An integrative synthesis of review research on theory use in library and information science

Purpose While there have been review studies empirically examining theory use in library and information science (LIS), no attempt has been made, to the best of our knowledge, to systematically analyze them. The purpose of this study, therefore, is to identify and provide an integrative synthesis of these review studies in the field. Design/methodology/approach Using two rounds of citation chaining, supplemented by a round of database searching, literature searches were conducted to identify articles reviewing theory use within LIS. A total of 30 articles were examined and categorized across multiple variables. Findings This study shows that theory use has become an established area of inquiry within LIS. However, despite the breadth of the literature reviewed and the diversity of sources examined, research on theory use remains unevenly distributed, as reflected in the predominance of information behavior (IB) studies in subfield analyses and the disproportionate focus of geographical analyses on African contexts. The findings further reveal the development of original categorization schemes for assessing the extent of theory use and limited research attention to theory development trends. Originality/value As one of the earliest attempts, if not the first, this study systematically reviews and synthesizes review research on theory use in LIS, moving beyond the findings of individual reviews to provide a more holistic understanding of what these studies collectively reveal about theory use in the field.