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Information resilience has become a topic of interest to the information science community in recent years. The COVID‐19 pandemic has shone a light on the vulnerability of information and other networks and the impact on information providers and the information seekers who rely on them. In an exploratory study, we interviewed support workers who act as information intermediaries as part of their work roles about their experiences of providing information to vulnerable and marginalised people during the UK COVID‐19 lockdown. We present findings organised in three themes: shifting client information needs and support provisions, adjusting information sharing and communication practices and workarounds for physical information work. Throughout the themes, information resilience is evident as information intermediaries adapt their work practices to ensure they can continue to serve their clients. In this first stage of research our findings provide insight into the changes to information intermediaries' information behaviour and information work during a crisis, as well as the impact of these changes on the services they provide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conducting research that has social impact is more than simply disseminating research when it is completed. It is more than looking at the influence research has on a research field or discipline. Conducting research that has social impact is a process of engaging communities in the research process and ensuring that the communities that take part in the research experience benefits. Socially impactful research is messy and challenging. It takes commitment from researchers to consider social impact and integrate practices into the entire research process from planning to collecting data, to communicating and implementing findings with communities. While this research is taking place within the field of information behavior/information practices, many of the ways this research is carried out are hidden. In this panel, four information behavior/information practice researchers will discuss research projects that have social impact and "pull back the curtain" on their approach to this research, what this means practically for carrying out this research, as well as how research findings are communicated and applied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This short paper examines social interaction (e.g. asking colleagues for help in the lunchroom) as an informative experience, a way to understand oneself and situation. The process of coming to an understanding is frequently hidden, but may be brought to light by examining the experiences of individuals undergoing a transition – a change that requires them to redefine their sense of self and situation. Using exemplars from previous research and drawing on Lave and Wenger's (1991) theory of situated learning, this paper explores the importance of social interaction to information practices. The role of social interaction will be discussed, including: information seeking to become part of a community, and social interaction as a source of information and as a site for information comparison (a type of information use) to situate oneself in a new environment. The paper proposes making social interaction a focus of study to better understand how individuals use information to change perception about and situate themselves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Academics are increasingly being asked to demonstrate the impact of their research beyond the walls of the academy. Societal impact measures were introduced as part of the Research Excellence Framework exercise in the UK in 2014 with a number of other countries, including Australia, considering similar assessments. As societal impact measures continue to proliferate there will be significant implications for academics, institutions, and academic libraries to document and support these activities. Information science is well-placed not only to guide practical supports within our institutions, but also to develop metrics and qualitative approaches to assess this type of research impact. This exploratory qualitative study -- situated in a constructivist grounded theory methodology -- investigated academics' experiences and perceptions of the concept of societal research impact and the supports needed to facilitate this work. The definition of impact varied greatly among participants, but regardless of the participant's conception, interviewees felt that they were not prepared, trained, or had access to the needed supports to adequately document non-academic types of impact. The data point to a number of emergent themes including a lack of relevant methodologies for tracking societal impact, the shortcomings of metrics approaches to document impact outside of academe, and the need for academic libraries to extend current reference and training supports to provide researchers with the tools and skills needed in this new impact landscape. Implications for research and development in information science related to scholarly communication, researchers' information behaviors, and impact measures are also explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Information Science (IS), as well as other disciplines, discourse analysis has been used to extend the range of contextual data gathered using other research approaches. This form of textual analysis can enrich our understanding of complex information practices and contexts, particularly in relation to the ways that society and individuals construct understandings of various phenomena. However, not all discourse analysis approaches are the same; linguistic, Foucouldian, and psycho-social discourse analysis practices vary in their intent and their application. This panel will provide an overview of the discourse analysis methodology, including how the approach is conducted in various disciplines. By focusing on three projects by IS scholars that use discourse analysis, the range of data collection and analysis possibilities - including benefits and limitations of the approach - will be explored. The panel will also discuss how discourse analysis can be used in mixed methods studies, or with research participants engaged in other methods, to extend the research knowledge in the discipline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a qualitative study of the information behavior of early career academics transitioning from doctoral studies to their first continuing academic positions, participants used the phrase "bouncing ideas" with relative frequency to describe their interactions with colleagues. Using constructivist grounded theory methodology, interviews with 20 early career academics were analyzed and for themes and sub‐themes. "Bouncing ideas" emerged as a sub‐theme, related to collegial information exchange, an important way early career academics find workplace information. Despite its common usage, the term remained vague in participant discussions and unexamined in the information science literature. This poster will investigate the meaning of "bouncing ideas" as used by participants, exploring its potential constituent parts including: information seeking, information sharing, collaboration, and information creation. ASIS&T conference attendees will be encouraged to think about and actively engage in discussion about the phrase, in an attempt to answer the research question, What does "bouncing ideas" mean? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]