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annals of library science and documentation 41 4 1994 155 160 gfedcbazyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcba application of historical method of research in the study of library and jnformation science an overviewqponmlkjihgfedcba r k ...

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         Annals  of Library Science and Documentation     41,4;  1994; 155-160.gfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA
         APPLICATION        OF HISTORICAL METHOD OF RESEARCH IN THE STUDY OF LIBRARY
         AND JNFORMATION SCIENCE: AN OVERVIEWQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA
         R.K.BHATT                                           S.C. BHATT
         Asstt. Librarian                                    Librarian
         Indian Institute of Technology                      D.D.S.T. Greater Kailash
         NewOelhi                                            New Delhi
         The need and importance of library historiography            to denote ''the history" or ''the history of historical
         and the application of historical research method            thought" [4].   As far as Indian historiography        is
         in library and information science are discussed.            concerned, it has been viewed and written by the
         Mentions its special characteristics and significant         historians and scholars as the one weak spot in
         studies being done in the field with application of          Indian literature and is, infact, nonexistent. Almost
         historical method of research. Suggests applica-             total lack of the historical sense is so characteris-
         tion of scientific technique in the study and research       tic, that the whole course of Sanskrit literature is
         using historical method. The formulation and test-           darkened by the shadow of this deficiency           and
         ing of a hypothesis and the analysis of data as              shows suffering from an absence of exact chro-
         essential component of scientific technique tomake           nology. So true is this, that the very date of
         the historical studies more reliable, are stressed.          Kalidasa, the great Indian poet, was long a matter
                                                                      of controversy within the limitsof athousand years,
        WHAT IS RESEARCH?                                             and is even now doubtful to the extent of a cen-
                                                                      tury or two. Thus, the dates of ancient        Sanskrit
         Research is an endeavour to discover, develop                scholars and their works, in the vast majority of
        and verity knowledge. The Webster's Third New                 cases, are only known approximately, having been
         International Dictionary defines research as "care-          inferred from indirect evidences, quotation or allu-
        ful or critical inquiry or examination in seeking facts       sion, development of language or style. And, as
        or principles; a diligent investigation to ascertain          to the events of their lives, we usually know noth-
        something"[1].      Hillway defines research as "a            ing practically [5]. History became a popular sub-
        method of study bywhich through the careful and               ject of research in India in the late fifties. Since
        exhaustive     investigation of all the ascertainable         then, there have been considerable efforts which
        evidence bearing upon the definable problem, we               were put in for the promotion of historical writings
         reach a solution to that problem" [2]. The product,          not only inthe discipline of history alone, but also
        or findings, of a given piece of research         should      inthe disciplines like economics, sociology, politi-
        be authentic and verifiable contribution to knowl-            cal science and library and information science.
        edge in the field studied.     In short, research is a
        systematic and refined method of reflective think-            CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK OF HISTORICAL
        ing employing specialized tools, instruments, and             RESEARCH
        problems that would be possible under ordinary
        means. It starts with a problem, collects data or             History is an integrated narrative or description of
        facts, analyses them critically and draws conclu-             past events or facts written in a spirit of critical in-
        sions based on the actual evidence and finds out              quiry into the whole truth, Mouly [7] states that "as
        better solutions of the problem.                              used by the Greeks, history meant an inquiry de-
                                                                      signed to construct past events,       and in a sense
        GENESIS OF HISTORIOGRAPHY ININDIA                             historical research can be defined as a scholarly
                                                                      attempt to discover what has happened". Sukhia
        The Collin's English Dictionary defines 'Historiog-           [8] opines that a historical research conducted in
        raphy' as ''the writing    of history, the study of the       the study of any subject denotes an effort to re-
        development of historical method, historical re-              count some aspects of past life. In other words,
        search    and writing any body of historical litera-          the historian attempts to give meaning to the facts
        ture" [3]. In India, the term 'Historiography' is used        in the light of a relevant theory.
