Information Seeking in Gender Studies

This Masters thesis concerns difficulties experienced by Gender Studies researchers in an information seeking context. The aim is to identify, and study the cause of, these potential difficulties by asking the following questions: How do researchers in Gender Studies seek information? What difficulties may arise when information seeking is carried out in Gender Studies? What may be the cause of these difficulties? What does Gender Studies consist of? In order to find feasible answers to these questions, particular attention is paid to the context in which the researchers exist and work. The database KVINNSAM serves as an example of how libraries have tried to overcome barriers in information seeking in Gender Studies. The method used is a qualitative one based on interviews and literature studies. Interviews were carried out with five researchers. The theoretical framework for analysis and discussion of the empirical material was sought in a variety of sources both from the field of Gender Studies and Library and Information Science. The data collected was divided into three main aspects based on the difficulties Gender Studies researchers may confront in an information seeking context. Results of the interviews indicate that factors influencing information seeking in Gender Studies are the interdisciplinarity, and the oppositional quality of Gender Studies. It is also argued that the way gender related material has been indexed in traditional information systems may form a barrier to information seeking in Gender Studies.Uppsatsnivå: