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Researching Latin America: A Survey of How the New Generation Is Doing its Research

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 September 2022

Orchid Mazurkiewicz  and
Claude H. Potts
Orchid Mazurkiewicz
Affiliation:
Hispanic American Periodicals Index, University of California, Los Angeles
Claude H. Potts
Affiliation:
Arizona State University
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Abstract

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This article reports the results of a pioneering and in-depth survey of the research and information-seeking behavior of the student members of the Latin American Studies Association (LASA) living in the United States and Puerto Rico. The results suggest that the new generation of Latin Americanists in the universities surveyed are confident in their abilities to carry out research on the region within their respective disciplines. However, most of these students have not received formal instruction by course instructors or librarians on how to carry out their research on Latin America. Use of the Internet as a research resource is popular but has not replaced the use of the library and long-standing research strategies such as footnote-chasing. While the reported use of library electronic resources is very high, awareness of Latin America-specific and electronically-available research tools such as HLAS, HAPI, and LAPTOC is low. The survey is the first step in reassessing the ever-changing needs and research patterns of this cross-cultural and cross-disciplinary group of academic library users and future leaders in Latin American studies.

Resumen

Resumen

Este artículo da a conocer los resultados de un estudio profundo y pionero sobre la conducta observada en la investigación y búsqueda de información por parte de de los estudiantes miembros de la Asociación de Estudios Latinoamericanos que viven en los Estados Unidos y Puerto Rico. Los resultados sugieren que, en las universidades cubiertas, los miembros de esta nueva generación de latino-americanistas, dentro de sus respectivas disciplinas, se sienten cómodos y confiados en sus habilidades para su desempeño como investigadores sobre la región. Sin embargo, la mayoría de estos estudiantes no recibió formación específica por parte de profesores o bibliotecarios sobre cómo llevar a cabo las investigaciones sobre América Latina. A pesar de que el uso de Internet como recurso de investigación está bien extendido, éste no llegó a reemplazar el uso de la biblioteca y de estrategias de investigación de larga data como la búsqueda a través de las notas al pie y la consulta a colegas. Si, por un lado, el uso de recursos electrónicos es muy alto, por otro lado, es baja la conciencia sobre la posibilidad del uso de herramientas de investigación específicas para América Latina como HLAS, HAPI y LAPTOC, que se encuentran disponibles electrónicamente. Este estudio es el primer paso para la reconsideración de las necesidades y pautas de investigación siempre cambiantes de este grupo intercultural e interdisciplinario de usuarios académicos de las bibliotecas, futuros líderes de los estudios latinoamericanos.

Type
Research Reports and Notes
Information
Latin American Research Review , Volume 42 , Issue 3 , October 2007 , pp. 161 - 182
Copyright
Copyright © 2007 by the University of Texas Press

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