Hermeneutic Phenomenology in Supporting Research and Information Services: Contributions to Information Science

Abstract

The diverse set of phenomena, concepts, and activities existing in academic disciplines could be studied from multiple perspectives. One of the promising approaches to explore phenomena is hermeneutics, especially in the form of hermeneutic phenomenology, which has been formed as a consequence of postmodern movements. Hermeneutic phenomenology has taken root in the original ideas of philosophers like Husserl, Heidegger, and Gadamer, and has become one of the fruitful research methodologies over time. After a brief review of the foundations of hermeneutic and phenomenological methodologies, the role of the hermeneutic phenomenology approach in supporting research and information services is discussed. The present article seeks to describe narratively the use of hermeneutic phenomenology in such issues as information technology, information behavior, knowledge organization, and librarians' roles as related to Information Science.