Principles into practice - an investigation of codified ethics for information professionals
Creators: name: Kershaw, Jasmine
Publisher: name: unknown
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: Archives--Study and teaching
subject: Library science
subject: Information technology--Moral and ethical aspects

description: If we strike down the public monument to a colonialist does it help to heal the wounds of the 
past? Or does ending the celebration of a contentious figure effectively whitewash history? We 
cannot heed warnings against repeating a history that we have no way of learning. The 
purpose of this dissertation is to explore the context and processes of moral decision making, 
ethical systems, and professional codes of practice within the information profession, in 
recognition of the significant cultural, educational and moral power wielded by archivists and 
librarians over the historical record.

This examination of archival ethics, as embedded in formal and informal ethical guidance, 
touches on past and current conflicts over moral decision-making in archiving and information 
dissemination, exposes issues faced by archivists and librarians and raises questions as to 
whether existing codes of ethics and professional guidelines are fit for the purposes of 
practitioners and the communities they serve. 

Research was carried out using a mixed-methods approach entailing an exploration of the 
literature around the history of ethical enquiry within the information profession, in-depth 
practitioner interviews and an online survey of information professionals across archiving and 
librarianship. These methods combine to form a discussion of contemporary mechanisms for 
moral guidance in the information environment ̶ investigating current levels of engagement 
with professional associations and formal codes of ethics, and assessing the differences and 
similarities between ethical engagement in the subsectors of librarianship and archiving.
description: If we strike down the public monument to a colonialist does it help to heal the wounds of the past? Or does ending the celebration of a contentious figure effectively whitewash history? We cannot heed warnings against repeating a history that we have no way of learning. The purpose of this dissertation is to explore the context and processes of moral decision making, ethical systems, and professional codes of practice within the information profession, in recognition of the significant cultural, educational and moral power wielded by archivists and librarians over the historical record. This examination of archival ethics, as embedded in formal and informal ethical guidance, touches on past and current conflicts over moral decision-making in archiving and information dissemination, exposes issues faced by archivists and librarians and raises questions as to whether existing codes of ethics and professional guidelines are fit for the purposes of practitioners and the communities they serve. Research was carried out using a mixed-methods approach entailing an exploration of the literature around the history of ethical enquiry within the information profession, in-depth practitioner interviews and an online survey of information professionals across archiving and librarianship. These methods combine to form a discussion of contemporary mechanisms for moral guidance in the information environment ̶ investigating current levels of engagement with professional associations and formal codes of ethics, and assessing the differences and similarities between ethical engagement in the subsectors of librarianship and archiving.