The creativity of authors in defining the concept of information
| Date | 10 September 2018 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JD-05-2017-0077 |
| Pages | 1074-1103 |
| Published date | 10 September 2018 |
| Author | Paolo Rocchi,Andrea Resca |
| Subject Matter | Library & information science,Records management & preservation,Document management,Classification & cataloguing,Information behaviour & retrieval,Collection building & management,Scholarly communications/publishing,Information & knowledge management,Information management & governance,Information management,Information & communications technology,Internet |
The creativity of authors in
defining the concept of
information
Paolo Rocchi
Libera Universita Internazionale degli Studi Sociali Guido Carli, Rome, Italy and
IBM Italia, Rome, Italy, and
Andrea Resca
Libera Universita Internazionale degli Studi Sociali Guido Carli, Rome, Italy
Abstract
Purpose –The concept of information is central to several fields of research and professional practice.
So manydefinitions have been put forwardthat complete inventoryis unachievable whileauthors have failed to
reach a consensus.In the face of the presentimpasse, innovative proposalscould rouse information theoriststo
action, but literaturesurveys tend to emphasizethe common traits of definitions. Reviewersare inclined to iron
out originality in information models; thus the purpose of this paper is to discover the creativity of authors
attempting to definethe concept of information and to stimulate the progress of studies in this field.
Design/methodology/approach –Because the present inquiry could be influenced and distorted by
personal criteria and opinions, the authors have adopted precise criteria and guidelines. It could be said the
present approach approximates a statistical methodology.
Findings –The findings of this paper include (1) The authors found 32 original definitions of information
which sometimes current surveys have overlooke d. (2) The authors found a relatio n between
information theories and advances in information technology. (3) Overall, the authors found that
researchers take account of a wide variety of perspectives yet overlook the notion of information as used by
computing practitioners such as electronic engineers and software developers.
Research limitations/implications –The authors comment on some limitations of the procedure that was
followed. Results 1 and 3 open up new possibilities for theoretical research in the information domain.
Originality/value –This is an attempt to conduct a bibliographical inquiry driven by objective and
scientific criteria; its value lies in the fact that final report has not been influenced by personal choice or
arbitrary viewpoints.
Keywords Information theory, St atistical methods, Information defini tions,
Original interpretat ions of information, Theoretical productio n in information science,
Time distribution of t heories
Paper type Literature review
1. Introduction
The importance of creativity
The notion of information is of central relevance to modern computing theory and practice.
A shared and comprehensive conceptualization could enable people to cope with the challenges of
the so-called information society. Over the years many major and minor efforts have been made
to clarify the concept of information, nonetheless a definitive conclusion has not been reached so
far. Although the existing literature on the subject is particularly rich, the scientific community
appears to be in deadlock. This unresolved situation might be reinvigorated by means of studies
characterized by imaginative thought. Unusual and even bizarre views have the ability to push
researchers out of intellectual stagnation and toward progress. Original proposals could support
a vibrant exchange of ideas and facilitate new discoveries. By way of illustration, we recall how
quantum theorists react when encountering knotty issues, putting forward constructs that seem
paradoxical at first glance. As an example, the “many worlds”theory of Hugh Everett posits the
existence of a very large –perhaps infinite –number of universes in addition to the one in which
welive.Inananalogousmanner,creativeinspirationcouldopenupnewveinsofresearchinthe
information domain and help scholars to advance furthermore.
Journal of Documentation
Vol. 74 No. 5, 2018
pp. 1074-1103
© Emerald PublishingLimited
0022-0418
DOI 10.1108/JD-05-2017-0077
Received 30 May 2017
Revised 12 April 2018
Accepted 3 May 2018
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/0022-0418.htm
1074
JD
74,5
Bleached and distorting colors
Here, we make a couple of remarks:
(a) Generally speaking, innovative ideas are not so easy to come up (Bloom et al., 2017)
and the reviewers of the information literature could at least shine a light on the
original models that have already been put forward. Commentators could
select well-known and even little-known intriguing interpretations of information,
but this seems rarely to happen. They reason within a collaborative logic and
highlight the similarities between studies rather than their dissimilar features. For
example, some commentators tend to focus on a certain type of contributions such
as Jumarie (1996) who emphasizes the discussion of entropic models of information;
Flükiger (1995) who gives prominence to the semiotics perspective on information.
Other reviewers tend to gather definitions of information into groups in order to
emphasize the intellectual traditions and look into logic symmetries. Some surveys
offer insights into the antecedents of theoretical models; others describe the
intellectual thread that connects certain patterns and, in this manner iron out any
existing difference among the various bibliographic contributions, such as
(Fox, 1983; Aspray, 1985; Stevens, 1986; Collier, 1990; Qvortrup, 1993; Cornelius,
2002; Capurro and Hjørland, 2003; Case and Given, 2006; Nafría, 2010; Kajtazi and
Haftor, 2011; Lenski, 2010). For the sake of completeness, we should also mention
the few reviewers who deliberately emphasize the originality of contributions such
as Levitan (1980) and Schement (1993).
(b) The authors of the present inquiry have a certain scientific sensitivity and have
noticed how personal philosophy can influence the very description of the published
concepts, and how inevitably human factors distort a literature review such that
readers might doubt that the ideas about information are really as they have been
presented. It could be said that reviewers do not depict the colors as they really are in
the literature but use bleached shades of color. The approach usually adopted by
reviewers appears rather distant from the scientific method which minimizes
arbitrary factors.
In summary, we find that current studies of information interpretations have the following
features:
(a) they tend to iron out the disparity of ideas; and
(b) they are influenced by the personal viewpoints of the reviewers.
Purposes of the present inquiry
The present inquiry has the purpose of addressing shortcomings (a) and (b). We mean to
shed light on innovative writers such as they are and not to conceal their differences, their
contrasting relations to mathematics, their dissimilar attention to human consciousness and
so forth. Second, we want to avoid classifying the various interpretations of information
according to our own frame of reference. In summary, the aims or targets of this research are
as follows:
(1) to identify original ideas emerging from the information domain; and
(2) to produce a report that is not distorted by personal convictions or decisions.
2. Searching for a scientific method
Subjective criteria have no place in statistical sampling, and the present inquiry gets close to
statistics by adopting an “objective-scientific”method of study as opposed to the usual
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Defining the
concept of
information
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