I am eager to ADVISE graduate students of Library and Information Science and neighboring feilds. Especially, I am available to supervise studies related to information behaviour (otherwise known as information seeking, information practice, or information experience) within everyday life and leisure settings. I also welcome advisees interested in applying qualitative, exploratory, ethnographic, visual, and/or creative methods.
current and former phD advisees at toronto
- Brian Griffin (2020). Brian's doctoral thesis is entitled, Information Practices in Amateur Classical Musicianship and is based upon ethnographic research in the social world of classical music within greater Toronto; it has an innovative focus on embodied information phenomena. (Doctoral thesis supervisor).
- Rebecca Noone (2020). Rebecca began doctoral studies at the iSchool in fall 2014. She has been active in the iSquare research program and is developing ideas the crossroads of information studies and participatory art. Her dissertation is entitled From Here To: Everyday Wayfinding in the Age of Digital Maps and involved fieldwork in the streets of Toronto, New York, London, and Amsterdam. (Doctoral thesis supervisor).
- Eva Jansen Hourihan (2018). Eva's dissertation, Let’s Talk About the NOC: an Ethnography of Classification is a ground-breaking ethnographic study of a classification system. (Doctoral thesis supervisor).
- Elysia Guzik (2017). Elysia entered the Faculty of Information doctoral program in Fall 2012 and conducted research on the information practices associated with religious experience, specifically conversion to Islam. (Doctoral thesis supervisor).
- Danielle Allard (2015). Danielle's dissertation was entitled Living here and there: Exploring the transnational information practices of newcomers from the Philippines to Winnipeg. (Dissertation committee member).
- Lisa Quirke (2014 at the Faculty of Information, Toronto). Lisa's dissertation was entitled Leisure Information Practices of Afghani Newcomer Youth in Toronto. (Dissertation committee member).
Current and former PhD advisees at other universities
- Carrie Stump (in progress, School of Information Studies, Dominican University). Carrie is at the dissertation proposal defense stage, and has a study underway, The Information Experiences of Queer Writers of Queer Fanfiction: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis.
- Keith Munro (2024, University of Strathclyde, Scotland). Keith's innovative dissertation study is, Every Step Is Moving Me Up – An Information Behaviour Study of Hikers on the West Highland Way.
- Judith H. Van Alstyne (2023, University of Rochester, USA). Judith explored the personal information management (PIM) of youth, in the digital context. (External committee member).
- Tim Gorichanaz (2018, Drexel University, USA). Tim has qualitative research interests in human experiences of information – in linguistic expression, religious practice and craft – approached phenomenologically through document work and document experience. Tim's superb (and award-winning) dissertation is, Understanding Self-Documentation. He is the also the author of Information on the Run: Experiencing Information During an Ultramarathon. (External committee member).
- Peta Ifould (2019, Curtin University, Australia). Peta is pursuing a Doctor of Philosophy in Media, Culture and Creative Arts at Curtin University. Her thesis explores the role of the record-keeper in law enforcement environments of Western Australia; she is using visual methods and the draw-and-write technique. (Project advisor to the supervisor, Dr. Pauline Joseph, Curtin University).
- Angela Pollak (2015, University of Western Ontario). Angela's thesis, Words to Live By: How Experience Shapes our Information World at Work, Play and in Everyday Life, is a ground-breaking study of information experience in the village of Whitby, Ontario; it looks simultaneously across everyday life, work, and leisure contexts. The study was supervised by Dr. Lynne McKechnie. (External reviewer).
Current and former Master's Thesis advisees at Toronto
- Alexandra (Allie) Landy (in progress). Allie is interested in visual research methods and is organizing a master's thesis using the Information Horizon Interview.
- Laura Lamont (2024). Laura's great thesis was about information behaviour in her favorite hobby, camping: Information Outdoors: Exploring the Information Behaviour of Hobby Campers.
- Madeline Burt-D'Agnillo (2023). Madelin completed an outstanding study of information behaviour on the client (coachee) side of life coaching, Getting Coached: The Information Experience of Life Coaching Clients.
- Katie Czajkowski (2021). Katie's excellent thesis was entitled Patients’ Information Uses in an Online Health Community. (Master's thesis committee member).
- Hugh Samson (2021). Hugh conducted an ethnography of the iRelax space within the Inforum at the Faculty of Information, Contemplating Infrastructure: An Ethnographic Study of the University of Toronto Faculty of Information Inforum’s iRelax Mindfulness Resource Area. (Master's thesis supervisor). He has moved on to doctoral studies at the University of Western Ontario.
- Sam Rowlandson-O'Hara (2020). Sam's amazing study explored the "creative insight" that plays a role in musical composition among amateur composers. See: From Forests to Formulas: Contextual Examination of Composers’ Sources, Materials, and Practices Involving
Creative Insight. (Master's thesis supervisor). - Jess Whyte (2017). Jess conducted a great ethnography, Molding Makers: An Ethnography of an Academic Makerspace. (Master's thesis supervisor).
- Ben (Robert) Walsh (2014). In September 2014, Ben completed our MI program and the superb thesis, Information Out in the Cold: Exploring the Information Practices of Homeless, Queer, Trans, and Two-spirit Youth in Toronto. He is continuing this line of research as a librarian at the University of Toronto.
- Hailey Siracky (2013). Hailey conducted an ethnographic study of journals (the hand-written kind) and their role in the spiritual lives of Catholic young adults. See: Spiritual Journal Keeping: An Ethnographic Study of Content, Materials, Practice, and Structure. (Master's thesis supervisor and advisor).
- Danielle Cooper (2011). Danielle wrote "Big Gay Library:" An Ethnographic Study of the Pride Library and the University of Western Ontario, master’s thesis. (Master's thesis supervisor and advisor); Danielle has since completed a PhD at York University and is now a reseacher at Ithaka S+R.
- Leslie Thomson (2010). Leslie conducted an exploratory ethnography entitled Information in the Home Office: An Ethnographic Study of Space, Content, Management and Use, while an MI student. She will soon apply to doctoral programs in information studies. (Master's thesis supervisor and advisor). In March of 2013, Leslie was accepted for doctoral studies in information at the University of North Carolina (UNC), Chapel Hill and was granted a prestigious Royster Fellowship (congratulations, Leslie!); as of 2020 she is now Dr. Thomson and has a postdoc at UNC.