[Sigia-l] card sorting: dealing with multiple placements

[Steven L. MacCall, Ph.D.]

Apologies to Derek for the tone of my last message ... "bankrupt" was much
too harsh a word ... I should have said "let me offer a bit more by way of
apologetics for the practice of librarianship for you to consider ... i.e.,
a different viewpoint on what they have done and continue to do"

slm
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Derek R" <derek at derekrogerson.com>
To: "Sigia-l" <sigia-l at asis.org>
Sent: Tuesday, May 27, 2003 10:30 PM
Subject: Re: [Sigia-l] card sorting: dealing with multiple placements


>
> Jess started thread writing:
> >>| Hi all,
> >>|
> >>| A friend of mine is doing the IA for a medical web site.
> >>| She's run into the ever-present problem of categorization
> >>| for her resources list. I told her to do a card sort, but she
> >>| asked me how I'd handle it if people wanted to [mess with
> >>| the existing system] . . . .
>
> Donna replied writing:
> >| In the end, I'm looking for some type of pattern
> >| amongst the participants' answers to gain an
> >| insight into underlying patterns in content
> >|
> >| I'm not looking for the definitive result from the card sort
>
>
> Donna's words are probably the greater Wisdom to be gained from this
> thread.
>
> IAs, in general, appear to gravitate towards the deliverable as the
> 'secret key' to unlock all mysteries. This exposes, in my opinion, their
> nativity regarding true field research and sociological/psychological
> methods of inquiry.
>
> Business, in general, shouldn't let IAs anywhere near 'users' for
> testing or research purposes, since the typical 'library science' IA
> background has not -- in any way -- prepared them to accurately perform
> these duties.
>
> IAs are much better situated and experienced at creating *deliverables*
> -- which is a 'systematized' thing -- like the library 'Dewey Decimal'
> system. These 'systematized' things are *implemented onto* to users, NOT
> the other way around (i.e. 'users informing' thru testing/research).
>
> For instance, when you go into a library and ask for direction, the
> librarian 'instructs/helps' you to alter *yourself* to adapt to the
> existing system. They NEVER inquire (and are never taught) how to alter
> *their* system to adaptability thru user-input.
>
> The librarian is a conciliator (as they are taught) in the service of
> the existing system (which does not change). The librarian has no
> interest -- indeed no learned ability -- in *how* to 'learn from the
> user.'
>
> Nevertheless, many businesses continue to ask IAs to perform these very
> difficult, necessary, and sensitive research/testing duties from which
> all their end-user business decisions are informed. IMHO, they get what
> they asked for.
>
>
>
>
>
>
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