Theory and Methodology for Information and Documentation Sciences
Code
722051231
Academic unit
Faculdade de Ciências Sociais e Humanas
Department
História
Credits
5
Weekly hours
3 letivas + 1 tutorial
Teaching language
Portuguese
Objectives
a) Know how to characterize the main documental units (libraries, archives and documentation centers) as well as understand its history, types, and functions and meet the major networks and associations.
b) Apprehending the fundamental criteria of scientificity and their scope in Information Science (IS).
c) Understand the epistemological and theoretical as well as basic concepts in the methodology of scientific work in the present state of evolution of the Social Sciences.
d) Understanding the process of scientific work, essentially their theoretical and practical bases, structure and dynamics of logical reasoning to support it.
e) Identify qualitative and quantitative approaches and assimilate their mutual integration into contemporary scientific methodology.
f) Experiencing the application procedures, technical tools and reasoning inherent in the scientific method applied to the IS, conducting a special study by the students.
g) Understanding the current state of IS and the scope of scientific methodology of research in the creation of valid knowledge.
Prerequisites
None.
Subject matter
1. Introduction
1.1 Evolution of IS education in Portugal
1.2. Scientific knowledge: scientific criteria
2. From Practices to Knowledge: origin and development of IS
[Retirar o espaço]
2.1. Systems and institutions of information
2.1.1. Archives, Libraries and Documentation Centres: historical evolution, typologies, networks and associations
2.2. The epistemological course and the IS actual paradigmatic debate
2.2.1. From Documentation to Information Science
2.2.2. The precursors of IS
2.2.3. The three paradigms of IS: physical, cognitive and social
2.2.4. Science or Sciences of Information?
3. The scientific method applied to IS
3.1. An overview of the process of scientific work: steps, interactions and perspectives
3.2. Scientific research in Social Sciences
3.2.1. The initial question
3.2.2. The exploration
3.2.3. The problem
3.2.4. The construction of the analysis model
3.2.5. The observation and data collection
3.2.6. The processing and data analysis
3.2.7. The evaluation of the results and conclusions
3.3. Brief presentation of some methodologies applied to IS
3.4. The communication of scientific research
3.4.1. The main types of scientific studies: morphological characteristics
3.4.2. The structures and basic rules of writing and presenting scientific works
Bibliography
1. BORGES, Maria Manuel De Alexandria a Xanadu. Coimbra: Quarteto, 2002.
2. QUIVY, Raymond; CAMPENHOUDT, Luc Van Manual de investigação em Ciências Sociais. 5.ª ed. Lisboa: Gradiva, 2008.
3. SILVA, Armando Malheiro da et al. - Arquivística. Teoria e prática de uma Ciência da Informação. Porto: Afrontamento, 1999.
4. SILVA, Armando B. Malheiro da; RIBEIRO, Fernanda Das \"Ciências\" Documentais à Ciência da Informação. Ensaio epistemológico para um novo modelo curricular. Porto: Afrontamento, 2002.
5. VEJA-ALMEIDA, Rosa Lidia; FERNÁNDEZ-MOLINA, J. Carlos; LINARES, Radamés - Coordenadas paradigmáticas, históricas y epistemológicas de la Ciencia de la Información: una sistematización. Information Research [Em linha]. Vol. 14, nº 2 (2009). [Consultado a 29 Jul. 2013] Disponível na Internet: http://informationr.net/ir/14-2/paper399.html.
Teaching method
Lectures open to debate and questioning of contents with students. Personalized monitoring of research work into four preparatory phases to discuss and improve methodological choices.
Evaluation method
The evaluation will include three evidences: a research work (40%) to be developed throughout the semester, its oral presentation to the class (10%) and a written test (50%) to be held at the end of the semester.