Informed researcher

Pat Gannon-Leary has put out a call (particularly aimed at those in the UK) to help with contributions to "a brief guide provisionally entitled The informed researcher, commissioned by the Research Information Network in close collaboration with Vitae and SCONUL, and aimed at researchers at all levels from Masters students right up to professors and heads of research centres." Specifically, she has a one-question survey she would like circulated to researchers, as follows.
"Dear researcher, I am writing a brief guide provisionally entitled 'The informed researcher', commissioned by the RIN in close collaboration with Vitae and SCONUL, and aimed at researchers such as yourself.
"As part of this work, I am trying to find out what type of information on this topic would be particularly useful for researchers. SCONUL has produced a model known as the 7 Pillars of Information Literacy. These are as follows:-
1. Identify (a personal need for information)
2. Scope (assess current knowledge and identify gaps)
3. Plan (construct strategies for locating information and data)
4. Gather (locate and access information and data needed)
5. Evaluate (review research process and compare and evaluate information and data)
6. Manage (organise information professionally and ethically)
7. Present (apply knowledge gained; presenting results, synthesising new and old information and data to create new knowledge and disseminating it in various ways)
"I expect you recognise these pillars in your own work. What I would like you to do, if you would be so kind, is just to respond to the following statement:-
One aspect of the 7 pillars which I consider most important for me and about which I would like to know more is...
" Please respond directly to me at pat@bederesearch.co.uk with as much or as little text in response to the statement. If there is more than one aspect, feel free to write at length.
Thanks in anticipation for your help in developing the guide. I hope it will prove useful for researchers when it is published."
Photo by Sheila Webber: Spring field, April 2011