Carol Kuhlthau

Carol Collier Kuhlthau (born December 2, 1937) is a Distinguished Professor Emerita of Library and Information Science in the School of Communication and Information (SC&I) at Rutgers University, researcher, and international speaker on learning in school libraries, information literacy, and information seeking behavior. She introduced the model of the Information Search Process (ISP), which is used throughout the field of information science.

Life

Born in New Brunswick, New Jersey, U.S.A., Kuhlthau graduated from Kean University with a B.S. in 1959. She completed a M.L.S. in 1974 and a doctorate in Education in 1983 at Rutgers University.

She married John Suydam Kuhlthau (1937 - 2020)[1] in 1958 and together they raised three daughters in North Brunswick, NJ: Eleanor, Ann, and Leslie. They moved to Princeton, NJ upon John's retirement in 1999.

Contributions

She worked as an educational media specialist and school librarian in New Jersey from 1974 to 1985.

She joined the faculty of Rutgers University as an Assistant Professor in 1985 where she worked for more than 20 years. Kuhlthau co-founded the Center for International Scholarship in School Libraries (CISSL) in 2003 with Dr. Ross Todd.

Kuhlthau is internationally known for her groundbreaking research on the Information Search Process (ISP) and for its model of affective, cognitive and physical aspects in six stages of information seeking and use.[2] She has authored seven books and numerous publications related to information literacy. In May 2006, she served as a U.S. Fulbright Senior Scholar to Croatia (University Strossmayer, Osijek). She retired in 2006.

Publications

Kuhlthau, Carol Collier. (2024). Seeking Meaning: A Process Approach to Library and Information Services. 30th Anniversary Edition. Bloomsbury. https://doi.org/10.5040/9798216193487
Kuhlthau, C. A. (2016). “Reflections on the development of a theoretical perspective”. In Diane H. Sonnenwald (Ed.), Theory Development in the Information Sciences (chapter 4, pp. 68-86). The University of Texas Press.
Kuhlthau, Carol C., Leslie K. Maniotes, and Ann K. Caspari. (2012). Guided Inquiry Design: A Framework for Inquiry in Your School. Libraries Unlimited.
Kuhlthau, Carol, Leslie Maniotes, and Ann Caspari. (2007, revised second edition 2015). Guided Inquiry: Learning in the 21st Century. Libraries Unlimited.
Kuhlthau, Carol Collier. (2004). Seeking Meaning: A Process Approach to Library and Information Services. 2nd Ed. Libraries Unlimited.
Kuhlthau, Carol Collier. (1993). Seeking Meaning: A Process Approach to Library and Information Services. Ablex Publishing Co.
Kuhlthau, C.C. (1991). Inside the search process: Information seeking from the user's perspective. JASIS 42 (5): 361-371. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1097-4571(199106)42:5<361::AID-ASI6>3.0.CO;2-#
Kuhlthau, C. C. (1990). The information search process: From theory to practice. Journal of Education for Library and Information Science, 31(1), 72–75. https://doi.org/10.2307/40323730
Kuhlthau, Carol Collier. (1985, second edition 1994). Teaching the Library Research Process. Scarecrow Press. Swedish Translation and updated edition by Marianne Auby Hudden and Annika Aringer, 2005.

Awards

Distinguished Alumni Award, Rutgers University SC&I, 2016
ASIST Award of Merit, 2013
ASIST SIG USE Academy of Fellows, 2006
Association for Library and Information Science Education (ALISE) Award for Professional Contribution Library and Information Science Education, 2004
Frederick G. Kilgour Research Award, ALA LITA, 2002
Miriam Dudley Instruction Librarian Award, ALA ACRL, 2000
Distinguished Service Award, ALA AASL, 2000
Award for Outstanding Contributions to the School Library Media Field through Publishing, and Teaching, Association for Educational Communications and Technology Award (AECT), 1990
Jesse Shera Award for Outstanding Published Research, ALA, 1989

Life

Contributions

Publications

Awards

Further Reading