Libraries as objects of university research

Analysis of the production of doctoral theses submitted in France over thirty years shows a poor structuring of university research in the field of libraries, as well as the absence of a policy of collective research. Libraries have been objects of university research rather than an actual field of research. The role of librarians in the production of research remains very unimportant. This poor investment comes, according to the results of an enquiry, from the non-academic status of librarians and the small incentive this gives them to pursue research - a status which does not take into account the doctoral thesis in career development. Recent integration of the training of librarians within the university in the context of information and communications science opens the way to the development of university research linked to libraries.
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