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Purpose: This study addresses the need for a theory-guided, rich, descriptive account of research data repositories' (RDRs) understanding of data quality and the structures of their data quality assurance (DQA) activities. Its findings can help develop operational DQA models and best practice guides and identify opportunities for innovation in the DQA activities. Design/methodology/approach: The study analyzed 122 data repositories' applications for the Core Trustworthy Data Repositories, interview transcripts of 32 curators and repository managers and data curation-related webpages of their repository websites. The combined dataset represented 146 unique RDRs. The study was guided by a theoretical framework comprising activity theory and an information quality evaluation framework. Findings: The study provided a theory-based examination of the DQA practices of RDRs summarized as a conceptual model. The authors identified three DQA activities: evaluation, intervention and communication and their structures, including activity motivations, roles played and mediating tools and rules and standards. When defining data quality, study participants went beyond the traditional definition of data quality and referenced seven facets of ethical and effective information systems in addition to data quality. Furthermore, the participants and RDRs referenced 13 dimensions in their DQA models. The study revealed that DQA activities were prioritized by data value, level of quality, available expertise, cost and funding incentives. Practical implications: The study's findings can inform the design and construction of digital research data curation infrastructure components on university campuses that aim to provide access not just to big data but trustworthy data. Communities of practice focused on repositories and archives could consider adding FAIR operationalizations, extensions and metrics focused on data quality. The availability of such metrics and associated measurements can help reusers determine whether they can trust and reuse a particular dataset. The findings of this study can help to develop such data quality assessment metrics and intervention strategies in a sound and systematic way. Originality/value: To the best of the authors' knowledge, this paper is the first data quality theory guided examination of DQA practices in RDRs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The term "Brazilian popular music" refers to a varied repertoire of musical styles with a strong connection to local culture. The initiatives of representation of this domain of interest occur through adaptations of generic models and strategies coming from contexts and musical styles that differ from the essential characteristics of the national music. The purpose of this paper is to present a characterization of Brazilian popular music as a conceptual model which supports the communication and analysis of this domain and serves as a reference ontology for various applications in the field of Information Science and others. Design/methodology/approach: To achieve the purpose, a mapping about Brazilian popular music was done from a literature review and a data collection with expert users, based on domain analysis theory. From this characterization, the conceptual model was built using an Ontology Engineering approach. To facilitate understanding, the results were described using a more user-friendly notation. Findings: The paper presents a conceptual model as a first semantic reference on Brazilian popular music that serves (1) to better understand, communicate and analyze the domain of Brazilian popular music and, (2) to supply some semantic aspects not covered by the adaptations that have been proposed on the literature for musical representation. Originality/value: The paper adds a new perspective to the understanding of Brazilian popular music and open opportunity to explore other repertoires about popular music. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper reviews research developments in semiosis (sign activity) as theorized by Peirce, Eco and Sebeok, focusing specifically on the current study of "semiotic threshold zones," which range from the origins of life through various nonhuman life forms to artificial life forms, including those symbolic thresholds most familiar to library and information science (LIS) researchers. The intent is to illustrate potential opportunities for LIS research beyond its present boundaries. Design/methodology/approach: The paper provides a framework that describes six semiotic threshold zones (presemiotic, protosemiotic, phytosemiotic, zoosemiotic, symbolic and polysemiotic) and notable work being done by researchers in each. Findings: While semiotic researchers are still defining the continuum of semiotic thresholds, this focus on thresholds can provide a unifying framework for significance as human and nonhuman interpretations of a wide variety of signs accompanied by a better understanding of their relationships becomes more urgent in a rapidly changing global environment. Originality/value: Though a variety of semiotic-related topics have appeared in the LIS literature, semiotic thresholds and their potential relationships to LIS research have not been previously discussed there. LIS has traditionally tasked itself with the recording, dissemination and preservation of knowledge, and in a world that faces unprecedented environmental and global challenges for all species, the importance of these thresholds may well be considered as part of our professional obligations in potentially documenting and archiving the critical differences in semiosis that extend beyond purely human knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This research explored the storytelling (collection, curation and use) in the Cabrach, a remote Scottish glen. This study aims to capture the methodological process of storytelling and curation of heritage knowledge through the lens of the Cabrach's whisky distilling history, a central part of the area's cultural heritage, tangible and intangible. This research was conceptualised as "telling the story of telling the story of the Cabrach". It was concerned with how the history, heritage, historiography and testimony associated with the parish could be harvested, made sense of and subsequently used. Design/methodology/approach: The study was epistemological in nature