Six papers at Information, Interactions and Impact i3 2015, and a preview of iDocQ 2015

The programme for Information, interactions and impact: i3 2015 has just been published. This international conference, held on a biennial basis in Aberdeen, brings together an international community of academic and practitioner researchers to explore the quality and effectiveness of the interactions between people and information, and how such interactions can bring about change. This year it takes place at the Aberdeen Business School, Robert Gordon University from Tuesday June 23rd to Friday June 26th. I’m delighted that six paper proposals that I co-authored for submission to the conference have been accepted, and they can now be seen in the programme.

Five of the six papers draw on projects currently undertaken by colleagues and research students within the Centre for Social Informatics: Christine Irving; Lynn Killick; John Mowbray; Frances Ryan; and Louise Rasmussen. These are:

1. How can information literacy be modelled from a lifelong learning perspective? by Christine Irving, Alison Brettle and Hazel Hall.
2. The role of the census in public policy-making: information practices of policy makers by Lynn Killick, Alistair Duff, Mark Deakin and Hazel Hall.
3. Could social networking online help NEET young people gain employment? by John Mowbray, Hazel Hall and Robert Raeside.
4. A KM implementation as management innovation: the impact of an agent of change by Louise Rasmussen and Hazel Hall.
5. Assessing the available and accessible evidence: how personal reputations are determined and managed online by Frances Ryan, Peter Cruickshank, Hazel Hall and Alistair Lawson.

With the kind permission of David McMenemy of Strathclyde University, John Mowbray and I have also developed the work that John completed for his Masters dissertation last year for a paper entitled The impact of community grassroots campaigns on public library closures in the UK. This brings the total number of papers from the Napier contingent at the conference to six. If you would like the opportunity to hear about our work, and that of others working in similar areas, do register for the conference.

As well as participating at i3 2015, all the research students from the Centre for Social Informatics listed above will be in Aberdeen the day before on Monday 22nd June to take part in iDocQ 2015. Now in its fifth year, iDocQ is the annual doctoral colloquium for students studying for PhDs in Information Science and other related disciplines. Each year iDocQ is organised by a committee of students who are undertaking PhDs within the four member institutions of the ESRC-funded Information Science pathway: Edinburgh Napier, Glasgow, Robert Gordon, and Strathclyde.

This year’s iDocQ programme includes:

• a keynote presentation on writing for publication
• break-outs on writing literature reviews, conceptualising the PhD from start to finish, mapping the Information Science landscape, and viva survival techniques
• a research clinic presented in Question Time format
• opportunities for delegates to present their own research in a rapid-fire One Minute Madness session

Registration for iDocQ is open to all research students (regardless of their home institution) and attendance is free of charge (including all refreshments). If you are studying for a PhD in Information Science or a related area, this is a great training opportunity, as well as a chance to meet and have fun with your peers from other institutions. For further information of what to expect at iDocQ 2015 read the reviews of iDocQ 2014 and iDocQ 2013. You can also follow iDocQ on Twitter at @iDocQ.