        Vol 41 No 4 December      Ic)c)4                                                                                   155
               R.K. BHATT andEDCBAS.C BHATT
               NEED AND PURPOSE OF HISTORICAL                                                      SOURCES OF DATA/INFORMATION
               RESEARCH IN LlBRARIANSHIPgfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA
                                                                                                   In historical research, the data or information is
               Although there is a difference of opinion regarding                                 generally gathered from the following information
               acceptance of historical research as a truly scien-                                 sources.
               tific   research, as it does not permit enough preci-
               sion and objectivity, yet there is a consensus that                                 1.      Official records, such as laws, deeds, annual
               historical research has much to contribute in the                                           reports of organizations, charters, etc;
               field of library and information science. The basic                                 2.      Newspapers and other periodicals;
               purpose of historical research isto provide a clear                                 3.      Eye-witness accounts of events;
               perspective of the present and facilitate planning                                  4.      Archives;
               for the future.           Busha and Harter [9] wrote that                           5.      Manuscripts;
               historical research could contribute to the body of                                 6.      Letters and personal diaries;
               knowledge about librarianship and could increase                                    7.      Biographies, autobiographies, and memoirs;
               our understanding               of    how, when and why past                        8.      Historical studies;
               events occurred. They further opined that it can                                    9.      Literary writings;
               expand our appreciation                     of the significance of                  10.     Oral histories;
               these events. Michael Harris [10] stated that "a                                    11.     Memorials;
               clear understanding of the historical definition of                                 12.     Catalogues;
               the functions of libraries may well contribute to                                   13. Schedules, agendas, etc; and
               increased communication between libraries". Simi-                                   14. Archaeological                 and geological              sources
               larty, emphasizing onthe needof historical research                                         (nondocuments).
               Jesse Shera [11] wrote that "library history allows
               librarians to better understand the present and to                                  To conduct a historical study primary and second-
               more effectively fulfill their social                   responsibility".            ary sources of information play a vital role. Pri-
               While commenting on the status of library history                                   mary sources represent the data which lie closest
               in India, Donald G. Davis, JR. of the University of                                 to the historical events. It trends                   to    ensure the
               Texas at Austin also advocated for the promotion                                    integrity of a study and to strengthen its reliabil-
               of historical writings in the field of library and infor-                           ity.   Whereas, secondary sources of information
               mation science and writes, "Indian library history                                  provide        important        information and conceptual
               is a subject that excites the imagination because                                   development not available elsewhere. Therefore,
               of its long duration, rich primary resources, and                                   secondary sources of information are the best tools
               vast potential           for significant        study. Yet one can                  for    rounding out the setting or filling in the gaps
               be frustrated not only by the problems of library                                   between primary sources of information.
               development in India, but by the status of describ-
               ing and evaluating that development with histori-                                   FUNDAMENTAL STEPS OF HISTORICAL
               cal perspective"            [12]. In short, good historical re-                     RESEARCH
               search can help librarians and information special-
               ists to present the past events efficiently and ef-                                 Generally,         it is expected that historical research
               fectively without repeating the mistakes made in                                    should alsofollow the same criteria and procedures
               the past.                                                                           as is followed by the other scientific methods of
                                                                                                   inquiry. Keepingthis inview, folloWingsteps should
               TYPES OF HISTORICAL RESEARCH                                                        be followed in the historical research.
               Historical       research has been categorized in the                               1.     Identification and delineation of the problem of
               following       six Types [13] :                                                           historical significance;
                                                                                                   2.    Collection of data and information through
               1.     Biographical research                                                               primary and secondary sources;
               2.     Histories of institutions and organizations                                  3.     Formulation of a hypothesis, if possible;
               3.     Investigation of sources and influences                                      4.     Verifying the gathered data interms of authen-
               4.     Editing and translating historical documents                                       ticity of sources and the validity of their con-
               5.     Studying the history of ideas                                                      tents;
               6.     Compiling bibliographies                                                     5.     Organization and analysis ofthe pertinent data;
                                                                                                          and
                156                                                                                                                                     Ann Lib Sci Doc
                                                      APPLICATION OF HISTORICAL METHOD OF RESEARCHgfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA
          6.   Presentation of facts in a readable form with          SOMESIGNIFICANT STUDIES INLIBRARY AND
               proper organization, composition,      exposition      INFORMATION SCIENCE WITH APPLICATION
               and interpretation.                                    OFHISTORICAL RESEARCH METHOD
          HYPOTHESIS INHISTORICAL RESEARCH                            Over the years changes inthe multifarious facets
                                                                      of human life in modern society have radically
          The use of a hypothesis inhistorical research helps         changed the functions of the library, particularly in
          to increase the objectivity of the study and mini-          view of the new information demands of the users.
