Communicating Research" explores how changing technologies affect academic research practices. The book begins with the rise of electronic media and fundamental changes in the dissemination of research. It then outlines the problems and concerns of researchers, librarians, and publishers: inadequacies of copyright laws, the rise of interlibrary loan practices, and the unchecked broadcast of working papers. These problems lead to a discussion of research practices across scholarly disciplines and an investigation of the biases and intentions of practitioners. The book includes historical data and observations on the current scene in order to make predictions about the future. "Communicating Research" draws conclusions about the ways that differing norms, such as the differences in the ways chemists and sociologists conduct, write, and publish their research, affect publication trends. The book also looks closely at the efficiency of publication strategies and their effectiveness in reaching the researchers' targeted audiences. Meadows uses two avenues to explore the communication of research findings. One is the medium used to convey the message; the other is the needs of the research community. He offers a solid base of analysis for understanding researchers, their biases, their assumptions about the communication, and the publishers. It explains variations in the reviewing processes for books and journals. It tailors communication and publishing insights for researchers, and offers superior historical information.

Review

"An important contribution to a neglected field - the generation, transmission, and use of scientific information. This is sociology of science at its best."
Lewis Wolpert, University College London Medical School, UK
.,."a scholarly but very readable book... The volume represents distilled wisdom about the history of research communication, where we are now and where - very likely - we are going. The book is admirably endowed with quotations and informative tables...I commend the book very warmly indeed.
Sir Arnold Wolfendale, University of Durham, UK

From the Back Cover

Communicating Research explores how changing technologies affect academic research practices. The book begins with the rise of electronic media and fundamental changes in the dissemination of research. It then outlines the problems and concerns of researchers, librarians, and publishers: inadequacies of copyright laws, the rise of interlibrary loan practices, and the unchecked broadcast of working papers. These problems lead to a discussion of research practices across scholarly disciplines and an investigation of the biases and intentions of practitioners. The book includes historical data and observations on the current scene in order to make predications about the future.
Communicating Research draws conclusions about the ways that differing norms, such as the differences in the ways chemists and sociologists conduct, write, and publish their research, affect publication trends. The book also looks closely at the efficiency of publication strategies and their effectiveness in reaching the researchers' targeted audiences. Meadows uses two avenues to explore the communication of research findings. One is the medium used to convey the message; the other is the needs of the research community. He offers a solid base of analysis for understanding researchers, their biases, their assumptions about the communication, and the publishers.

About the Author

Professor Meadows has been a Professor of Library and Information Studies since 1986 and Dean of Education and Humanities since 1991 at Loughborough University.