Ben Shirley

MLIS 600
Dr. Hersberger
12/4/06

Professional Values Statement

Introductory Statement

As a library and information science professional, my professional values are based on

how I feel information can best be communicated and organized in our society.

Universally Available Information

The foremost professional value that I hold is making information universally available to
uses. It is the structure of our society that limits the implications of this value. First, it is
necessary that information be made available to people in a way that helps them, educates
them, and lets them make their own decisions about the information's value. A system
that provides universal open access to all, but does not promote positive critical
interpretation and use of information becomes dangerous, volatile and self destructive. I
believe that luckily, it is human nature to do otherwise. A good system takes ethics into
account, but also treats those ethics just as other pieces of information are treated, as
something, if it is useful, to be communicated to users, and communicated about by users
of the information system. This gives the opportunity for users to participate in
information creation and not just the consumption of it. If through use, information is
critically examined and then synthesized by the user and not just by the information
authority, then the process of information nurturing and culling will be infinitely more
efficient and accurate to the needs and ethics of the information society. To mix
metaphors: the wheat will separate from the chaff, and the cream will rise to the top, but
only if the system is designed for this to happen. It is the information process which is
most essential in the creation of good cream and wheat (yum!). The information process
can be defined as communication of information. It is information in its kinetic state.
Like matter, information is most useful when it is dynamic, creating energy.

There are two important values that I also hold which I derive from the universal
availability of information. Those are communication of information, and diversification
of the information authority. As I my discussion of these values becomes more specific, it
will be necessary to also be more concrete with the concept of libraries as a type of
information system.

Responsible Communication of Information

I value the responsible and progressive communication of information. Here,

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responsibility does not mean strict control of the information but cultivating the freedom
of the information user. A library provides information service by facilitating the
communication of information the users. I see four ways that the process takes place.

Information to User

First there is self facilitation by the user. For example, a user can enter a library, search
for the information that is individually required, and then leave without criticism or
outside influence. This gives users a freedom to choose their own path and rate at which
they process information.

Librarian to User

The second is facilitation of information communication by a librarian to a user. This has

been a thoroughly and well developed process in the library field. As an information
authority, the librarian communicates with the user. Through this exchange of
information, the librarian is able to guide the users to information which will be useful to
them.

Library to user

The third form of communication that takes place in a library is the library as an
institution communicating with users. This process of information exchange takes place
in many ways, but some examples are the Library publicizing its services to users, or the
communication or rules, guidelines, or services to users. This communication can take the
form of publications, postings, web information, or even librarian to user information.
Often the problem with this type of information communication is that the information
stems from a bureaucratic decision making process that hardly represents the mission of
filling of users information needs. The structure of the data itself can also be an example
of the communication of the library as an institution, and convolution of that structure
from the bureaucratic decision process can be the bane of the library’s existence.
Traditionally businesses have been much more successful at the institution to user type of
communication because their capitalistic goals are much more straight forward. Often in
business, a mass need is created or seized upon and exploited for monetary gain.
Libraries are faced with a very complex task of meeting the individual information needs
of all its users.

User to User

I believe that a solution may be found in the fourth type of information communication in
a library, the communication of information from user to user. This is the aspect of
communication in libraries that I believe has the most potential for improving the

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information structure of the library. The growth of technology is making this type of
structured communication more possible and more beneficial to the whole system.
Library users should be encouraged to create information about information. If this new
information is then readily shared with all other users when and were it is relevant to their
search for information, all will benefit. The job of information authorities will multiplied
by the masses and users will have more control over the flow of information that they
receive, for the betterment of other users. Examples of this type of communication are
found largely outside of the average library information system, but could be applied to
great benefit. One example is an online user rating system for information. Users can
assign a ranking to different pieces of information marking their relevance for future
researchers. User created content is a burgeoning information model on the world wide
web. With the proper structure and guidance towards beneficial information
communication, this could be a very powerful model for Library information
communication.

Disbursal of the Information Authority

As stated earlier, my values include a widened view of the information authority. In our
current information society this may require a redefinition of the role of the information
authority. Users need to have a say in what information is authoritative, exercise critical
thinking, and communicate it to others. In the academic world, the peer review system is
a good example of information authority being checked. But it excludes most users from
the process, through the definition of who is peer to who. It lacks public exposure and
accountability. In the development of the academic system it had been a necessity for
checks to evolve to this end, but now using rapidly growing communication technologies,
all members of an information system can benefit from a more open system. Another
important part of promoting responsible information authority disbursement is a process
of active deferment of information authority. In this process one user gains enough
information to actively defer to another user who they believe is knowledgeable and thus
worthy of being an authority on a topic. I believe that the disbursement of information
authority is the only way for a true model of “the information commons” to be achieved
in libraries. A good example of this type of structure at work is the Wikipeadia, the open
source, users created online encyclopedia. A major setback to its content is that it is being
created all from scratch. It lacks the previously established authoritative information that
libraries possess.

Responsible Use of Technology

I have stated several times that I believe the expansion of technology can be used to
create a structure of communication, making information more universally available and
beneficial to all users. I have also cited a few other professional information values that I
believe are important in this process. This leads me to a final value statement. I value
responsible and effective use of technology. I see technology as a set of tools for
organizing and giving access to information. And it is the information professional, or the

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librarian’s job to use these tools to clean up people’s information messes. Some of these
messes are overt, but most are more latent, owning to the evolution of information
structures. These must be carefully subverted to create a new and more beneficial
information system. In the use of technology, the human need should not be
overshadowed by technological advance but uplifted by it. Part of making these tools
effective involves closing the “digital divide,” providing equal access and thus
participation in information communication though technology. Another part of the
responsible use of technology is knowing when to not use it. Many of the examples I
have given of egalitarian contribution to information can and has been conducted without
new technologies. Among these are Interest group meetings, open panel discussions, and
learning circles. Electronic books are a good example of a technology that is moving
slowly because of important human factors. People are used to books and paper. They
have been using them for thousands of years. In this sense, technology is actually lagging
behind the needs of humans, not the other way around. This has lead to developments of
solutions such as digital paper technology. Another value that is directly tied into
responsible use of technology is responsible use of information resources. Minimizing
material waste and waste of people’s energy is important to our progress a an information
society. Taking the previous example of ebooks, it is clear that one benefit is the
reduction of waste paper. For this reason other technological advances are being explored
such as plastic pages that have ink that can be removed and reprinted.

Conclusion

Through the statement of these values I have made suggestions a revised information
system such as a library. The structure of this system is, of course, subject to its own
rules. I, as an individual cannot decide that these values are the best for the information
system. The users of the system would decide that. In that sense these values are very
much personal opinion subject to scrutiny of the surrounding information system.