Seeking in Context. Proceedings of an International Conference on Re-
search in Information Needs, Seeking, and Use in Different Contexts, 14-16 August 1996,
Tampere, Finland, Taylor Graham, Los Angeles, pp. 412−421.
232
For analysis: Case and Given (2016), p. 151−152. The original six steps: D.
Ellis (1989). ‘A behavioural model for information retrieval system design,’ Jour-
nal of Information Science, Vol. 15, No. 4−5, pp. 237−247. Adding a seventh and
eight step: D. Ellis, D. Cox, and K. Hall (1993). ‘A comparison of the infor-
mation seeking patterns of researchers in the physical and social sciences,’ Jour-
nal of Documentation, Vol. 49, No. 4, pp. 356−369.
233
Pettigrew, Fidel, and Bruce (2001), p. 53. An analysis of Wilson’s models:
Case and Given (2016), pp. 162−164. Wilson (2000), and T.D. Wilson (2005).
‘Evolution in information behaviour modelling. Wilson’s model,’ K.E. Fisher,
S. Erdelez, and L. McKechnie (eds.), Theories of Information Behaviour, Information
Today, Inc., Medford, pp. 31−36.
234
C. Kuhlthau (1991). ‘Inside the search process. Information seeking from the
user’s perspective,’ Journal of the American Society for Information Science, Vol. 42, No.
5, pp. 361−371. The seventh stage: C.C. Kuhlthau, L.K. Maniotes, and A.K.
91
identifies Kuhlthau’s model as an affective model, a perspective that
Kuhlthau herself (partly) appears to accept.
235
Some system-centred models focus on the mismatch between cog-
nition and system-related information retrieval. These models include
[1] The hypothesis of Nicholas Belkin regarding the ‘anomalous state of
knowledge’;
236
[2] Peter Ingwersen’s model of ‘cognitive information
retrieval interaction’;
237
and [3] Tefko Saracevic’s ‘stratified interaction
model of information retrieval.’
238
As the focus is primarily on an indi-
vidual’s cognitive state, this emphasis may not be suitable for examining
social aspects of information seeking and use, cooperative information
seeking, or the cultural formation of meanings and representations.
239
The contextual accentuation has its focus on ‘the way an individual’s in-
teraction with information is shaped by social norms, networks, and or-
Caspari (2007). Guided inquiry. Learning in the 21st Century, Libraries Unlimited,
Westport, pp. 19−20. Also: Pettigrew, Fidel, and Bruce (2001), pp. 49−50.
235
Agarwal (2017), p. 5. For Kulthau’s view: C. Kulthau (2018?). ‘Information
Search Process.’ Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://wp.comminfo.rutgers.edu/ckuhlthau/information-search-process. Ar-
chived at: https://archive.ph/vcnUt.
236
N.J. Belkin (1984). ‘Cognitive models and information transfer,’ Social Science
Information Studies, Vol. 4, No. 2−3, pp. 111−129.
237
P. Ingwersen (1996). ‘Cognitive perspectives of information retrieval interac-
tion. Elements of a cognitive IR theory,’ Journal of Documentation, Vol. 52, No. 1,
pp. 3−50.
238
T. Saracevic (1996). ‘Modeling interaction in information retrieval (IR). A
review and proposal,’ S. Hardin (ed.), 59th Annual Meeting of the American Society
for Information Science, ASIS, Silver Spring, pp. 3−9. Online source, retrieved 1
November 2024, from:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/239054075_Modeling_interac-
tion_in_information_retrieval_IR_A_review_and_proposal.
239
S.Talja, K. Tuominen, and R. Savolainen (2005). ‘‘Isms’ in information sci-
ence. Constructivism, collectivism and constructionism,’ Journal of Documentation,
Vol. 61, No. 1, pp. 79−101, p. 85.
92
ganizations,’
240
and on understanding ‘meanings and values associated
with social, sociocultural, and sociolinguistics aspects of information be-
haviour.’ Contexts are not ‘black boxes’ but ‘carriers of meaning.’
241
This differs from the cognitive accentuation of research. The contextual
perspective enriches the structural approach to information access dis-
parity. Lievrouw’s structuring process of ‘informing’ (pp. 86–87) bridges
the contextual accentuation with information access disparity research.
Elfreda Chatman’s theories of ‘information poverty,’ ‘life in the
round,’ and ‘normative behaviour’ laid the foundation for this contextual
accentuation of research.
242
All these theories demonstrate how social
contexts influence and determine information behaviour, and how they
define them as normative frameworks. Information value is confined
within the norms and attitudes of a social world, which Chatman refers
to as a ‘small world.’ Chatman’s framework provides an analysis of how
such norms influence or determine access within these ‘small worlds.’
Regardless of the importance of the information, access will be limited
if it comes from an unreliable source, from someone who conflicts with
community norms, or from someone perceived as an outsider.
243
Chat-
man’s view of social access and the theory of ‘small worlds’ are related
240
Agarwal (2017), p. 5 (quotation.)
241
Pettigrew, Fidel, and Bruce (2001), p. 54 (both quotations)
242
According to: Pettigrew, Fidel, and Bruce (2001), p. 59.
243
E.A. Chatman (1992). The Information World of Retired Women, Greenwood
Press, Westport; E.A. Chatman (1996). ‘The impoverished life-world of outsid-
ers,’ Journal of the American Society for Information Science, Vol. 47, No. 3, pp. 193−
206, and E.A. Chatman (2000). ‘Framing social life in theory and research,’ New
Review of Information Behavior Research, Vol. 1, No. 1, pp. 3−17. Chatman’s theory
is followed and elaborated upon in: G. Burnett, M. Besant, and E.A. Chatman
(2001). ‘Small worlds. Normative behavior in virtual communities and feminist
bookselling,’ Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology, Vol. 52,
No. 7, pp. 536−547, Burnett, Jaeger, and Thompson (2008), and Oltmann
(2009).
93
to John Seely Brown and Paul Duguid’s theory of the ‘social life of in-
formation,’ in which social conventions determine information technol-
ogy, information, its usability, and its access. The manner in which indi-
viduals interact with information within organizational contexts is largely
shaped by affilliated social networks, characterized by their own rules,
norms, and behaviours.
244
These behaviours may or may not align with
the espoused values, underlying assumptions, behavioural expectations,
and norms of an organizational culture.
245
Many social theories are developed in which contextual influences
and structures on information seeking behaviour (including those influ-
ences and structures within organizations) are emphasized, like [1] Rob-
ert Taylor’s model of the ‘information use environment,’ that determines
the flow and use of information and the criteria to judge information
value;
246
[2] Brenda Dervin’s sense-making approach, developed as ‘a
philosophically informed methodological approach for attending to (and
researching) human sense-making and sense-unmaking.’ It involves ‘giv-
en foundations’ used by people to make sense of their environments;
247
[3] Birger Hjørland and Hanne Albrechtsen’s domain analysis, consider-
ing ‘knowledge domains’ as discourse communities, influencing infor-
mation behaviour;
248
[4] the constructionist approach of Kimmo Tuom-
inen and Reijo Savolainen, researching information use as a discursive
244
Seely Brown, and Duguid (2017).
245
Van Bussel (2020), pp. 21−54.
246
R.S. Taylor (1991). ‘Information use environments,’ B. Dervin and M. Voigt
(eds.), Progress in Communication Sciences, Vol. 10, Ablex, Norwich, pp. 217−255.
247
B. Dervin (2015). ‘Dervin’s Sense-Making Theory,’ M. Al-Suqri and A.S. Al-
Aufi (eds.), Information Seeking Behavior and Technology Adoption. Theories and Trends,
IGI Global, Hershey, Chapter 4, pp. 59−90. Quotation: p. 59.
248
B. Hjørland and H. Albrechtsen (1995). ‘Toward a new horizon in informa-
tion science: domain-analysis,’ Journal of the American Society for Information Science,
Vol. 46, No. 6, pp. 400−425.
94
action that can be studied as a real-world action;
249
[5] Reijo Savolainen’s
‘way of life,’ referring to the ‘order of things,’ activities that take place in
daily life, including jobs and tasks such as household care and voluntary
activities;
250
[6] Karen Pettigrew’s space-related concept of ‘information
ground’;
251
[7] Kirsty Williamson’s ecological model of use, which em-
phasizes the incidental acquisition of information based on social net-
work theory;
252
and [8] Pamela McKenzie’s two-dimensional model of
context-bound information practices for seeking, scanning, non-di-
rected monitoring, and proxy-based acquisition.
253
Based on the work
of McKenzie, information practices have become a trend, influenced by
but distinct from information behaviour. This trend serves as a connec-
tion to Yu, Zhou, and Wang’s research on ‘practice’ in disparity research.
249
K. Tuominen and R. Savolainen (1997). ‘A social constructionist approach
to the study of information use as discursive action,’ P. Vakkari, R. Savolainen,
and B. Dervin (eds.). Information Seeking in Context. Proceedings of an International
Conference on Research in Information Needs, Seeking and Use in Different Contexts, Au-
gust 14–16, 1996, Tampere, Finland, Taylor Graham, London, pp. 81−96.
250
R. Savolainen (1995). ‘Everyday life information seeking. Approaching infor-
mation seeking in the context of ‘way of life’,’ Library & Information Science Re-
search, Vol. 17, No. 3, pp. 259−294. Also: R. Savolainen and L. Thomson (2022).
‘Assessing the theoretical potential of an expanded model for everyday infor-
mation practices,’ Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology, Vol.
73, No. 4, pp. 511−527.
251
K.E. Pettigrew (1999). ‘Waiting for chiropody. Contextual results from an
ethnographic study of the information behaviour among attendees at commu-
nity clinics,’ Information Processing & Management, Vol. 35, No. 6, pp. 801−817.
About space-related context concepts: Savolainen (2021), p. 655.
252
K. Williamson (1998). ‘Discovered by chance. The role of incidental infor-
mation acquisition in an ecological model of information use,’ Library & Infor-
mation Science Research, Vol. 20, No. 1, pp. 23−40.
253
P.J. McKenzie (2003). ‘A model of information practices in accounts of eve-
ryday-life information seeking,’ Journal of Documentation, Vol. 59, No. 1, pp. 19−
40.
95
Information retrieval research
Information retrieval is studied in both computer science and infor-
mation science. The former takes an experimental systems approach,
while the latter takes a user-oriented (social science) approach.
254
Com-
munication between these two disciplines is limited, possibly because of
their different backgrounds and their views on the ‘realism’ and ‘useful-
ness’ of each other’s approach.
255
The information retrieval approach
that prioritizes the user is largely based on the cognitive, user-oriented
accentuation in information seeking research, as previously discussed.
This approach focuses on integrating the processes of ‘seeking’ and ‘re-
trieval’ in behavioural models and emphasizes the importance of rele-
vant search results.
256
Information retrieval research is focused on information-as-things
and achieving intelligent access to them. According to Leif Azzopardi
and Vishwa Vinay, information retrieval deals with storage, manage-
ment, organization, and retrieval of information, while retrieval research
aims to find better methods to do the same.
257
It is said that information
254
P. Vakkari and K. Järvelin (2005). ‘Explanation in information seeking and
retrieval,’ A. Spink and C. Cole (eds.), New Directions in Cognitive Information Re-
trieval, Springer, Dordrecht, Chapter 7, pp. 113−138, p. 113.
255
Vakkari and Järvelin (2005), p. 113. Also: B.J. Jansen and S.Y. Rieh (2010).
‘The seventeen theoretical constructs of information searching and information
retrieval,’ Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, Vol. 61,
No. 8, pp. 1517−1534, pp. 1517.
256
J. Foster (2006). ‘Collaborative information seeking and retrieval,’ Annual Re-
view of Information Science and Technology, Vol. 40, No. 1, pp. 329−356. Also: I. Ruth-
ven (2005). Integrating approaches to relevance,’ A. Spink and C. Cole (eds.),
New Directions in Cognitive Information Retrieval, Springer, Dordrecht, Chapter 4,
pp. 61−80.
257
L. Azzopardi and V.Vinay (2008). ‘Accessibility in information retrieval,’ C.
Macdonald, I. Ounis, V. Plachouras, I. Ruthven, and R.W. White (eds.), Advances
in Information retrieval. Proceedings of the 30th European Conference on IR Research, ECIR
96
retrieval is ‘the dominant form of information access.’ The rise of the
World Wide Web led to the invention of retrieval tools such as browsers
and search engines. These tools have become primary means of access
and ‘are able to provide high-quality results within subsecond response
times for hundreds of millions of searches a day over billions of web
pages.’
258
Bernard Jansen and Soo Young Rieh combined Wilson’s framework
on information behaviour, which includes human information behav-
iour, information seeking behaviour, and information searching behavi-
our, with their framework of information systems, which includes infor-
mation systems, information seeking systems, and information retrieval
systems.
259
In Wilson’s framework the behaviours of individuals using
information systems are classified hierarchically. The framework of Jan-
sen and Rieh illustrates the systems that support, afford, and enable
these behaviours. Both frameworks are related through three levels of
interaction: [1] access and support, where individuals access information
and systems that support their behaviour; [2] use and afford, where in-
dividuals seek and use information and information seeking systems pro-
vide affordances to support this behaviour; and [3] search, browse and
enable, where information retrieval systems enable features and func-
tionalities to support those specific types of information search behav-
iour.
260
2008 Glasgow, UK, March 30-April 3, 2008, Springer, Berlin-Heidelberg, pp. 482−
489, p. 482.
258
C.D. Manning, P. Raghavan, and H. Schütze (2009). Introduction to Information
Retrieval, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, preface, p. xix, p. 1 (quota-
tion), and p. xx (quotation.)
259
Jansen and Rieh (2010), p. 1518. Wilson (2000), pp. 49−50; and T.D. Wilson
(1999). ‘Models in information behaviour research,’ Journal of Documentation, Vol.
55, No. 3, pp. 249−270, p. 263.
260
Jansen and Rieh (2010), p. 1518.
97
Jansen and Rieh’s framework highlights the connection between re-
trieval and search, both of which centre on the interaction between peo-
ple, information and information systems. Both aim to locate and find
information.
261
However, the term ‘search’ refers primarily to the act of
locating information,
262
while ‘retrieval’ refers to finding predominantly
unstructured information within storage systems to satisfy a need, with
an emphasis on facilitating search.
263
Information retrieval involves or-
ganizing, structuring, and analysing information in retrieval systems, em-
phasizing its relationship with computer science.
Information retrieval research is about searching and retrieving in-
formation that is relevant to a user’s query. The challenge lies in pro-
cessing unstructured queries (based on keywords, prompts or conversa-
tional chats) to retrieve relevant information from large collections. In-
formation retrieval systems were originally text-based but have since
been designed to be multi-modal, to retrieve non-textual content such
as video, images, audio, and music, with or without using metadata.
There are three major research issues: [1] relevance, the measure of
retrieval performance of information systems for a user. Algorithms sta-
tistically match a query to information and provide results they consider
relevant. Users derive relevance from a problem at hand, their cognitive
state, and other contextual factors, which means that relevance can vary
between users. Other information not retrieved by a system may be rele-
261
Jansen and Rieh (2010), p. 1517.
262
D. Nicholas, P. Huntington, H.R. Jamali, and C. Tenopir (2006). ‘Finding
information in (very large) digital libraries. A deep log approach to determining
differences in use according to method of access,’ The Journal of Academic Librar-
ianship, Vol. 32, No. 2, pp. 119−126, p. 120.
263
Manning, Raghavan, and Schütze (2009), p. 1, who (in a footnote) declare
that ‘in modern parlance, the word ‘search’ has tended to replace ‘(information)
retrieval’; … we use the two synonymously’ (p. 1).
98
vant to their problem;
264
[2] the query, which is the formal expression of
a user’s information needs in the input language of a retrieval system,
must be both correct and precise. For many users, this represents a chal-
lenge, with many struggling to articulate their query in this way. As a
result, the system’s answers to these queries may be unsatisfactory;
265
[3] evaluation and experimentation are necessary to measure a retrieval sys-
tems performance, determining its effectiveness (i.e. relevance of results)
and efficiency (i.e. query processing). System-based evaluations are less
valuable than user-based evaluations, in which actual users interact with
a retrieval system in a laboratory setting. These evaluations, despite the
value of the results, are very difficult to manage and organize.
266
Azzopardi and Vinay suggest that evaluation of an information re-
trieval system should include an assessment of its accessibility. They argue
that accessibility indicates the opportunity or potential of information to be
retrieved. Retrieval systems are about the efficiency of accessibility.
267
Access-
264
L. Schamber (1994). ‘Relevance and information behavior,’ Annual Review of
Information Science and Technology, Vol. 29, pp. 3−48; T. Saracevic (2007a). ‘Rele-
vance. A review of the literature and a framework for thinking on the notion in
information science. Part II. Nature and manifestations of relevance,’ Journal of
the American Society for Information Science and Technology, Vol. 58, No. 13, pp. 1915−
1933; T. Saracevic (2007b). ‘Relevance. A review of the literature and a frame-
work for thinking on the notion in information science. Part III. Behavior and
effects of relevance,’ Journal of the American Society for information Science and Tech-
nology, Vol. 58, No. 13, pp. 2126−2144; S. Krishnamurthy and V. Akila (2017).
‘Information retrieval models. Trends and techniques,’ A. Singh, N. Dey, A.S.
Ahour, and V. Santhi (eds.), Web Semantics for Textual and Visual Information Re-
trieval, IGI Global, Herhey, Chapter 2, pp. 17−42.
265
Krishnamurthy and Akila (2017), pp. 18−19.
266
P. Borlund (2009). ‘User-centred evaluation of information retrieval systems,’
A. Göker and J. Davies (eds.), Information Retrieval. Searching in the 21st century,
John Wiley & Sons, Chichester, Chapter 2, pp. 21−37.
267
Azzopardi and Vinay (2008), p. 482, p. 485.
99
ibility is a characteristic of the retrieval system that can be measured in evalua-
tion. It pertains to access to information rather than accessibility of infor-
mation. It is about the way users are facilitated to gain access.
Most studies in information retrieval research focus on the way to
gain access, but there are retrieval technologies that aim to improve the
interpretability of information. Starting with the former, research has fo-
cused on access limitations or barriers to information retrieval, including
physical impairments, restricted access due to security clearance, inability
to crawl parts of the internet, effectiveness and efficiency of retrieval
models and internet search, and context awareness for retrieval.
268
For
the latter, new technologies (driven by artificial intelligence) are improv-
ing access to information, such as natural language processing, neural
retrieval, contextual understanding, cross-language retrieval, automated
text categorization, semantic search, text summarization, and voice and
conversational search.
269
Although the primary concern of information
retrieval remains access to information-as-things, the advent of artificial
intelligence enables a transformation to intelligent information retrieval,
which permits the development of access to information-as-knowledge.
Information quality research
Research in information quality is based on quality research in gen-
eral. Four approaches can be recognized. Robert Pirsig’s transcendent ap-
proach is subjective and impossible to operationalize (‘you know what it
268
Based on: G. Berget, A. MacFarlane (2020). ‘What is known about the impact
of impairments on information seeking and searching?,’ Journal of the Association
for Information Science and Technology, Vol 71, No. 5, pp. 596−611.
269
For these (and other) developments: D. Hiemstra, M.F. Moens, J. Mothe, R.
Perego, M. Potthast, and F. Sebastiani (eds.) (2021). Advances in Information Re-
trieval. 43rd European Conference on IR Research, ECIR 2021, Virtual Event, March
28
−
April 1, 2021, Proceedings, Part I. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Vol.
12656, Springer Nature, Cham. See also: p. 119–120, note 330.
100
is.’) In a product-oriented approach, quality is inherent to a product and can
be determined by the presence or absence of product specifications. Any
divergence from these specifications will result in a reduction in quality,
which is summarized as ‘conformance to specifications.’ In a user-oriented
approach it is believed that quality ‘lies in the eyes of the beholder.’ Quality
is summarized as ‘fitness for use.’ In an economic approach, quality is de-
fined in terms of value, costs, and prices, in short: ‘affordable cost.’ The
information must meet specified product specifications and expecta-
tions, be suitable for use, and be available at an acceptable cost.
270
Larry English distinguished between inherent and pragmatic informa-
tion qualities. Inherent quality refers to the accuracy of the information, or its
conformance to specifications. Pragmatic quality refers to the degree of use-
fulness, or fitness for use, in achieving set objectives.
271
The absence of
either of these qualities creates problems. The quality problem is greatest
when information has pragmatic quality but lacks inherent quality. In
this scenario, the information appears to be crucial for achieving organ-
izational objectives. However, due to uncertain quality, it is impossible
to realize these objectives.
272
Users are reluctant to use such informa-
tion, but in many organizations, they are unaware of these issues.
273
270
R.M. Pirsig (1974). Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. An Inquiry into
Values, William Morrow & Company, New York, p. 213; W.J. Bellows (2004).
‘Conformance to specifications, zero defects, and six sigma quality. A closer
look,’ International Journal of Internet and Enterprise Management, Vol. 2, No. 1, pp.
82−95; D.A. Garvin (1988). Managing Quality. The Strategic and Competetive Edge,
Free Press New York, p. 43; and G.J. van Bussel (2012). Archiving Should be Just
like an Apple™, en Acht Andere, Nuttige (?) Stellingen, Amsterdam University Press,
Amsterdam, p. 19.
271
L.P. English (1999). Improving Data Warehouse and Business Information Quality.
Methods for Reducing Costs and Increasing Products, John Wiley & Sons, New York,
pp. 22−27.
272
Van Bussel (2012), p. 19.
273
Van Bussel (2020), pp. 59−61,
101
Quality of information has been examined extensively. In general,
two research approaches can be identified, which are often combined
but each with a different emphasis. The first approach focuses on the
quality of the information management environment, while the second
approach focuses on the quality characteristics of the information itself.
The attention paid to the management environment that ensures quality
chacteristics can be realized, will not be discussed here. That part of the
information quality system is part of the information value chain, as dis-
cussed in the framework of the ‘Archive-as-Is.’
274
My analysis of quality characteristics is based on four recent over-
views of such frameworks. I added quality characteristics for the use of
information as evidence and memory, excluded from most quality
frameworks. An overview of these quality characteristics can be found
in Table 2.
275
274
Van Bussel (2017), pp. 55−57.
275
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data quality framework, method and tools for managing data quality in a health
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uses for an old science, The Scarecrow Press, Lanham and London; P. Conway
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102
Table 2 Information quality characteristics
Characteristic
The extent to which information:
Accessible
Is easily and quickly retrievable
Accurate
Is correct, precise, valid, and reliable (free-of-error or distortion)
Appropriate
Is usable for a given purpose without much filtration
Authentic
Presents and maintains the required (and original) content and
structure
Available
Is (physically) available
Believable
Is considered reliable and of good reputation
Complete
Is of sufficient breadth, depth and scope for the task at hand
Consistent
Is presented in the same format as (and compatible with) previous
information
Contextual
Is embedded in metadata about its situational and environmental
context
Controllable
Can be tested on integrity and authenticity
Current
Reflects the real-world concept that it represents
Integrity
Maintains and assures accuracy and consistency over its entire life-
cycle.
Interpretable
Has contents that are (cognitively) interpretable by users
Historical
Has content, context and structure that can be reconstructed at
any moment in time
Relevant
Is being useful for the task at hand
Secure
Has [1] assurance of long-term availability, and [2] appropriate re-
strictions on access and modification
Timely
Is available on time for the task at hand, with as small as possible
differences between expected and realized delivery
Traceable
Is appropriately documented, with traceable lineage and prove-
nance
103
Accessibility is a fundamental characteristic of information in most
frameworks. It is defined in terms of the first meaning of accessibility
recognized before: ‘ease of access’ to information, or ‘ease of attainabil-
ity.’
276
Accessibility is also a part of the quality characteristic ‘secure’ as
‘access security,’ which restricts access to and modification of informa-
tion. The tradeoff between accessibility and security poses a problem for
information quality. Allowing easy access to information can conflict
with the need for security, privacy, and confidentiality. However, impos-
ing severe restrictions on access to information may leave employees
disgruntled, leading to behaviour that endangers information quality in
other ways.
277
The second meaning of access and accessibility, as recog-
nized before, is within information quality research associated with ‘in-
terpretable’ and ‘interpretability.’ This refers to the extent to which in-
formation can be (cognitively) interpreted by users, whether they are hu-
man or machine. It is often referred to as ‘understandability.’
278
Inter-
pretability is about personally internalizing the information to evaluate
its relevance and make informed decisions. If information is not (cognit-
276
Y.W. Lee, L.L. Pipino, J.D. Funk, and R.Y. Wang (2006). Journey to Data Qual-
ity, The MIT Press, Boston, p. 59.
277
Lee, Pipino, Funk, and Wang (2006), p. 80, 84. Also: Van Bussel (2020), es-
pecially pp. 61−71.
278
‘Interpretability’ is often defined as ‘the extent to which information can be
understood.’ G.L. Rogova and E. Bosse (2010). ‘Information quality in infor-
mation fusion,’ Proceedings of the 13th International Conference on Information Fusion,
26-29 July 2010, EICC, Edinburgh, UK, IEEE, Piscataway, pp. 1−8. Interpreta-
bility has become important within artificial intelligence and machine learning
and is defined as ‘the degree to which a human can understand the cause of a
decision,’ or ‘the degree to which a human can consistently predict the (mathe-
matical − GvB) model’s result.’ See: C. Molnar (2022). Interpretable Machine Learn-
ing. A Guide for Making Black Box Models Explainable. Online source, retrieved 1
November 2024, from: https://christophm.github.io/interpretable-ml-book/.
Archived at: https://perma.cc/4X2T-YB84.
104
ively) interpretable, accessibility of the content of the information is not
possible. Information quality research bridges gaps in information dis-
parity, information seeking, and information retrieval research. How-
ever, it also adds something important: having access to information
does not necessarily mean that it is interpretable.
Information security research
Information security is of utmost importance due to the processing
of sensitive information and large amounts of money in networked en-
vironments, especially in the cloud. It is essential to ensure the security
of organizational processes. However, achieving a balance between in-
formation sharing and access, and security is a challenging task.
Research in information security is related to information quality re-
search. Quality research is concerned with defining quality characteris-
tics and developing a management system to monitor and ensure quality.
