The width and depth of literacies for tackling the COVID-19 infodemic
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JD-01-2022-0007 |
| Published date | 21 June 2022 |
| Date | 21 June 2022 |
| Pages | 269-280 |
| 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 |
| Author | Tibor Koltay |
The width and depth of literacies
for tackling the
COVID-19 infodemic
Tibor Koltay
Eszterh
azy K
aroly Catholic University, Eger, Hungary
Abstract
Purpose –A wide choice of varied information and data-based tools is reviewed in order to determine their
ability treating symptoms of the COVID-19 infodemic. Several literacies and derived literacies, presumably
having the ability to fulfil these roles are enumerated. There is also a review of the impact of applying
deconstruction, understanding, and anticipation as well as of tools for mitigating overload phenomena, and
communication overload.
Design/methodology/approach –The article reviews literacies deemed to promise reducing the impact of
the information crisis, caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Findings –A non-exhaustive review of literature, taken from sources of varied disciplines, resulting from
reverse snowballing and forward citation mining confirmed that there is a wide choice of solutions from among
literacies, derived literacies and other approaches that have the potential to combat annoyance and anxiety,
caused by the infodemic.
Originality/value –No other, published research has looked at such a wide range of literacies and derived
literacies, as well as other, related approaches linked them to the COVID-19 infodemic.
Keywords COVID-19, Information literacy, Data literacy, Media literacy, Media and information literacy,
Visual literacy, Science literacy, Health literacy
Paper type Literature review
Background and introduction
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused not only illness, death and distress, but resulted in an
information crisis, usually referred to as infodemic, the symptoms of which apparently do not
always differ radically from the problems that appear under usual, normal circumstances and
conditions of any crisis situation. On top of this, due to the high degree of knowledge
uncertainty on many levels, it is extremely difficult to follow and make sense of COVID-19
news, or official recommendations (Abel and McQueen, 2020, p. 1612).
This information crisis clearly requires serious attention of Library and Information
Science (LIS), libraries and educational institutions to develop insightful approaches to
data and information, coming from various sources (Xie et al., 2020). Unfortunately, such
attempts are hindered by the fact that knowledge about COVID-19 was developing in a
very short time span (Gerosa et al., 2021). In addition to this, there is a lack of transparency
about the infodemic, and it is not easy to find authoritative information, among others
because post-truth phenomena, such as misinformation, disinformation and fake news, as
well as repetitive information are proliferating in this environment (Agarwal and
Alsaeedi, 2021).
The main aim of this paper is therefore not only identifying the potential of varied
literacies and other approaches for mitigating the symptoms of the infodemic, but examines
their applicability and looks for relationships between them.
Information literacy
We can agree with Lloyd and Hicks (2021, p. 1052) who state that information literacy (IL)
“emerged as a form of safeguarding as participants engaged in information activities
designed to mitigate health, legal, financial and well-being risks produced by the pandemic.”
Tackling the
COVID-19
infodemic
269
Received 10 January 2022
Revised 2 June 2022
Accepted 4 June 2022
Journal of Documentation
Vol. 79 No. 2, 2023
pp. 269-280
© Emerald Publishing Limited
0022-0418
DOI 10.1108/JD-01-2022-0007
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