Module 0-1: Text 2

e-TERM reference*

TPC8

Version no.*

2

Version date*

2002-05-14

Contributor*

Cain, Piers; revised Yeo, Geoffrey

Author/s*

Cox, Richard

Title*

'The Record: Is It Evolving?'

Print availability

The Records & Retrieval Report, 10:3 (March 1994): 1-16

Electronic availability

Copyright

©1994 Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc.

Introduction

Richard Cox explains why we need to think carefully about how a record is defined and situates this thinking in the context of the historical development of the record, traditional archival theory, and changes in technology and working practices. He also introduces functional recordkeeping requirements developed by the ground breaking University of Pittsburgh research project.

Richard Cox is an Associate Professor in Library and Information Science at the University of Pittsburgh. Previously he worked at the New York State Archives and Records Administration, Alabama Department of Archives and History, the City of Baltimore, and the Maryland Historical Society. He has written extensively on the history of archival science and recordkeeping, the management of electronic records, and the public awareness of archives and records in the modern information age.

Relevance

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Concepts*

Archives
Data
Documents
Evidence
Functional Requirements
Information
Record
Record System
Record keeping System
Technopoly

Cases

-

Module no.*

0.1

Role

-

Contribution to learning objectives*

Study of this text will contribute to the following learning objectives:

Preliminary reading

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Reading help

Cox is writing for an American audience where the archival tradition evolved differently from the European model. This is particularly evident in the discussion in the section on 'The rediscovery of Records as Evidence' (pp 9-12). One of the interesting consequences of the 'information age' has been the emergence of a common view of many aspects of archival theory in many parts of the world.

Discussion

Cox starts by describing the historical development of the record as a cultural construct. How does this historical overview add to our understanding of the present day purpose and use of records?

What is the difference between data and information?
What is the difference between records and documents?

Is an email message data, or information or a record?

Would you consider a snapshot of a government web site to be a record according to the criteria outlined in this article?

Does a traditional paper recordkeeping system have the same attributes as an electronic recordkeeping system?

Assignment

Why do people or organisations keep records and has the widespread use of information technology changed the reasons why they do this?

Further reading

McKemmish, Sue, 'Recordkeeping, Accountability and Continuity: The Australian Reality' in McKemmish, Sue and Upward, Frank (eds.), Archival Documents, Monash Occasional Papers in Librarianship, Recordkeeping and Bibliography, No. 3, Ancora Press, Melbourne, Australia, 1993, 9-26.