Information security, on the other hand, aims to prevent inappropriate
access, illegal use, disclosure, deletion, corruption, and modification of
information (systems), using mathematical methods, technology, and
risk management procedures to protect both hardware and software in-
frastructures and communication channels.
279
Success in information
security can only be realized by considering both technological and so-
cial resources.
280
According to Lizzy Coles-Kemp, in security research
and practice both technological and social aspects must be considered.
281
Information technologies are contextually situated within organizational
279
A. Calder (2020). The Cyber Security Handbook. Prepare for, Respond to and Recover
from Cyber Attacks, IT Governance Publishing Ltd, Cambridgeshire.
280
G. Dhillon and J. Backhouse (2001). ‘Current directions in IS security re-
search. Towards socio-organizational perspectives,’ Information Systems Journal,
Vol. 11, No. 2, pp. 127−153.
281
L. Coles-Kemp (2009). ‘Information security management. An entangled re-
search challenge,’ Information Security Technical Report, Vol. 14, No. 4, pp. 181−185.
105
processes and are influenced by political, cultural, and philosophical
structures, shaping social and agentic behaviour.
282
This can result in
gaps between security and compliance.
283
The core principles of information security are summarized in the
CIA-triad: confidentiality, integrity and availability, a model designed to
guide security policies in organizations. Confidentiality protects infor-
mation from unauthorized access, based on classifications of the risk
level of the information. Integrity involves maintaining the consistency,
accuracy and trustworthiness of information throughout its lifetime.
Availability means that information should be accessible to authorized
users when they need it.
284
This model has been heavily criticized, but
is still valid. Many concepts have been proposed as complements to the
triad, such as: authenticity, correctness of specification, identity manage-
ment, human integrity, responsibility, ethics, trust and non-repudiation.
Each of these concepts, however, can be assigned to one of the Triad’s
tenets.
285
The realization of the triad depends on access controls. Re-
stricting access is the only access and accessibility issue that information
security research pays attention to.
286
Access and accessibility have an impact on all aspects of the CIA-
triad. Restricting them is an effective way to ensure confidentiality, in-
282
M.H. Jarrahi, and S.B. Nelson (2018). ‘Agency, sociomateriality, and config-
uration work,’ The Information Society, Vol. 34, No. 4, pp. 244−260.
283
Coles-Kemp (2009), pp. 182−183.
284
K.Y. Chai and M.F. Zolkipli (2021). ‘Review on confidentiality, integrity and
availability in information security,’ Journal of ICT in Education, Vol. 8, No. 2, pp.
34−42, p. 36.
285
For an analysis: S. Samonas and D. Coss (2014). ‘The CIA strikes back. Re-
defining confidentiality, integrity, and availability in security,’ Journal of Informa-
tion System Security, Vol. 10, No. 3, pp. 21−45, pp. 29−30.
286
M. Chapple (2021). Access Control and Identity Management, Jones & Bartlett
Learning, Burlington, third edition (ebook), Chapter 13 (Access Control Assur-
ance), pp. 431−432.
106
tegrity, and availability. Due to the socio-technical nature of security, ac-
cess control can have unpredictable outcomes, making access and acces-
sibility security risks.
287
Access control policies establish parameters for
access management, whether it is discretionary, mandatory, or role-
based.
288
The aim of these policies is to restrict user access to infor-
mation (systems) by defining user roles, collaboration rights, and flexi-
bility to enable an effective separation of roles and responsibilities.
289
These policies, along with the implemented access control framework,
promote security awareness and define (and implement) business rules,
access procedures, and technical controls to prevent unauthorized ac-
cess or misuse of information. An access control framework assists em-
ployees in understanding the expected information behaviour by the or-
ganization and enforces this behaviour with technical controls. Contin-
uous evaluation of employee behaviour, including any misbehaviour,
should be a necessary part of security policies and procedures.
290
Access
control is a fundamental aspect of information security and a topic of
significant research. This research focuses on models, policies, enforce-
ment mechanisms (authentication and authorization), and cloud control.
287
Chapple (2021), Chapter 3 (Human Nature and Organizational Behavior),
pp. 81−112; M.J. Nigrini and N.J. Mueller (2014). ‘Lessons from an $8 million
fraud,’ Journal of Accountancy, Vol. 218, No. 2, pp. 32−37. Online source, retrieved
1 November 2024, from:
https://www.journalofaccountancy.com/issues/2014/aug/fraud-
20149862.html.
288
P. Samarati and S.C. de Vimercati (2001). ‘Access control. Policies, models,
and mechanisms,’ R. Focardi and R. Gorrieri (eds.), Foundations of Security Analysis
and Design. FOSAD 2000. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 2171.
Springer, Berlin-Heidelberg, Chapter 3, pp. 137−196.
289
K.W. Kobelsky (2014). ‘A conceptual model for segregation of duties. Inte-
grating theory and practice for manual and IT-supported processes,’ International
Journal of Accounting Information Systems, Vol. 15, No. 4, 304−322.
290
Van Bussel (2021), pp. 158−160.
107
Information security involves safeguarding the quality of informa-
tion, particularly its confidentiality, integrity, and availability. To achieve
this, it is necessary to control access and accessibility. This means limit-
ing or restricting access to information to authorized users only. It is
important to note that this perspective differs from those used in dis-
parity, seeking, retrieval, and quality research. However, information
management research also has a strong relationship with this topic, as
information control plays a crucial role in studying organizational power.
Information management research
Management is about achieving organizational objectives through
the implementation of an organizational strategy. Information manage-
ment is focused on an organization’s information management pro-
cesses, while an organizational strategy clarifies how information can be
utilized to achieve objectives.
291
Adapting Stewart Clegg and James Bai-
ley’s definition of organization and management research, information
management research can be defined as the examination of how organ-
izations construct information structures, processes, and practices and
how these, following organizational strategies, shape social relations and
create communication structures that facilitate decisions, performance,
and accountability.
292
Most of the theoretical foundations of informa-
tion management concern information seeking and use, information re-
trieval, information quality, and information security. Additionally, in-
291
W. Baets (1992). ‘Aligning information systems with business strategy,’ The
Journal of Strategic Information Systems, Vol. 1, No. 4, pp. 205−213, and J. Peppard
and J. Ward (2016). The Strategic Management of Information Systems. Building a Digital
Strategy, John Wiley & Sons, Hoboken, fourth edition, Chapter 4, pp. 125−164,
and Chapter 6, pp. 207−250.
292
S.R. Clegg and J.R. Bailey (eds.) (2007). International Encyclopedia of Organization
Studies, Sage, Thousand Oaks, 4 volumes, volume 1, p. xliii. I have replaced ‘or-
ganizational structures’ with ‘information structures.’
108
formation management research encompasses organizing, governing,
and strategically managing information and information behaviour. It
concerns topics like organizational climate and culture, power, govern-
ance, accountability, behaviour, operations (processing the information
value chain to enable business strategies to achieve their objectives), and
knowledge and learning.
293
Information access is crucial in all of these
areas, but it is governed by the assumption that information is interpret-
able upon acquisition. I have discussed information culture, information
behaviour, governance and accountability, and operations in previous
work. Here, I will focus on power, knowledge, and learning.
294
Information access can be seen as a mechanism of control that de-
fines restrictions on users’ rights to participate and/or access informa-
tion, both in society at large and in organizations. Therefore, power is
related to information security’s access control, which can be viewed as
an expression of societal and organizational power. Benjamin Bates
acknowledged the relationship between information access and power
in his research on access, bias, and control. Attempts to gain access con-
trol occur in every context and interaction. Bates argues that control op-
erates by manipulating content and limiting access.
295
While Bates orig-
inally discussed access restrictions in society at large, he acknowledged
their significant impact on social systems.
296
Andrew Pettigrew’s per-
293
Among others, all main categories within Clegg and Bailey (2007).
294
Van Bussel (2017), (2020), and (2021).
295
B.J. Bates (1993). ‘The macro-social impact of communication systems. Ac-
cess, bias, control,’ K. Reardon (ed.), Proceedings of the International Communication
Association 43rd Annual Conference. Faces and Interfaces: Communicating Across Disci-
plines, May 27-31, Washington, ICA. Without page numbering (p. 8.) Online
source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
http://www.academia.edu/220489/The_Macro-Social_Impact_of_Communi-
cation_Systems.
296
Bates (1993) (p. 9.)
109
spective on decision making in organizations involves power dynamics
and conflicts between actors. He highlights the role of information con-
trol in mobilizing power.
297
In both organizations and economic mar-
kets, access to information is a valuable resource for gaining power.
Business organizations attempt to gain an advantage by controlling
personal information about customers and creating profiles to optimize
their marketing and advertising, as discussed previously. In 1989, Oscar
Gandy predicted that information could be used to control access to
insurance and employment. ‘Advanced electronic technologies dramati-
cally increase the bureaucratic advantage in the workplace, marketplace,
and government by enabling — and encouraging — increasingly auto-
matic methods of surveillance of the individual.’ And: ‘Advances in dig-
ital communications technologies, … allows market research to apply
the sophisticated techniques of social science to the surveillance of con-
sumers in order to predict and control their behavior.’
298
This is exactly
what big data analytics and artificial intelligence have been doing for the
last decade. Power is most often associated with the control of infor-
mation: having access allows for personal or departmental power.
299
In knowledge management and learning research, information access
is considered crucial as it enables the use of information to gain knowl-
edge in learning processes.
300
According to Michael Goddard and col-
297
A.M. Pettigrew (1972). ‘Information control as a power resource,’ Sociology,
Vol. 6, No. 2, pp. 187−204, p. 202.
298
O.H. Gandy (1989). ‘The surveillance society. Information technology and
bureaucratic social control,’ Journal of Communication, Vol. 39, No. 3, pp. 61−76.
Quotations: p. 61 and 67. Also: O.H. Gandy (1993). The Panoptic Sort. A Political
Economy of Personal Information, Westview Press, Boulder.
299
Pettigrew (1972). Also: R.J. Skovira (2008). ‘Analyzing power as information
in organizations. Thinking about how to do it,’ Issues in Information Systems, Vol.
9, No. 2, pp. 369−377.
300
M. Goddard, D. Mowat, C. Corbett, C. Neudorf, P. Raina, and V. Sahai
(2004). ‘The impacts of knowledge management and information technology
110
leagues, information access requires meeting four requirements: discov-
ery (when a user knows the information exists and how to find it), con-
nectivity (when a user is able to obtain the information), language (when
a provider and a user of the information agree on the meaning of used
language), and permission (when a user is permitted to have access to
the information).
301
In the view of Thomas Davenport and Laurence
Prusak, knowledge is a dynamic and multifaceted construct comprising
a combination of framed experience, values, contextual information, and
expert insight. It provides frameworks for the evaluation and incorpora-
tion of new experiences and information, and originates and is applied
in the minds of knowers. In organizational contexts, knowledge is fre-
quently situated not only within documents or repositories, but also
within the routines, processes, practices, and norms that constitute the
organizational fabric.
302
Experience, values, and insights are intangible
and exist only within the minds of individuals. They are employed to
facilitate the acquisition, assessment, and integration of novel informa-
tion into existing cognitive frameworks.
303
The transformation of tan-
gible information (such as documents and repositories) and intangible
phenomena into new knowledge represents a significant challenge for
humans and machines alike.
304
Knowledge management is, in short, the
advances on public health decision-making in 2010,’ Health Informatics Journal,
Vol. 10, No. 2, pp. 111−120.
301
Goddard, et al (2004), p. 113.
302
T.H. Davenport and L. Prusak (1998). Working Knowledge. How Organizations
Manage what they Know, Harvard Business Press, Boston, p. 5.
303
Davenport and Prusak (1998), p. 5, p. 24. See: M.J. Bates (2005). ‘Information
and knowledge. An evolutionary framework for information science,’ Information
Research, Vol. 10, No. 4, paper 239. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024,
from: http://InformationR.net/ir/10-4/paper239.html, especially for the defi-
nitions of knowledge.
304
J. Sifakis (2022). Understanding and Changing the World. From Information to Knowl-
edge and Intelligence, Springer Nature, Singapore, pp. 18−21. Sifakis integrates ma-
111
provision of a strategy, processes, and technology to enhance learning
processes in organizations.
305
Organizational success is contingent upon
the effective management of its ‘knowledge assets,’ which are defined as
sources of knowledge that are relevant to the organization’s strategy and
operations. In their analysis, Ronald Freeze and Uday Kulkarni identify
five categories of knowledge assets: expertise, lessons learned, docu-
ments, data, and policies and procedures. Expertise and lessons learned
should be explicitly shared by senior employees with juniors during
learning processes. Using documents and data as a source of knowledge
requires information access. Using policies and procedures as a source
of knowledge, requires to both learning the actual procedure and to have
access to the codified one, due to the differences between the implicit
reality and its explicit codification. There is frequently a substantial dis-
crepancy between the manner in which a task is depicted in a process
manual and its actual execution.
306
There is also a discrepancy between
what individuals believe they do and what they actually do.
307
In all
forms of knowledge, power is acquired, at least in part, by obtaining ac-
cess to information and by withholding it from others. Knowledge is
closely linked to organizational power.
308
chine learning and artificial intelligence in the definition of knowledge (pp. 65−
87).
305
A. Satyadas, U. Harigopal, and N.P. Cassaigne (2001). ‘Knowledge manage-
ment tutorial. An editorial overview,’ IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man and Cy-
bernetics. Part C. Applications and Reviews, Vol. 31, No. 4, pp. 429−437.
306
R.D. Freeze and U. Kulkarni (2007). ‘Knowledge management capability.
Defining knowledge assets,’ Journal of Knowledge Management, Vol. 11, No. 6, pp.
94−109.
307
J. Seely Brown and P. Duguid (2000). ‘Balancing act. How to capture knowl-
edge without killing it,’ Harvard Business Review, Vol. 78 No. 3, pp. 73−80, p. 75.
308
W. Pan and Q. Zhang (2018). ‘Withholding knowledge in teams. An interac-
tionist perspective of personality, justice, and autonomy,’ Social Behavior and Per-
sonality. An International Journal, Vol. 46, No. 12, 2009−2024.
112
Information management research covers a range of interdiscipli-
nary subjects, from organizational science to information science and
informatics. Most of these approaches assume access to and accessibility
of information. In 2004, Goddard and colleagues concluded that pro-
gress had been made in realizing their four requirements for information
access, but that a lot of work was still to be done.
309
This statement
remains true in 2024, twenty years later.
Archival science research
Archival science is concerned with the management and organization
of archives, as well as access to and accessibility of archival information.
I will focus on the latter aspect.
Big data is not a new concept. Heritage institutions manage enor-
mous amounts of historical information, including thousands of miles
of parchment, vellum, and paper documents, and billions of pieces of
information on microfilm. However, this represents only a fraction of
the information that existed in the past. Unfortunately, much informa-
tion has been lost, by fire, water, war, or other catastrophes, by willful
destruction, by negligent behaviour, and by deterioration. Digitization
efforts have transformed some historical information into digital substi-
tutes. As mentioned before, our hybrid world generates vast amounts of
digital-born information, some of which will be considered significant
enough to be preserved indefinitely. This information is largely available
to the public and must be easily accessible.
Access is crucial in archival science research as it enables the use of
archival information, information that has been selected for permanent
or long-term preservation due to its historical, cultural, or evidentiary
value. Archival institutions are responsible for making this information
accessible to promote a free society, the right to know, and freedom of
309
Goddard, et al (2004), p. 113.
113
expression. These institutions are considered ‘active agents of political
accountability, social memory, and national identity.’
310
Identifying and
accessing archival information is typically achieved through published
guides, finding aids, indexes, lists, and catalogues.
311
Descriptions are
crucial tools for gaining access to archives, and archival researchers have
played a significant role in developing standards of description, such as
EAD, ISAD(G), and Records in Contexts. These standards offer op-
tions for presenting and arranging archival information on the web to
provide a way for researchers to find, present, and contextualize this in-
formation.
312
In a digitalized world, users need to be presented with
310
T. Cook (2002). ‘A monumental blunder. The destruction of records on Nazi
war criminals in Canada,’ R.J. Cox and D.A. Wallace (eds.), Archives and the Public
Good, Quorum Books, Westport, pp. 37−65. Quotation: p. 38. Also: M. Čtvrtník
(2023). Archives and Records. Privacy, Personality Rights, and Access, Palgrave MacMil-
lan, Cham, p. 2.
311
P. Bobič (2019). ‘Access to archives, access to knowledge,’ Atlanti. Interna-
tional Review for Modern Archival Theory and Practice, Vol. 29, No. 2, pp. 30−37, p.
32.
312
A. Menne-Haritz (2001). ‘Access. The reformulation of an archival para-
digm,’ Archival Science, Vol. 1, pp. 57−82; R.C. Jimerson (2002). ‘Archival de-
scription and finding aids,’ OCLC Systems & Services. International Digital Library
Perspectives, Vol. 18, No. 3, pp. 125−129; L. Freund and E.G. Toms (2015). ‘In-
teracting with archival finding aids,’ Journal of the Association for Information Science
and Technology, Vol. 67, No. 4, pp. 994−1008; G. Wiedeman (2019). ‘The histor-
ical hazards of finding aids,’ The American Archivist, Vol. 82, No. 2, pp. 381−420.
About EAD: D.V. Pitti and M. Rush (2017). ‘Encoded Archival Description,’
J.D. McDonald and M. Levine-Clark (eds.), Encyclopedia of Library and Information
Sciences, CRC Press, Boca Raton, fourth edition, pp. 1423−1432. For ISAD (G):
International Council of Archives (2011). ISAD(G). General International Standard
Archival Description, Ottawa, second edition. For Records in Contexts: D. Llanes
Padrón and J.A. Pastor Sánchez (2017). ‘Records in Contexts. The road of ar-
chives to semantic interoperability,’ Program. Electronic Library and Information Sys-
tems, Vol. 51, No. 4, pp. 387−405.
114
meaningful archival information, rendered on chosen technology, and
possessing the quality to be reliable and trustworthy.
313
In addition to
arrangement, description, indexing and finding aids, access research is
focusing on embedding processes of digital preservation and informa-
tion retrieval, enhanced by artificial intelligence.
There are several definitions of digital preservation. It can be defined
as the ‘policies, strategies and actions to ensure the accurate rendering
of authenticated content over time, regardless of the challenges of media
failure and technological change,’ but also as ‘the series of managed ac-
tivities necessary to ensure continued access to digital materials for as
long as necessary … beyond the limits of media failure or technological
and organisational change.’
314
The definitions emphasize two distinct
research directions within the field of preservation. The first is a goal-
oriented approach, which considers aspects of digital preservation be-
yond the file level, such as workflow, capacity, and access to information.
The second is an operational approach, which involves ‘fetishising files’
to enhance the accessibility of information.
315
This highlights the dis-
tinction between access to information and accessibility of information.
313
J. Evans, S. McKemmish, and B. Reed (2017). ‘Archival arrangement and
description,’ J.D. McDonald and M. Levine-Clark (eds.), Encyclopedia of Library
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The Open Archival Information Systems (OAIS) reference model,
which deals with the management of information in archival reposito-
ries, emphasizes the significance of submission and dissemination activ-
ities as crucial preservation concepts.
316
The model is essential in the
development of audit processes for ‘trustworthy digital repositories.’
317
A repository audit is a process that assesses the OAIS compliance and
capability to address potential preservation hazards. In order to remain
operational, it is necessary to possess both technical proficiency and suf-
ficient resources.
318
Trevor Owens posits that while all models are
wrong, some are more useful than others. He asserts that the utility of
frameworks as tools is contingent upon their ability to facilitate the in-
tended work.
319
Adding to these remarks, Devan Donaldson posits that
316
Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems (2012). Reference Model for an
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https://web.archive.org/web/20231216082743/https://pub-
lic.ccsds.org/pubs/652x0m1.pdf.
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J. Nadal (2017). ‘Digital preservation,’ J.D. McDonald and M. Levine-Clark
(eds.), Encyclopedia of Library and Information Sciences, Vol. II, CRC Press, Boca Ra-
ton, fourth edition, pp. 1332−1337, p. 1333.
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T.J. Owens (2018). The Theory and Craft of Digital Preservation, John Hopkins
University Press, Baltimore, p. 80.
116
the preservation of information is possible without adherence to best
practices and standards. The efficacy of certified repositories in preserv-
ing information remains unproven.
320
In 2017, Robert Spindler made clear that ‘thirty years of work in ac-
quiring and retaining electronic content has not resulted in complete so-
lutions for electronic record preservation.’ In those thirty years several
challenges emerged. Seven key challenges can be identified: [1] physical
degradation; [2] physical obsolescence; [3] incompatibility/non-interop-
erability of storage media; [4] software or encoding incompatibility or
non-interoperability; [5] human error/vandalism; [6] backups and snap-
shots; and [7] insufficient metadata to reconstruct context.
321
Another
outcome of ‘thirty years of work’ is the development of technical meth-
ods to ensure that archival information can be presented in meaningful
ways, guaranteeing future access and accessibility. Four methods have
become prevalent: [1] bit preservation; [2] emulation; [3] migration, and
[4] forensics, conservation, and retrocomputing. These methods can be
used to ensure the integrity and accessibility of information over time.
Bit preservation involves maintaining integrity by using multiple copies,
periodic copying to other storage media, and algorithms to compute fix-
ity, like checksums. Emulation creates a virtual computing system that
allows for executing code from an older, less powerful platform. Migra-
320
D.R. Donaldson (2020). ‘Certification information on trustworthy digital re-
pository websites. A content analysis,’ PLoS ONE 15(12), article e0242525.
Online source, retrieved November 1, 2024, from:
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal. pone.0242525.
321
R.P. Spindler (2017). ‘Electronic records preservation,’ J.D. McDonald and
M. Levine-Clark (eds.), Encyclopedia of Library and Information Sciences, Vol. II, CRC
Press, Boca Raton, fourth edition, pp. 1413−1418, pp. 1415−1416. On pp.
1413−1415, Spindler presents an overview of the history of digital preservation.
Also: F. Boudrez, H. Dekeyser, and J. Dumortier (2005). Digital Archiving. The
New Challenge, IRIS, Mont Saint Guibert, pp. 75−126.
117
tion involves converting information from one format or encoding to
another. Forensics, conservation, and retrocomputing are disciplines
that involve the maintenance or rebuilding of original system hardware
and operating software in order to facilitate access and accessibility of
information through the use of original software.
322
It is likely that only
a combination of these methods will be successful in enabling access and
improving accessibility of information, possibly until obsolescence itself
is considered obsolete.
323
The occurrence of human error or vandalism is identified as a major
challenge. Nevertheless, the overreliance on technological solutions of-
ten overlooks the influence of organizational and human behaviour. It
can be argued that the majority of instances of digital preservation issues
originate from the actions of individuals or organizations, rather than
technological failures. Accessibility can be extremely short-lived if not
managed effectively.
324
322
Nadal (2017), p. 1333. Bit preservation: D.S.H. Rosenthal (2010). ‘Bit preser-
vation. A solved problem?,’ International Journal of Digital Curation, Vol. 5, No. 1,
pp. 134−148. Emulation: J. Rothenberg (1999). Avoiding Technological Quicksand.
Finding a Viable Technical Foundation for Digital Preservation, Council on Library and
Information Resources, Washington, and L.T. Nguyen and A. Kay (2015). ‘The
cuneiform tablets of 2015,’ ACM International Symposium on New Ideas, New Para-
digms, and Reflections on Programming and Software, Association for Computing Ma-
chinery, New York, pp. 297−307. Retrocomputing: Y. Takhteyev and Q. Du-
Pont (2013). ‘Retrocomputing as preservation and remix,’ Library Hi Tech, Vol.
31, No. 2, pp. 355−370. Forensics: L. Duranti and B. Endicott-Popovsky (2010).
‘Digital Records Forensics. A new science and academic program for forensic
readiness,’ Journal for Digital Forensics, Security and Law, Vol. 5, pp. 45−62.
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Kilbride (2016), p. 416.
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In addition to the literature mentioned on pp. 18−23. M. Tibbets (2008).
‘BBC Domesday Project,’ The Risks Digest. Forum on Risks to the Public in Computers
and Related Systems, Vol. 25, no. 44. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024,
from: http://catless.ncl.ac.uk/Risks/25.44.html%20#subj7. Archived at:
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Another focus of archival research is the potential of artificial intel-
ligence to enhance the understanding of the content of archival infor-
mation. Artificial intelligence research is multidisciplinary, drawing on
mathematics, logic, computer science, information theory, philosophy,
cognitive science, and linguistics to develop new approaches. The aim
of the field is the understanding of the nature of intelligence and the
application of this knowledge to the construction of ‘smart,’ intelligent
information (retrieval) systems.
325
Archival science has a strong affilia-
tion with information retrieval research and employs intelligent infor-
mation (retrieval) systems (e.g. augmented by artificial intelligence). By
concentrating on the content, users are able to collect, study, and use
https://archive.is/yNlm; M.D. Martin, C.L. Stanley, and G. Laughlin (1985).
Planetary Image Conversion Task. Final Report, JPL Publication 85-50, California In-
stitute of Technology, Pasadena. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024,
from: https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/19860009796. Archived at:
https://archive.org/details/NASA_NTRS_Ar-
chive_19860009796/page/n9/mode/2up; United States General Accounting
Office (1990). Space Operations. NASA is not properly safeguarding valuable data from
past missions, GAO, Washington. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024,
from: https://www.gao.gov/assets/imtec-90-1.pdf. Archived at:
https://web.archive.org/web/20170609155716/http://www.gao.gov/as-
sets/150/148725.pdf; and D.S. Rosenthal, T.S. Robertson, T. Lipkis, V. Reich,
and S. Morabito (2005). ‘Requirements for digital preservation systems. A bot-
tom-up approach,’ arXiv preprint. Online source, retrieved November 1, 2023,
from: https://arxiv.org/pdf/cs/0509018.pdf.
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J. Chen (2017). ‘Artificial intelligence,’ J.D. McDonald and M. Levine-Clark
(eds.), Encyclopedia of Library and Information Sciences, Vol. II, CRC Press, Boca Ra-
ton, fourth edition, pp. 269−278. Also: G.F. Luger (2008). Artificial Intelligence.