          mize researcher's bias. It also guides the re-              Placed, inabroad spectrum of historical processes
          searcher inthe collection, analysis, and interpre-          and events, the studies related to library histori-
          tation  of data by indicating what is relevant to           ography witn application of historical research
          the study.    The hypothesis provides a basis for           method become significant.
          considering    various factors in relation to one an-
          other and synthesizing them into a generalization           Several studies have been conducted on different
          or conclusion that puts their overall significance          aspects of the history of libraries in India. One of
          in focus. Thus, like any other kind of research             the earliest calls for an Indian library historiogra-
          method, hlstorical    research tends to benefit      by     phy came from N.M. Dutta [15], in an address to
          incorporation of a hypothesis.                              the Third All Bengal Library Conference held in
                                                                      Calcutta in 1932. His talk, published as theQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBAHis-
          REQUISITES OF HISTORICAL RESEARCH                            tory of Indian Libraries from Earlier Times to the
                                                                       Present Day, lamented the lack of interest or writ-
          Following are the main requisites of historical re-         ing on the subject. He said, ''the subject which I
          search:                                                     have selected for my discourse is the history of
                                                                      ancient and modern Indian libraries, but time will
          1.   Knowledge and availability of adequate histori-         not permit of anything more than a brief survey of
               cal sources;                                           the subject.    I would recommend the topic to
          2.   Selection of relevant and significant historical       any university student for hisdoctoral dissertation.
               evidences; and                                          If we look back to the distant past, we are tempted
          3.   Logical   arrangement      of material.   The re-      to think that there were     no libraries   in ancient
               searcher should have a specific plan for the            India [16]". O.P. Sharma pointed out the continu-
               acquisition, organization, storage and retrieval        ing discouraging state of Indian library historical
               of the data.                                           writing [17]. Ramakrishna Rao, in his article, Li-
                                                                       brary Development inIndia, attempts to place the
          PROBLEMS INHISTORICAL RESEARCH                              topic in the context of historical and social fac-
                                                                      tors [18]. Another major survey article is of Anis
          The main problems faced in a historical research             Khurshid entitled Growth of Libraries in India,which
          are:                                                         concentrates on the history of libraries for last
                                                                      two centuries and treats the earlier history in a
           1.  Deciding to what extent the data is enough.            cursory fashion [19]. A.K. Mukherjee [20], S.K.
               The researcher must be careful to avoid an              Mookerjee [21], and D.N. Marshall [22] attempt at
               over reliance on insufficient amount of data,          critically evaluating   the position of libraries and
               or evidence;                                           their functions in ancient India.     Mukherjee [20],
          2.   Improper selection of data.                             Dutta [23], and Mishra (1979) also attempted to
               The historian must avoid improper or faulty             give historical  assessments      of the libraries   in
               selection of data, e.g. ignoring of some data,          medieval India, a period which was particularly
               exaggerating others etc;                                dominated andpatronized by personal involvement
          3.   Relying too heavily on secondary sources of             of the kings and other upper class gentry. S.N.
               information;                                            Sadhu and B.N. Saraf [24] have provided one of
          4.   Investigating an overly broad problem;                  the few general treatments in library legislation.
          5.   Failing to evaluate adequately, the historical          Kaula [25], Trehan [26], and Nagar [27] have criti-
               data and their sources; and                             cally evaluated the library movement in India. More
           6.  Failing to interpret the data.EDCBA                     recently, Donald G. Davis, JR. [28] of the univer-
           Vol 41 No 4 December 1994                                                                                      157
                R.K. BHATT and S.c. BHATTgfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA
                sity of Texas at Austin, commented on the sta-                                                                               research: a guide to methods and materi-
                tus of library historiography in India "although a                                                                           als. 1969. Mifflin Co.; Houghton, Boston.
                core literature and Indian library historiography
                exists,            it  has many imbalances and gaps. The                                                         3.          COLLINS ENGLISH DICTIONARY. 1986.
                scholars are very dispersed in their interests and                                                                           Collins; London. p. 724.
                their geographical location. With one person rarely
                 contributing more than one work, there is little pat-                                                           4.           BULLOCK (A) and OTHERS. The fontana
                tern to existing research efforts. The one obses-                                                                            dictionary of modern thought. p.286.
                sion appears to be pre-occupation with legislation
                and implementation of authorization for public li-                                                               5.          MACDONELL (A A). A history of Sanskrit
                braries           to the exclusion of other libraries in their                                                               literature. p.1O.
                 role in national culture". R.K. Bhatt [29] in his study
                 has critically examined the growth and develop-                                                                 6.          NEW ENCYCLOPEDIA BRITANICA, Vol.
                ment of libraries in modern India (1901-1985) with                                                                            11, p. 538.
                special reference to Delhi.
