A former Director (and now a Distinguished Scholar) of the International Institute for Qualitative Methodology, I have received research funding from the Australian Research Council, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, Australian Department of Education and other agencies.
Areas of Research Expertise
I conduct research on various topics in information behaviour and technology use. My research interests are interdisciplinary in nature, exploring the social construction of knowledge, research engagement and impact, user technology assessment, information literacy, qualitative inquiry and information issues in the context of higher education. I use a range of qualitative and mixed methodologies and methods, including grounded theory, discourse analysis, and web usability.
Selected Current Projects:
2021-2023
Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, Insight Development Grant. $66,661 (CDN). Co-Investigator. “Precarity and information marginalization: Exploring how academic casualization complicates workplace information practices.” Lead Investigator: Dr Rebekah Willson, School of Information Studies, McGill University. Co-investigator: Prof Heidi Julien, Department of Information Science, State University of New York at Buffalo.
2020-2023
Australian Research Council, Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities Scheme. $488,056 (AUD). Co-Investigator. “ACD-Engine: Enriching cultural data for research, industry and government.” Lead Investigator: Prof Rachel Fensham, University of Melbourne.
Selected Past Projects
2015 – 2021
Australian Research Council, Linkage Grant. $219,959 (AUD). Assessing Library and Information Studies Research Networks. Co-investigators: Prof Helen Partridge and Prof Lisa Given, Deakin University.
2015 – 2020
Australian Research Council, Linkage Grant. $191,394 (AUD). Information seeking & research adoption: Assessing communication strategies. Co-investigators: Prof Lisa Given and Prof Alain Deloire, Charles Sturt University.
Research Innovation
My work explores the design of innovative research approaches, with a focus on qualitative inquiry, societal research impact, and technology use.
Project examples:
Investigating qualitative assessment for research impact case studies
Social Media
My research explores social media use across a wide spectrum of sectors including health care, academia, non-profit organisations, the wine industry, and agriculture.
Project examples:
Information practices in non-profits: Knowledge management & technology use