Structures and Strategies for Complex Problem Solving, Addison Wesley, New York,
sixth edition. For a historical overview: B.G. Buchanan (2005). ‘A (very) brief
history of artificial intelligence,’ AI Magazine, Vol. 26, No. 4, pp. 53−60. Also:
Chen (2017), pp. 269−270, Luger (2009), pp. 3−34, and Aradau, and Blanke
(2022), Chapter 1, pp. 21−41.
119
larger quantities of archival information than would otherwise be possi-
ble.
326
The use of intelligent information (retrieval) systems begins with the
automatic extraction of the content of archival information and its in-
dexing. Natural language processing and text mining techniques rely on
optical character recognition and use algorithms for semantic mapping,
information extraction, and human language understanding. The aim is
to uncover implicit, unknown, hidden, or obfuscated contextual infor-
mation to enhance indexes of source texts and improve retrieval.
327
For
example, tools such as Transkribus integrate image and text recognition
to extract the content of archival information, enabling more effective
searches.
328
Natural language processing, also known as ‘distant reading’
in the digital humanities, analyses information using text mining tech-
nologies. This involves vectorizing the text and transforming it into sets
of numeric values that can be used to train topic models. These models
allow users to identify themes and hidden patterns in large collections of
text, which can be used to enhance semantic indexation and improve
thesauri and ontologies.
329
All these techniques support search and re-
326
G. Colavizza, T. Blanke, C. Jeurgens, and J. Noordegraaf (2021). ‘Archives
and AI. An overview of current debates and future perspectives,’ ACM Journal
on Computing and Cultural Heritage, Vol. 15, No. 1, pp. 1−15.
327
I.D. Dinov (2018). ‘Qualitative learning methods. Text mining, natural lan-
guage processing, and apriori association rules learning,’ I.D. Dinov, Data Science
and Predictive Analytics. Biomedical and Health Applications using R, The Springer Se-
ries in Applied Machine Learning, Springer Nature, Cham, Chapter 20, pp.
385−437.
328
G. Muehlberger, L. Seaward, M. Terras, S. Ares Oliveira, V. Bosch, c.s.
(2019). ‘Transforming scholarship in the archives through handwritten text
recognition. Transkribus as a case study,’ Journal of Documentation, Vol. 75, No. 5,
pp. 954−976.
329
R. Sandhiya, A.M. Boopika, M. Akshatha, S.V. Swetha, N.M. Hariharan
(2022). ‘A review of topic modeling and its application,’ M. Singh Manshahia,
120
trieval, including automatic classification, information visualization,
template matching, automatic summarizing or describing, and sentiment
analysis.
330
V. Kharchenko, E. Munapo, J. Joshua Thomas, and P. Vasant (eds.), Handbook
of Intelligent Computing and Optimization for Sustainable Development, Chapter 15, pp.
305−322; S. Hengchen, M. Coeckelbergs, S. van Hooland, R. Verborgh, and T.
Steiner (2016). ‘Exploring archives with probabilistic models. Topic modelling
for the valorisation of digitised archives of the European Commission,’ 2016
IEEE International Conference on Big Data (Big Data), IEEE, Washington, pp.
3245−3249; M. Coeckelbergs and S. van Hooland (2020). ‘Concepts in topics.
Using word embeddings to leverage the outcomes of topic modeling for the
exploration of digitized archival collections,’ R. Mugnaini (ed.), Proceedings of the
First EAI International Conference Data and Information in Online Environments (DI-
ONE 2020), Florianópolis, Brazil, March 19
−
20, Springer Nature, Champ, pp. 41−
52.
330
Automatic classification: A. Chaudhary, S. Kolhe, and R. Kamal (2013). ‘Ma-
chine learning classification techniques. A comparative study,’ International Jour-
nal on Advanced Computer Theory and Engineering, Vol. 2, No. 4, pp. 21−25. Infor-
mation visualization: U. Hinrichs, B. Alex, J. Clifford, A. Watson, A. Quigley,
E. Klein, and C.M. Coates (2015). ‘Trading consequences. A case study of com-
bining text mining and visualization to facilitate document exploration,’ Digital
Scholarship in the Humanities, Vol. 30, supplement 1, pp. 50−75. Template match-
ing: N.S. Hashemi, R.B. Aghdam, A.S.B. Ghiasi, and P. Fatemi (2016). ‘Tem-
plate matching advances and applications in image analysis,’ arXiv preprint.
Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://arxiv.org/pdf/1610.07231.pdf. Automatic summaries: Á. Criado-Alon-
so, D. Aleja, M. Romance, R. Criado (2023). ‘A new insight into linguistic pat-
tern analysis based on multilayer hypergraphs for the automatic extraction of
text summaries,’ Mathematical Methods in the Applied Sciences. Online source, re-
trieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/mma.9201. Automatic de-
scriptions: M. Bell (2020). ‘From tree to network. Reordering an archival cata-
logue,’ Records Management Journal, Vol. 30, No. 3, pp. 379−394. Sentiment anal-
ysis: M. Birjali, M. Kasri, and A. Beni-Hssane (2021). ‘A comprehensive survey
121
Intelligent information (retrieval) systems have the potential to be
useful tools for accessing archives, whether they are born-digital or not.
However, dealing with the complexity of languages, including ambiguity
and sentiment, presents challenges. Jane Winters and Andrew Prescott
highlight the importance of information hierarchy and context to avoid
overlooking gaps within information.
331
Jo Guldi emphasizes the need
to evaluate the tools used, reading, and engaging in critical reflection. A
single tool or algorithm cannot provide definitive answers.
332
As Daniel
Shore illustrates, using different algorithms can result in different per-
spectives of the past, ‘transcending the past rather than seeking to de-
scribe it.’ It is about ‘liberating visions of possibility’ rather than recon-
structing the past.
333
Erik Larson explains that artificial intelligence pri-
marily uses inductive reasoning to predict outcomes based on informa-
tion. In contrast, human intelligence relies largely on intuition, which is
a network of best guesses based on personal experience and knowledge
of the world. It is not currently possible to program intuitive reasoning
into artificial intelligence, and it may never be. Larson argues that while
artificial intelligence will continue to improve at narrow, inductive tasks
such as natural language processing, it will fail at intuitive reasoning.
334
on sentiment analysis. Approaches, challenges and trends,’ Knowledge-Based Sys-
tems, Vol. 226, No. 107134. Online source, retrieved November 1, 2023, from:
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.knosys.2021.107134.
331
J. Winters and A. Prescott (2019). ‘Negotiating the born-digital. A problem
of search,’ Archives & Manuscripts, Vol. 47, No. 3, pp. 391−403.
332
J. Guldi (2018). ‘Critical search. A procedure for guided reading in large-scale
textual corpora,’ Journal of Cultural Analytics, Vol. 3, No. 1. Online source, re-
trieved 1 November 2024, from: https://doi.org/10.22148/16.030.
333
D. Shore (2018). Cyberformalism. Histories of Linguistic Forms in the Digital Archive,
John Hopkins University Press, Baltimore. Quotations: p. 184.
334
E.J. Larson (2021). The Myth of Artificial Intelligence. Why Computers Can’t Think
the Way We Do, The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, Cambridge-
London, pp. 157−190.
122
Most of the research mentioned previously is based on analysis of
large corpora of born-digital or digitized archival information using recent
optical character recognition software. Algorithmic analysis yields satis-
factory results in that situation. However, information digitized ten to
twenty years ago and indexed with optical character recognition software
at that time is troublesome. Jørgen Burchardt’s research of newspaper
archives, for instance, revealed an average error rate of 18% in body text,
with a significantly higher rate for text in advertisements.
335
The utiliza-
tion of algorithmic spelling correction to combat the phenomenon of
‘noise’ can assist in the reduction of errors; however, it is not a definitive
solution. A sample of one hundred documents (209,686 words) showed
that 70% (145,718 words) were correct, 6% (12,946 words) required sug-
gestions for acceptable replacements, and 24% (51,022 words) were im-
possible to correct.
336
These errors can be reduced through re-digitiza-
tion, improved character recognition software, and new search algo-
rithms, but this is a costly endeavour. Offline handwritten character
recognition is particularly challenging due to paleographic variations in
writing styles, which are essentially personal and subject to the slightest
changes.
337
The accuracy of character recognition is heavily dependent
335
J. Burchardt (2023). ‘Are searches in OCR-generated archives trustworthy?
An analysis of digital newspaper archives,’ Jahrbuch für Wirtschaftsgeschichte/Eco-
nomic History Yearbook, Vol. 64, No. 1, pp. 31−54.
336
A.J. Torget (2023). ‘Mapping texts. Examining the effects of OCR noise on
historical newspaper collections,’ E. Bunout, M. Ehrmann, and F. Clavert (eds.),
Digitised Newspapers. A New Eldorado for Historians? Reflections on Tools, Methods and
Epistemology, De Gruyter, Oldenbourg, pp. 47−66.
337
Offline: ‘the process of translating offline handwritten word into a format
that is understood by (a) machine.’ Online: ‘one writes on an electronic surface
such as an electronic tablet with a special pen and words or characters are rec-
ognized at real time as soon as it is written.’ S. Singh (2018). A Framework for
Offline Handwritten Devanagari Word Recognition. A research proposal, p. 2. Online
source. Archived at: https://perma.cc/HFB9-DKJN.
123
on the quality of input images.
338
Errors can occur due to blurring, un-
even illumination, complex backgrounds, skewness, low resolution, mul-
tilingual content, scene complexity, perspective distortion, and varia-
tions in text layout or fonts.
339
According to Transkribus, an intelligent
information (retrieval) platform for text recognition, transcription, and
searching of historical documents, a character error rate of 20% to 30%
is normal when applied to text not present in training datasets or scribble
notes. With training, an error rate of 10% or lower can be considered
very efficient for automated transcription.
340
Close reading will still be
necessary due to errors, interpretation of results based on context, and
possible bias of algorithmic models.
341
Archival science research primarily concerns the access to and the
accessibility of information. It is similar to information quality research
in its focus on information, specifically in terms of its access and acces-
sibility. Despite its relevance to all research domains discussed, archival
research is often neglected. Digital preservation research has shown that
the assumption that access implies accessibility is incorrect. When infor-
338
R. Sarkhel, N. Das, A. Das, M. Kundu, and M. Nasipuri (2017). ‘A multi-
scale deep quad tree based feature extraction method for the recognition of iso-
lated handwritten characters of popular Indic scripts,’ Pattern Recognition, Vol. 71,
78−93.
339
Q. Ye and D. Doermann (2015). ‘Text detection and recognition in imagery.
A survey,’ IEEE Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence, Vol. 37,
No. 7, 1480−1500, p. 1483; J. Liang, D. DeMenthon, and D. Doermann (2008).
‘Geometric rectification of camera-captured document images,’ IEEE Transac-
tions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence, Vol. 30, No. 4, pp. 591−605.
340
Transkribus Help Center (2023). ‘Character error rate and learning curve.’
Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://help.transkribus.org/character-error-rate-and-learning-curve.
Archived at: https://archive.li/Z9G5z.
341
U. Fritsche and M. Spoerer (2023). ‘Introduction: digital history,’ Jahrbuch für
Wirtschaftsgeschichte / Economic History Yearbook, Vol. 64, No. 1, pp. 1−7, p. 4.
124
mation management practices do not acknowledge the human element
in maintaining the safety and accessibility of information, its survival be-
comes uncertain. Additionally, the use of intelligent information retrieval
systems to support transcriptions of previously digitized information is
problematic. Although the artificial intelligence used in these systems is
a fast developing technology, it, at this moment, only complements existing
tools, methods, and practices. For trustworthy results close reading is
still necessary.
EVALUATION
**********
Positioning this diverse and complex body of research is challenging
due to its varying philosophical and professional backgrounds and re-
search traditions. The research is comprised of isolated fields that often
do not communicate with each other. In 1999 and 2001, Maureen Mc-
Creadie, Ronald Rice, and Shan-Ju Chang analysed studies in library sci-
ence, information science, information society, mass communication,
organizational communication, and the economics of information to
generate six general conceptualizations of access: knowledge, technology
and media, communication, control, goods/commodities, and rights
(participation).
342
Based on my analysis, I recognize six approaches that, more or less,
mirror these conceptualizations. The following six themes will be dis-
cussed: [1] social, economic, and political participation; [2] ‘smart’ and
342
M. McCreadie and R.E. Rice (1999). ‘Trends in analyzing access to infor-
mation. Part I. Cross-disciplinary conceptualizations of access. Part II. Unique
and integrating conceptualizations,’ Information Processing & Management, Vol. 35,
No. 1, pp. 45−76, pp. 77−99; and R.E. Rice, M. McCreadie, and S.L. Chang
(2001). Accessing and Browsing Information and Communication, MIT Press, Cam-
bridge (Ms.), Chapter 3, pp. 41−83.
125
evolving technology; [3] power and control; [4] sense-making; [5] knowl-
edge representations; and [6] information survival. The ‘participation’
approach [1] is prevalent in research on access disparities (including dig-
ital divide research.) Information access and accessibility are considered
essential for participation in social, economic, and political processes,
both in society and in organizations. In order to be involved in decision-
making processes and to exercise their rights, citizens and employees
must be informed. Access to information (technology) is necessary and
the information provided must be accessible. Without access and acces-
sibility, political, social, and economic systems, including organizations,
favour those in power, resulting in inequality and power disparities. Lim-
ited access and accessibility make it difficult to sustain social environ-
ments, and individuals attempting to access information may behave
contrary to expectations in an effort to ‘beat the system.’
‘Smart and evolving technology’ [2] is an approach followed in all
discussed research areas. It is commonly believed that technology en-
hances access and accessibility, and access also means (cognitive) inter-
pretability. While artificial intelligence and machine learning are seen as
a solution to many problems, they are not a panacea in their current
state. Archival science research acknowledges that technology can en-
hance access and accessibility, but also highlights that they can be nega-
tively impacted by technology. This is due to the risk of technology be-
coming obsolete and the challenge of interpretability, which still requires
‘close reading.’ Information quality research distinguishes between avail-
ability (access to) and interpretability (accessibility of) when defining in-
formation quality characteristics, seemingly without assuming that the
realization of one automatically leads to the other. Information retrieval
research utilizes technology such as artificial intelligence and machine
learning to access and enhance the accessibility of information. How-
ever, it does not discuss the concepts themselves. Research on access
disparity and information seeking emphasizes the need for lifelong learn-
126
ing of new technological systems, to navigate, evaluate, create, and com-
prehend information effectively and critically. Despite the emergence of
interest in the environmental implications of ‘smart and evolving tech-
nology’ (as descibed in the previous chapter), it has yet to emerge as a
research topic within the disciplines considered here.
The concept of information access as a source of power to control
participation and/or information [3] is prevalent in research on infor-
mation disparity, information management, and information security. In
organizational contexts, access control is crucial for safeguarding infor-
mation against both external and internal threats, as well as for highlight-
ing power dynamics within organizations and society as a whole.
The fourth approach involves access to sense-making [4], which in-
volves moving through time and space to make sense of an individual’s
world, including the (cognitive) interpretability of information. How-
ever, this approach only applies when sense-making is relevant to the
individual seeking and/or using information. It acknowledges that ac-
cess and accessibility may differ, but generally endorses the assumption
that ‘access to’ also means ‘accessibility of.’ This approach is prominent
in information seeking and information management research.
The approach of ‘knowledge representations’ (5) emphasizes the ar-
tefacts or representations of existing knowledge, such as documents, rec-
ords, nodes, datasets, or other data objects. These artefacts are viewed
as building blocks for potential new knowledge. However, it is a com-
mon and incorrect assumption that when an artefact is available, the
knowledge contained therein is accessible. Artefacts and knowledge do
not have an unbreakable relationship. Their environment, creators, and
users can affect these artefacts. According to researchers like John Ath-
anassiades, Charles O’Reilly, and Benjamin Singer, access and accessibil-
ity to information can be affected by the deliberate manipulation of ar-
tefacts and the knowledge they contain. Ronald Rice and Stephen Coo-
per confirmed that the logistics, access, quality and context of artefacts
127
and knowledge can be manipulated by individuals for various reasons,
including the desire for power.
343
This approach is strong in both infor-
mation management and information retrieval research.
The approach of ‘information survival’ [6] is only discussed in re-
search related to archival science. Access to and accessibility of informa-
tion are viewed as continuously threatened by the vast amount of infor-
mation that must be retained for future generations and by technological
obsolescence. The latter has only recently been accepted due to evolving
technology, where generations of hardware and software succeed each
other, and older generations become unusable due to code and format
incompatibility. Digital preservation research aims to find solutions for
this problem, although a definitive solution has not yet been found. Ar-
chival practices and research have developed tools for gaining access to
information, which are similar to those developed in information re-
trieval research. These tools consider the special position of archives as
a reflection of organizational actions and transactions in the past and
present.
343
Van Bussel (2020), pp. 63−64. J.C. Athanassiades (1973). ‘The distortion of
upward communication in hierarchical organizations,’ The Academy of Management
Journal, Vol. 16, No. 2, pp. 207−226; C.A. O'Reilly (1978). ‘The intentional dis-
tortion of information in organizational communication. A laboratory and field
investigation,’ Human Relations, Vol. 31, No. 2, pp. 173−193; B.D. Singer (1980).
‘Crazy systems and Kafka circuits,’ Social Policy, Vol. 11, No. 2, pp. 46−54; and
R.E. Rice and S.D. Cooper (2010). Organizations and Unusual Routines. A Systems
Analysis of Dysfunctional Feedback Processes, Cambridge University Press, Cam-
bridge, Ch. 1, pp. 1−20.
128
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129
4
BOTTLENECKS AND REQUIREMENTS
FOR INFORMATION ACCESS AND ACCESSI-
BILITY
*
130
EIGHT BOTTLENECKS FOR ACCESS AND ACCESSIBILITY
**********
There are many obstacles to accessing information, in both senses of
the term. Most of these were identified in the literature analysis pre-
sented earlier and are long-standing barriers that impede information ac-
cess. Together, they constitute the ‘digital divides.’ Eight different (over-
lapping) bottlenecks are identified, which are a mixture of many experi-
enced obstacles, including political, social, economic, legal, infrastruc-
tural, educational, personal and organizational. Tabel 3 presents an over-
view of the literature for this analysis.
A political bottleneck
Politics and access to information have a complex relationship, re-
flecting an ongoing struggle between transparency and confidentiality.
The opening of information to the public is often at odds with the need
for confidentiality for various reasons. It is important to consider the
context when discussing access to information, as it may be interpreted
differently in different circumstances.
344
Information may be accessible
in some social and political contexts but confidential in others, resulting
in access restrictions in all situations. Although there may be many laws
concerning freedom of information, access possibilities for citizens de-
pend on political and bureaucratic contexts. There are always constraints
in place that make it difficult to exercise legal rights for access. Politicians
and bureaucrats may claim to support freedom of information, but they
change their stance when transparency is not in their best interest.
344
Elaborating on N. Couldry (2012). Media, Society, World. Social Theory and Dig-
ital Media Practice, Polity, Cambridge, introduction.
131
Table 3. Overview of literature used for bottleneck analysis.
.
Literature used for bottleneck analysis
I. Aguolu (1997). ‘Accessibility of information. A myth for developing countries ?, New
Library World, Vol. 98, No. 1, pp. 25−29.
F. Bregha (1992). ‘Institutional barriers to environmental information,’ Environmental
Monitoring and Assessment, Vol. 20, pp. 191−200.
C-C. Chen and P. Hernon (1982). Information Seeking. Assessing and Anticipating User Needs,
Neal-Schuman Publishers, New York.
M.D. Ekstrand, A. Das, R. Burke, and F. Diaz (2021). ‘Fairness and discrimination in in-
formation access systems,’ arXiv preprint arXiv:2105. 05779. Online source, retrieved 1
November 2024, from: https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2105.05779.
A.N. Gibson and J.D. Martin III (2019). ‘Re-situating information poverty. Information
marginalization and parents of individuals with disabilities,’ Journal of the Association for In-
formation Science & Technology, Vol. 70, No. 5, pp. 476−487.
A.M. Gingras (2012). ‘Access to information. An asset for democracy or ammunition for
political conflict, or both?,’ Canadian Public Administration, Vol. 55, No. 2, pp. 221−246.
D. Hanson-Baldauf (2013). Exploring the Everyday Life Information Needs, Practices, and Chal-
lenges of Emerging Adults with Intellectual Disabilities, University of North Carolina, Chapel
Hill.
R.M. Harris and P. Dewdney (1994). Barriers to Information. How Formal Help Systems Fail
Battered Women, Greenwood Press, Westport-London.
H. Julien and D. Michels (2004). ‘Intra-individual information behaviour in daily life,’ In-
formation Processing and Management, Vol. 40, No. 3, pp. 547−562.
A. Kralisch and T. Mandl (2006). ‘Barriers to information access across languages on the
internet. Network and language effects,’ Proceedings of the 39th Annual Hawaii International
Conference on System Sciences (HICSS'06), IEEE, Washington, Vol. 3, pp. 54b (1−10).
M.S. Martin (1994). ‘Economic barriers to information access,’ The Bottom Line, Vol. 7,
No. 1, pp. 3−4.
R.F. McCloud, C.A. Okechukwu, G. Sorensen, and K. Viswanath (2016). ‘Beyond ac-
cess. Barriers to internet health information seeking among the urban poor,’ Journal of the
American Medical Informatics Association, Vol. 23, No. 6, pp. 1053−1059
T. Mendel (2011). Amending Access to Information Legislation. Legal and Political Issues, World
Bank, Washington.
132
Table 3. Overview of literature used for bottleneck analysis.
While citizens have the legal right to access information, the concen-
tration of political power can result in the restriction of private use of
information for many people.
345
Governments are often interested in
345
M.L. Miller (2017). A Political Ecology of Information. Media and the Dilemma of
State Power in China. A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Faculty in Political
Literature used for bottleneck analysis
S.M. Oltmann (2015). ‘Data, censorship, and politics. Analyzing the restricted flow of
information in federal scientific policy development,’ Journal of the Association for Infor-
mation Science and Technology, Vol. 66, No. 1, pp. 144−161
S.M. Oltmann, E.J.M. Knox, and C. Peterson (2021). ‘The significance of access to in-
formation — and the challenges it faces in librarianship,’ Library Philosophy and Practice.
Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from: https://digitalcom-
mons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=9724&context=libphilprac.
M. Pasquier and J.P. Villeneuve (2007). ‘Organizational barriers to transparency. A ty-
pology and analysis of organizational behaviour tending to prevent or restrict access to
information,’ International Review of Administrative Sciences, Vol. 73, No. 1, pp. 147−162.
M. Perkins (1996). ‘Barriers to technical solutions. Institutional, policy and legal barriers
to information access,’ Information Development, Vol. 12, No. 3, pp. 149−154.
R.S. Rosenberg (2001). ‘Controlling access to the Internet. The role of filtering,’ Ethics
and Information Technology, Vol. 3, pp. 35−54.
K.M. Thompson and W. Afzal (2011). ‘A look at information access through physical,
intellectual, and socio-cultural lenses,’ OMNES. The Journal of Multicultural Society, Vol. 2,
No. 2, pp. 22−42.
E.S. Warner, J. Murray, and V.E. Palmour (1973). Information needs of urban residents, Balti-
more and Westat Inc. of Rockville.
M. Woodbury (2003). ‘Information access,’ A. Ralston, E.D. Reilly, and D. Hemmen-
dinger (eds.), Encyclopedia of Computer Science, John, Chichester, pp. 848−850.
A.L.L. Zhao, A. Paley, R. Adler, H. Pack, S. Servantez, A. Einarsson, C. Barrie, M. Ster-
bentz, and K. Hammond (2021). ‘Requirements for open political information. Trans-
parency beyond open data,’ arXiv preprint arXiv:2112.03119. Online source, retrieved 1
November 2024, from: https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2112.03119.
133
implementing information control mechanisms for legal, bureaucratic,
and/or security reasons, even if it means restricting the rights of citizens
and potentially hindering their participation in society. These actions can
have a significant impact on the objectivity and balance of information
publicly available. In some cases, this can lead to censorship of the in-
ternet, as well as the dissemination of government and political propa-
ganda and disinformation.
346
An example, to demonstrate how wor-
rysome and even dangerous securitization of information could be. In
step with rising tensions, China’s leadership is working to restrict access
to ‘sensitive’ online information from two angles: decreasing transpar-
ency of China’s government and restrictions targeting foreign access.
Authorities are reducing the amount of information they release to the
public. The decline in transparency affects Chinese citizens and foreign
observers equally. The government also implements regulatory and tech-
nical means to block access to potentially sensitive information from
abroad. In the immediate future, foreign stakeholders will have to face
global challenges with less information to guide them.
347
Science in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of
Philosophy, the City University of New York, New York, pp. 46−51. Online
source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2956&con-
text=gc_etds.
346
S. Bradshaw, H. Bailey, and P.N. Howard (2021). Industrialized Disinformation.
2020 Global Inventory of Organized Social Media Manipulation. Oxford Internet Insti-
tute, Oxford. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://demtech.oii.ox.ac.uk/wp-content/up-
loads/sites/12/2021/01/CyberTroop-Report20-FINALv.3.pdf.
347
V. Brussee and K. von Carnap (2024).The Increasing Challenge of Obtaining Infor-
mation from Xi’s China, Merics Report, Berlin, p. 3. Online source, retrieved 1
November 2024, from: https://merics.org/sites/default/files/2024-02/MER-
ICS%20Report%20Online%20information%20on%20CHina.pdf. Archived at:
134
Michael Miller argues that a national information environment con-
sists of two overlapping contexts: a social context, which reflects the
economic and social constraints that shape information access and use,
and a political context, which reflects the objectives and capacities of the
state and shapes the autonomy of citizens and businesses that access
information.
348
The social context refers, for example, to the power of
business organizations to collect, control and use personal information
about their customers for their activities, and whether they allow or pro-
hibit customer access to this information. The political context deter-
mines the extent to which business organizations can exercise this power
and the rights of citizens to access this information. Authoritarian forms
of government have a strong political context with limited autonomy for
organizations and citizens. When political and business elites overlap
and share interests, as is common in all forms of government, it can have
serious consequences for citizens’ rights to access information. Such an
alliance could provide economic benefits by controlling information ac-
cess, which may lead to a reduction in government support for public
information infrastructures and affect access opportunities.
