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1 – 3 of 3After the closing of four of the five historically Black college and university (HBCU)–based library and information science (LIS) graduate programs (leaving only that of North…
Abstract
Purpose
After the closing of four of the five historically Black college and university (HBCU)–based library and information science (LIS) graduate programs (leaving only that of North Carolina Central University), there is a need to revitalize HBCU-LIS degree program pathways to increase racial diversity in LIS education.
Design/methodology/approach
This mixed-methods study entails survey and interview research with HBCU librarians. The researchers explored participants’ professional experiences and perspectives on creating partnerships between HBCU institutions and LIS graduate programs.
Findings
Participants demonstrated substantial experience, expressed high levels of job satisfaction, viewed pipeline programs favorably and believed that LIS can be strengthened through the inclusion of HBCU educational practices and students.
Practical implications
This study provides recommendations and a model for forging culturally competent and reciprocal HBCU–LIS degree program partnerships.
Social implications
Community-led knowledge of HBCUs can disrupt rescue and deficiency narratives of these institutions. Such prejudices are detrimental to HBCU-LIS degree program partnerships.
Originality/value
Past HBCU-LIS degree program pipeline partnerships did not culminate in research or published best practices. This paper presents literature-derived and community-sourced guidelines along with a model for future initiatives.
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Biyang Yu, Ana Ndumu, Lorri M. Mon and Zhenjia Fan
The purpose of this paper is to improve understanding of the societal problem of the deepening digital divide by establishing and testing an integrated conceptual framework for…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to improve understanding of the societal problem of the deepening digital divide by establishing and testing an integrated conceptual framework for digital divide research.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors established the integrated conceptual framework after synthesizing the literature, and then tested the framework by conducting a secondary analysis of a 2014-2015 data set comprised of 398 survey responses and nine interviews with Chinese migrant workers.
Findings
The results showed that Chinese migrant workers were partially e-included in the digital society. However, they encountered material, cognitive, motivational, and social access limitations due to the lack of financial, material, educational, psychological, interpersonal, and cognitive resources, which caused them to experience a digital divide. Findings support the use of the integrative model as a potential analytical framework to understand and address digital inequalities.
Originality/value
This study first proposed an integrative framework to understand the measurements and causes of the digital divide and then empirically tested its feasibility.
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Immigration dominates much of the current US sociopolitical discourse. The research on US-based immigrant information behavior, however, remains scant. To understand the role of…
Abstract
Purpose
Immigration dominates much of the current US sociopolitical discourse. The research on US-based immigrant information behavior, however, remains scant. To understand the role of information in immigration, this study explores information overload among Black immigrants in the US.
Design/methodology/approach
The researcher developed a literature-derived information overload scale to investigate participants' information access along with experiences and response to information overload.
Findings
Results suggest that participants experience information overload due to behavioral (e.g. the demands of needing, seeking, or using information), quantitative (i.e. volume or length), and qualitative (e.g. authority, diversity, or urgency) indicators. Most participants mitigate information overload by turning to intermediaries and filtering resources.
Research limitations/implications
The information overload scale can advance knowledge of the role of information in immigrant acculturative stress.
Social implications
LIS researchers and practitioners can utilize findings to foster social inclusion and well-being among immigrants.
Originality/value
Scholarship on immigrant information behavior must reflect the centrality of information in migration and how it shapes integration and acculturation.
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