فصلنامه کتابداری و اطلاع رسانی
سال بیست و هفتم شماره 4 (پیاپی 108، زمستان 1403)

Considering the increasing spread of artificial intelligence and its algorithm-oriented nature and the increasing interaction of users with these algorithms in various platforms such as social networks, online stores, and search engines, the present study intends to examine the concept and necessity of algorithmic literacy and, in the following, the role of librarians who are actually specialists in information science in the education and development of this literacy. This research aims to study the concept and necessity of algorithmic literacy and the role of librarians in teaching this literacy.

This research has been done in a narrative review method. In this way, related articles were extracted by searching the term algorithmic literacy in domestic and foreign reliable scientific databases. Then, this concept was examined and compared in terms of definition, dimensions, components, and other aspects, and consensus, disagreement, and research gaps were revealed.

The review of the literature revealed that despite the fact that researches on algorithmic literacy have been conducted abroad in recent years, this concept has not yet been studied in Iran. In this research, the development of the concept of literacy from the age of information to the age of artificial intelligence was investigated. Different definitions of algorithmic literacy were also mentioned. Next, the dimensions and components of algorithmic literacy and its importance and necessity were discussed. In the end, the role of librarians and libraries in teaching algorithmic literacy was discussed.

A look at the definition of literacy from the past to the present shows that the concept of literacy has always been changing due to technological changes. At first, literacy is defined as "the ability to read and write". Then, with the emergence of digital technologies, it is defined as "ability and awareness"; Finally, with technological advances, it is defined as "awareness and critical evaluation skills". All digital technologies are algorithmic machines and depend on algorithms to function. Now that we are in the era of artificial intelligence and artificial intelligence systems are built on the basis of algorithms, the need for literacy in relation to algorithms is felt more and more under the title of "algorithmic literacy". By reviewing the researches, it is clear that there is still no single and universal definition of algorithmic literacy, but by summarizing these researches, we can express this definition: "Awareness and recognition of algorithmic systems along with the ability and skill of critical evaluation of these systems". Also, there is no consensus on the dimensions and components of algorithmic literacy, and researchers have examined different dimensions, which overlapped in some cases. What emerges from the research review is that algorithmic literacy is related to the cognitive, behavioral and emotional dimensions of the user. If in the age of information, human interaction with information was investigated, today, in the era of artificial intelligence and algorithms, human interaction with algorithms should be investigated. Since in the past, libraries played an important role in teaching information literacy and librarians were its pioneers, now librarians and information science specialists can play a role as algorithmic literacy educators, according to their inherent duty.

Cognitive biases are a kind of cognitive errors that affect human cognitive processes and take the form of thought patterns and play a role in people's evaluation and decision-making and lead to incorrect attitudes, beliefs, judgments and decisions. The aim of the current research is to identify cognitive biases in Iranian children's visual story books. The present research was carried out using an evaluative method. The research community is authored visual fiction books of age group (b), (c) and (b and c), which include 20 books published by the Center for the Intellectual Development of Children and Teenagers (2020 to 2023) and 17 best-selling books for children and teenagers (2023) and a total of 37 illustrated works under 120 pages were selected as sample. The standard checklist of ACAPS Institute was used to evaluate fiction books. The aforementioned checklist was translated and with the help of cognitive science experts, the way of representing bias in fiction books was added to the checklist. Then, using the CVI method, its validity was checked and confirmed after modification, and the reliability of the tool was checked and confirmed using the split-half method and the Spearman-Brown index. A comparative analysis of children's and teen books from the Institute for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults (Kanoon) and best-selling titles revealed a significantly higher prevalence and diversity of cognitive biases in the latter. While Kanoon books exhibited 11 distinct biases, best-selling works contained 13, but it seems there is no significant difference between Kanoon and best-selling titles. Moreover, the findings highlighted confirmation bias as the most frequent cognitive bias present in stories aimed at children and teenagers. Other biases identified in these works, such as stereotype bias, overconfidence, and wishful thinking, were found to be conceptually intertwined with confirmation bias, potentially reinforcing its influence on young readers. Although the number of cognitive biases identified in Canon works was 11 and in best-selling works was 13, this difference doesn't seem significant. It appears that the orientation of some Canon works towards success and the orientation of some best-sellers towards both success and role modelling have led to cognitive biases in certain works. However, it's likely that works evaluated through specific and well-defined procedures would have a better record regarding attention to errors. Therefore, it's necessary to examine the issue of cognitive biases, especially confirmation bias, during the pre-publication evaluation of works, and to refine narratives from this perspective.