349
The rise of big data analysis, data mining, and smart technology has
amplified this issue, strengthening the power of business and govern-
ment organizations to collect, control, and use information, and restrict-
ing access to information that is deemed to conflict with the interests of
the political and economic elite. The use of ‘actionable intelligence’ de-
rived from algorithmic analysis of expanding data sets, regardless of the
accuracy of the analysis, can enable the control of an individual’s infor-
mation access. Big data surveillance involves intervention based on pat-
https://web.archive.org/web/20240215133718/https://merics.org/sites/de-
fault/files/2024-02/MERICS%20Report%20Online%20infor-
mation%20on%20CHina.pdf.
348
Miller (2017), pp. 48−49.
349
See also: Ribot and Peluso (2003), pp. 76−78.
135
terns discernible only to those with access to the data and processing
power.
350
The analysis of internet users’ search behaviour can impact
information access, often without the user’s awareness. While restric-
tions are effective for most searchers, censorship may unintentionally
prompt a small minority to take actions that result in information access.
According to William Hobbs and Margaret Roberts’ research on the use
of prohibited social media in China, some citizens may adapt and create
censorship circumventions. This may result in an increase in access to
off-limits information among people motivated by the new censorship
to seek out avenues for evasion.
351
However, most evasions are coun-
tered. The battle between transparency and confidentiality is a sign that
censorship can be used as a political weapon. The political bottleneck is
worrisome because it aggravates all other bottlenecks described here.
A social bottleneck
Within a social context, access to information is considered a re-
source for everyone. It is an opportunity to overcome social inequalities
and divisions, empowering individuals, increasing social action and dem-
ocratic involvement, and facilitating access to education and other public
services. Access to information has the potential to reframe traditional
power relationships through interactions of information sharing. Neil
Selwyn argues that social and cultural attitudes suggest that access to in-
formation and information systems can improve the life chances of low-
income groups. The social differences between information ‘haves’ and
‘have-nots’ are based on these attitudes.
352
As has been shown before,
350
M. Andrejevic and K. Gates (2014). ‘Editorial. Big Data Surveillance. Intro-
duction,’ Surveillance & Society, Vol. 12, No. 2, pp. 185−196, p. 190.
351
W.R. Hobbs and M.E. Roberts (2018). ‘How sudden censorship can increase
access to information,’ American Political Science Review, Vol. 121, No. 3, pp. 1−16.
352
N. Selwyn (2004). ‘Reconsidering political and popular understandings of the
digital divide,’ New Media & Society, Vol. 6, No. 3, pp. 341−362.
136
research on information access disparity focuses on social inclusion and
exclusion, information poverty, information marginalization, and other
phenomena that cause or result from social inequalities. Access is pat-
terned along social stratifications such as social status, income, gender,
education level, age, geography, and ethnicity. Individuals’ access to in-
formation can be influenced by a range of factors, including age, gender,
and social background. It is important to consider how these factors may
impact behaviour, attitudes, abilities, and financial means.
Differences between age, gender and ethnic groups exist for a variety
of reasons, most of which are social. Those differences affect, for in-
stance, the ways in which people of distinctive social backgrounds use
information. Elfreda Chatman stated in her theory about ‘small worlds’
that these are ‘social environments where individuals live and work,
bonded together by shared interests, expectations, and information be-
haviour, and often economic status and geographic proximity.’
353
Chat-
man explained these social worlds with a theory of normative behaviour,
which comprises four components: [1] social norms that dictate desira-
ble behaviour; [2] a worldview that shapes values and determines what
should be acknowledged or ignored; [3] social typification based on
compliance to norms and worldview, and [4] information behaviour that
involves sharing and understanding how and where information is ac-
cessed, exchanged, and avoided. This definition suggests that even a so-
cial stratum could be considered a small world.
In the ‘hybrid amalgamation’ we live in, the ‘small world’ theory can
be applied to the virtual communities that have emerged with the rise of
social networks and media platforms. These communities are, according
353
According to: G. Burnett and P.T. Jaeger (2008). ‘Small worlds, lifeworlds,
and information. The ramifications of the information behaviour of social
groups in public policy and the public sphere,’ Information Research, Vol. 13, No.
2, paper 346. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from: https://infor-
mationr.net/ir/13-2/paper346.html.
137
to Pierre Levy, ‘guided by passions and projects, conflicts and friend-
ships,’ and can become distinct small worlds characterized by ideologies
of groups or individuals.
354
In some communities, the avoidance of in-
formation that is not in line with the dominant ideology is a normative
behaviour that can lead to the spread of misinformation. Such commu-
nities can become information bubbles, where individuals come across
and access information that confirms the beliefs of the community.
Social differences can impact personal opportunities for learning, ac-
cess to information systems, cultural involvement, and democratic par-
ticipation. For example, a society that is male-oriented may limit wom-
en’s educational opportunities and access to information. Additionally,
group dynamics, social control, and economic factors can affect the abil-
ity of ethnic groups to overcome information disparities. Information
access, as such, may have the possibility to overcome disparities, but, in
the end, social barriers for information access are extremely difficult to
solve (if ever.)
An economic bottleneck
Economic barriers can be influenced by political and social factors.
Many economic barriers arise due to political actions or social disparities.
In an economic context, the differences between private and public in-
formation are crucial in the debate about open and closed access.
Access to private information is often a component of commercial
business models, either to recover the cost of obtaining the information
or to protect it from misuse. In a traditional economy, these models
worked relatively well. However, the dramatic rise in the use of the in-
ternet, social media platforms, webshops, and sharing platforms has pre-
sented challenges to these business models. A market system is assumed
354
P. Levy (1998). Becoming virtual. Reality in a digital age, New York, Plenum
Trade, p. 29.
138
to rest on three pillars: [1] excludability: the degree to which a supplier,
or a producer can prevent ‘free’ consumption of a good, their ability,
thus, to force a consumer to pay for goods or services; [2] rivalry: the
degree to which consumption by one consumer prevents simultaneous
consumption by another one; and [3] transparency: the degree to which
a consumer knows his or her desires and the products that can be bought
to take advantage of competition. In a hybrid economy, these three as-
sumptions are undermined, but not negated. However, in the traditional
component of the economy, they still hold strong.
355
A hybrid economy combines the traditional source of economic
growth, which is the accumulation of physical capital, with a new source
of growth — intellectual capital. This is achieved through the digitalized
component of the economy, which utilizes big data, artificial intelligence,
and deep learning. However, commercial efforts and intellectual prop-
erty rights can create access tensions.
356
The traditional economy’s scar-
city of access is being replaced by an abundance of access, particularly
for public information. Government and non-profit organizations, li-
braries, archives, and museums are digitizing and providing public access
to their information. Despite being fragmented and difficult to locate,
the internet has enabled access to this information to flourish. The in-
ternet presents a challenge to business models when it comes to private
information. Digital goods can be easily reproduced without any loss of
quality, leading to an increase in piracy. However, this also stimulates
information access and knowledge sharing among consumers. Copy-
righted digital products can be hacked and distributed using sharing
355
J.B. DeLong and A.M. Froomkin (2000). ‘Speculative microeconomics for
tomorrow’s economy,’ B. Kahin and H. Varian (eds.), Internet Publishing and Be-
yond. The Economics of Digital Information and Intellectual Property, MIT Press, Cam-
bridge, Chapter 1, pp. 6−44, p. 9−17.
356
M.A. Peters, T. Besley, and P. Jandric (2018). ‘Postdigital knowledge cultures
and their politics,’ ECNU Review of Education, Vol. 1, No. 2, 23−43, pp. 25, 29.
139
platforms, illegally making access easy and free. Producers try to protect
their property by re-establishing excludability and rivalry through legal
and technical measures. This includes implementing paywalls and limit-
ing access to paying customers, as well as targeting popular online envi-
ronments for accessing and sharing pirated materials. While paywalls can
be effective, they do not completely prevent piracy. In March 2017, Sci-
Hub contained almost all papers published in The Lancet, Science, Na-
ture, and the Journal of the American Chemical Society, which were pay-
walled by their publishers. The platform seems to be successful in by-
passing paywalls because it exists in a legal environment that does not
shut it down, regardless of its legality.
357
The use of technology to pre-
vent unauthorised distribution of digital products, such as through en-
cryption or watermarks, is only a temporary solution as technology can
also be used to remove these restrictions. This approach is expensive
and unlikely to succeed in the long term.
Meanwhile, open access initiatives are challenging business models
that rely on paid access or publishing. Producers may have changed their
business models, but open access initiatives that offer publishing and
access at low cost have caused increasing competetion. Nevertheless,
most business organizations still continue to produce and make profits.
As previously explained, organizations collect, mine, and exploit data
from internal and external sources, whether collected by themselves or
purchased from other organizations. Business organizations use this in-
formation to personalize their advertising, contextualize user experience,
and improve content. Digitization and big data analytics are opening up
new opportunities to earn money but also leading to new challenges,
such as privacy. Most of this information is not accessible to the public,
357
D.S. Himmelstein, A. Rodriguez Romero, J.G Levernier, T.A. Munro, S.R.
McLaughlin, B.G. Tzovaras, and C.S Greene (2018). ‘Research: Sci-Hub pro-
vides access to nearly all scholarly literature,’ eLife, 7: e32822. Online source,
retrieved 1 November 2024, from: https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.32822.
140
although government organizations publish large datasets as open data.
Business organizations keep this information private. When business
and political elites overlap or share interests, government support for
public information infrastructures may be reduced. This can limit and
influence access to information that business organizations do not want
to be accessible to the public. Economic interests can prove to be a
minefield for information access.
A legal bottleneck
Legal principles can sometimes hinder the access and collection of
information. Barriers to information collection can be direct or indirect,
including self-imposed limits on the portability of information due to
concerns about legal obligations related to collection activities. In many
jurisdictions, barriers have been put in place to protect privacy and pre-
vent discrimination. Legal barriers can also affect the ease of information
access, particularly with regards to information ownership.
358
As infor-
mation systems become more integrated into daily practice, legal prob-
lems become increasingly complex. In 1986, Richard Mason developed
an information taxonomy from an ethical standpoint, identifying four
key issues witch he denoted by the acronym PAPA: privacy, accuracy,
property, and accessibility. These issues are also, in my opinion, among
the most important legal issues of our time.
Privacy issues concern individuals’ right to control their personal in-
formation, including who has access to it, how it is used, and how long
it is kept. It is a legal requirement that information technology systems
do not unduly invade a person’s privacy by granting access to unauthor-
ized individuals. Accuracy issues focus on the imperative of correctness
and reliability of information within the legal system. This includes the
358
D.L. Rubinfeld and M.S. Gal (2017). ‘Access barriers to big data,’ Arizona
Law Revues, Vol. 59, No. 2, pp. 339−381, especially 359−362.
141
responsibility for maintaining accurate and reliable information, as well
as accountability for errors in information technology and information
processes. Property issues pertain to the ownership of information, the
communication channels used, and the protection of intellectual prop-
erty rights. It covers property rights in software, soft-lifting and the cop-
ying and sharing of digital art forms, films and music. Accessibility issues
concern the legal principles of information access. Specifically, it ex-
plores what information a person or organization has the right to obtain,
under what conditions and safeguards, and what specific information is
(not) available to them. The legal imperative for system design is to en-
sure that people have access to the information needed to make in-
formed decisions, participate in society, and exercise their rights.
359
Laws and regulations have been established to both restrict and per-
mit information access. Legal considerations are always a factor in infor-
mation access and accessibility.
An infrastructural bottleneck
Information infrastructures refer to the various interrelated compo-
nents that support the creation, use, transportation, storage, and disposal
of information.
360
In 2010, Ole Hanseth defined information infrastruc-
359
R.O. Mason (1986). ‘Four ethical issues of the information age,’ MIS Quar-
terly, Vol. 10, No. 1, pp. 5−12. New isues have been proposed as additions to
the framework based on big data developments, like behaviour, interpretation,
and governance. See: J. Young, T.J. Smith, and S.H. Zheng (2020). ‘Call me BIG
PAPA. An extension of Mason’s information ethics framework to big data,’
Journal of the Midwest Association for Information Systems, Vol. 2020, No. 2, Article 3.
Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://aisel.aisnet.org/jmwais/vol2020/iss2/3.
360
Z. Osinski (2019). ‘Information infrastructure of contemporary humanities
and the digital humanities development as a cause of creating new information
barriers. A Polish case,’ Digital Scholarship in the Humanities, Vol. 34, No. 2, pp.
386−400, p. 390. This definition is attributed to J.P. Pironti (2006). ‘Key ele-
142
ture as ‘a shared, evolving, heterogeneous installed base (which is also
open and standardized.’)
361
Existing infrastructures can have a positive
or negative impact on how information is accessed.
An obstacle to accessing information may be the physical infrastruc-
ture. Individuals, particularly those with disabilities or special needs, may
face difficulties when attempting to access information. It may need to
be obtained from locations that are too far away, inaccessible, or require
visual and manual skills to operate, especially when using information
technology. Access depends on the design of the built environment, the
organization of public transport, and the accessibility of buildings. For
government offices, museums, libraries, or archives, it is important to
provide features such as ramps for wheelchair users, widened doorways,
wider parking spaces, handrails to assist disabled and elderly individuals
with small steps, visual signs, clear passageways, and spoken instructions
in lifts.
362
In cases where the buildings are inaccessible or geographically
remote, access to information may be problematic.
Information technology infrastructures consist of three levels, each
building on the one below it. The lowest level is the computing infra-
structure, which includes hardware, software, databases, and telecom-
munications that provide functionality. The second level comprises ser-
vices that enable the discovery and delivery of information, as well as
ments of a threat and vulnerability management program,’ Information Systems
Control Journal, Vol. 3, pp. 52−56. I could not find this definition in this (and
other) papers of Pironti related to information security and information risks
although he mentions several of its elements.
361
O. Hanseth (2010). ‘From systems and tools to networks and infrastructures
— from design to cultivation. Towards a design theory of information infra-
structures,’ J. Holmstrøm, M. Wiberg, and A. Lund (eds.), Industrial Informatics
Design, Use and Innovation, IGI Global, Hershey, New York, Chapter 11, pp. 122−
156. Quoation: p. 126.
362
See European Standard: DIN EN 17210. Accessibility and usability of the built
environment – Functional requirements (2021).
143
the processing of business transactions. The third level comprises prod-
ucts and structures, such as service delivery to consumers and supply
chain organization. Each level presents its own challenges, as users must
know how to use them to find, access, and utilize information.
363
Sim-
ilar to buildings, information technology systems require features for po-
tential users who are elderly, blind, deaf, or have mental and/or physical
disabilities. When used by individuals with special needs, it should be
possible to enhance colours, enlarge screens, have text read aloud by
synthesised speech software, translate audio tracks into text as captions
(and/or subtitles), and operate information systems through special key-
boards or voice commands. Only through special human-computer in-
terfaces can users with special needs access information on the internet,
databases, document repositories, and networked organizational envi-
ronments. As new or evolving information systems emerge, the number
of potential special needs users grows.
McCreadie and Rice have shown that physical barriers such as geog-
raphy, environment, technology, and space can restrict people’s access
to information, even for those without special needs. In human-com-
puter interaction, information access should be inclusive of all people
with different abilities, skills, needs, and preferences.
364
Note, however,
that access to information technology does not necessarily mean access
to information. Users of information infrastructures must be familiar
with the core characteristics of the components, whether they are ana-
363
A. Dutta, (1997). ‘The physical infrastructure for electronic commerce in de-
veloping nations. Historical trends and the impact of privatization,’ International
Journal of Electronic Commerce, Vol. 2, No. 1, pp. 61−83, pp. 61−62.
364
McCreadie, and Rice (1999), pp. 61−63. For human-computer interaction: J.
Grudin (2012). ‘A moving target. The evolution of human-computer Interac-
tion,’ J.A. Jacko and A. Sears (eds.), Human Computer Interaction Handbook. Funda-
mentals, Evolving Technologies, and Emerging Applications, CRC Press, Boka Raton,
third edition, introduction, pp. xxvii−lxi.
144
logue or digital, in the built environment or in computing systems. As
shown before, a significant proportion of the global population lacks the
necessary skills to utilize bibliographies, catalogues, and finding aids, as
well as lacking transliteracy skills to access information in digital land-
scapes.
An educational bottleneck
Previously I discussed the dimensions of transliteracy knowledge,
skills, and competences, needed for individuals to succeed in our hybrid,
highly technological world, and for access to and accessibility of infor-
mation. The conclusion drawn was that higher level skills are required
to be functionally literate in a digitalized society. Findings from 2018
indicate that less than 10% of students were able to demonstrate the
necessary skills, and in Western Europe, only 34% of the population had
above basic literacy skills. These findings highlight that many people lack
sufficient knowledge and skills to understand the information they ac-
cess. Despite this evidence, the myth of the ‘digital native’ remains prev-
alent.
The neglect of transliteracy at all levels of the education system is the
main reason for this concerning situation. This is mostly due to the as-
sumption that young people, as ‘digital natives,’ possess the necessary
literacy skills to find, use, and understand information. Therefore,
schools often repeat what they assume students have already learned,
without providing additional instruction.
365
Young people have not pre-
viously acquired knowledge, skills, and competences in information lit-
eracy. According to Danah Boyd (quoted on p. 53), this has resulted in
a lack of support for young people. The education system prioritizes
technology skills, such as software and hardware use, coding, and word
365
H. Davies and R. Eynon (2018). ‘Is digital upskilling the next generation our
‘pipeline to prosperity’?,’ New Media & Society, Vol. 20. No. 11, pp. 3961−3979.
145
processing, while neglecting transliteracy skills. According to Rebecca
Enyon, the emphasis on young people’s use of technology is often ac-
companied by an uncritical and deterministic view of technology as an
exciting driver of the future.
366
The effective use of technology among
young people is largely determined by their socio-economic circum-
stances and social stratification, despite their ability to use it. Neglecting
transliteracy creates a significant bottleneck in access to and accessibility
of information. According to William Badke, literacy is overlooked in
the education system. It is misunderstood and academic administrators
have not prioritized it on their institutions’ agendas. There is a false be-
lief that literacy is only acquired through experience and a mistaken as-
sumption that technological ability is the same as being ‘information lit-
erate.’ Additionally, faculty culture tends to place less significance on lit-
eracy than on other educational pursuits, and faculty members often
have a limited perception of which abilities are necessary to be translit-
erate. And, last but not least, accrediting bodies have not yet advanced
literacy to a viable position in the education system.
367
Therefore, stu-
dents may not learn what they need to, resulting in only average (or low)
levels of transliteracy, with all the consequences that this entails.
368
A personal bottleneck
Bottlenecks in accessing information are often exacerbated by per-
sonal barriers. Overcoming individual problems can be particularly chal-
lenging. Barriers can vary greatly in nature, complexity, intensity and du-
ration. Barriers to accessing information may arise from special needs, a
366
Enyon (2020), pp. 131−143.
367
W. Badke (2016). ‘Why information literacy is invisible,’ J. Hagen-McIntosh
(ed.), Information and Data Literacy. The Role of the Library, Apple Academic Press,
Oakville, pp. 137−153.
368
A. Cree, A. Kay, and J. Steward (2023). The Economic and Social Cost of Illiteracy.
A Snapshot of Illiteracy in a Global Context, World Literacy Foundation, London.
146
variety of factors such as illiteracy, lack of confidence, poor understand-
ing, geographical isolation, income, language, stress, cognition, race, gen-
der, age, and other socially and culturally determined factors such as bias
and avoidance of information due to group ideologies or social stratifi-
cation. There are reasons why individuals who are otherwise healthy may
not avail themselves of opportunities to access information. Some of
these reasons are socially or organizationally constructed, while others
are based on personal dilemmas. Most individuals may be functionally
literate for their work and daily lives, but they may lack the transliterate
skills necessary to fully comprehend and engage in (political) debates in
society. Cognitive and physical impairments, such as dyslexia, autism,
reduced memory capacity, Down syndrome, visual impairments, hearing
impairments, and motor impairments, exacerbate these problems.
There are two approaches to providing access for individuals with
special needs. The first approach focuses on impairments and aims to
ease the condition through medical, therapeutic, or technological inter-
ventions. This approach is useful for designing adaptive and assistive
technologies and aims to provide equal access to information for everyone, re-
gardless of outcome. The second approach goes beyond removing or
reducing barriers to designing and supporting meaningful use, with a fo-
cus on equitable design: providing whatever support is necessary for equally
successful outcomes.
369
Technology is important in both approaches.
Adaptive or assistive technology refers to software and hardware that
has been modified to be used by people with special needs, such as eye−
tracking devices, speech recognition, touch screens, joysticks, trackballs,
369
A.N. Gibson and D. Hanson-Baldauf (2017). ‘More than accessibility. Social
and critical frameworks for exploring marginalization of people with autism
spectrum disorders,’ Proceedings of the ASIS&T SIG-USE Symposium Call for Par-
ticipation. Framing Inclusion and Exclusion in Information Behavior Research and Practice,
October 28, New York, 9 pp. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://cdr.lib.unc.edu/downloads/mw22v762n?locale=en.
147
visual cursors, and large keyboards. Accessing technology, although
problematic, is not the main challenge. The main challenge is finding,
understanding, and using digital information to one’s advantage. How-
ever, this is largely dependent on personal motivation, skills, and capa-
bilities. The ‘digital divide’ has the greatest impact on people at this per-
sonal level.
An organizational bottleneck
An often-overlooked obstacle to accessing information is of an or-
ganizational nature. In our society, every aspect involves some form of
information technology. This technology provides new opportunities
for accessing information, such as compatibility with multiple languages
and media, assistive devices, adaptive and perceptual interfaces, and soft-
ware for translation, intuitive search, intelligent data mining, and infor-
mation retrieval. However, the functionalities of information technology
are complex. Processing digital information requires hardware and soft-
ware, which are constantly changing and may become unavailable in the
future. Information can become obsolete and inaccessible without pre-
servation efforts. The rendering of digital information is threatened by
rapid changes in the ways it is recorded, stored, and processed. To com-
bat the threat of technological obsolescence, human intervention and
management are necessary. If left unmanaged, technological obsoles-
cence will occur.
In 2020, I stated that organizational leaders acknowledge the impor-
tance of information as a crucial business asset, yet their actions in or-
ganizational life do not always align with this belief. Leaders do not apply
the same level of discipline and rigour that is applied to other business
assets, such as financial assets, to information. Information management
is focused almost exclusively on structured information. This neglect re-
sulted in [1] fragmented storage of information in a variety of informa-
tion systems, unconnected with their metadata; [2] fragmented metadata,
148
separated from the information that caused their genesis, leading to a
loss of contextuality; and [3] a declining quality of information, because
its provenance, integrity, and preservation is in peril.
370
The neglect of clear and concise information management often
leads to ‘information chaos,’ which compromises the ability to access
information and to achieve business objectives. This is unfortunately a
common issue in many organizations. The cumulative impact of this ne-
glect is astounding, resulting in increased operational costs of at least
10% of revenue, customer dissatisfaction, less effective decision-making,
problematic implementation of new technology, a damaged organiza-
tional image, and reduced ability to define and execute new business
strategies. Furthermore, it damages employee morale and creates a lack
of trust within organizations.
371
The attitudes and behaviours of leaders,
managers, and employees are crucial factors in the development and per-
petuation of this situation.
In 2017, Tadhg Nagle, Thomas, and David Sammon argued that 3%
of organizational information meets basic quality standards. Further-
more, they found that 47% of all new information contains at least one
critical, work-impacting error.
372
Although some of this evidence per-
tains to information-as-knowledge, the majority of it pertains to infor-
mation-as-thing. Research indicates that organizational dysfunctions can
be directly associated with information behaviour, failures in the infor-
mation value chain, and problematic access to and accessibility of infor-
mation. Hiding and hoarding information are common in organizations
due to selfishness, a lack of responsibility, interest, discipline, incentive,
and competence. Information behaviour does not reflect the values es-
370
Van Bussel (2020), pp. 59−61.
371
Van Bussel (2020), p. 161, note 153 and 155.
372
T. Nagle, T.C. Redman, and D. Sammon (2017). ‘Only 3% of companies’
data meets basic quality standards’, Harvard Business Review, Vol. 95, No. 5, pp.
2–5.
149
poused by organizational leaders regarding the importance of informa-
tion. This results in undefined quality of information access.
Evaluation
Eight bottlenecks that obstruct information access and accessibility
can be identified. These bottlenecks share similarities with the main ap-
proaches I identified in information access research, albeit from a differ-
ent perspective. This is, of course, not surprising. The first research ap-
proach, which focuses on social, economic, and political participation, is
reflected in the political, social, economic, and legal bottlenecks. Politi-
cal, social, economic, and legal factors are determining forces for access
to information and therefore participation in society and the organiza-
tions operating within it. ‘Smart’ and evolving technology is mainly pre-
sent in the infrastructural, legal, and organizational bottlenecks. In our
hybrid society, technological infrastructures are crucial for accessing in-
formation. Evolving technology also leads to problems with the acces-
sibility of information itself, which is why the research approach of ‘in-
formation survival’ is also related. The third approach, power and con-
trol, is evident in the political, social, economic, infrastructural, legal, and
organizational bottlenecks. This approach plays a significant role in al-
most all of the mentioned bottlenecks. Limiting access to information is
one of the primary weapons that an elite has in this power struggle. The
fourth approach, sense-making, is particularly relevant to personal and
educational bottlenecks, as well as to the ‘knowledge representations’
research approach. It emphasizes individuals’ capability to transform in-
formation into knowledge, which requires transliteracy and information
that is (cognitively) interpretable. Information survival is primarily linked
to the research approach of ‘smart and evolving technology,’ as well as
organizational bottlenecks. However, there is also a connection with ed-
ucational bottlenecks, as awareness of the limited sustainability of digital
or digitized information is not part of educational programs.
150
Although all research approaches mentioned before are associated
with bottlenecks, the research literature places the least emphasis on per-
sonal, educational, and organizational bottlenecks. The personal bottleneck
encompasses most obstacles to information access and accessibility.
There is research literature on access to technology and information re-
garding deficits due to physical or psychological disabilities. This litera-
ture focuses on medical, psychological, and psychiatric perspectives. Re-
search on access and disability is marginally explored in the digital divide
and information seeking fields. A search on Google Scholar yielded 1%
and less than 0,5% of literature on these topics, respectively, compared
to the total amount of available literature. Reasons why healthy individ-
uals may not access information are understudied. Education is only mar-
ginally mentioned in research literature as a bottleneck to information
access. There is a emphasis on education, especially in the literature on
the digital divide, information disparity, and information seeking, to pro-
vide students with skills, but it is almost never pointed out that educa-
tional institutions start from the false assumption that students have al-
ready been taught information skills. In this sense, the education system
is one of the major bottlenecks in acquiring the knowledge, skills and
competences to find, access, interprete, and use reliable information.
