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It is clear that a lot of information acquisition happens through networks and therefore the focus in this article will lie in the relationships that bind a network together. The attempt is to map the motives as well as the group identity factors as means of exploring the reasons for sharing. The theoretical framework is brought from the social capital and group identity literature combined with the theories on information sharing in context. The aim is to see how information-sharing practices are developed in two different organisations and these theories are mirrored in the information sharing practices in an insurance company and in a biotechnology firm. The analysis of the cases shows how the group identity and the local context affect information sharing practices. The human and social processes underpin the formal structures enabling information interactions.

Second Life is a user‐created online virtual world, which is a place where people with shared interests can meet and be together and share information. The purpose of this study is to investigate whether Second Life communities foster and nurture social capital, whether social capital within Second Life is related to social capital outside the virtual world, whether some characteristics affect the likelihood of users having social capital, and whether some existing measure of social capital can be modified and used to study social capital in Second Life.

The study was based on a statistical analysis of data gathered in a web survey of a convenience sample (n= 67) of Second Life residents. The social capital measure used was based on Bullen and Onyx.

Second Life is an environment that fosters the emergence of social capital. Residents who consider themselves producers have higher levels of social capital than those who consider themselves non‐producers. Having social capital within Second Life is unrelated to having social capital outside the virtual world. The consistency of the instrument proved to be excellent for measuring social capital within Second Life and good outside the virtual world.

The small sample size and the composition of the research population limit the ability to generalise the findings.

Second Life is a potent environment for community building and collective action. However, communities and collective action within Second Life cannot be based on social activity outside the virtual world.

The present study is the first systematic investigation of social capital in Second Life.

The focus of this paper is to study the influence of social media on scholarly communication. The aim is to provide an overview of researchers' use of Web 2.0 techniques, and discuss a possible change of information behaviors in the context of scholarly communication.

A web survey was distributed to a targeted sample of university staff (professors, teachers, researchers, and doctoral students). SPSS was utilized as a main tool to synthesize and analyze data, and present the results.

Web 2.0 tools are well‐known to researchers. Most researchers are familiar with blogs, wikis, social networks, multimedia sharing, and online document. Social media provide a convenient environment for scholarly communication. Depending on different aims within the scholarly communication process, researchers choose appropriate modes of communication in their research work.

A combination of content analysis with survey and/or interviews may highlight other aspects of Web 2.0, which is not possible using a single method of content analysis.

There are few studies on the changes of scholarly communication in the context of Web 2.0. This study provides new insights for exploring the effects of Web 2.0 tools on scholarly communication and the development of new information behavior to match the scholarly environment of social media. This understanding can aid the researchers to keep abreast of new characteristics of scholarly communication and help the librarians to develop the correlative services in the scholarly environment of social media.

The aim of this paper is to define both theoretically and empirically the concept of Library 2.0.

Written answers to the question “What is Library 2.0?” given by practitioners and researchers (n=29) interested in Library 2.0 issues were analyzed by using co‐word analysis to map the underlying elements of the concept.

The study resulted in a model of Library 2.0, containing seven building‐blocks of the phenomenon: interactivity, users, participation, libraries and library services, web and web 2.0, social aspects, and technology and tools.

The model provides a basis for framing Library 2.0 as a research object and to map central themes of future research.

A comprehensive model enables both researchers and practitioners to frame the phenomenon more clearly, evaluate existing and planned services and their proximity to what is Library 2.0.

Unlike earlier proposals for a definition of the notion Library 2.0, the present study presents an empirical and consensual crowd‐sourcing approach of defining the concept Library 2.0 and provides basis for discussing the future evolution of the notion and its implications for library and information science research and library practices.

The purpose of this article is to investigate and critically examine conceptualisations of information sharing activities in a selection of library and information science (LIS) literature.

In order to explore how LIS researchers define the concept of information sharing, and how the concept is connected with theory, empirical material and other supporting concepts, a literature review and a conceptual meta‐analysis was carried out on 35 papers and one monograph. The analysis was based on Waismann's concept of open texture, Wittgenstein's notion of language games and the concept of meaning holism.

Six theoretical frameworks were identified. These are not found to be incommensurable, but can be used as building blocks for an integrative framework. Ambiguous conceptualisations are frequent. Different conceptualisations tend to emphasize different aspects of information sharing activities: that which is shared; those who are sharing; and the location in which the sharing activities take place. The commonalities of the people involved in information sharing activities are often seen as a ground for the development of information sharing practices.

The findings provide a guide for future research which intends to explore activities of information sharing.

The article offers a systematic review of recent LIS literature on information sharing, and extends the theoretical base for information sharing research.

Ari-Veikko Anttiroiko is a docent and acting professor in the Department of Regional Studies, University of Tampere, Finland. He has conducted and directed several research projects, including The Future of Electronic Services in Local Government and the Local Governance in the Information Society financed by the Academy of Finland. He has worked as an expert in several national and international e-government projects. His academic contributions include in a nutshell nearly 30 monographs, about 40 articles, and some 20 conference papers. He has memberships in several scientific organizations and editorial boards.

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the problem of information and knowledge management (IKM) in higher education institutions. The research aims to determine the way in which the knowledge resources of a higher education institution are managed. The author intends to define how the information system is shaped and how information and knowledge are used in the reporting processes and for decision-making efficiency.

In total, 38 university administration employees from six higher education institutions in Poland participated in the study. Information barriers and benefits resulting from the implementation of the central reporting system “POL-on” were identified by using the sense-making technique. The purpose of the interviews was to determine the procedural and behavioural conditions of the reporting and decision-making processes in higher education institutions in Poland.

This paper suggests four characteristics of IKM in higher education institutions. A link between the information culture of the institution, its size and structure as well as the adopted model of IKM is demonstrated.

The main contribution of this paper is to introduce a framework for studying the IKM in higher education institutions from the perspective of information culture. Higher education institutions have developed different styles of striving for efficiency regarding decision making and reporting in administration. The IM and KM are now proved to be an integrated process in administrative activities of higher education institutions.