One of the emerging problems and challenges that appeared with the growth and expansion of new technologies and the emergence and growth of new philosophical schools, including post-structuralism, is information anxiety. Post-structuralism is one of the emerging schools that has outstanding views on knowledge and the growth of the rhizomatic knowledge. This type of anxiety, which is mainly a type of epistemological crisis, has arisen in the shadow of the expansion of rhizomatic thinking. The purpose of this research is to analyze the perceptions and experiences of Tabriz University faculty members from information anxiety and its dimensions and consequences.

The method used in this research is qualitative paradigm and interpretive phenomenology. The participants in this research were 20 faculty members of Tabriz University who were selected through purposive sampling. Data were collected according to in-depth, individual and semi-structured interviews, and the interviews continued until data saturation. After the written implementation of the interviews, the data of the interviews were analyzed based on the hermeneutic approach and based on the method of Dickelman, Tanner and, Allen (1989).

From the analysis of the experiences of faculty members of Tabriz University, 513 codes, 4 main themes: the nature of the profession (job culture, job promotion, professional interaction, knowledge production), Intervening factors of information anxiety (large volume of information and lack of time, emergence of new technologies, fear of losing important information, inability to manage the cognitive system, culture of sharing knowledge and achieving findings) Consequences of information anxiety (anxiety and mental anxiety, feelings of loneliness, decision-making crisis, professional performance and accumulation of professional duties) and information anxiety management strategies (improving cognitive and metacognitive skills, improving information evaluation skills, improving media literacy, self-care and self-restraint and skill management) were achieved.

Considering the job nature of university faculty members and the fact that this group is more exposed to information anxiety and this anxiety can affect their job performance, it is possible to adopt strategies such as the development of cognitive and metacognitive skills, information management. So, the promotion of the epistemological system can reduce information anxiety in them.

The purpose of this research project was the analytical examination of the centers of authoring and writing of jurisprudence works of the second Safavid period and determining the centers and schools of copying jurisprudence sources in the second half of the Safavid period from the reign of Shah Safi (1038 AH) until the fall of this dynasty (1135 AH) and its comparison with the jurisprudential works of the first period.

This research is conducted using a content analysis survey method. The checklist, is used in this research as a tools and the research is done in a census way.

The research findings are:In the second Safavid period, only in 50 of jurisprudence manuscripts, the place of authorship has been determined by the author or copywriter in 11 cities, the most abundant of which belongs to Isfahan (with 25 titles), followed by the cities of Behbahan, Qazvin and Najaf Ashraf with 5 titles each and Mashhad Razavi with 4 titles and then other cities.The place of writing of 59 copies in this era has been determined in 22 cities in the end of the copy, the most frequent of which is related to the city of Isfahan, where 27 copies (with the location of writing determined) were written.In 11 jurisprudential manuscripts of this period, the book center is mentioned, which is the most frequent (7 copies) related to the madrasah, and other centers include the castle, the government house and the sultan's residential.Among the jurisprudential manuscripts of the second Safavid era, the place of writing of 59 titles of jurisprudential works in 22 cities has been specified in the end of the edition, the most frequent of which is related to the city of Isfahan; Also, only in 11 jurisprudential manuscripts of this period, the center of writing is mentioned, which is the most frequent (7 copies) related to madrassa.In the first Safavid period, the place of writing of 190 jurisprudential works was determined in 6 cities at the end of the manuscript, the most frequent being the holy cities of Mashhad (the spiritual capital) and Isfahan (the political capital of Iran); Also, in 86 copies of that, the book center is mentioned, which is the most frequently related to madrassa, with a significant distance from other centers.

In the first period of Safavid era, because there were many Shiite schools in Mashhad, the most frequent copying of jurisprudence works took place in that city as the spiritual capital and then in Isfahan city as the political capital of Iran, while in the second half of the Safavid era, due to the expansion of Shiite schools in Isfahan, the most copying of jurisprudence works has been done in this city. In addition to schools, during the Safavid era, centers of schools, castles, government houses and residential villages, shrines, mosques, houses, military structures, monasteries, and neighborhoods were active in copying jurisprudence works.

