Information failures and catastrophes: What can we learn by linking information studies and disaster research?
Open Access
- 1 November 2002
- journal article
- social issues
- Published by Wiley in Proceedings of the American Society for Information Science and Technology
- Vol. 39 (1) , 239-249
Abstract
The genesis and context of disasters and mishaps raise a set of topics that are of interest for Information Studies; namely, the contributions of information failures as precursors to, as opposed to outcomes of, disasters. There is much to be learned by relating the research in three key areas: disasters, information use environments and behaviours, and culture (i.e., cultural knowledge, and information, safety, and organizational cultures). Patient safety failures in hospitals provide both a timely context and practical examples to illustrate these connections. This paper highlights the linkages and raises questions for information professionals and for future research.Keywords
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