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Carol Kuhlthau
Carol Collier Kuhlthau (born December 2, 1937) is a Distinguished Professor Emerita of Library and Information Science in the School of Communication and Information (SC&I) at Rutgers University, researcher, and international speaker on learning in school libraries, information literacy, and information seeking behavior. She introduced the model of the Information Search Process (ISP), which is used throughout the field of information science.
Kuhlthau was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey, U.S. She graduated from Kean University in 1959, completing a master's degree in Librarianship in 1974 at Rutgers University, and a doctorate in Education in 1983. She was on the faculty of the Rutgers University Department Library and Information Science for more than 20 years and Professor Emeritus since 2006.
Kuhlthau is the founder of the Center for International Scholarship in School Libraries.
Introduced in 1991, Kuhlthau's model of the Information Search Process (ISP) describes feelings, thoughts and actions in six stages of information seeking. The model of the ISP introduced the holistic experience of information seeking from the individual's perspective, stressed the important role of affect in information seeking and proposed an uncertainty principle as a conceptual framework for library and information service.
She is known internationally for her research on the ISP and she has received numerous awards. The ISP model represents a watershed in the development of new strategies for the delivery of K–16 library and information skills. While the ISP model is effective, research applying the ISP model to international students found that both groups experience similar emotional patterns of uncertainty and confusion during the exploratory stages of information seeking, as outlined by Kuhlthau. It was found that international students often encounter additional challenges due to multilingual searching. These challenges can lead to confusion when reconciling conflicting cultural perspectives and evaluating the reliability of sources.
Kuhlthau's research continues to be used today to improve information seeking. One study suggested that incorporating ISP principles into prompt engineering may improve generative AI’s capacity to deliver relevant support and guide users through their research activities using chat services such as Ask A Librarian or ChatGPT.
Kuhlthau received her B.S. from Kean University in 1959, Master's in Library Science (MLS) from Rutgers University in 1974 and her Doctorate in Education in 1983, also from Rutgers University. Her doctoral dissertation was titled "The Library Research Process: Case Studies and Interventions with High School Seniors in Advanced Placement English Classes Using Kelly's Theory of Constructs."
She held several teaching and library positions before joining the Rutgers faculty in 1985 where for twenty years she directed the school library specialization in the Masters in Library and Information Science degree program that is ranked first in the United States by U.S. News & World Report.[citation needed] During her tenure at Rutgers she was promoted to Professor II and chaired the Library and Information Science Department and retired as Professor Emerita in 2006.[citation needed] She was the founding Director of the Center for International Scholarship in School Libraries (CISSL) at Rutgers where she continues as senior advisor.
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Carol Kuhlthau
Carol Collier Kuhlthau (born December 2, 1937) is a Distinguished Professor Emerita of Library and Information Science in the School of Communication and Information (SC&I) at Rutgers University, researcher, and international speaker on learning in school libraries, information literacy, and information seeking behavior. She introduced the model of the Information Search Process (ISP), which is used throughout the field of information science.
Kuhlthau was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey, U.S. She graduated from Kean University in 1959, completing a master's degree in Librarianship in 1974 at Rutgers University, and a doctorate in Education in 1983. She was on the faculty of the Rutgers University Department Library and Information Science for more than 20 years and Professor Emeritus since 2006.
Kuhlthau is the founder of the Center for International Scholarship in School Libraries.
Introduced in 1991, Kuhlthau's model of the Information Search Process (ISP) describes feelings, thoughts and actions in six stages of information seeking. The model of the ISP introduced the holistic experience of information seeking from the individual's perspective, stressed the important role of affect in information seeking and proposed an uncertainty principle as a conceptual framework for library and information service.
She is known internationally for her research on the ISP and she has received numerous awards. The ISP model represents a watershed in the development of new strategies for the delivery of K–16 library and information skills. While the ISP model is effective, research applying the ISP model to international students found that both groups experience similar emotional patterns of uncertainty and confusion during the exploratory stages of information seeking, as outlined by Kuhlthau. It was found that international students often encounter additional challenges due to multilingual searching. These challenges can lead to confusion when reconciling conflicting cultural perspectives and evaluating the reliability of sources.
Kuhlthau's research continues to be used today to improve information seeking. One study suggested that incorporating ISP principles into prompt engineering may improve generative AI’s capacity to deliver relevant support and guide users through their research activities using chat services such as Ask A Librarian or ChatGPT.
Kuhlthau received her B.S. from Kean University in 1959, Master's in Library Science (MLS) from Rutgers University in 1974 and her Doctorate in Education in 1983, also from Rutgers University. Her doctoral dissertation was titled "The Library Research Process: Case Studies and Interventions with High School Seniors in Advanced Placement English Classes Using Kelly's Theory of Constructs."
She held several teaching and library positions before joining the Rutgers faculty in 1985 where for twenty years she directed the school library specialization in the Masters in Library and Information Science degree program that is ranked first in the United States by U.S. News & World Report.[citation needed] During her tenure at Rutgers she was promoted to Professor II and chaired the Library and Information Science Department and retired as Professor Emerita in 2006.[citation needed] She was the founding Director of the Center for International Scholarship in School Libraries (CISSL) at Rutgers where she continues as senior advisor.