This study aims to identify the ideological dimensions of reading promotion and to explore how subjectivity and practice are discursively and ideologically constructed in the "book reading meetings".

The research method is discourse analysis. The data were extracted from 21 texts related to reading promotion in the "book reading meetings", which were purposively sampled. Data analysis was conducted in MaxQDA 2020, using Fairclough’s tools for text and metatext analysis, in three levels: description, interpretation, and explanation.

The "presenter" subject is capable of identifying and accessing information, knows the methods to treat and prevent illness, and is familiar with the type of illness and the information required for the treatment and prevention of the "audience" subject. In contrast, the "audience" subject which is a potential or actual patient in need of treatment or prevention through information lacks the ability to identify relevant information, the nature of their illness, and the necessary information for treatment and prevention. As a result of the application of the "presentation" genre, the "presenter" subject positions themselves at a higher level than the "audience" subject, has control over the meeting process, and manages the flow of speech and turn-taking. The "presenter" subject is predominantly the speaker and conveys and introduces information to the "audience" subject. On the other hand, the "audience" subject occupies a lower position relative to the "presenter" subject, has limited control over the meeting process, is mostly a listener, and improves or gains immunity by receiving information about their illness.

Through the ideology of "reading promotion", the content of reading materials is represented as "information", whereas, in reality, the content of reading materials can contain both information and disinformation. The "presenter" subject is represented as the sole source of information, and the "audience" subject lacks this information; consequently, the "presenter" subject exerts dominance over the "audience" subject. The historical possibilities of the "audience" subject are disregarded. The possibility of critical engagement for the "audience" subject is rendered impossible. The transmission of disinformation, control of information, and manipulation of the "audience" subject's thoughts for the reproduction of social relations based on domination are facilitated. The social cause of what is represented as a person's illness is concealed. Although acquiring information cannot significantly affect what is represented as the person's illness, it is portrayed as if the lack of information is the cause, and that receiving information will treat and prevent the illness.

Despite the production and organization of a lot of cultural and social information in the country, students avoid this information. The purpose of this research was to identify the causes and factors of avoiding this type of information among the country's students and also to design a theoretical model of information avoidance behavior. It is cultural and social information among students.

This qualitative research was conducted using the grounded theory approach. It was done with detailed semi-structured interview method. The samples included 12 students in different academic levels of the country's universities. In the sampling, we tried to select students who have a brief knowledge of cultural and social information. The data of the six components were extracted during three stages of coding from interviews, open coding, axial coding, and selective coding with the help of MaxQDA software version 2020.

526 primary codes were extracted from the open coding, 77 codes were extracted from the axial coding, and 23 core categories were extracted from the selective coding. In the final model, the causal conditions of avoiding scientific and cultural information were: cognitive causes, psychological casual skill, cultural and social causes and invasive causes. Also, resource infrastructure, political factors, socio-cultural factors, environmental factors of the university, information system, educational system, and the attitude and approaches of the university are the interfering conditions of this information behavior. The background conditions of this information behavior were: background knowledge of information, background knowledge of the person, nature and characteristics of information and information source, information models and policies, and the cost of information. And favoring intellectual and intellectual information and disfavoring instinctive information, helping comprehensive growth and preventing one-dimensional growth and development of students, increasing comprehensive analysis of the state of oneself and the country, cultural and social development of students, cultural self-confidence and lack of orientation towards culture It was alien to the strategies resulting from this interview.

Considering the impact of cultural and social information on the growth and development of students and the prevalence of information avoidance behavior among students, by knowing this behavior and coping strategies, the harms and negative effects of this behavior can be created with factors such as explaining the value of cultural information. The feeling of need to this type of information, reforming the educational system, and preventing the one-dimensional growth of students can be reduced by requiring the consumption of cultural data, improving the quality of information and the information platform (information system), and removing behavioral inertia against the flow of cultural information.