                                                                                                                                 7.           MOULY(George J). The science of educa-
                The interest and recognition of historiography of                                                                            tional research.                    1963. Eurasia Publishing;
                 libraries were founded on the vastness of itstem-                                                                            New Delhi. p. 202.
                poral and geographical purview and distinct iden-
                tity bearing the history of this continent where the                                                             8.          SUKHIA (S P) and OTHERS. Elements of
                application of historical research method, through                                                                           educational research. 1963. Allied Publish-
                which the historical data can be analyzed and ex-                                                                             ers; Bombay. p. 192.
                amined              more or less in a scientific way, has a
                significant role to play. A list of selective historical                                                         9.           BUSHA (Charles A) and HARTER (Stephen
                 research being done in the field of library and                                                                              P). Research methods inlibrarianship: tech-
                 information science both in India and abroad is                                                                              niques and interpretations. 1980. Academic
                appended at the end.                                                                                                          Press; New York. p.92.
                 CONCLUSION                                                                                                      10.          HARRIS (Michael H) Ed. Reader in Ameri-
                                                                                                                                              can library history. 1971. NCR Microcard
                 In the light of toreqoinq discussion, itcan be con-                                                                          Editions; Washington, DC. p. 1.
                 cluded that there is a vital scope of the application
                 of historical method of research in the field of li-                                                            11.          SHERA (Jesse H). On the value of library
                 brary and information science. Undoubtedly, in                                                                               history.QPONMLKJIHGFEDCBALibrary  Quarterly.              22; 1952; 240-
                the present day librarianship, there is a continu-                                                                            251.
                 ing need for genuine historical research in librari-
                 anship which has remained largely a neglected                                                                   12.          DAVIS (Donald G) JR. The status of library
                 area. To promote historical research in the field                                                                            history in India: a report of an informal sur-
                 of librarianship,                    it   is advisable for the historical                                                    veyand              a selective                 bibliographic essay.
                 researcher to follow some sort of scientific method                                                                          Journal of Library and Information Science.
                 of inquiry, including                        the formulation                    and testing                                  14; 1989; 98-106.
                 of a hypothesis and the analysis and interpreta-
                 tion of data. Such processes will not only help him                                                             13.          HILLWAY (Tyrus). Op. cit.
                 to establish true and healthy results and findings,
                 but will also increase faith among research com-                                                                14.          STEVENS (Rolland E) Ed. Research meth-
                 munity in the application                               of     historical            research                                ods in librarianship : historical and biblio-
                 method.                                                                                                                      graphical methods in library research. 1971.
                                                                                                                                              University of Illinois, Graduate School of li-
                 REFERENCESEDCBA                                                                                                              brary Science; Urbana, IL.
                 1.           WEBESTER'S                          THIRD NEW INTERNA-                                             15.          DUTTA (NM).Historyof Indian libraries from
                              TIONAL DICTIONARY. VallI. 1966.p.1930.                                                                          earliest          times to the present day. Modern
                                                                                                                                              Librarian. 21; 1932; 69.
                 2.           HILLWAY (Tyrus). Handbook ofeducational
                  158                                                                                                                                                                                   Ann Lib Sci Doc
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...Annals of library science and documentation gfedcbazyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcba application historical method research in the study jnformation an overviewqponmlkjihgfedcba r k bhatt s c asstt librarian indian institute technology d t greater kailash newoelhi new delhi need importance historiography to denote history or thought as far is information are discussed concerned it has been viewed written by mentions its special characteristics significant historians scholars one weak spot studies being done field with literature infact nonexistent almost suggests applica total lack sense so characteris tion scientific technique tic that whole course sanskrit using formulation test darkened shadow this deficiency ing a hypothesis analysis data shows suffering from absence exact chro essential component tomake nology true very date more reliable stressed kalidasa great poet was long matter controversy within limitsof athousand years what even now doubtful extent cen tury two thus dates ancient ...

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