Even in literature on information quality, information security, and in-
formation management, little attention is given to the organizational bot-
tlenecks that impede access and accessibility of information. The focus is
mainly on quality conditions, access control, and power dynamics. How-
ever, most bottlenecks arise from the behaviour of both managers and
employees. Organizational leaders who fail to recognize information as
a valuable business asset provide employees with ample opportunity to
disregard established protocols. Information manipulation is a prevalent
issue that has consequences for the quality, processing, and preservation
of information in the long term. The lack of awareness about informa-
tion vulnerability may contribute to this problem, but it is not the only
151
explanation. Information is often treated as a commodity that is available
upon request, without any effort required. Employee conduct can sig-
nificantly impact information access and accessibility and even make it
impossible. The problem is exacerbated by the educational bottleneck.
FIVE REQUIREMENTS FOR ACCESS AND ACCESSIBILITY
**********
Searching for access requirements
In a hybrid age of expanding legal frameworks, (organizational) ac-
countability, and changing notions of privacy, economy, literacy, and
daily life, the importance of access to and accessibility of information is
amplified. As illustrated in the preceding chapters, the transition into a
hybrid society has resulted in the crucial position of access to and acces-
sibility of information becoming a significant burden due to the complex
context in which it occurs.
According to Kay Mathiesen, theories of access do not provide suf-
ficient guidance on the constituents, facets, or requirements of informa-
tion access. To identify practical shortcomings in access and improve it
effectively, she performed a ‘standard threat analysis’ of the conditions
of access.
373
Mathiesen conducted her analysis by closely reading litera-
ture on information access and identified five facets of access: availabil-
ity, findability, reachability, comprehensibility, and usability. Availability
requires the generation, collection, storage, and archiving of informa-
tion. However, this may not always occur due to various reasons, such
as a lack of resources, incompetence, or misconduct. Findability, the abil-
ity to locate available information, requires information seeking compe-
tencies that a searching individual may not possess. Reachability refers to
information that is findable but cannot be accessed due to restrictions
373
Mathiesen (2014), p. 608.
152
such as a paywall. Comprehensibility refers to information that is clear, writ-
ten in a known language, and easily understandable. The fifth and final
facet is usability, which refers to the ability of individuals to effectively
use the information at the time of retrieval. According to Mathiesen,
these are the components of access — the conditions that must be met
for information to be accessible to a person or group.
374
Mathiesen is not the only one attempting to identify facets or require-
ments of information access. In 1991, Michael Buckland identified six
aspects, four for information-as-thing and an extra two for information-
as-knowledge. The first four are: identification (deciding where to look as
well as identifying specific information), availability (being able to inspect
the information), user prices (what a user must expend to use the infor-
mation, in money and/or skills), and provider costs (what a provider must
expend to provide the information, in money and/or services.) The last
two are cognitive access (understanding the information offered) and accept-
ability (accepting the credibility of the information.)
375
In 2001, Leah
Lievrouw proposed a process for ‘informing’ that ensures information
has availability (it is present and circulating in the environment), relevance
(it is interesting or useful), accessibility (it can be obtained), capacity (indi-
viduals have the personal capacity to use and understand the infor-
mation), and usability (the information can be used).
376
Michael Goddard
and colleagues define (in 2004) four requirements for information ac-
cess: discovery, connectivity, language, and permission. Discovery refers
to when a user knows the information exists and how to find it. Connec-
tivity refers to when a user is able to obtain the information. Language
refers to when a provider and a user of the information agree on the
meaning of used language. Permission refers to when a user is permitted
374
Mathiesen (2014), p. 606.
375
Buckland (1991), pp. 79−80.
376
Lievrouw (2001), pp. 13–16.
153
to have access to the information.
377
In 2011, Neil Doherty and Graham
Doig recognized: information existence, the information is appropriately
stored; information awareness, the information is known and well under-
stood; information sharing, the information is readily made available to le-
gitimite usters; and information delivery, the information can be transmitted
to the required location.
378
Marie-Michèle Grenon et al. recognize five
dimensions of information access: availability (how the provision of in-
formation responds to expressed needs), accessibility (the attainment of
equal access to information for the various users), acceptability (how the
values expressed by the information fit with those of the users, so that
it is acceptable), affordability (the relationship between the cost of a ser-
vice and the users’ financial means), and usability (the ease with which
people interact with information to fulfill their needs.)
379
Quality re-
search recognizes several information quality characteristics that con-
cern access and accessibility of information, namely: accessible (easy re-
trievable), appropriate (usable), available (physically available), believable
(considered reliable), contextual (embedded in situational and environ-
mental metadata), interpretable (cognitively interpretable), and relevant (be-
ing useful for the task at hand.)
Table 4 presents an overview of these 36 recognized facets, dimen-
sions, or requirements. Meanwhile, Table 5 shows all requirements in a
comparison, combining identical or similar requirements based on their
definitions. This approach helps to distinguish unique requirements for
access and accessibility, all combinations of similar (not quite the same
but also not quite different) terms.
377
Goddard, et al (2004), p. 113.
378
N.F. Doherty and G. Doig (2011). ‘The role of enhanced information acces-
sibility in realizing benefits from data warehousing investments,’ Journal of Or-
ganisational Transformation & Social Change, Vol. 8, No. 2, pp. 163−182.
379
Grenon et al. (2023), pp. 87–92
154
Table 4. Overview of the facets of information access
Accoring to Table 5, availability, findability, and comprehensibility are rec-
ognized as requirements for access and accessibility. Reachability is de-
fined as findable but not (yet) available information and is part of avail-
ability. User prices, provider costs, affordability, permission, and delivery are com-
ponents of reachability and should therefore be considered as part of
availability. Usability and relevance are quality characteristics of information
but not requirements for information access. Contextuality is a prerequisite
for relevance and use. Access should ensure contextuality to discern rel-
evance and to facilitate use. Individuals can only discern relevance when
they are aware of the situational and environmental context of the infor-
mation they have found. Therefore, contextuality is a requirement that
must be achieved through the access process.
Facets of information access and accessibility
According to:
Mathiesen
Buckland
Lievrouw
Godddard,
et al
Doherty &
Doig
Grenon, et
al
Quality re-
search
Availability
Identifica-
tion
Availability
Discovery
Existence
Availabil-
ity
Accessible
Findability
Availabil-
ity
Relevance
Connec-
tivity
Awareness
Accessibil-
ity
Appropri-
ate
Reachabil-
ity
User
prices
Accepta-
bility
Language
Sharing
Accepta-
bility
Available
Compre-
hensibility
Provider
costs
Capacity
Permis-
sion
Delivery
Afforda-
bility
Believable
Usability
Cognitive
access
Usability
Usability
Contextual
Accepta-
bility
Interpreta-
ble
Relevant
155
Table 5. Overview of the facets of information access: comparison
(x = mentioned; − not mentioned)
Five requirements for information access
A comparative analysis of the 36 requirements for information access
and accessibility indicates that only four remain: findability, availability,
comprehensibility, and contextuality. In my opinion the requirement of
findability should be placed before that of availability. Information can
Facets of information access and accessibility: comparison.
Facets
Mathiesen
Buckland
Lievrouw
Godddard
c.s.
Doherty &
Doig
Grenon, et
al.
Quality re-
search
Availabil-
ity
x
x
x
Connect-
ivity
Existence
Sharing
x
x
Findabil-
ity
x
Identifi-
cation
Access-
ibility
Discovery
Aware-
ness
Access-
ibility
Accessi-
ble
Reach-
ability
x
Availabil-
ity
Availabil-
ity
Permis-
sion
Existence
Sharing
–
Available
Compre-
hensibility
x
Cognitive
access
Capacity
Language
Aware-
ness
–
Interpre-
table
Usability
x
−
x
−
−
x
Appropri-
ate
Relevance
−
Accept-
ability
x
−
−
Accept-
ability
x
Believable
User
prices
−
x
−
−
−
Afford-
ability
−
Provider
costs
−
x
−
−
−
–
−
Permis-
sion
−
−
−
x
−
–
−
Delivery
−
−
−
−
x
–
−
Contex-
tual
−
−
−
−
−
–
x
156
only be obtained and made available to the user once it has been suc-
cessfully located. I also propose that ‘interpretability’ be preferred over
‘comprehensibility,’ in accordance with the views of Larry Smith and
Cecil Nelson.
380
There seems to be a gap between availability and inter-
pretability. Information is (always) presented in tangible or intangible ‘re-
presentations’ that can be located (findability) and acquired (availability.)
These representations are the external manifestations of information
that are directly perceptible by the human senses. Tangible representations
refer to information that is embodied in a concrete, tangible form. In-
tangible representations are computationally mediated displays that are
perceived in the world but are not physically embodied.
381
In order to
facilitate interpretability, it is essential that users are able to perceive the
information presented to them. Although not previously mentioned in
the context of information access, perceptibility is one of the main princi-
ples of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.
382
It should be con-
sidered a requirement for information access and accessibility as well.
Therefore, I have identified five requirements for information access and
accessibility.
380
L.E. Smith and C.L. Nelson (1985). ‘International intelligibility of English.
Directions and resources,’ World Englishes, Vol 4, No. 3, pp. 333−342; Y. Kachru
and L.E. Smith (2008). Cultures, Contexts, and World Englishes, Routledge, London,
pp. 60−66; C.L. Nelson (2011). Intelligibility in World Englishes. Theory and Applica-
tion, Routledge, New York-Abingdon, pp. 32−38.
381
B.A. Ullmer (2002). Tangible Interfaces for Manipulating Aggregates of Digital Infor-
mation. Doctoral dissertation, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of
Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, pp. 27−28.
Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://dspace.mit.edu/bitstream/handle/1721.1/29264/51909368-
MIT.pdf?sequence=2&isAllowed=y.
382
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2, W3C, 2023. Online source,
retrieved 1 November 2024, from: https://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG22/#per-
ceivable.
157
Information is accessible when [1] it is possible to locate or find in-
formation (‘findability’); [2] it is possible to have (or make) information
available (‘availability’); [3] it is possible to perceive information, in other
words: it is possible to hear, feel, smell, taste, or view it to facilitate un-
derstanding (‘perceptibility’); [4] it is possible to identify what the infor-
mation means and what it signifies in its situational and environmental
context (‘interpretability’); and [5] it is possible to reconstruct the con-
textual environment in which the information is (or has been) generated,
used, controlled, and managed (‘contextuality’).
These five requirements together define information access and ac-
cessibility. Without even one of these requirements, access and accessi-
bility do not exist. The five requirements allow information-as-thing to
become information-as-knowledge.
Requirement 1: Findability
The term ‘findability’ refers to the ease with which information can
be located. The concept is relevant in our hybrid world as it applies to
digital, digitized, and analogue information. According to Peter Morville,
findability is defined as the quality of being locatable or navigable, the
degree to which a particular object is easy to discover or locate, and the
degree to which a system or environment supports navigation and re-
trieval. Morville defines findability as ‘a quality that can be measured at
both the object and system levels.’
383
The term has been in use since at
least 1943, when Urban Lavery used it in a paper about the ‘findability
of the law,’ to mean ‘ease of finding information.’
384
383
P. Morville (2005). Ambient findability. What we find changes who we become, O’Reil-
ly Media, Inc., Sebastopol, pp. 4−7. Quotation: p. 4.
384
U.A. Lavery (1943). ‘The ‘findability’ of the law,’ Journal of the American Judica-
ture Society, Vol. 27, pp. 25−28. On p. 25 Lavery states: ‘somewhere in that vast
storehouse of the law is the answer to his problem, but he cannot find it.’
158
Findability refers to an individual’s ability to locate information that
is created, published, stored, or preserved. It is not only a matter of find-
ing certain information, but also of finding relevant information. Mathie-
sen accurately associated findability with the skills required to locate
and/or search for information, provided it exists.
385
Finding and search-
ing are different, although related. Finding something refers to locating
something in a ‘known space,’ while searching for something refers to
an ‘unknown space’ or an unexpected location. The ability to find infor-
mation is an information management issue. However, if the informa-
tion cannot be found within a known space, even if it is known to exist
within that space, a search will be still necessary.
386
Findability is a part of both social and organizational information
architectures, the constellation of processes of organizing and structur-
ing information in digital and physical spaces into logical classifications.
The significance of information architecture is paramount in situations
where users are impeded by complexity, unfamiliarity, and information
overload.
387
The term ‘information architecture’ was coined by Richard
Wurman in 1976 at the annual conference of the American Institute of
Architects. Wurman argued that the world needed an ‘architecture of
information’ rather than ‘information about architecture.’
388
His book,
385
Mathiesen (2014), p. 608.
386
Van Bussel (2017), p. 55. Based on: M. Baker (2013). ‘Findability is a content
problem, not a search problem,’ Every Page is Page One (May 28). Blog. Online
source, retrieved on 1 November 2024, from:
https://everypageispageone.com/2013/05/28/findability-is-a-content-prob-
lem-not-a-search-problem/ Archived at https://archive.is/YWjEH.
387
A. Resmini and L. Rosati (2007). ‘From physical to digital environments (and
back). Seven laws of findability,’ Translating Information Architecture. Proceedings of
Europe’s third Information Architecture summit (EuroIA), Barcelona, ASIS&T, pp. 162−
170.
388
M. Wright Steenson (2017). Architectural Intelligence. How Designers and Architects
Created the Digital Landscape, MIT Press, Cambridge-London, pp. 77−86.
159
Information Architects, popularized the concept and emphasized its im-
portance in managing the overwhelming amount of information availa-
ble.
389
Information architecture involves four distinct systems: organi-
zation, navigation, labelling, and search. The organization system defines
the relationship between content groups. Navigation enables users to
traverse the information structure. The labeling system is tied to the or-
ganization system, and users perceive labels as cues that guide their nav-
igation. Search is a supplemental system that allows users to retrieve in-
formation using a label, a term, or a phrase.
390
The aim of information architectures is to facilitate easy information
retrieval in spaces where complexity, information overload, and unfa-
miliarity hinder findability. This architecture strives to achieve cognitive
and informational continuity between different environments, eliminat-
ing the need for users to navigate between different, and often conflict-
ing patterns of information structuring.
391
Finding information can be
challenging due to the subjectivity involved in organizing and searching
for it. Users may not be aware of idiosyncratic rules or exceptions, and
may not be able to locate a specific item or search for a remembered un-
usual word or phrase. Thus, it is necessary to develop classification con-
ventions that allow users the freedom of expression while maintaining
constraints to ensure a high rate of findability.
392
When categorizing and
389
R.S. Wurman (1996). Information Architects, Watson-Guptill Publications, New
York.
390
P. Morville and L. Rosenfeld (2006). Information Architecture for the World Wide
Web. Designing Large-Scale Web Sites, O’Reilly Media, Sebastopol, Chapter 5−8,
pp. 53−192.
391
Resmini and Rosati (2007), p. 163, p. 169.
392
L.M. Berlin, R. Jeffries, V.L. O’Day, A. Paepcke, and C. Wharton (1993).
‘Where did you put it? Issues in the design and use of a group memory,’ B.
Arnold, G. Van der Veer, and T. White (eds.), Proceedings of the INTERACT’93
and CHI’93 Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems IFIP TC13, 24-29
April 1993, Amsterdam, New York, ACM, pp. 23−30, p. 25.
160
retrieving information from one’s own collection, the passage of time
can pose challenges due to differing perceptions of the same information
between the past and present. To find information, one must coordinate
spatially and temporally with their past selves, engaging in a sort of cog-
nitive time travel. It is possible that a user may not search for informa-
tion in the same way as they have in the past. Hindsight can alter percep-
tion and intentionality, making it difficult to find information. Addition-
ally, the meaning of information can change over time.
393
To address
this, a contextual view of information is necessary to reconstruct its
meaning in different situational environments.
394
This is of course less
important for this first requirement of access than for the fifth: contex-
tuality.
If the information is on a website, locating it may be simple if the
website has been designed with findability in mind, which is not always
the case. A crucial aspect of website optimization is ensuring that the
content is easily discoverable.
395
If something is not findable, it will not
be utilized. Conversely, the more findable something is, the more likely
it is to be used.
396
When information is not published on a website or is
being preserved in an unknown repository, it will be more difficult to
393
D. Narayan and M. Olsson (2013). ‘Sense-making across space and time. Im-
plications for the organization and findability of information,’ F. Bouthillier, B.
Yu, and A. Grove (eds.), Proceedings of the 76th ASIS&T Annual Meeting. Beyond
the Cloud. Rethinking Information Boundaries, Silver Springs, American Society for
Information Science, Article 72, pp. 1−9.
394
Van Bussel (2017), p. 54.
395
Morville and Rosenfeld (2006), pp. 97−132.
396
C. Wilkie and L. Azzopardi (2013). ‘An initial investigation on the relation-
ship between usage and findability,’ P. Serdyukov, P. Braslavski, S.O. Kuznet-
sov, J. Kamps, S. Rüger, E. Agichtein, I. Segalovich, and E. Yilmaz, Proceedings
of the 35th European Conference on Information Retrieval, ECIR 2013, Moscow, Russia,
March 24-27, 2013. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol. 7814, Springer,
Berlin-Heidelberg, pp. 808−811.
161
find it. In most information architectures, there will be (more or less
detailed) overviews of repositories, libraries, and archives. These over-
views contain general descriptions of information preserved in an indi-
vidual repository, library, or archive. For each repository, finding-aids
will be available for finding specific information. Most of those finding-
aids can be consulted online.
397
However, finding-aids must also be con-
tinuously contextualized to reconstruct their meaning in different time-
spaces. Failure to do so may make findability more difficult, if not im-
possible. If online consultation is not possible, it is necessary to visit the
repository to obtain access to the finding-aid and the required informa-
tion.
However, finding information has become more difficult due to the
information overload that characterizes World 2.0, which makes finding
relevant information in the dizzying amount of information much more
difficult. Even if a user knows that the relevant information can be found
in an extremely large data set, there is no guarantee that they will be able
to make it available. This impresses the importance of extensive indexing
of (archival) information.
Requirement 2: Availability
Although a potential user may know where to find specific informa-
tion, it does not necessarily mean that the information can be retrieved
at any given time. Mathiesen identified the facet of ‘availability’ and es-
397
H. Tibbo and L. Meho (2001). ‘Finding finding aids on the world wide web,’
The American Archivist, Vol. 64, No. 1, pp. 61−77. Also: A. Velthe (2023). ‘As-
sessing finding aid discoverability after description. Improvements using web
analytics,’ Journal of Western Archives, Vol. 14, No. 1, Article 9. Online source,
retrieved on 1 November 2024, from:
https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?params=/con-
text/westernarchives/article/1158/&path_info=Velte____Assessing_Find-
ing_Aid_Discoverability.pdf.
162
tablished a link between it and the decision of whether to collect, gener-
ate, or create information. If the information is not collected, generated,
or created, it is not considered ‘available.’ However, the truth of this
statement aside, it is important to note that availability as a requirement
for information access pertains only to information that has been col-
lected, generated, or created, and not to information that has not and for
that reason is not available. Mathiesen’s facet of ‘reachability’ refers to
information that is findable but is not available when needed. Therefore,
as previously stated, ‘reachability’ is synonymous with the requirement
for availability.
398
The ability to access and review available information
is always about information control, even for information that is or
should be public. Information may be classified as confidential by the
organization or the individuals who hold it.
399
Several of the bottlenecks already mentioned are related to the avail-
ability of information. It may be difficult or impossible to obtain infor-
mation because ownership is restricted, because it has been irretrievably
destroyed, or because websites or databases containing the necessary in-
formation no longer exist. In addition, the information may be hosted
in a repository behind a paywall. The information systems required to
obtain the information may not be available. Even if they are available,
the software may not be able to decipher the original data formats. In-
formation may be part of an extremely large data set, which makes it
difficult to locate and make available. Individual people may be disabled
by a disability in interacting with information technology, by imperfect
or limited sensory, physical or mental abilities, by situational impair-
ments, or by digital illiteracy, so that they are unable or unwilling to ac-
398
Mathiesen (2014), p. 608.
399
Samonas and Coss (2014), pp. 35−37. Also: D. Khazanchi and A. Martin
(2009). ‘Information Availability,’ J.D. Gupta and S. Sharma (eds.), Handbook of
Research on Information Security and Assurance, IGI Global, Hershey, Chapter XIX,
pp. 230−239.
163
cess and interact with information technology systems, making infor-
mation unavailable.
400
Although a user knows where the information is
located (‘it is findable’), he or she cannot obtain it (‘it is not available’).
Especially over time and in changing circumstances, the availability
of information is crucial for decision-making. As mentioned earlier, in
countries with strict information control, emphasis is placed on infor-
mation that benefits established parties, politicians and business inter-
ests. Even in countries with less stringent information control, restric-
tions on the availability of information have consequences. Citizens and
(business) organizations are confronted with a lack of transparency that
makes it difficult for them to participate in social, political and/or eco-
nomic processes. In such an environment, the availability of information
is used by social, political and economic elites as an instrument to protect
their interests. There are many individuals and organizations that can
benefit from the availability of this information, but government agen-
cies are not always willing to disclose information and often seek to com-
mercialize its use. Restrictions on the availability of this information pre-
vent many individuals and organizations from adding value. The availa-
bility of information has always been a catalyst for innovation.
401
Susan Feldman and Chris Sherman describe the consequences of a
lack of availability in organizations: poor decisions, duplication of effort
because existing information is not available in all departments, and loss
of productivity because necessary information is not available when it is
needed.
402
Maayan Nakash and Dan Bouhnik pointed out (based on a
400
H.K. Kim and S.H. Han (2017). ‘Defining and classifying IT interaction dis-
ability,’ Behaviour & Information Technology, Vol. 36, No. 4, pp. 422−434.
401
E. Lakomaa and J. Kallberg (2013). ‘Open data as a foundation for innova-
tion. The enabling effect of free public sector information for entrepreneurs,’
IEEE Access, Vol. 1, pp. 558−563.
402
S. Feldman and C. Sherman (2003). The high cost of not finding information. An
IDC White Paper, IDC Framingham, p. 3.
164
case study in Israel) that a third of their respondents spend between half
and a full working day per week searching for information that is not
available immediately. The COVID pandemic led to an increase in
search times due to a deterioration in the quality of information man-
agement.
403
With these amounts of search time per week, the costs of
unavailability are high, although it is difficult to determine them precisely
as they depend on contextual factors.
The availability of information within organizations is also a matter
of information security. This is very important in distributed computing
environments. Organizations require availability to be guaranteed with
the same level of security as confidentiality and integrity. Availability
risks must be reduced and procedures must be in place to respond when
availability is threatened.
404
The goal of information availability is the
ability to make information and the associated resources available when
needed, at the right time and in the right place to the individuals author-
ized to do so. This includes the technical suitability of the systems and
the associated infrastructure, but also guidelines and procedures, a secu-
rity policy, and a business continuity plan.
405
Access control is an im-
portant part of information security and has a direct impact on the avail-
ability of information, in extreme cases even to the detriment of the
work to be done.
406
Information control restricts availability in such a
403
M. Nakash and D. Bouhnik (2024). ‘How much time does the workforce
spend searching for information in the ‘new normal?,’ iConference 2024 Posters,
iSchools, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Online source, retrieved 1
November 2024, from: https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/items/129980.
404
D. Khazanchi and A.P. Martin (2009). ‘Information availability,’ J. Gupta,
and S. Sharma (eds.), Handbook of Research on Information Security and Assurance, IGI
Global, Hersey-London, pp. 230−239, p. 230.
405
Khazanchi and Martin (2009), p. 232.
406
A.J. Faxvaag, T.S. Johansen, V. Heimly, L. Melby, and A. Grimsmo (2011).
‘Healthcare professionals’ experiences with EHR-system access control me-
165
way that it entails some of the consequences mentioned by Feldman and
Sherman. We have already mentioned Andrew Pettigrew’s emphasis on
the critical function of information control in mobilizing organizational
power. The unavailability of information is a valuable resource for gain-
ing organizational power, even if it means more inefficient and costly
operations. The availability of information is crucial for access to and
accessibility of information.
Requirement 3: Perceptibility
As mentioned, information is presented in tangible or intangible ‘rep-
resentations’ that can be located (findability) and acquired (availability).
These representations are the external manifestations of information
that can be perceived by the human senses.
407
If information is findable
and available, it should be possible to perceive it, to hear, feel, smell,
taste, or see it. This gives the user the opportunity to interpret it cogni-
tively. Perceptibility is a prerequisite for interpretation and grasping the
meaning of the information.
There is a problem with perceptibility in connection with the prob-
lem of mass, the flood of information-as-things (‘representations’) that
characterizes World 2.0. or Society 5.0. Individuals are confronted with
more information-as-things than they can even perceive (and subse-
quently interpret). This is the result of the commodification of informa-
tion, the process by which information simply becomes a product of
consumption, to be acquired, traded, accumulated, and possessed. This
is in contrast to the interpretation of information as a source of knowl-
edge (information-as-knowledge). Since information-as-things increas-
chanisms,’ J. Aarts, S.K. Andersen, P. Hurlen, and A. Moen, User Centred Net-
worked Health Care, IOS Press, Hershey-London, pp. 601−605, pp. 604−605.
407
W. Jones (2011). ‘No knowledge but through information,’ D.J. Pauleen and
G.E. Gorman (eds.), Personal Knowledge Management. Individual, Organizational and
Social Perspectives, Gower Publishing, Farnham, pp. 143−166.
166
ingly become consumption goods or commodities, ‘their value is de-
creasingly determined by the fulfillment of human or social needs and
increasingly by exchange (as a commodity) on the market.’
408
The re-
sulting overload makes it impossible to process the information pro-
vided or acquired. It is questionable whether the information sought is
findable and available in this information flood, but it certainly is not
perceptible.
It is obvious that physical impairments such as visual and hearing
impairments as well as cognitive disabilities make access to information
considerably difficult. Statistics show that more than one billion people
worldwide struggle with disabilities. With an ageing population and in-
creasing life expectancy, this number is expected to rise.
