A dialectical approach to information retrieval
| Published date | 11 September 2007 |
| Date | 11 September 2007 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/00220410710827781 |
| Pages | 755-764 |
| Author | Clare Thornley,Forbes Gibb |
| Subject Matter | Information & knowledge management,Library & information science |
A dialectical approach to
information retrieval
Clare Thornley
School of Information and Library Studies,
University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland, and
Forbes Gibb
Department of Computer and Information Sciences,
University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK
Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the question of whether the often paradoxical and
conceptually contradictory discipline of information retrieval (IR) can be understood more clearly
when it is analyzed from a dialectical perspective.
Design/methodology/approach – Conceptual analysis and literature review.
Findings – A dialectical understanding of meaning can assist in clarifying some aspects of the
complex nature of current IR theory.
Research limitations/implications – Philosophy has the potential to explore the conflicts and
contradictions in IR and should not be used just as a means of synthesis and resolution. The use of the
philosophy of meaning should include a broader understanding of the philosophical oppositions which
lie behind the nature of meaning.
Originality/value – This paper suggests a new perspective on the role of meaning in IR: the
dialectical model.
Keywords Philosophy, Information retrieval
Paper type Conceptual paper
Introduction
The motivation for this paper is the observation that information retrieval (IR) is a
problematic subject area which has been characterised by conflict, paradox and a lack
of conceptual clarity or theoretical coherence. The aim of the paper is to provide some
clarification, using the concept of the dialectic from philosophy, as to why this might be
the case.
These issues are tackled primarily at a meta-theoretical level because, it is argued,
these conflicts have their source at this conceptual or philosophical level. If we want to
understand the problematic nature of IR we need to examine the problematic nature of
its central concepts. This paper focuses on the concept of meaning and argues that a
better understanding of the nature of meaning, in this case as a dialectical process, can
illuminate some of the ways in which IR is problematic. The view is taken that the
relationship between information and meaning is central to IR and also often a cause of
dialectical conflict (Thornley, 2005). This, however, is not discussed in any depth in
this paper and will be the focus of a future paper.
Thus, IR is analyzed conceptually as a discipline, in a similar way to Frohmann
(1992) and Ellis (1992a), rather than discussing the nature of conflicts between
documents as discussed by Hjørland and Nissen Pedersen (2005). One reason for the
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at
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A dialectical
approach to IR
755
Received 17 January 2006
Revised 19 July 2006
Accepted 5 January 2007
Journal of Documentation
Vol. 63 No. 5, 2007
pp. 755-764
qEmerald Group Publishing Limited
0022-0418
DOI 10.1108/00220410710827781
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