Subjects
research instruction, interdependence, individualism, ACRL Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education
Document Type
Research Article
Abstract
The customs and practices of research in academia are often mischaracterized as individualistic pursuits, ignoring the reality that research requires a great deal of collaboration. As teaching librarians, our research instruction often reinforces individualism as a scholarly virtue, even as we simultaneously engage with themes of connection between researchers and their ideas. We propose an approach to teaching research and information literacy grounded in the concept, intention, and practice of interdependence rather than individualism. In doing so, we will call in models of interdependence from critical disability studies, relational-cultural theory, Indigenous Ways of Knowing, and the Cite Black Women movement. These models both describe and exemplify interconnected and inclusive approaches to research, which we can apply to our practice of teaching in academic libraries.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Kapacinskas, N., & Arellano Douglas, V. (2025). Teaching Research as an Interdependent Practice: Bringing Alternate Models into the Scholarly Conversation. Communications in Information Literacy, 19 (2), 200–219. Retrieved from https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/comminfolit/vol19/iss2/4