Creating collaboration: Exploring the development of a Baptist digital library and archive, a case study

The purpose of this study was to explore the construction of a collaborative Baptist digital library and archive on the Internet. The study investigated how a central electronic location of digitized Baptist primary source materials could look and work on the Internet and how such a project could benefit Baptist history professors, the primary user group of libraries and archives at Baptist institutions. The study explored two sub-research questions: (1) What are suggestions for the design and function of a collaborative Baptist digital library and archive?; and (2) what are suggestions for material selection and use of such a project? The study was timely and important to the field of higher education leadership and administration because it spoke to the impact emerging digital technologies are making on academic research and scholarship, and the avenues through which professors teach and students learn in the 21st century. The study used the case study research method to investigate the central phenomenon through several lenses. Validity and reliability were established through triangulation, member checks, peer review, and reflexivity. Information was gathered and analyzed from archival documents, online sources, materials from participating Baptist history professors, and nine interviews with the professors. Cross data analysis revealed four emergent themes: (1) overall interest in developing a collaborative Baptist digital library and archive on the Internet; (2) that digitized Baptist primary source materials can enhance the teaching, learning, and research of Baptist history; (3) differences in material type and content preferences for inclusion in a Baptist digital library and archive; and (4) differences in the project management protocol methodologies for constructing such a project. The emergent themes provided insight into suggestions for moving forward with a collaborative Baptist digital library and archive, suggestions for scholarly use of the project, implications and considerations for other collaborative digital library and archive projects, and implications for higher education. Future research studies on this topic could include quantitative and mixed methods studies that use larger samples of Baptist history professors or samples of professors from other academic disciplines in the humanities and social sciences. A more in-depth qualitative study could also be conducted