Social entrepreneurship is a new approach to solving social problems that helps improve the quality of life of society by strengthening social interactions and providing support services. Public libraries, as information centers, play an effective role in developing social businesses and improving the economic conditions of society by providing specialized services to social entrepreneurs. This study aimed to investigate the effect of knowledge sharing on social entrepreneurship, considering the mediating role of social responsibility of public libraries in Markazi Province. The type of research was a descriptive survey with a correlational design and the statistical population was all librarians working in public libraries in Markazi province, and the statistical sample was determined by stratified random sampling method using the Cochran formula, 120 people. The measurement tools included knowledge sharing questionnaires from Van den Hooff & de Leeuw van Weenen (2004), social entrepreneurship from Arab (2010), and social responsibility from Carroll (2008). The validity of the questionnaires was confirmed in terms of construct, convergent, and divergent, and their Cronbach's alpha coefficients were higher than 0.7. SPSS software version 25 was used to analyze the data. The results of the research showed that at an error level of less than 0.01, knowledge sharing has a positive and significant effect on social entrepreneurship (0.249) and social responsibility (0.401) of public libraries, as well as a positive and significant effect on social responsibility. It was confirmed on social entrepreneurship (0.627) of public libraries.. Finally, social responsibility plays a significant mediating role in the relationship between knowledge sharing and social entrepreneurship of public libraries in Markazi Province. According to the findings of this study, public libraries can help promote social entrepreneurship by creating spaces such as book clubs, workshops, and online communities. These spaces enable knowledge exchange and support disadvantaged groups by providing free access to information and reducing the digital divide. Knowledge sharing is a fundamental foundation for social entrepreneurship and equips individuals with the necessary tools to address social challenges. Libraries promote their social responsibility by ensuring equal access to information and by providing digital literacy workshops and high-speed internet, enabling inclusive participation. Also, creating a diverse set of resources and collaborating with cultural organizations creates an inclusive space for knowledge exchange. It is recommended that library officials, through regular needs assessments, create programs such as mentoring, networking events, and co-working spaces to connect social entrepreneurs to resources and collaboration opportunities. These actions strengthen the role of libraries as centers for social cohesion and equitable access to information.

Literacy encompasses various aspects, including education, research, schools, and universities. It refers to the ability to read, write, and understand information. Achieving literacy is crucial for individual excellence, family well-being, and national progress. It also fosters meaningful connections between individuals, their families, and society. This study examines the conceptual structure of literacy-related research in the Islamic World Science Citation Database (ISC) and identifies subdomains and important dimensions of the literacy concept.

The research employs bibliometric techniques and co-occurrence analysis of terms. The documents from the ISC Database were extracted. The extracted data over the past 25 years (from 1999 to 2023) consisted of 1137 documents. After extracting keywords, standardization and normalization of concepts were performed. For example, singular and plural words were unified, acronyms were transformed into complete phrases, and so on. Following standardization, 4514 unique keywords remained. To create a co-occurrence map, the software VOSviewer was utilized. Cluster analysis and strategic diagrams were used to visualize the conceptual structure of literacy research.

Ten clusters related to literacy were identified: Information literacy, Digital literacy, Media literacy, Health literacy, Environmental literacy, Literacy assessment tools, Health literacy, Critical thinking, Combination of information literacy and health literacy, Lifestyle and health literacy. Additionally, through content analysis of articles published during the 25-year period, emerging topics in the field of literacy were identified. The results obtained from analyzing data related to literacy indicate that a total of 1137 documents with the word “literacy” in their titles have been published. Concepts such as "health literacy", "information literacy", and "media literacy" were ranked first, second, and third in terms of frequency, respectively. The keyword “health literacy” has the highest frequency, indicating that it is a central concept in literacy-related texts. Other keywords include financial literacy and environmental literacy. The frequency of the health literacy concept is influenced by researchers’ attention to health issues in society, as well as the impact of communicable diseases such as COVID-19 and other conditions like diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular diseases. Therefore, it is essential for individuals to receive education and awareness related to this topic.

The results of this study can contribute to a comprehensive understanding of current research domains and provide guidelines for researchers to initiate new studies. Furthermore, this research showed that health literacy has garnered the most attention and holds significant importance among researchers. Persian studies are aligned with international research in the fields of information literacy, digital literacy, and environmental literacy. However, financial literacy, despite its importance in global research, requires more attention in Persian studies.