and the research was concerned with how heritage knowledge is gathered, curated and understood. It was built around the collection of knowledge through expert testimony from Colin Mackenzie and Alan Winchester, who have extensively researched aspects of life in the Cabrach. This was done using a series of theme-based but free-flowing conversational workshop involving participants and research team. Issues of trust and authority in the research team were crucial. Data were recorded, transcribed and coded. A conceptual model for heritage storytelling in the Cabrach was developed together with a transferable version for other contexts. Findings: The research was conceived around identifying the stories of the Cabrach and grouping them into cohesive narrative themes focused on the most important aspect of the glen's history (the development of malt whisky distilling). The research showed how all crucial narratives associated with the Cabrach were interconnected with that malt whisky story. It was concerned with identifying broad thematic narratives rather than the specific detailed stories themselves, but also from a methodological perspective how stories around those themes could be collected, curated and used. It presents the outcome of "expert testimony" oral history conversations and presents a conceptual model for the curation of heritage knowledge. Practical implications: This paper reports on research which focuses on the confluence of those issues of heritage-led regeneration, intangible cultural heritage, as well as how stories of and from, about and for, a distinctive community in North-East Scotland can be collected, curated and displayed. It presents methodological conceptualisations as well as focused areas of results which can be used to create a strong and inclusive narrative to encapsulate the durable sense of place and support the revival of an economically viable and sustainable community. Social implications: This conceptual model offers a framework with universal elements (Place, People, Perception) alongside a strong core narrative of storytelling. That core element may vary but the outer elements remain the same, with people and place being omnipresent and the need to build an emotional or visceral connection with visitors being crucial, beyond "telling stories" which might be regarded as parochial or narrowly focused. The model informs how communities and heritage organisations tell their stories in an authentic and proportionate manner. This can help shape and explain cultures and identities and support visitors' understanding of, and connection with, places they visit and experience. Originality/value: The originality lies in two principal areas, the exploration of the narratives of a singularly distinctive community – the Cabrach – which plays a disproportionately significant role in the development of malt whisky distilling in Scotland; and also in terms of the methodological approach to the collection and curation of heritage storytelling, drawing not on first-hand accounts as in conventional oral history approaches but through the expert testimony of two historical and ethnographic researchers. The value is demonstrating the creation of a conceptual model which can be transferred to other contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: One of the most critical changes to academic library services in the last decade has been the development and implementation of research data services (RDS). This paper seeks to provide a comprehensive understanding of conceptual models for the RDS space. Design/methodology/approach: An extensive and comprehensive review of the literature on conceptual models for RDS is performed. Findings: Various conceptual models for RDS provide a compelling tool for guiding and evaluating RDS development and implementation within academic libraries. Originality/value: An insightful review and synthesis of context and issues in RDS models will help academic libraries to plan, develop and advance their RDS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This article aims to advance a multifaceted framework for preserving algorithms and algorithmic systems in an archival context. Design/methodology/approach: The article is based on a review and synthesis of existing literature, during which the authors observe emergent themes. After introducing these themes, the authors follow each theme as manifest in existing digital preservation projects, starting with algorithms' earliest conceptual starting points and moving up through themes' eventual implementation within a complex social environment. Findings: The authors find current literature is largely divided between that which addresses algorithms primarily as computational artifacts and that which views them instead as primarily social in nature. To bridge this gap the authors propose that "the algorithm," as the algorithm is frequently deployed in popular discourse, is best understood as not as either the algorithm's technical or social components, but rather the sum total of both. Research limitations/implications: The study is limited by its methodology as a literature review. However, the findings point toward a new framing for future research that is less divided in terms of social or material orientation. Practical implications: Creating multifaceted records of algorithms, the authors argue, enables more effective regulation and management of algorithmic systems, which in turn help to improve their levels of fairness, accountability, and trustworthiness. Originality/value: The paper offers a wide variety of case studies with the potential to inform future studies, while contextualizing the studies together within a new framework that avoids prior limitations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper presents results of a study on data managers' perspectives on the evolution of Designated Communities and the FAIR Principles using an example of a geological repository. Design/methodology/approach: The study employed 10 semi-structured interviews with data managers at a state geological survey and qualitative analysis of the interview transcripts. Findings: The Designated Community for a collection in this data repository has evolved from petroleum industry users to include academic researchers and the public. This change was accompanied by significant user interaction changes from in-person, reference interview-style conversations to anonymous