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Keywords: Document Studies, Document Genres, Document Architecture, Text Theory, Library and Information Science. Document studies (DS), including an interest in the phenomenology of discrete documents at micro-level, have become increasingly important and visible within Library and Information Science (LIS), not least due to the advent of new media and digital document forms. At the same time it is possible to define DS as a cross-disciplinary field in its own right. This essay discusses DS from two angles. Firstly the role and place of DS as a part of LIS is analysed. Special emphasis is put on its connection to LIS subfield Knowledge Organisation. A relation between the internal structure and sociocultural aspects of individual documents and aggregations of documents as a basis for knowledge organisation is discussed. Secondly the case of analytical DS, expanding the sociotechnical aspects of the field, is treated using examples from ongoing research projects. The projects involve notions of document genre and architecture and bring forth dimensions from both textual criticism, editorial theory, material bibliography, current markup theory as well as new media theory, and are carried out within a LIS environment. The essay concludes that sociotechnical perspectives on document genres and document architecture may well be of value in finding a firm basis for DS as a whole within the disciplinary context of LIS - something which would also be beneficial for LIS. Address: Swedish School of Library and Information Science, University College of Borås SE-50190, Borås Sweden Joacim Hansson, PhD, Associate Professor, Helena Francke, M.L.I.S, Doctorial student, Mats Dahlström, M.L.I.S., Doctorial Student, Mikael Gunnarsson, M.L.I.S., Doctorial Student, |
last updated 8.may 2003