Knowledge map of information science

all the major subfields and important aspects of the field. This article presents a systematic and comprehensive knowledge map of the field, and is grounded on the panel discussions. The map has 10 basic categories: The model establishes the groundwork for formulating theories of information science, as well as developing and evaluating information science academic programs and bibliographic resources. Introduction Context The field of Information Science (IS) is constantly changing. Therefore, information scientists are required to regularly review, and if necessary, redefine its fundamental building blocks. This article is part of a group of four articles that resulted from a Critical Delphi study conducted in 2003–2005. The study explores the theoretical foundations of information science. It maps the conceptual approaches for defining data, information, and knowledge (Zins, 2007b); maps the major conceptions of information science (Zins, 2007a); portrays the profile of contemporary information science by documenting 28 classification schemes compiled by leading scholars during the study (Zins, in press); and culminates—in this article—in the development of a systematic and scientifically based knowledge map of the field, one grounded on a solid theoretical basis. This article presents a skeleton of a systematic and comprehensive knowledge map of the field. The map is grounded in the panel discussions. Formulating a knowledge map means to establish the boundaries of the field and define its main parts. Knowledge Mapping Knowledge mapping plays an important role in the construction , learning, and dissemination of knowledge. In a previous study, Zins (2004) substantiated the importance of two preexperiential elements. These are the preexperiential constitutive concept and the preexperiential cognitive structure. Note that the term preexperiential stresses that these two intellectual elements do not depend on the present experience. The term a priori, usually refers to intellectual elements that are not dependent on any (previous) sensory experience, while the term preexperiential refers here to intellectual elements that are not based on the present experience , but are based on previous experiences. The preexperiential constitutive concept sets the boundaries of the knowledge domain. In our case, the constitutive concept information science sets the content of the field. To be specific, information science implies six alternative contents pending on the implemented conception (see Zins, 2007a). These are the mediating aspects of D-I-K-M phenomena as they are implemented in the high-tech domain (i.e., the high-tech model) versus the mediating aspects of D-I-K-M phenomena as they are implemented in all types …