digital, automated interactions. The main factors driving these changes were developments in technology which allowed the data managers to shift data discovery and access into the online environment. The online data portal has seen increasing non-expert use, driving the data team to develop additional services for these new communities. Repository data team participants varied in their familiarity with the FAIR Principles and their perceptions of the FAIRness of the data in the repository. Research limitations/implications: The study was limited to one organization in the United States. However, the results are applicable to other data environments working through the tensions between high-level global frameworks such as FAIR, and continuing to serve the day-to-day needs of their designated communities. Continued work on how to assess success in this complex space is needed. Originality/value: This paper lies at the nexus of two digital preservation frameworks and contributes to a limited extant literature providing guidance on implementing the concept of a Designated Community in practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to lay a theoretical foundation for identifying operational information units for library and information professional activities in the context of scholarly communication. Design/methodology/approach: The study adopts a deduction-verification approach to formulate a typology of units for scholarly information. It first deduces possible units from an existing conceptualization of information, which defines information as the combined product of data and meaning, and then tests the usefulness of these units via two empirical investigations, one with a group of scholarly papers and the other with a sample of scholarly information users. Findings: The results show that, on defining an information unit as a piece of information that is complete in both data and meaning, to such an extent that it remains meaningful to its target audience when retrieved and displayed independently in a database, it is then possible to formulate a hierarchical typology of units for scholarly information. The typology proposed in this study consists of three levels, which in turn, consists of 1, 5 and 44 units, respectively. Research limitations/implications: The result of this study has theoretical implications on both the philosophical and conceptual levels: on the philosophical level, it hinges on, and reinforces the objective view of information; on the conceptual level, it challenges the conceptualization of work by IFLA's Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records and Library Reference Model but endorses that by Library of Congress's BIBFRAME 2.0 model. Practical implications: It calls for reconsideration of existing operational units in a variety of library and information activities. Originality/value: The study strengthens the conceptual foundation of operational information units and brings to light the primacy of "one work" as an information unit and the possibility for it to be supplemented by smaller units. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: In this information age, demonstrating the significance of physical libraries is increasingly important. The roles and functions of libraries have been discussed using the concept of the library as place in interdisciplinary perspectives. However, the overall structure of the concept is inadequate because there are multifaceted arguments; how the concept has changed is not clear either. The purpose of this study is to clarify the whole picture of the roles and functions of the library as place in public libraries and to show the transition of the roles and functions. Design/methodology/approach: Qualitative content analysis and time-series analysis were conducted using 175 related articles that mentioned the roles and functions of the library as a place. Findings: An overall of 2,966 codes about library as a place was extracted and organised into a conceptual model, comprising 3 symbolic infrastructures (Wisdom, Heritage and Community), 11 categories (Intelligence, Creativity, Novelty, Culture and History, Neutrality, Equality, Empowerment, Publicness, Privacy, Sociability and Friendliness) and 30 subcategories. The study found that concepts of the library as place have developed rapidly since the 1990s, and roles have diversified from traditional ones. Originality/value: The conceptual model of the library as place in this study, which integrates diverse perspectives such as physical spaces, activities and symbols, is the first of model's kind. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to construct a conceptual model of the public sphere in public libraries. Various international authors over the past 20 years have associated the public sphere with public libraries, but these associations have yet to be clarified and synthesized in a comprehensive way. Design/methodology/approach – This study used qualitative content analysis to identify the dimensions of the public sphere in public libraries. The study’s scope included annual reports from an urban US public library system from 1900 to 2010. Findings – Six dimensions of the public sphere in public libraries are described with examples. The dimensions are: core criteria; internal public sphere; external public sphere; collect and organize discourse; perform legitimation processes; and facilitate discourse. Three of these dimensions are newly identified. The six total dimensions are synthesized into a comprehensive conceptual model with three discourse arenas: governance and management; legitimation; and commons. Originality/value – This study is distinctive because it used a data-based, empirical approach to public libraries to an abstract sociological concept. Three dimensions of the model are new to library studies literature and therefore represent new potential areas of inquiry. The resulting conceptual model is useful for both practitioners and researchers in the public library sector. Further, the model contributes to existing social and political theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present functional requirements for bibliographic records (FRBR)-based model and functional requirements for authority data (FRAD)-based model; both of which incorporate an event concept that transforms FRBR and FRAD with minimal modification. Design/methodology/approach – Relationships between the entities