Revisiting the importance of cognition in information science

Abstract

For a considerable amount of time the field of information science has employed its own, as well as the knowledge bases and methods of other fields (with productive results). One field that has been appropriated from has been cognitive science. Cognitive science, however, has been in flux over the last few decades, with different conceptual frameworks assuming ascendance at various times. That dynamic implies that information science should pay close attention to what is occurring in cognitive science in order to investigate the most complex of challenges in information retrieval use, behaviour, and other phenomena. This paper includes a review of the frameworks of cognitive science and suggests that some of the most recent work in that field holds promise for development of thought and inquiry in information science. Understanding of the complex individual processes within human brains, the relationships among thinking communicators, and the relationship of brain and mind, is one of the areas where particular attention should be paid.