409
Visual and
hearing impairments are challenging, but cognitive impairments pose a
particularly complex problem for access to information, as they encom-
pass a range of problems with different effects on the perceptibility of
information. These include brain damage, memory disorders, dementia,
learning disabilities, autism spectrum disorder, and the cognitive conse-
quences of conditions such as stroke and trauma.
410
If potential users
408
S. Spier (2016). ‘From culture industry to information society. How Hork-
heimer and Adorno’s conception of the culture industry can help us examine
information overload in the capitalist information society,’ M. Kelly and J.
Bielby (eds.), Information Cultures in the Digital Age. A Festschrift in Honor of Rafael
Capurro, Springer, Wiesbaden, pp. 385−396, pp. 388−391. Quotation: p. 392.
409
Global Report on Health Equity for Persons with Disabilities, Geneva, World Health
Organization, 2022, p. 3. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240063600. Also: H.H. Magi-
dimisha-Chipungu (2024). ‘A global perspective on planning for disability’, H.H.
Magidimisha-Chipungu, People Living with Disabilities in South African Cities. A Built
Environment Perspective on Inclusion and Accessibility. Sustainable Development
Goals Series, Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, Chapter 1, pp. 9–28.
410
P. Szabó, J. Ara, B. Halmosi, C. Sik-Lanyi, and T. Guzsvinecz (2023). ‘Tech-
nologies designed to assist individuals with cognitive impairments,’ Sustainability,
167
are disabled in a way that makes perception problematic (and they do
not have an interaction disability), assistive and adaptive technologies
should be used to enable them to perceive information in a personalized
way.
411
These technologies include live captioning, sign language inter-
pretation, transcription services, audio reading, visual or audio descrip-
tion/narration, magnifying devices, screen reading tools, speech output
systems, non-verbal communication tools, reading pens, dyslexia soft-
ware and fonts, etc.
412
If such technologies are not used, the percepti-
bility of information for people with special needs becomes difficult.
At both the perceptual and cognitive levels of human-computer in-
teraction, software developers need to consider these issues when eval-
uating designs. Universal design refers to ‘the creation of products and
environments, as well as practices, programs, and services, that are ac-
cessible to and usable by all persons, including individuals with disabili-
ties, without adaptation or specialized design.’
413
Universal design (de-
sign for all, integral accessibility, accessible design, inclusive design, bar-
rier-free design, trans-generational design) is based on seven principles:
Vol. 15, No. 18, art. 13490. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/18/13490#B3-sustainability-15-
13490.
411
H. Hill (2013). ‘Disability and accessibility in the library and information sci-
ence literature. A content analysis,’ Library & Information Science Research, Vol. 35,
no. 2, pp. 137−142.
412
M. Sherman (2022). Accessibility in Libraries. A landscape review, American Li-
brary Association and Knology, Chicago. Online source, retrieved 1 November
2024, from:
https://www.ala.org/tools/sites/ala.org.tools/files/content/230317-ppo-ltc-
access-landscape-review-UPDATE.pdf.
413
W.N. Myhill, D.L. Cogburn, D. Samant, B.K. Addom, and P. Blanck (2008).
‘Developing accessible cyberinfrastructure-enabled knowledge communities in
the national disability community. Theory, practice, and policy,’ Assistive Technol-
ogy, Vol. 20, No. 3, pp. 157−174, p. 158.
168
equitable use, intuitive use, perceptible information (‘communicates nec-
essary information effectively regardless of ambient conditions or sen-
sory abilities’), a tolerance for error, a low level of physical effort, and
appropriate size and space for use.
414
It is difficult to develop suitable solutions.
415
There is a lack of re-
search that includes people with cognitive disabilities as key actors rather
than subjects. There is a lack of studies on assistive and adaptive tech-
nology solutions and their effectiveness, usability and acceptability.
While progress has been made for people with physical and sensory dis-
abilities, people with cognitive disabilities did not get much attention.
416
Virtual and augmented reality, social robots, and artificial intelligence
provide possible solutions as multisensory technologies that involve all
the senses to create a more convincing reality. Although such devices
provide only a limited sense of reality yet, it is expected that their sophis-
tication increases rapidly.
417
414
Myhill, et al, (2008), p. 163. About these methods: H. Persson, H. Åhman,
A.A. Yngling, J. Gulliksen (2015). ‘Universal design, inclusive design, accessible
design, design for all: different concepts — one goal? On the concept of acces-
sibility — historical, methodological and philosophical aspects,’ Universal Access
in the Information Society, Vol. 14, pp. 505−526.
415
Dyslexia, motor, hearing, and visual impairments have received attention.
See: G. Berget and A. MacFarlane (2020). ‘What is known about the impact of
impairments on information seeking and searching?,’ Journal of the Association for
Information Science and Technology, Vol. 71, No. 5, pp. 596−611.
416
L.S. Guedes (2024). Accessibility by Design. Designing Inclusive Technologies with and
for People with Intellectual Disabilities. Doctoral Dissertation submitted to the Fac-
ulty of Informatics of the Universit della Svizzera Italiana, Lugano, p. 46.
Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/380124735_Accessibility_by_De-
sign_Designing_Inclusive_Technologies_with_and_for_People_with_Intellec-
tual_Disabilities.
417
Guedes (2024), pp. 85−136, pp. 139−150, pp. 181−194.
169
If information is perceptible, it is possible to interprete it. It is only a
possibility, because even if information is findable, available and percep-
tible, this does not mean that it is interpretable. The fact that information
is perceptible does not guarantee that it is possible to grasp the meaning
of the information and internalize it in understanding.
418
Requirement 4: Interpretability
In 2017, I recognized this requirement as ‘intelligibility.’
419
In the
meantime, I have accepted Larry Smith and Cecil Nelson’s interpretation
that ‘intelligibility’ is used as an umbrella term for all aspects of under-
standing, but is in fact a three-tiered, interconnected system: intelligibil-
ity, comprehensibility, and interpretability. The first level is ‘intelligibil-
ity,’ the recognition of the information (the ‘words and other sentence-
level elements of utterances’); it is about recognizing the literal, superfi-
cial meaning of the information. The second level is ‘comprehensibility’;
it refers to the recognition of the contextual meaning of the information
in a socio-cultural setting. The third level, ‘interpretability’ refers to the
recognition of the intention or purpose of the information, the ability to
understand the situational meaning, reasoning and intent behind the in-
formation at the moment it is received (‘context of situation’). When
information is interpretable, it can be cognitively processed and effec-
tively utilized.
420
Intelligibility and comprehensibility are prerequisites
for interpretability. It is possible for information to be intelligible but
not comprehensible and (therefore) not interpretable. A user may be
able to comprehend the information without really understanding the
intention or purpose of the information, i.e. the interpretability of the
418
M. Hori and T. Kato (2008). ‘Mobile web and accessibility,’ S. Harper and Y.
Yesilada (eds.), Web Accessibility. A Foundation for Research, London, Springer, Part
IV, pp. 301−313, pp. 303−304.
419
Van Bussel (2017), p. 56.
420
Smith, and Nelson (1985), pp. 333−342; Nelson (2011), pp. 32−38.
170
information. Interpretability is the most complex level in this three-
tiered system and is needed for the cognitive processing of the infor-
mation by an individual. It is a requirement for the information to be
accessible, for the information to be understandable, and contextually
usable.
Understanding is only possible if the literacy capabilities of the users,
discussed previously, make this possible. As stated before, only 34% of
the Western European population possesses more than basic literacy
skills, which significantly constrains their ability to access complex in-
formation. There has been a general decline in mathematics, reading and
science scores since 2018, which has the potential to exacerbate the
problems of information access in the long term.
421
According to the Karlsruhe concept of comprehensibility, under-
standing depends on six dimensions: [1] ‘concision,’ the mimimum of
information needed for communication; [2] ‘correctness,’ generate texts
without mistakes; [3] ‘motivation,’ the motivation aroused by the text
itself; [4] ‘structure,’ the content structure which refers to the objects,
processes, events, etc. dealt with in the text; [5] ‘simplicity,’ the ‘linguistic
simplicity’ of the text (lexis and syntax); and [6] ‘perceptibility,’ those
features which determine the ease with which texts can be perceived and
thus be made interpretable as well as the features which support the
reader’s recognition of content structures nonverbally.
422
The last di-
mension mentioned is covered by my requirement of perceptibility.
Models such as the Karlsruhe Concept are of interest when generat-
ing information, as they permit the optimization of new information,
thereby facilitating a much greater degree of intelligibility, comprehens-
421
Schleicher (2022), p. 8.
422
S. Göpferich (2009). ‘Comprehensibility assessment using the Karlsruhe
Comprehensibility Concept,’ The Journal of Specialised Translation, No. 11, pp. 31−
52. Online source, retrieved on 1 November 2024, from:
https://jostrans.soap2.ch/issue11/art_goepferich.php.
171
ibility, and interpretability. If an information user is unable to gather one
or more of the dimensions of the model, the information that is per-
ceived may not be interpretable, in whole or in part. However, much in-
formation is generated by machines based on artificial intelligence and
machine learning. The information in question is generated by algo-
rithms, and its decisions must be interpretable by humans who possess
knowledge of mathematics, coding and ethics.
423
A significant propor-
tion of available information is based on professional knowledge that
cannot be summarized in easily comprehensible formats. A vast amount
of information is generated in the past, has been retained and preserved
in libraries and archives, and requires users to possess knowledge of con-
texts and languages that are no longer in use. It can be argued that a large
proportion of the information available today requires a level of literacy
that is far beyond the scope of the basic skills possessed by 66% of the
Western European population. The interpretability of information is in
jeopardy. The long-term issues within the education system will present
a challenge in rectifying this problem.
424
Some examples of the types of expertise required include the ability
to interpret the (artificial) intelligence model used and to explain its out-
puts based on inputs. Additionally, it is necessary for those interpreting
the model to understand the explanations of the model for its decisions,
recommendations, and predictions, enabling the discovery of racial bias,
423
K. Morrison, D. Shin, K. Holstein, and A. Perer (2023). ‘Evaluating the im-
pact of human explanation strategies on human-AI visual decision-making,’ Pro-
ceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction, ACM, New York, Vol. 7 (Com-
puter Supported Cooperative Work), pp. 1−37. Online source, retrieved on 1
November 2024, from: https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3579481.
424
Schleicher (2022), p. 8. Also: W. Gaudelli (2020). ‘The trouble of western
education,’ On Education. Journal for Research and Debate, Vol. 3, No. 7. Online
source, retrieved November 1, 2024, from:
https://doi.org/10.17899/on_ed.2020.7.8.
172
such as the imposition of stricter jail sentences on black defendants, the
demonstration of racial discrimination against non-white mortgage ap-
plicants, and the revocation of tax allowances by tax authorities based
on place of residence. Furthermore, it allows for the evaluation of the
ethical implications of the models used by driverless cars to make deci-
sions, given that their functionality directly impacts human lives.
425
Mi-
chael Chui, James Manyika, and Mehdi Miremadi observed that biases
tend to persist due to the necessity of an understanding of data science
techniques, coupled with knowledge of prevailing social forces, includ-
ing data collection.
426
Another example is the interpretation of information preserved from
a long time ago. In the 1980s, I undertook research into the administra-
tive history of the Cistercian abbey of Altenkamp (Germany) from the
12th to the 14th century as part of my research master’s degree in medie-
val history. My education in medieval history and archival studies ena-
bles me to read and interpret the information presented in the available
charters. However, I am only able to gather part of the socio-cultural
context surrounding them because not much is known about that. My
familiarity with medieval Latin, palaeography, chronology, and diplo-
matics enabled me to undertake such an endeavour. For those lacking
the requisite literacy, information about Altenkamp is accessible, availa-
ble, and perceptible, but not interpretable. The charters of this medieval
abbey provide a complex example of the challenges associated with ac-
cessing information and the literacy abilities required to do so.
In 2013, even in very literate countries large minorities of the popu-
lation could only read simple texts in their own language: 11% of the
425
Examples mentioned in: A. Marshan (2021). ‘Artificial intelligence. Explain-
ability, ethical issues and bias,’ Annals of Robotics and Automation, Vol. 5, No. 1,
pp. 34−37.
426
M. Chui, J. Manyika, M. Miremadi (2018). ‘What AI can and can’t do (yet)
for your business,’ McKinsey Quarterly, No. 1 (January), pp. 97−108.
173
adults in Finland, 12% in the Netherlands and Norway, 13% in Australia
and Sweden, 14% in Belgium, 15% in Austria, 16% in the United King-
dom, 17% in Germany, 21% in France, and 28% in the United States.
These statistics do not really differ in more recent reports.
427
These mi-
norities may be less educated individuals, untrained readers, or people
with dyslexia, aphasia, cognitive disabilities, learning disabilities, or neu-
ropsychiatric disabilities. For these individuals, the interpretation of text
beyond the level of simple language is unfeasible. Consequently, a sig-
nificant proportion of the population will experience difficulties in ac-
cessing information. It is evident that access to information technology
will not be a solution to this problem.
Requirement 5: Contextuality
Information may be findable, available, perceptible, and interpreta-
ble, but if its contextuality is compromised, it may be challenging to re-
construct the context in which the information was generated, used, and
managed. This makes it difficult to understand the information’s intend-
ed meaning. Information has a meaning within the environmental con-
text in which it is generated and used.
Context has been the subject of study in a number of scientific dis-
ciplines, including (but not limited to) philosophy, contextual psychol-
ogy, artificial intelligence, information retrieval, mathematics, and organ-
izational science. The concept has been attributed a multitude of defini-
tions, interpretations, and frameworks, which can be divided into four
distinct classifications: utilize context in order [1] to define and operate
robotic activities in the near future, like oracles; [2] to create a situational
environment for a user when utilizing information, [3] to adapt software
427
OECD (2013). OECD Skills Outlook 2013. First Results from the Survey of Adult
Skills, OECD, Paris; OECD (2015). OECD Skills Outlook 2015. Youth, Skills and
Employability, OECD, Paris; and OECD (2017). OECD Skills Outlook 2017. Skills
and Global Value Chains, OECD, Paris.
174
applications to the personal context of a user, and [4] the sense-making
of social situations (and its information).
428
This fourth classification is
the subject of the requirement of contextuality. There is a consensus
regarding several characteristics. Context [1] is a complex social reality
that can be captured as a simplified metadata construct, which represents
the social reality, but is not reality itself; [2] encapsulates objects and sit-
uations to allow for sense-making; [3] requires accurate documentation
and definition; and [4] is a phenomenon that is located in the past and is
essential for the tracking and reconstruction of business processes, pol-
icies, decisions, products, actions, and transactions.
429
The object of the concept is not information itself, but the environ-
mental and situational circumstances that give information meaning.
Context is an ‘outside’ phenomenon, ‘even if it conditions meaning and,
in time, its interpretation.’
430
Contextualization encompasses the envi-
ronmental and situational influences that shape the meaning of informa-
tion in metadata. It captures metadata about the environment the organ-
ization directly experiences and that modifies its responses.
431
This in-
cludes the organizational, personal, and social environments of the in-
formation (and its aggregation, an organizational or personal archive). It
concerns the organizational structure, the business process hierarchy,
and the legal, regulatory, and social-cultural environment in which infor-
428
G.J. van Bussel (2016). ‘An Accountability Challenge. Capturing records and
their context in Enterprise Information Systems,’ P. Silva, A. Guerreiro and R.
Quaresma (eds.), Proceedings of the 10th European Conference of Information Systems
Management. ECISM 2016, Evora, Portugal, 8
−
9 September 2016, Reading, ACPI,
pp. 204−211.
429
Van Bussel (2016), p. 207.
430
L. Duranti (1997). ‘The archival bond,’ Archives & Museum Informatics, Vol. 11,
No. 3−4, pp. 213−218. Quotation: p. 217.
431
J. Pfeffer, and G.R. Salancik (1978). The External Control of Organizations. A
Resource Dependence Perspective, Harper & Row, New York, pp. 72−74.
175
mation is generated. Nevertheless, the representation of these influences
in metadata is an extremely complex endeavour. This is because it is re-
lational, defined dynamically at a given time and space, and arises from
an activity (or situation.) It is ‘actively produced, maintained, and enacted
in the course of the activity at hand.’
432
One might define context as a system’s state and behaviour over
time. The state of a system comprises all information (data, representa-
tions, and metadata) required to explain the current system’s condition,
including all relevant historical information necessary to understand that
current condition. Every change in the state of a system over time rep-
resents the system’s behaviour. In order to, for instance, demonstrate
compliance, it is necessary to provide information about the state of the
system at a specific moment in time and the changes that have occurred
in that system’s state (the system’s behaviour) over a specific time frame.
This might include audit trails, versions of business rules, process sched-
ules, software systems security and maintenance logs, metadata sched-
ules, etc. This evidence is required to allow for a reconstruction of the
policies, decisions, products, actions, and transactions of the organiza-
tion. In essence, context enables the reconstruction of social situations
through the use of available information and metadata.
433
It is not possible to capture context within metadata in any other way
than by means of a simplified representation. This simplified represen-
tation is employed for the interpretation and understanding of informa-
tion, and is continually augmented when the information is reused in
novel and disparate contexts. This results in an ever-increasing quantity
of metadata, which is employed to ascertain the context(s) in which the
information has been situated throughout its lifespan, from its initial
generation until its ultimate disposal or permanent preservation. Meta-
432
P. Dourish (2004). ‘What we talk about when we talk about context,’ Personal
and Ubiquitous Computing, Vol. 8, pp. 19−30. Quotation: p. 22.
433
Van Bussel (2016), p. 207.
176
data serve to create a mirror of the organizational context within a specific
timeframe. This mirror contains a simplified representation of all the
captured contextual information about the organizational environment,
the organization, and the business process the action or transaction was
part of. The mirror is inseparably connected with the information gen-
erated within that action or transaction. The metadata serve to reflect
the intricate social dynamics that give rise to information. Ultimately,
this enables a (very) simplified reconstruction of the past.
434
In the absence of a context, the intended and deeper meaning of the
information at the time of its creation and subsequent use is irrecovera-
ble. Consequently, the information loses its capacity to serve as a refer-
ence, evidence of actions and transactions, or source of knowledge for
the creator or recipient. Information is communicated to recipients in a
specific context for the purpose of informing decisions and production
processes. In each context, information serves to comprise, notify, stim-
ulate, reduce uncertainty, reveal alternatives, influence individuals, and
stimulate them into action.
435
Contextual information is essential for understanding social situa-
tions within business processes. This information is used to reconstruct
situations for reference, decision-making, accountability and compli-
ance, and to gain insight into the activities and interactions of individuals
and organizations in their external environment.
436
In the absence of contextual information, access to information is
constrained. While the information itself may be of interest, it is chal-
lenging to ascertain its original role, function, importance, and meaning.
434
Van Bussel (2016), pp. 207−208.
435
L.D. Introna (1993). ‘Information. A hermeneutic perspective,’ E.A. Whitley
(ed.), Proceedings of the First European Conference on Information Systems, ECIS 1993,
Henley-on-Thames, March 29-30, ECIS, pp. 171−179.
436
J.R. Taylor and E.J. Van Every (2000). The Emergent Organization. Communica-
tion as Its Site and Surface, Mahwah (NJ), Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, p. 40.
177
Consequently, information loses its capacity to serve as a reference, evi-
dence of actions and transactions, or a source of organizational knowl-
edge. The requirement of contextuality allows users to interpret the
meaning of information as it was intended by the organization or person
that generated it. Nevertheless, researchers may endeavor to identify ad-
ditional contexts that are subconsciously embedded within the infor-
mation, as exemplified by Emmanuel Le Roy Ladurie in his analysis of
Montaillou, Catarina Bruschi in her study of the Waldensian heretics in
the Languedoc, and Arlette Farge, about the ‘forgotten lives’ in eight-
eenth century Paris.
437
An evaluation and a checklist
Paul Jaeger posits that ‘without access to information, there can be
no exchange, use, collection, or management of information.’ He asserts
that access is ‘central’ ‘to virtually every aspect of society.’
438
This asser-
tion is indeed true. However, the majority of bottlenecks are societal in
nature and are limiting the exchange, use, collection, and management
of information due to a multitude of factors. These factors are of a po-
litical, social, economic, legal, infrastructural, educational, personal, and
organizational nature. They all impede access to and accessibility of in-
formation.
The issues in question lack a straightforward solution. In order to
address them, it is necessary to implement a series of changes at the soci-
437
E. Le Roy Ladurie (1975). Montaillou, village occitan de 1294 à 1324, Gallimard,
Paris; C. Bruschi (2009). The Wandering Heretics of Languedoc, Cambridge Univer-
sity Press, Cambridge; and A. Farge (2023). Vies oubliées. Au cœur du XVIIIe siècle,
Editions La Découverte, Paris.
438
P.T. Jaeger (2007). ‘Information policy, information access, and democratic
participation. The national and international implications of the Bush admin-
istration’s information politics,’ Government Information Quarterly, Vol. 24, No. 4,
pp. 840−859. Quotations: p. 843, p. 840.
178
etal, educational, personal, and organizational levels. Realizing those will
be a challenge. The five requirements for information access and acces-
sibility are not meant to solve those issues. These bottlenecks are too
large and too deeply embedded in societal structures to be solved with a
framework of requirements. They have resulted in the drawbacks of the
hybrid world, as described on pp. 71−73. My conclusion was that the
benefits of the hybrid world primarily related to convenience and com-
mercial capabilities, while the drawbacks concerned societal issus, exac-
erbated by the digitalization of society. While there is a clear need for
access to information, there are numerous reasons why its complete im-
plementation may not be feasible.
The requirements framework is defined from the point of view of
information users and is intended to define what needs to be realized to
enable people to acquire, access, and use that information. For this to
happen, all the requirements must be met, all the technologies must be
available to enable rapid access to the information (or its aggregates),
including all the contextual metadata to enable reconstruction of the
past. If information is not findable, available, or perceptible, nothing can
be done. In this situation, the last two requirements of information ac-
cess do not have a role to play.
For information access and accessibility to exist, the findability, avail-
ability, perceptibility, interpretability, and contextuality of information
must be realised regardless of source, format, disability, location, lan-
guage, or technology. If an individual is able to obtain the information
they need at a given time (findability, availability, and perceptibility) and
has the opportunity and ability to interprete that information in context
(interpretability and contextuality), then they have access to information.
When information control precludes users from accessing available in-
formation, all requirements should be facilitated for the information they
are allowed to access. That information needs to be findable, available,
perceptible, interpretable, and contextual. It is evident that the necessity
179
for information access will present significant challenges for a multitude
of organizations, including those with a heritage focus.
An audit checklist has been compiled for (heritage) organizational
use, based on audit checklists used in information (systems) manage-
ment. This checklist delineates the criteria that have to be fulfilled in
order to achieve each requirement. While not exhaustive, it identifies the
essential points. Checklists may be employed for the recall of infor-
mation, the standardization and regulation of processes, the provision
of an evaluation framework, and the utilization as a diagnostic tool.
439
The following checklist of information access requirements may be
employed for any of the aforementioned purposes, although it is primar-
ily intended as an evaluation framework. It may be utilized by (heritage)
organizations to assess the information access and accessibility frame-
works available in their business processes. The application of the check-
list may assist these organizations in addressing the challenge of infor-
mation access and accessibility.
The checklist is structured in accordance with the five identified re-
quirements. A total of 47 criteria have been identified, with 34 relating
to the combined aspects of findability and availability. The perceptibility
requirement is comprised of 5 criteria, the interpretability requirement
comprises 3, and the contextuality requirement comprises 5. It seems
reasonable to posit that no organization will be able to satisfy all these
criteria. A substantial amount of work will be necessary. Most work will
be on automatically identifying, indexing, structuring, and contextualiz-
ing all information available within the organization. It is recommended
that the focus be on achieving the findability and availability criteria. The
fulfilment of the criteria for these requirements will facilitate the subse-
quent realization of the other requirement criteria.
439
B.M. Hales and P.J. Pronovost (2006). ‘The checklist — a tool for error man-
agement and performance improvement,’ Journal of Critical Care, Vol. 21, No. 3,
pp. 231−235.
180
Table 6. Checklist: Findability criteria
Checklist
Requirements of Information Access.
Findability
1.
Are all information systems and physical locations used for processing and
storing information and data objects (and their aggregates) (whether digital or
not) known and identified?
2.
Are all information and data objects (and their aggregates) (whether digital or
not) known and identified?
3.
Are all information and data objects (and their aggregates) (whether digital or
not) assigned a persistent identifier?
4.
Are all persistent identifiers unique within the organization?
5.
Are all identifiers unique within the archive to which their objects (and their
aggregates) (will) belong?
6.
Are all information and data objects (and their aggregates) (whether digital or
not) described with structured metadata?
7.
Is all this structured metadata based on a metadataschedule based (as a mini-
mum) on ISO 23081 (latest edition)?
8.
Is all this structured metadata persistent when the information and data ob-
jects they belong to are frozen after being processed in business processes?
9.
Is all this structured metadata assigned a unique identifier, persistently related
to the unique persistent identifier of the information and data object that is
described by the metadata?
10.
Is all this structured metadata, when possible and applicable, automatically in-
gested based on the business and information management processes that
generated them?
11.
Are all information and data objects (and their aggregates), including their
metadata assigned an audit trail that documents their business process and in-
formation management history, from genesis until disposition?
12.
Are all information and data objects (and their aggregates, including their
metadata associated with a detailed provenance and data lineage?
181
Table 6. Checklist: Findability criteria
Checklist
Requirements of Information Access.
Findability
13.
Are all information and data objects (and their aggregates), including their
metadata, related to a transparant (archival) structure, that facilitates navi-
gating in both digital and physical environments?
14.
Are all information and data objects (and their aggregates), including their
metadata, indexed by a search system with optical/intelligent character recog-
nition?
15.
Are online thesauri seamlessy integrated into the search system index allowing
searchers freedom of expression?
16.
Are all information and data objects (and their aggregates), including their
metadata, when applicable, findable online, on the organization’s website, in-
tranet, or public repositories, based, if necessary, on access control require-
ments?
17.
Is it possible to use the search system index (including the integrations with
online thesauri) to find the information and data objects (or their aggregates),
including their metadata, on the organization’s website, intranet, or public re-
pository?
18.