defined in FRBR/FRAD are transformed into event entities and relationships with other kinds of entities. The cardinality of those relationships is also examined. In addition, a comparison of the proposed FRBR-based model with the object-oriented FRBR (FRBROO) is conducted. Findings – In the proposed event-aware FRBR model, an event and its output resource are dependent on each other and necessary information about an event can be expressed with information about its output resource, and vice versa. Therefore, the usefulness and expressiveness of the proposed model is limited. In the FRBROO model, dependency between an event and its output resource is not observed, except in a few cases, since a different resource and event modeling was adopted there. The event-aware FRAD model proposed is useful – but also the scope of its usefulness limited since dependency between an event and its input/output resource is not observed on some event entities. Originality/value – The proposed models are meaningful in terms of understanding the basic structure and features of a model that incorporates an event concept. The usefulness and limitation of event modeling have been clarified through such model building. The proposed models provide a stable basis for examining FRBR/FRAD further. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – This paper aims to build on of a previous study of mental models of the bibliographic universe, which found that the Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR) conceptual model is intuitive. Design/methodology/approach – A total of 120 participants were presented with a list of bibliographic entities and six graphs each. They were asked to choose the graph they thought best represented the relationships between entities described. Findings – The graph based on the FRBR model was chosen by more than half of the participants and none of the alternatives stood out. This gives further indication that FRBR is an appropriate model of the bibliographic universe from users' standpoint. Research limitations/implications – The study only looked at the textual part of the bibliographic universe. Further research is needed for other types of materials. Practical implications – This research suggests that there should be a more positive attitude towards implementation of FRBR-based catalogues. Originality/value – This is one of only a handful of user studies relating to FRBR, which looks to be the backbone of catalogues for years to come. As such, the results should be of interest to everybody involved with catalogues, from cataloguers to the end-users. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – This conceptual article aims to discuss how the concept of a document and documentation along with a general document model could inform us in the design and engineering of information or rather documentation systems. Design/methodology/approach – This paper presents a broad and complementary document model, derived from the last couple of decades' discussion on what is a document and what is documentation. This model is used as a basis for a method, a conceptual tool or a template for analysis of socio-technical systems. Findings – The authors contend that the document systems analysis is a holistic approach compared to the traditional systems design and engineering reductionist approach, and also in the context of sociotechnical systems design. The document model is a taxonomy of the constituents of the document and, the authors argue, a potential communication tool in systems design. Research limitations/implications – The document model presented in this article is discussed more or less solely in the context of information systems design, specifically sociotechnical systems. Moreover, the authors have tried to fit the theory and model within this context here, even though the concepts and thoughts can have much more general implications. Practical implications – This presentation of a novel document model and framework is presented as a potential tool for systems analysis and design. The authors regard this as a realistic vision for the framework, but at the current stage of development for the model it is probably more useful as draft for such a tool or framework; a point of departure for the discussion of practical – and theoretical – implications of a broad and holistic document model. Originality/value – A novel, unpublished document model, derived from theoretical discourses of document ontology in the "neo-documentalist" movement spawned from a particular research community in Tromsø, Norway, is presented and discussed in the light of information systems design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study examines the enabling factors and practices that foster knowledge management in museums and the impact of those factors and practices on museums' performance and public value. Design/methodology/approach: The authors conducted an exploratory survey of senior leaders of 191 small and mid-sized museums in the United States. The survey tested a novel conceptual model that integrates the constructs of knowledge management enablers, knowledge management orientation and organizational performance. Descriptive and inferential statistical analyses of survey data were conducted to identify both the presence and dimensions of these constructs as well as the nature of the relationships among them. Findings: The results of this study identified strong and significant predictive relationships between the constructs of its novel conceptual model. However, findings also identified key gaps in how museums create, manage and share organizational knowledge. These gaps limit their organizational performance and their ability to create public value. The authors identify specific factors and practices that enable museums to improve their organizational performance and increase their public value. Originality/value: As the first empirical study of knowledge management enablers and knowledge management orientation in museums, this research not only adapts the study of these constructs to the museum sector, but it develops a novel conceptual model that links these constructs to multiple dimensions of a museum's organizational performance and public value. This research sets the stage for new study of knowledge management in museums; it also provides valuable insights for museum leaders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]