Information informing design: Information Science research with implications for the design of digital information environments

Abstract

This debut curated “virtual special issue” of JASIST is on the theme of “information informing design.” It comprises several excellent scholarly research articles previously published in JASIST with important implications for the design of digital information environments. It covers articles that motivate the need for Information Science research to inform design and those that have empirically examined information-related concepts such as information behavior, practices, interaction, and experience and, based on their findings, proposed recommendations or posed questions for design. This article argues that as JASIST exists at the intersection between information, systems, and users, it is natural to want to understand how people engage with information to inform design and, by doing so, Information Science research can build bridges between Information Science and computing disciplines and make contributions that transcend its discipline boundaries. It argues that Information Science research not only has the potential but also the duty to inform the design of future digital information environments.