Are the website, intranet, or public repository used for the findability of in-
formation and data objects (and their aggregates), designed using the most
current version of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) (or
one of its predecessors)?
19.
Are, when applicable, finding-aids available on website, intranet, or public re-
pository fot locating physical information and data objects (and their aggre-
gates)?
20.
Are physical information and data objects (and their aggragates), when receiv-
ing a request for access, digitized and published on the organization’s website,
intranet, or public repository?
21.
Does the website, intranet, or public repository contain a user guide that ex-
plains how users may access the physical information and data objects they
have requested for review?
182
Table 7. Checklist: Availability criteria
Checklist
Requirements of Information Access.
Availability
22.
Are all findable information and data objects (and their aggregates), whether
digital or physical, and all metadata associated with these objects (indexed
within the search system) (immediately) available for retrieval and review?
23.
Are, when necessary, all physical information and data objects (and their ag-
gragates) (even when digital surrogates are available) available for retrieval
and review?
24.
Are all availability exclusions based on information control, ownership re-
strictions, legal disposal, or not otherwise publicly available information and
data objects identified, excluded from search system indexes and the reasons
for unavailability of these objects and metadata explained?
25.
Are all digital information and data objects synchronized to mirror sites en-
suring their ongoing availability in the event of a primary site malfunction?
26.
Are all publicly available digital information and data objects mirrored to an
external repository, outside of the organization’s information security frame-
work, synchronized daily and accessible to the public by way of a full-text
search engine, at least on its metadata?
27.
Are all digital information and data objects (and their aggregates) and all
metadata associated with these objects, retained in their original file or data
formats as well as in formats that adhere to open standards?
28.
Are all digital information and data objects (and their aggregates) and all
metadata associated with these objects continuously checked on retrievability
and readability in an automated process?
29.
Are, when retrievability and/or readability are in jeopardy, preservation tools
available to reconstruct retrievability and/or readability of digital information
and data objects (and their aggregates), using migration, replication, emula-
tion, or other preservation technologies?
30.
Are conservation and preservation tools available to maintain and reconstruct
damage to physical information and data objects (and their aggregates) to al-
low for continuous retrieval and review?
183
Table 7. Checklist: Availability criteria
Table 8. Checklist: Perceptibility criteria
Checklist
Requirements of Information Access.
Availability
31.
Are the necessary tools in place to enable the indexation of (extremely) large
data sets in a manner that allows for a seamless integration into the search
system index, facilitating the availablity of specified information in the data-
set?
32.
Are the websites used to make (heritage) information available for users com-
pliant to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), most current
version (at this moment version 2.1)?
33.
Are assistive technologies and applications in use for users with disabilities to
allow for (partial) availability to information, based on available standards and
guidelines, like the 2015 EU Standard (EU 301 549), the 2017 US rules which
revised Section 508, and the 2008 Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1.?
34.
Are the buildings used by (heritage) organizations and the manner in which
they are integrated into the surrounding environment in accordance with the
standards set forth in ISO 21542: 2021. Building construction – Accessibility and us-
ability of the built environment to ensure that the information retained by those
organizations is available, including for users with disabilities?
Checklist
Requirements of Information Access.
Perceptibility
35.
Are there, to fight overload, systems in place to capture all (relevant) informa-
tion and data objects (and their aggregates) that enter the organization,
whether digital or physical, including the metadata associated with those ob-
jects, so that they can be automatically indexed in the search system’s index,
with no information and data objects left out, forgotten, or without meta-
data?
36.
Are the organization’s hardware and software platforms developed according
to universal design principles, allowing for equitable, flexible and intuitive
use, with low error tolerance and low physical effort, and with an appropriate
size and space for use?
184
Table 8. Checklist: Perceptibility criteria
Table 9. Checklist: Interpretability criteria
Checklist
Requirements of Information Access.
Perceptibility
37.
Are adaptive technologies in use, personalizing computer software for people
with special needs or disabilities?
38.
Are (as a minimum) the following software and tools available to allow for
people (with special needs or disabilities) to perceive information and data
objects (and their aggregates):
- Live captioning?
- Sign language interpretation?
- Transcription?
- Audio reading?
- Visual and audio description or narration?
- Magnifying?
- Screen reading?
- Speech output?
- Non-verbal communication?
- Reading pens?
- Dyslexia software and fonts?
- Braille translators and printers?
39.
Are multisensoring technologies in use, like virtual reality, augmented reality,
social robots, or artificial intelligence solutions?
Checklist
Requirements of Information Access.
Interpretability
40.
Are (as a minimum) the following software and tools available to enable peo-
ple (with special needs or disabilities) to interpret information and data ob-
jects (and their aggregates)?
- Correctness evaluation?
- Summarizing information and data objects (verbal/non-verbal)?
- Descriptions of information and data objects (verbal/non-verbal)?
185
Table 9. Checklist: Interpretability criteria
Table 10. Checklist: Contextuality criteria
Checklist
Requirements of Information Access.
Interpretability
- (Palaeographic) Transcriptions of information and data objects
(verbal/non-verbal)?
- Translations from languages other than their own or from old ver-
sions of languages (verbal/non-verbal)?
- Lexicons and thesauri (verbal/non-verbal)?
- Content categorization tools?
41.
Are the following questions (at least) answered when interpreting information
and data objects (and their aggregates) generated by artificial intelligence and
machine learning?
- Is it possible and/or allowed to evaluate the coding of the algo-
rithm?
- Is it possible and/or allowed to evaluate the intelligence models
used?
- Is it possible to explain how and why the intelligence model gener-
ates decisions, predictions, and recommendations?
- Is it possible to explain how and why information was generated
based on the coding of the algorithm and the intelligence model
used?
- Is it possible to evaluate the ethical implications of the intelligence
models used to generate information?
- If these questions cannot be answered, are there valid reasons to al-
low this information to be captured and indexed?
42.
Is there a training programme to help people acquire the transliteracy skills
they need but lack?
Checklist
Requirements of Information Access.
Contextuality
43.
Is there a metadata schedule in place that documents the actual state of the
organization as well as its behaviour (the changes made over time to the ac-
tual state of the organization)?
186
Table 10. Checklist: Contextuality criteria
Checklist
Requirements of Information Access.
Contextuality
44.
Is metadata captured about the environmental context of the information and
data objects (and/or their aggregates), with as a minimum:
- The organizational structure, and its versions?
- The communication structure, and its versions?
- The information policy framework, and its versions?
- The business process hierarchy, and its versions?
- The legal framework, and the changes therein?
- The regulatory framework, and the changes therein?
- The information control framework, and the changes therein?
- Descriptions of the external socio-cultural environment?
- Descriptions of the organizational culture?
45.
Is metadata captured about the situational context of the information and
data objects (and/or their aggregates), with as a minimum:
- The business process schedule, and its versions?
- The employee functions and roles, and its versions;
- The metadata schedule used within the process, and its versions?
- The information control framework for the business process, and
its versions?
- The case hierarchy, and its versions?
- The case structure, and its versions?
- The actions and transactions within the case structure, and their
versions?
- The business rules for processing actions and transactions, and
their versions?
- The possible results for cases, actions, and transactions;
- The information and data objects (and/or their aggregates) that are
part of cases, transactions, and actions?
- The appropriate retention schedule for the business process?
- The information management process used for managing informa-
tion and data objects (and/or their aggregates)?
- Audit trails for all actions and transactions?
46.
Does this metadata make it possible to reconstruct the original role, function,
meaning and significance of the information and data objects (and/or their
aggregates) in the situation of which they were a part?
47.
Are physical files contextualized in a way that allows for a reconstruction of
their original role, function, meaning, and significance?
187
5
THE FUTURE OF INFORMATION ACCESS
*
188
Perspectives of Artificial Intelligence
The advent of artificial intelligence (AI) has a profound impact on
information access. GPT-4 has generated a considerable degree of hype.
This chatbox is based on a large language model, which is a machine
learning model that is capable of comprehending and generating human
language text. The AI hype is a significant concern, as it encourages busi-
nesses to hasten the development and adoption of AI technologies (lead-
ing to ‘bad’ and/or biased code), driven by fear of being left behind. A
hype always leads to a lack of nuance in the debates about ethical and
effective AI-use, as well as fostering bad legal practice and worker anxi-
ety.
440
As the hype reaches its zenith, these issues are becoming increas-
ingly tangible.
It is impossible to think about a future for information access with-
out considering AI. There is profound ambivalence about AI. The de-
ployment of AI technologies is surrounded by complexity and ethical
considerations. This ambivalence is not only common in academic dis-
cussions but also in public opinion. On one hand, there is the utopian
vision of AI as a benevolent, omniscient assistant, exemplified by Vox
114 in the 2002 movie rendition of H.G. Wells’s The Time Machine. On
the other hand, there is a dystopian vision, illustrated in 2003 by Nick
Bostrom’s ‘paperclip armageddon,’ warning of the dangers of goal mis-
alignment and the the lack of ethical and moral safeguards in AI systems,
which may lead to unpredictability. Bostrom considers the likelihood of
his thought experiment to be low, but he highlights the potential dangers
of developing superintelligent machines without the knowledge to en-
sure their safety and prevent adverse effects on humanity.
441
440
K. LaGrandeur (2024). ‘The consequences of AI hype,’ AI Ethics, Vol. 4,
pages 653−656. Online source, retrieved 1 November 2024, from:
https://doi.org/10.1007/s43681-023-00352-y.
441
N. Bostrom (2003). ‘Ethical issues in advanced artificial intelligence,’ I. Smit,
W. Wallach, and G.E. Lasker (eds.), Cognitive, Emotive and Ethical Aspects of Decision
189
The optimistic vision of AI portrays it as a means of facilitating con-
venient and straightforward access to information, enhancing knowl-
edge, providing decision support, and democratizing access to informa-
tion. AI is conceived as an extension of human cognitive capabilities,
with the potential to assist in solving complex problems, improving ed-
ucation, and driving innovation. Large language models, such as the cat-
alyst of this hype GPT-4, exemplify this potential by demonstrating how
AI processes generate answers that are similar to those produced by hu-
mans, thereby making information more accessible and understandable.
Research suggests that AI can enhance information access by automat-
ing data analysis, summarizing complex documents, and even predicting
future trends based on vast datasets.
442
The pessimistic perspective emphasizes the potential risks associated
with the absence of an alignment between the values of AI and those of
humanity. Even an objective that is not inherently problematic can result
in adverse outcomes if the AI in question lacks an understanding of its
potential impact. It is imperative that AI design is aligned with human
ethics and societal norms. However, alignment hinges on the assump-
tion of a universal interpretation of ethics and norms, which may prove to
be a more complex proposition than initially anticipated.
443
Further-
Making in Humans and in Artificial Intelligence, International Institute of Advanced
Studies in Systems Research and Cybernetics, Windsor (Ontario), Vol. 2, pp.
12−17. Also in: N. Bostrom (2014). Superintelligence. Paths, Dangers, Strategies, Ox-
ford University Press, Oxford, pp. 123−124.
442
See note 330.
443
M.T. Png (2022). ‘At the tensions of south and north. Critical roles of global
south stakeholders in AI governance,’ FAcct ’22. Proceedings of the 2022 ACM
Conference on Fairness, Accountability, and Transparency, Seoul, June 21–24, pp. 1434–
1445; V. Prabhakaran, M. Mitchell, T. Gebru, and I. Gabriel (2022). ‘A human
rights-based approach to responsible AI,’ arXiv preprint. Online source, retrieved
1 November 2024, from: https://arxiv.org/abs/2210.02667.
190
more, it is essential to guarantee that AI systems remain under human
control and do not act in ways that could cause harm to humanity.
Both scenarios are, to some extent, accurate. The current iteration of
AI models, in their nascent state, displays characteristics that align with
both of these perspectives. Although they facilitate access to informa-
tion, they are lacking in ethical standards and are not aligned with societal
norms. While they are able to summarize complex documents, they are
unable to understand the implications of their actions. Despite their ca-
pacity for analysing vast amounts of information, they lack the contex-
tual knowledge required to interpret their findings. The information pre-
sented may be cognitively interpretable, but there is no guarantee that
the source of the information is known or that the quality or trustwor-
thiness of the information is assured. They are capable of generating au-
diovisual information of a high quality, but are prone to scraping copy-
righted information, failing to respect privacy, and neglecting to provide
attributions when appropriate.
Three types of AI
AI is pervasive in our lives, whether we realize it or not. ‘It may not
always be obvious, but we are living in the age of intelligent machines.’
AI ‘permeates our lives in numerous subtle and not-so-subtle ways, per-
forming tasks that, until quite recently, could only be performed by a
human with specialized knowledge, expensive training, or a government-
issued license.’
444
The AI that people encounter on a daily basis, whether they are aware
of it or not, represents the first type of AI to be identified: artificial nar-
row intelligence (ANI). The function of ANIs is to perform specific
444
M.U. Scherer (2016). ‘Regulating artificial intelligence systems. Risks, chal-
lenges, competencies, and strategies,’ Harvard Journal of Law & Technology, Vol.
29, No. 2, pp. 354−400. Quotation: p. 354. Online source, retrieved 1 November
2024, from: http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2609777.
191
actions or commands. They are designed to excel in a single cognitive
capability and are unable to independently learn skills that extend be-
yond the parameters of their original design. Examples of narrow AI
include image recognition software, autonomous vehicles, virtual assis-
tants such as Siri and Google Assistant, and large language models like
GPT4, Gemini, or Claude. These models are highly proficient at gener-
ating text that closely resembles human language but do not possess a
genuine understanding of the meaning of that language. ANIs are unable
to demonstrate genuine intelligence beyond the scope of their desig-
nated function. They are unable to engage in independent thought or to
grasp abstract concepts. Although ANI systems are capable of perform-
ing tasks in an efficient manner within the context for which they have
been designed, they lack cognitive flexibility. However, they are the most
successful applications of AI in daily life. They predict and diagnose dis-
ease at a faster rate than medical professionals,
445
they design drugs,
446
they reduce the time and costs of information processes by breaking
down information silo’s,
447
they assist in surgeries, language learning,
and ergonomics,
448
and much more. The majority of these ANIs are
445
N. Ghaffar Nia, E. Kaplanoglu, and A. Nasab (2023). ‘Evaluation of artificial
intelligence techniques in disease diagnosis and prediction,’ Discover Artificial In-
telligence, Vol. 3, Article No. 5. Online source, retrieved on 1 November 2024,
from: https://doi.org/10.1007/s44163-023-00049-5.
446
M. Mock, S. Edavettal, C. Langmead, and A. Russell (2023). ‘AI can help to
speed up drug discovery — but only if we give it the right data,’ Nature, Vol.
621, pp. 467–470.
447
H. Chakraborty (2023). ‘Revolutionizing the legal landscape. How AI is trans-
forming the legal industry,’ International Journal of Law Management and Humanities,
Vol. 6, No. 2, pp. 3161–3167.
448
A. Moglia, K. Georgiou, E. Georgiou, R.M. Satava, and A. Cuschieri (2021).
‘A systematic review on artificial intelligence in robot-assisted surgery,’ Interna-
tional Journal of Surgery, Vol. 95, 106151. Online source, retrieved on 1 November
2024, from:
192
able to function as effectively as they do as a result of the context in
which they are deployed, as well as their access to information that is
known, accessible, of good quality, and trustworthy.
Two further (hypothetical) types of AI can be distinguished: Artifi-
cial General Intelligence (AGI) and Artificial Superintelligence (ASI).
AGI refers to the capacity to engage in cognitive processes such as think-
ing, learning, and problem-solving across diverse domains, without be-
ing constrained by contextual factors. It can adapt and respond flexibly
to novel situations.
449
One can envisage a self-driving car, which would
pick up a passenger from the airport, navigate unfamiliar roads, adapt its
conversation in real time, answer questions about local culture based on
the passenger’s interests, suggest a restaurant based on preferences and
current popularity, and recommend things based on earlier visits.
450
Alt-
hough it is possible to perform all of these tasks in isolation within dis-
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1743919121002867; S.
Kouri, E. Köpman, A. Ahtinen, and V. Ramirez Millan (2020). ‘Customized ro-
bot-assisted language learning to support immigrants at work. Findings and in-
sights from a qualitative user experience study,’ M. Obaid, O. Mubin, and Y.
Nagai, Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Human-Agent Interaction, virtual
event, November 10–13, ACM, pp. 212–220; A. Shafti, A. Ataka, B.U. Lazpita,
A. Shiva, H.A. Wurdemann, and K. Althoefer (2019). Real-time robot-assisted
ergonomics,’ Proceedings of the 2019 International Conference on Robotics and Automa-
tion (ICRA), May 20–24, 2019, Montreal, IEEE, pp. 1975–1981. Online source,
retrieved 1 November 2024, from: https://arxiv.org/pdf/1805.06270.
449
B. Xu (2024). ‘What is meant by AGI? On the definition of Artificial General
Intelligence,’ arXiv preprint. Online source, retrieved on 1 November 2024, from:
https://arxiv.org/pdf/2404.10731.
450
‘Getting ready for artificial general intelligence with examples,’ IBM’s Website.
Think, 18 April 2024. Online source, retrieved on 1 November 2024, from:
https://www.ibm.com/think/topics/artificial-general-intelligence-examples.
Archived at: https://archive.ph/B51Tb. More examples of AGI are menstioned
on this page.
193
parate software environments and utilizing ANIs, the AGI for the sim-
ultaneous execution of these operations has yet to be developed. The
development of AGI remains an aspirational goal due to the complexi-
ties inherent in replicating human reasoning, learning, and adaptability.
ASI is ‘software-based artificial intelligence (AI) system with an in-
tellectual scope beyond human intelligence, with cognitive functions and
highly developed thinking skills more advanced than any human.’
451
This intelligence is the subject of Bostrom’s ‘paperclip Armageddon.’
ASI is a highly speculative concept that currently resembles science fic-
tion, given that we still lack the requisite knowledge to develop AGI.
It is essential to implement a degree of control in order to guarantee
equity, fairness, and accountability, and to ensure that both AGI and ASI
do not contravene our collective human values, such as safety, privacy,
equality, benevolence, and universalism.
452
Chirag Shah proposes three
‘ethos,’ or perhaps better ‘laws’: [1] conformity, AI must understand and
adhere to collective values and norms; [2] consultation, AI must consult
with humans to resolve or codify values and value tensions; and [3] col-
laboration, AI must only take control with stakeholder permission (relin-
quishing control back on command).
453
The issue of conformity may
451
‘What is artificial superintelligence?,’ IBM’s Website. Think, 18 December,
2023. Online source, retrieved on 1 November 2024, from:
https://www.ibm.com/topics/artificial-superintelligence. Archived at:
https://archive.ph/QUIHX.
452
I. Şuşnea, E. Pecheanu, A.Cocu, and S.M. Şuşnea (2024). ‘Superintelligence
revisited in times of ChatGPT,’ BRAIN. Broad Research in Artificial Intelligence and
Neuroscience, Vol. 15, No. 2, pp. 344–361. The authors argue that there is a shift
‘from a theoretical possibility to a pressing concern’ and suggest ‘several direc-
tions of action to avoid the risk of losing control over superintelligent AI.’ (p.
358).
453
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194
present a challenge because of possible divergences in interpretation of
these collective values.
The virtual assistents, image recognition software, large language
models: they all have a profound effect on information access and its
contexts. Chatbots as natural language interfaces are impacting how the
interaction with retrieval and search systems is realized. Because ANIs
based on language models are being embedded in the work processes of
users, information access becomes context-driven, as Microsoft Copilot
demonstrates.
454
If the information the language models are using is
trustworthy, the answers of those models will be much more accurate.
Concerns
I have addressed the environmental concerns of the use of AI in
Chapter 2 here before. Those are not the only concerns, however. Lan-
guage models reproduce, and even amplify, stereotypes and biases, pre-
sent in training data.
455
In August 2024, NewsGuard stated in its AI
Misinformation Monitor, that the ten leading chatbots (including Microsoft
Copilot, Meta AI, Google Gemini, and Perplexity) collectively repeated
https://informationmatters.org/2023/10/ai-and-the-future-of-information-
access/. Archived at: https://archive.ph/TM2qK.
454
T. Warren (2024). ‘Microsoft’s new copilot pro brings AI-powered office fea-
tures to the rest of us,’ The Verge. Online source, retrieved on 1 November 2024,
from: https://www.theverge.com/2024/1/15/24038711/microsoft-copilot-
pro-office-ai-apps. Archived at: https://archive.ph/q3jHp.
455
A. Caliskan, J.J. Bryson, and A. Narayanan (2017). ‘Semantics derived auto-
matically from language corpora contain human-like biases,’ Science, Vol. No.
6334, pp.183–186, and: S.L. Blodgett, S. Barocas, H. Daumé III, and H. Wallach
(2020). ‘Language (technology) is power. A critical survey of ‘bias’ in nlp,’ D.
Jurafsky, J. Chai, N. Schluter, and J. Tetreault (eds.), Proceedings of the 58th Annual
Meeting of the Association for Computational Linguistics July 5–10, San Francisco, ACL,
Stroudsburg, pp. 5454–5476. Online source, retrieved on 1 November 2024,
from: https://aclanthology.org/2020.acl-main.485.pdf.
195
misinformation 18% of the time, offered a non-response 31% of the
time, and a debunk 51% of the time.
456
As reported by The New York
Times, NewsGuard has also identified over a thousand websites that are
disseminating a considerable number of AI-generated news articles that
are characterized by a high degree of inaccuracy. This phenomenon cre-
ates a feedback loop when AI-generated information is employed by
other AI models as a training set, resulting in a deterioration in the in-
formational quality of the generated content. Moreover, a study con-
ducted by The New York Times demonstrated that following twenty
generations of training new AI systems on the output of their predeces-
sors, the digits become blurred and begin to erode, thereby reducing the
technical quality of the information over time.
457
However, this issue is
not so much the informational quality of the information collected, but
rather the necessity of ensuring its long-term preservation. It is widely
acknowledged that, in the absence of meticulous bit preservation, the
phenomenon of ‘bit rot’ will inevitably occur over time. AI training sets
are not excluded from digital preservation problems.
458
The assumption
456
M. Sadeghi (2024). ‘NewsGuard Monthly AI Misinformation Monitor of
Leading AI Chatbots. Audit of the 10 leading generative AI tools and their pro-
pensity to repeat false narratives on topics in the news,’ NewsGuard. Online
source, retrieved on 1 November 2024, from:
https://www.newsguardtech.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Au-
gust2024AIMisinformationMonitor.pdf.
457
A. Bhathia (2024). ‘When AI’s output is a threat to AI itself. As AI-generated
data becomes harder to detect, it’s increasingly likely to be ingested by future
AI, leading to worse results,’ The New York Times, 25 August 2024. Online
source, retrieved on 1 November 2024, from: https://www.nytimes.com/inter-
active/2024/08/26/upshot/ai-synthetic-data.html. Archived (partly) at:
https://archive.ph/j5Qr6.
458
See: Chapter 1, pp. 18–23. Also: M. Kosciejew (2015). ‘Digital vellum and
other cures for bit rot,’ Information Management Journal, Vol. 49, No. 3, pp. 20–26.
Online source, retrieved on 1 November 2024, from:
196
of the accessibility of information when access has been realized is
strong, even in AI research.
A fundamental problem is a threat for both information access and
social participation. A review of the most frequently cited AI papers re-
vealed that the values espoused and operationalized serve to concentrate
power with dominant platforms. All these papers were the result of a
collaboration between prominent software companies and leading aca-
demic institutions.
459
It wil be necessary to avoid that technology-driven
power is only in favour of dominant platforms, thus reducing the space
for competition, critique, resistance, or counter-images of a future. Ac-
cess to information should not be in the hands of leading software com-
panies and academic institutions alone.
Large language models have the ability to estimate the preferences of
the searcher for a given query.
460
This is an issue when considering the
context of the power asymmetries that exist between business organiza-
tions, who have influence over the values that these models emphasize,
and the users of these models. This is further compounded by the lack
of mechanisms for civil society to participate in and challenge the model
choices made, which risks further concentration of power. An example.
Aleksandra Urman and Mykola Makhortykh have asserted that Google
https://magazine.arma.org/wp-content/uploads/simple-file-
list/2015_03_IM_digital_vellum_cures_for_bit_rotKosciejew.pdf; and V.G.
Cerf (2011). ‘Avoiding ‘bit rot.’ Long-term preservation of digital information
[point of view],’ Proceedings of the IEEE, Vol. 99, No. 6, 915–916.
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A. Birhane, P. Kalluri, D. Card, W. Agnew, R. Dotan, and M. Bao (2022).
‘The values encoded in machine learning research,’ 2022 ACM Conference on Fair-
ness, Accountability, and Transparency (FAccT 2022), June 21–24, 2022, Seoul, ACM,
New York, 173–184. Online source, retrieved on 1 November 2024, from:
https://doi.org/10.1145/3531146.3533083.
460
B. Mitra (2024). ‘Search and society. Reimagining information access for rad-
ical futures,’ arXiv preprint. Online source, retrieved on 1 November 2024, from:
https://arxiv.org/abs/2403.17901.
197
Bard did not respond to Russian prompts for items critical to the Rus-
sian authorities. This emphasizes the potential for Western large lan-
guage models to facilitate the censorship and dissemination of disinfor-
mation by authoritarian regimes, and the ways in which they may impede
access to information related to politics.
461
Information access is not as
assured with such models as it seems. Social participation problems are
not easily solved because of the power dynamics that create them.
Three developments for enhancing access
Three developments have the potential to enhance access to publicly
available information using large language models, even if the collection
of information sources for their training datasets may involve the illegal
scraping of copyrighted or otherwise protected information. Integrating
the current chatbox-based large language models, for instance, with de-
velopments within information retrieval research could improve the in-
formational quality of AI models. Information retrieval systems are ap-
plied in search engines and systems for answering questions and/or rec-
ommendations and have for many years been a reliable means of infor-
mation access. The combination of language models and generative in-
formation retrieval in retrieval augmented generation (RAG) allows for
the memorization of trustworthy information and for the direct genera-
tion of information users seek, based on context.
462
RAG serves to an-
461
A. Urman and M. Makhortykh (2023?). ‘The silence of the LLMs. Cross-
lingual analysis of political bias and false information prevalence in ChatGPT,
Google Bard, and Bing Chat.’ Online source, retrieved on 1 November 2024,
from:https://files.osf.io/v1/resources/q9v8f/providers/osfstor-
age/64fb0eabd9f2c93d17d04a1e?trk=public_post_comment-text&ac-
tion=download&direct&version=2.
