"A Brilliant Mind": Margaret Egan and Social Epistemology

Margaret Egan (1905???59) taught at the Graduate Library School of the University of Chicago (1946???55) and at the School of Library Science at Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio (1955???59). With her colleague Jesse Shera, Egan wrote ???Foundations of a Theory of Bibliography??? for Library Quarterly in 1952; this article marked the fi rst appearance of the term ???social epistemology.??? After Egan???s death, Shera has often been credited for the idea of social epistemology. However, there is ample evidence to show that it was Egan who originated the concept???one that is commonly viewed as fundamental to the theoretical foundations of library and information science.published or submitted for publicatio

Disciplinarity and Trandisciplinarity in the Study of Knowledge

Scholarly inquiry about the nature and significance of knowledge has been shaped by disciplinary traditions and priorities that define “knowledge” differently and result in disconnected literatures. In the mid to late twentieth century, library science educator Jesse Shera sought to bridge the conceptual gap between epistemological and sociological approaches to knowledge in proposing a new discipline he called social epistemology. Around the same time, long-term projects by the economist Fritz Machlup and the physical chemist turned philosopher of science Michael Polanyi did not merely combine existing disciplinary approaches but transcended conventional frameworks for conceptualizing knowledge. These scholars can be viewed in retrospect as bringing to the study of knowledge the germs of a transdisciplinary approach. The concept of transdisciplinarity gained traction only after these authors produced their works and has been applied mainly to scientific and technological topics such as climate change, nanotechnology, and sustainability. However, such an approach is highly applicable in studying the meanings, uses, and roles of knowledge in an environment that has changed with the advent of computer-enabled communication networks. Transdisciplinary accounts of knowledge ought to foster a dialogue between liberal arts and applied, client-oriented disciplines

Disciplinarity and Trandisciplinarity in the Study of Knowledge

Scholarly inquiry about the nature and significance of knowledge has been shaped by disciplinary traditions and priorities that define “knowledge” differently and result in disconnected literatures. In the mid to late twentieth century, library science educator Jesse Shera sought to bridge the conceptual gap between epistemological and sociological approaches to knowledge in proposing a new discipline he called social epistemology. Around the same time, long-term projects by the economist Fritz Machlup and the physical chemist turned philosopher of science Michael Polanyi did not merely combine existing disciplinary approaches but transcended conventional frameworks for conceptualizing knowledge. These scholars can be viewed in retrospect as bringing to the study of knowledge the germs of a transdisciplinary approach. The concept of transdisciplinarity gained traction only after these authors produced their works and has been applied mainly to scientific and technological topics such as climate change, nanotechnology, and sustainability. However, such an approach is highly applicable in studying the meanings, uses, and roles of knowledge in an environment that has changed with the advent of computer-enabled communication networks. Transdisciplinary accounts of knowledge ought to foster a dialogue between liberal arts and applied, client-oriented disciplines

Towards establishing an epistemological position for library and information science

Bibliography: leaves 497-531.This study examines the need for and value of a theory of knowledge for library and information science that would account for the 'Ways in which given philosophical assumptions lead to certain modes of professional practice and styles of academic research. Since given theoretical standpoints influence the nature of library practice and tend to structure the way in which library and information science research is conducted, this investigation focuses on an analysis of the fundamental conceptions of knowledge, information, truth and reality in the context of the unique complex of functions of this profession. The main method applied in this study is a representative consultation and review of the literatures of library and information science, and of a few cognate or classical fields of study. A special focus is the examination and analysis of the writings of more than 40 selected library and information science theorists, as well as those of non-librarians. The inductively-derived results of this examination are reflected in analytical typologies. The holistic intellectual tradition that underlies the presumed continuities and commonalities in the typologies is developed as a framework for developing suitable criteria to establish and evaluate an appropriate epistemological position for library and information science. An epistemological position called holistic perspectivism is proposed as one which satisfies the postulated criteria. A graphic model of this position is explained as a means of demonstrating the application of holistic perspectivism in given areas of the knowledge-transfer role of library and information science