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X. Li, J. Jin, Y. Zhou, Y. Zhang, P. Zhang, Y. Zhu, and Z. Dou (2024). ‘From
matching to generation. A survey on generative information retrieval.’ arXiv pre-
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chor the language model in external knowledge sources, thereby rein-
forcing the model’s internal representation of information. It guarantees
that the model has access to the most current and reliable information,
and that users have access to the model’s sources. This enables users to
verify the model’s claims for accuracy and to place their trust in it.
463
It
would reinforce information retrieval systems that are already assisted
by AI tools with more easy searching and seeking channels for users.
The second development is the design of AI avatars, which are vir-
tual characters that are capable of simulating human-like interactions and
providing personalized guidance. According to Christine Liao, they are
representations of (personal) identity within virtual worlds.
464
The ad-
vent of Second Life, a virtual world which enjoyed considerable popu-
larity for several years, saw the emergence of avatars as a popular form
of online identity. The utility of avatars is not limited to a single context;
rather, they can be employed in a multitude of scenarios, including but
not limited to games, virtual realities, and other environments that emu-
late game-like experiences.
465
The utilization of AI has facilitated the
https://arxiv.org/pdf/2404.14851.
463
P. Zhao, H. Zhang, Q. Yu, Z. Wang, Y. Geng, F. Fu, L. Yang, W. Zhang, J.
Jiang, B. Cui (2024). ‘Retrieval-augmented generation for AI-generated content.
A survey,’ arXiv preprint. Online source, retrieved on 1 November 2024, from:
https://arxiv.org/pdf/2402.19473.
464
C.L.Y Liao (2011). Avatar Re/assembling as Art-making, Knowledge-making, and
Self-making. Dissertation, The Pennsylvania State University. The Graduate
School College of Arts and Architecture, State College, p. iii. Online source,
retrieved on 1 November 2024, from: https://etda.libraries.psu.edu/files/fi-
nal_submissions/1035.
465
G. Ünal Tüfekçioğlu (2024). The Impact of Using Artificial Intelligence Generated
Text-to-Speech Avatars on Learning in Video-based Trainings. Master thesis, Middle
East Technical University, Ankara. Online source, retrieved on 1 November
2024, from: https://open.metu.edu.tr/bitstream/handle/11511/109769/Gul-
den%20Unal%20Tufekcioglu%20Thesis.pdf.
199
interaction of avatars with users through text and speech via natural lan-
guage processing. This enables them to comprehend questions, provide
logical responses and assist in information access. In certain instances,
they are even able to comprehend expressions and gestures.
466
They are
capable of providing a personalized service by learning user information
during interactions and of enhancing information access over time. They
exert influence, have a presence in interactions, and affect (and are af-
fected by) human and non-human actors.
467
The advancement of AI
has led to its implementation in a multitude of contexts, including mar-
keting, customer service, personalized tutoring, patient engagement and
support, mental health support and advice, patient monitoring, student
progress, customer guidance in business processes, collaborative soft-
ware development, art and entertainment, and numerous other real-life
situations, improving information access.
468
Given the acceptability of
AI avatars by human users in human-computer interaction, it seems rea-
sonable to suggest that avatars may represent a promising avenue for
facilitating more universal information access.
469
When combined with
RAG, the possibilities would be very interesting.
466
B.S. Kim and S. Seo (2022). ‘Intelligent digital human agent service with deep
learning based-face recognition,’ IEEE Access, Vol. 10, p. 72794–72805.
467
C. Liao (2024). ‘My avatar’s avatars. A visual exploration and response to AI-
generated avatars,’ Visual Culture & Gender, Vol. 19, pp. 11–23. Online source,
retrieved on 1 November 2024, from:
https://vcg.emitto.net/index.php/vcg/article/download/144/148.
468
‘Avatars in Action. Real-world Applications Beyond Gaming,’ YouTube: Ava-
taryug Podcast, April 29, 2024. Online source, retrieved on 1 November 2024,
from:https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desk-
top&v=_I0Gcz4mtqQ&ab_channel=Avataryug.
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Y. Liu, K.L. Siau (2023). ‘Human-AI interaction and AI avatars,’ H. Degen,
S. Ntoa, A. Moallem (eds.), HCI International 2023. Late Breaking Papers. HCII
2023. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Vol 14059, Springer, Cham. Online
source, retrieved on 1 November 2024, from:
200
A third area of development is the design of content credential sys-
tems, which aim to add watermarks, digital signatures and/or manifests
to information in order to authenticate its provenance. Generative media
tools have led to scraping practices that gather and process information
in a way that makes it almost impossible to validate its quality and au-
thenticity. The creation of AI-generated images and videos, or so-called
‘synthetic content,’ and other forms of AI-generated misinformation has
significant and detrimental effects on society. These effects include the
dissemination of falsehoods, the manipulation of original information
into something transformed of its intended meaning, and the potential
to modify both individual memories into something false, and a person’s
attitudes toward the target of the malignous misinformation.
470
This has
led to calls for the development of tools capable of detecting this infor-
mation. Nevertheless, the efficacy of such detection tools is likely to be
limited to a period of weeks.
471
Other research posits that the objective
should be to verify the veracity of information, rather than identifying
misinformation. In order to achieve this, software has been developed
which is capable of automatically watermarking and identifying images
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/375910768_Human-AI_Interac-
tion_and_AI_Avatars. Also: M. Yasuoka, T. Miyata, N. Nakatani, Y. Taoka, and
N. Hamaguchi (2023). ‘How remote-controlled avatars are accepted in hybrid
workplace,’ N.A. Streitz and S. Konomi (eds.), Distributed, Ambient and Pervasive
Interactions: HCII 2023, Springer, Cham, pp. 295–307.
470
J.T. Hancock and J.N. Bailenson (2021). ‘The social impact of deepfakes,’
Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, Vol. 24, No. 3, pp. 149–152. Online
source, retrieved on 1 November 2024, from:
https://doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2021.29208.jth.
471
J. Vincent (2019). ‘Deepfake detection algorithms will never be enough,’ The
Verge, June 17. Online source, retrieved on 1 November 2024, from:
https://www.theverge.com/2019/6/27/18715235/deepfake-detection-ai-al-
gorithms-accuracy-will-they-ever-work. Archived at:
https://archive.ph/QQx21.
201
and videos captured on cameras, or of digitally signing other informa-
tion. An additional solution is the utilization of blockchain technology
to authenticate information originating from reliable sources, e.g. as the
concept of the ‘information bank.’
472
The objective of these crypto-
graphic techniques is to verify the identity of the publisher, the technical
integrity of the information, and the data lineage and/or provenance of
the information. A part of this research is being conducted by the Coa-
lition for Content Provenance and Authenticity (C2PA), an organization
that is developing technical methods for the documentation of the prov-
enance and history of digital media files, including both real and fake
examples.
473
In 2021, the C2PA group published the initial version of a
set of guidelines for the attachment of cryptographically secure metadata
to image and video files. Any modification to the file is reflected in the
metadata, thereby breaching the cryptographic seal and rendering any
472
Watermarks: H. Rhayma, R. Ejbali, and H. Hamam (2024). ‘Auto-authenti-
cation watermarking scheme based on CNN and perceptual hash function in
the wavelet domain,’ Multimedia Tools and Applications, Vol. 83, pp. 60079–60101.
Online source, retrieved on 1 November 2024, from:
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11042-023-17924-z. Digital signatures: B. Jacobs
(2024). ‘The authenticity crisis,’ Computer Law & Security Review, Vol. 53, 105962.
Online source, retrieved on 1 November 2024, from:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0267364924000293. In-
formation bank: B. Barrowes (2022). ‘The Information Bank. Information au-
thenticity with simultaneous accountability and anonymity in the digital era,’ K.
Arai (ed.) Advances in Information and Communication. Proceedings of the 2022 Future of
Information and Communication Conference (FICC), Volume 2, Lecture Notes in Net-
works and Systems, volume 439, Springer, Cham, pp. 1001–1014.
473
E. Strickland (2023). ‘Content credentials will fight deepfakes in the 2024
elections. Media organizations combat disinformation with digital manifests,’
IEEE Spectrum, 27 December. Online source, retrieved on 1 November 2024,
from: https://spectrum.ieee.org/deepfakes-election. Archived at:
https://web.archive.org/web/20240923092127/https://spec-
trum.ieee.org/deepfakes-election.
202
tampering evident. In the event that the individual undertaking the alter-
ation utilises a tool that is compatible with content credentialing, the
pertinent information regarding the modifications is incorporated into
the manifest that is associated with the image.
474
These techniques are
of significant importance with regard to information access, as they pro-
vide the means to ascertain the provenance and historical background
of digital information. Such a verification process enables internet users
to make informed decisions regarding the veracity and accuracy of the
information in question. A combination of these techniques with RAG
would facilitate the seeking and retrieval of accurate and authentic infor-
mation.
A possible future for information access and accessibility
The future is inherently uncertain. Nevertheless, based on the cur-
rent state of information technology and the aforementioned develop-
ments, it is possible to project what the year 2050 might bring. The time-
frame is sufficiently distant to allow for discrepancies between my ex-
pectations and subsequent reality, which is, in fact, highly probable.
475
Although the technological capabilities would, in theory, permit an ear-
lier timeframe than 2050 for achieving these expectations, the organiza-
tional requirements are likely to prevent its realization before the afore-
mentioned year. This perspective is primarily concerned with govern-
ment organizations. Although the concept is applicable to business or-
474
C2PA Specifications. Online source, retrieved on 1 November 2024, from:
https://c2pa.org/specifications/specifications/2.1/specs/_attach-
ments/C2PA_Specification.pdf. Archived at:
https://web.archive.org/web/20240926170204/https://c2pa.org/specifica-
tions/specifications/2.1/specs/_attachments/C2PA_Specification.pdf.
475
This projection of a possible future has been published previously (with small
differences) in Dutch: G.J. van Bussel (2023). ‘Archivering in 2050. Een blik op
de toekomst,’ Archievenblad, Vol. 127, no. 3, 2023, pp. 6-9.
203
ganizations, its specific interpretation differs. Nevertheless, the funda-
mental premise remains unchanged.
In 2050:
[1] Irrespective of their geographical location, employees log in to
their employer’s dashboard portal with their mobile work units, which
are fully encrypted. Once authentication has been completed via both
facial and iris recognition, the individual is presented with a personalized
dashboard. This dashboard is compiled based on the authorizations that
have been granted to the individual, thereby allowing access to all infor-
mation that employees are authorized to read and process.
[2] This personal dashboard provides an overview of work in pro-
gress, predominantly comprising decisions for which the organization
has defined human input. The staff member’s work comprises the re-
view of Al’s daily case processing reports, the identification of discrep-
ancies, consultation with affected citizens and businesses, the evaluation
of selected information concerning approved strategies, and the com-
munication of any changes to the Al avatar for further processing. Ad-
ditionally, the staff member provides information to managers and di-
rectors on politically sensitive matters. The Al avatar is always available
to provide assistance, guidance, and information. The avatar is furnished
with sophisticated speech technology.
[3] Business processes are conducted entirely automatically in ac-
cordance with Al-powered ‘business rules’ that have been designed to
handle specific and complex processes. The involvement of multiple or-
ganizations in business processes and communication between (inter-
organizational) applications are facilitated through the utilization of se-
cure connections. The Al system employs knowledge bases, wherein all
specifications, requirements, and contextual metadata are defined per
process and process step and assigned automatically during process han-
dling. In the event of non-compliance with the prescribed workflows,
204
each instance is allocated to three human reviewers, who are potentially
situated across organizational boundaries. Each reviewer makes an inde-
pendent determination. In conjunction with Al systems from other or-
ganizations, the Al system determines the potential consequences of the
responses and the rationale provided for them. It then decides on the
most appropriate course of action, discusses this with the reviewers and,
if permitted, incorporates the deviation into the existing definitions au-
tomatically. The machine learning system ensures that the algorithms of
the local Al and the applications used are continuously improved to en-
hance their capacity to handle complex processes. The Al system permits
the incorporation of business rules and the rationale behind this incor-
poration into the central knowledge base (one each for the associations
of federal, regional, and local governments) in order to adapt the stand-
ard models (where necessary). Policy and consultation processes are as-
signed automated workflows. The Al avatar is able, in discussion with
employees, to modify the procedure to be followed and to add (internal
and external) participants, as well as to provide them with the requisite
authorizations for tasks to accomplish and/or information to access.
[4] The central knowledge bases contain all standardized data models
of process definitions, metadata, business rules, retention schedules, ar-
chival models for long-term access, and so forth. These are used in the
local knowledge bases as guidelines for an organization’s specific data
models. The central knowledge bases are employed by local AIs to guar-
antee the relevancy of the catalogue models, to assess the legitimacy of
local adaptations to process definitions, and to ascertain whether deci-
sions on deviations are permissible in their consequences.
[5] Each organization has an infrastructure that is secured with quan-
tum technology, based on a Hybrid Storage Area Network (HSAN). All
provisions have been made for the secure storage and communication
of information. HSAN is both on-premises and in the cloud, with the
IT branch of the central associations providing the necessary facilitation.
205
In accordance with the central guidelines, Al is responsible for determin-
ing the location and type of information stored. This requires the partic-
ipation of numerous commercial entities, which serve as [a] suppliers of
the HSAN and [b] data centres where hosting is conducted. The data
centres operate on a combination of renewable energy sources, with hy-
drogen representing the primary source, while solar, wind and water also
contribute to the overall energy mix. All storage is redundant and equip-
ped with two synchronisations and three mirrors, thereby ensuring un-
interrupted access to information in case of emergencies. Additionally,
the HSAN incorporates a ‘Digital Vault’ for the long-term storage of
information that is deemed essential for preservation. In light of the cli-
mate crisis, the five data centres utilized for synchronization and mirror-
ing are situated in regions that are not vulnerable to sea level rise.
[6] The personal dashboard provides each employee with access to
all the information they require to perform their duties. This includes
metadata regarding the context of the information and potential rela-
tionships with other available information. The Al avatar can provide or
suggest further information in consultation with the employee, taking
into account their permissions. Where appropriate, the avatar may also
provide answers.
[7] The management of information is automated, with processes
aligned to the stages of the information value chain. Context is provided
to information at each stage of its lifecycle, from initial intake through
to preservation or disposal. All information has cryptographically at-
tached provenance and data lineage information as well as digital signa-
tures to protect its integrity and authenticity. Only information pertinent
to the matter in hand is recorded, accessible only to those employees
authorized to view this information. The implementation of archiving
processes has been completely realized. The deadline for disposal is con-
tingent upon the outcome of a business process. Where feasible, file for-
mats are converted to sustainable formats (defined in format libraries as
206
Pronom). The disposal and transfer processes are automated, with the
archivist acting as the sole arbiter of exceptions, based on input from
the Al avatar regarding potential hotspots. The automated transfer to the
Digital Vault is provided with the requisite formats and context for pub-
lication, ensuring the optimal presentation of the material in question.
The archivist is duly authorized to perform the requisite management
functions. A biannual external audit is conducted with regard to the
management of information. The audit is conducted in accordance with
the knowledge base of the Central Inspectorate for Information Man-
agement of the Ministry of Information and Information Infrastructure,
as prescribed by the Information Act of 2042. Older archives have been
digitized. Archives created prior to 1850 are retained in original form
and stored in central archive repositories in accordance with the princi-
ples of good management practice. Access to this material is permitted
for researchers by prior appointment. The entirety of this material is ac-
cessible in digital formats via the Digital Vault.
[8] The Digital Vault functions as the repository for all information
to be preserved, accompanied by all requisite contextual metadata. This
Vault is accessible to all employees within the organization. The HSAN
provides the optimal level of security for the Digital Vault. A publicly
accessible mirror of the Vault is provided. The mirror is searchable and
furnished with an Al avatar, which welcomes visitors and assists them in
locating the desired information. The mirror can be accessed from the
organization’s website, as well as from generic and public heritage sites.
The information is presented in its ‘original’ form, with emulations pro-
vided where necessary, accompanied by transcriptions and translations
into modern language. Optical character recognition indexes of all ar-
chives, including context, are available via search engines, thereby ena-
bling users to access information from multiple Digital Vaults simulta-
neously.
207
6
CONCLUDING REMARKS
*
208
As a phenomenon, information access and accessibility is full of con-
tradictions, presuppositions and demands. It is a plaything of social
forces that have both positive and negative effects on the ability of or-
dinary citizens or customers to access information. The advantages con-
tribute to making it easier for people to participate in society and for
companies to market information as an economic good. The disadvan-
tages exacerbate socio-economic problems in society and concentrate
power in the hands of those who control access to information. The
confluence of political and economic elites means that access to critical
information can (and often will) be restricted. Ever-changing technology
makes it difficult for more and more people to access information be-
cause they lack the necessary literary skills. All in all, access to infor-
mation is a problematic and intractable phenomenon, and as such a com-
plex conundrum. For how can we ensure that everyone has the oppor-
tunity to access the information available (both as-thing and as-knowl-
edge)? Information access and accessibility represent a conundrum,
characterized by a lack of clarity and consensus. It is a complex problem
that defies straightforward solutions and may appear intractable.
It is evident that access to and accessibility of information is a mul-
tifaceted and problematic phenomenon, comprising a number of inter-
related approaches. My analysis of literature from seven (more or less
isolated) research fields in Chapter 3 revealed the existence of six distinct
approaches to the study of information access and accessibility. These
are: [1] social, economic, and political participation; [2] ‘smart’ and evolv-
ing technology; [3] power and control; [4] sense-making; [5] knowledge
representations; and [6] information survival. These approaches mirror,
more or less, the conceptualizations recognized by Maureen McCreadie,
Ronald Rice and Shan-Ju Chang in 1999 and 2001.
Of the research fields I evaluated (information access disparity, in-
formation seeking, information retrieval, information quality, informa-
tion security, information management, and archiving), none considers
209
all of these approaches. The multitude of approaches, however, demon-
strates the inherent impossibility of completely studying and describing
information access. Nevertheless, despite the popularity of and the fund-
ing incentives associated with multidisciplinary research, such research
of information access and accessibility remains underdeveloped in the
aforementioned disciplines.
All research fields must address the myriad challenges posed by the
hybrid world with respect to the access to and the accessibility of infor-
mation (as-thing and as-knowledge). The seven most significant (closely
related) challenges in the context of our hybrid world can be broadly
categorized as follows:
[1] The digitalization of society, representing the process of socio-eco-
nomic change that has been triggered by the introduction of digital tech-
nologies. The process of digitalization has led to the emergence of ‘code’
as a regulator of ‘cyberspace,’ defining how it is experienced, how pri-
vacy is protected, how speech is censored, how access to information is
organized, permitted or prohibited, and how users are monitored. This
process of regulation allows private actors to embed their values into
technological structures, thereby constraining user actions, limiting ano-
nymity, freedom of speech, information access, and individual control.
This has the potential to endanger democracy. In Chapter 2 the digitali-
zation of society is extensively addressed.
[2] The ‘problem of mass,’ the disruptive change in the dissemination of
information that has resulted in an overload of information, created by
an increase in the number of content producers, as discussed in Chapter
1. The exponential growth of the information mass is an irrefutable phe-
nomenon, although it is a challenge to quantify this growth. It is affect-
ing the access to and the accessibility of information (as-thing and as-
knowledge). The phenomenon of the ‘problem of mass’ gives rise to a
situation in which information management processes are overwhelmed
by a substantial influx of both structured and unstructured information,
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thereby rendering access to relevant information challenging. I drew at-
tention to this ‘problem of mass’ in Chapters 1 and 2.
[3] The phenomenon of ‘digital divides,’ characterizing significant inequal-
ities in access to information and information technologies. These ine-
qualities are a consequence of socio-economic disparities that restrict
access to information, education, employment, and essential services.
Furthermore, these divides manifest as ‘literacy divides,’ whereby indi-
viduals demonstrate considerable variability in their transliteracy abili-
ties. These encompass the capacity to explore, identify, evaluate, extract,
comprehend, interprete, and contextualize information through the uti-
lization of diverse media styles. The ‘digital divides’ encompass both the
availability of information and the capacity to utilize it effectively. The
prevailing deficiencies in the quality of education are such that a signifi-
cant proportion of the population lacks the requisite high-level compe-
tencies to evaluate the information with which they are confronted,
which has a detrimental effect on their ability to gain knowledge. I have
previously addressed this topic in Chapter 2.
[4] Paradox 3.0, which refers to the situation where, even if access to
information is possible, it may still be inaccessible, due to a degraded file
format, a format that lacks the software to make it accessible, a victim
of ‘bit rot,’ written in code, or an incomprehensible language. Access to
information does not necessarily imply that information is interpretable.
The assumption that the realization of access implies accessibility is er-
roneous. The third paradox of access is that even if resources and skills
are available and access is possible (i.e., findable and available), there is
no guarantee that the information itself is accessible (i.e., perceptible,
interpretable, and contextual). This assumption has resulted in the prob-
lematic retrieval of ‘older’ information. Furthermore, it is evident that
this assumption is deeply embedded within the disciplines that I have
evaluated in relation to information access and accessibility. The excep-
tions are information quality research, recognizing ‘interpretability’ as a
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quality characteristic for information, and archival research, with its em-
phasis on digital preservation and the approach of ‘information survival.’
The third paradox was addressed directly in Chapter 1, while all other
chapters addressed it indirectly.
[5] The imbalances between convenience and social responsibility are a signifi-
cant issue. The advantages of the hybrid world in relation to information
access and accessibility primarily concern convenience and commercial capa-
bilities, while the disadvantages primarily concern societal issues, exacer-
bated by the digitalization of society. The disadvantages cause significant
social disruption, creating divisions between different groups, and leav-
ing the most vulnerable members of society behind. The disadvantages
are exacerbated by the bottlenecks of digitalization that all concern in-
formation access. These bottlenecks (political, social, economic, legal,
infrastructural, educational, personal, and organizational) can be associ-
ated with the research approaches identified in Chapter 3 and all disad-
vantages of digitalization. Although digitalization has made access to in-
formation more convenient and has opened up many libraries for con-
sultation, the disadvantages and bottlenecks are far-reaching. This is not
an easily solvable problem, as it would interfere heavily with private busi-
ness practices. Nevertheless, the adverse effects on society are a cause
for concern and require attention. One potential solution could be to
limit the extent to which these private interests are able to exercise con-
trol over information access. In Chapter 2 and 4 these inbalances are
addressed.
[6] As discussed in Chapter 5, the advent of artificial intelligence has had a
profound impact on the manner in which information is accessed. It is
capable of connecting to a multitude of sources and returning informa-
tion that is both more profound and more perceptive. It generates re-
sponses in a variety of formats, including text, image, and video. Fur-
thermore, it facilitates the expeditious retrieval of information and the
discovery of new knowledge. It has the potential to enhance accuracy by
212
providing tailored results and recommendations. Additionally, it has the
potential to complete search tasks with more specific goals. This repre-
sents a shift from the traditional act of clicking to a more natural mode
of communication, namely language. Users are able to pose queries
(‘prompts’) and receive direct, conversational answers. However, there
are also potential negative implications of artificial intelligence. These
include the risk of compromising privacy, information integrity, copy-
right, job security, and trustworthiness. This is due to factors such as
inaccuracy and hallucinations, bias, propaganda, and misinformation.
Such developments could erode public trust in information. When com-
bined with proven information retrieval technology and data collection
from trusted sources, such as those of scientific publishers, libraries, ar-
chives, and newspapers, artificial intelligence has the potential to evolve
into a highly transparent and reliable tool for information access. Nev-
ertheless, this does not guarantee the accessibility of the utilized re-
sources. As discussed in Chapter 2, the environmental challenge posed
by artificial intelligence systems is significant. However, several potential
solutions are being explored and are in the process of being imple-
mented. The impact of these solutions will become evident in the com-
ing years.
[7] The realization of the requirements of information access and accessibility will
not solve the societal challenges of information access and accessibility.
However, it is vital that all information retained, stored, and preserved
for whatever reason, even if it is affected by the information access bot-
tlenecks outlined in Chapter 4, meets the requirements, whether it is held
by a public or a private entity. In the same chapter, we identified five key
requirements for information access and accessibility, based on a review
of 36 criteria from scientific literature. These are: availability, findability,
perceptability, interpretability, and contextuality. Information is accessi-
ble when it can be located, made available, perceived by users (even
those with special needs), interpreted, and contextualized, thus having
213
the possibility to reconstruct the context of its generation, use, control,
and management. These five requirements together define information
access and accessibility. Without even one of these requirements, access
and accessibility do not exist. The five requirements allow information-
as-thing to become information-as-knowledge. The provided checklist
enables organizations to evaluate their information environment in line
with these requirements, optimizing information system implementation
to enhance access, accessibility, and quality of information.
In today’s fast-paced economic and technological environment, the
realization of the requirements for information access is crucial in order
to remain relevant and competitive. Open communication, collabora-
tion, and the free exchange of ideas are essential for enhanced produc-
tivity and innovation. While they do not solve the complex conundrum
of information access and accessibility, their implementation will be an
important step towards enabling trusted information and optimizing in-
formation access and accessibility.
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PAPERS ON INFORMATION AND ARCHIVAL STUDIES
ISSN 2667–2804
I .
G.J. van Bussel (2020). A Sound of Silence. Organizational Behaviour and
Enterprise Information Management. Papers on Information and Archival
Studies, I, Van Bussel Document Services, Helmond, xii + 109 pp.
ISBN/ EAN 978-90-831078-0-6.
II.
G.J. van Bussel (2021). An Accountability Puzzle. Organizations, Organi-
zational Governance and Accountability. Papers on Information and Archival
Studies, II, Van Bussel Document Services, Helmond, x + 168 pp.
ISBN/EAN 978-90-831078-1-3.
III.
G.J. van Bussel (2024). The Accessibility Conundrum. The Problematic Phe-
nomenon of Information Access and Accessibility. Papers on Information and
Archival Studies, III, Van Bussel Document Services, Helmond, x + 216
pp. ISBN/EAN 978-90-831078-2-0.
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DOCUMENT SERVICES
HELMOND
THE NETHERLANDS
