Thoughts about the past, present and future of research in youth information behaviors and practices

Purpose This paper aims to provide a reflection on youth information behaviors and practices in the research literature and suggest future directions for scholarship in this area. Findings The author identifies areas for strengthening the impact of research and scholarship in the area of youth information behaviors and practices, including standardizing the age groups of research subjects, diversifying data collection methods, broadening the participation of marginalized groups and working to understand youth information behaviors and practices from youths’ own perspectives. Originality/value This paper offers a personal assessment of the current state of the field, provides a broad overview of the author’s research in this area and suggests ideas for moving this work forward. It also highlights the importance of making research results readily available to adults who work with and care for youth, including teachers, librarians, product designers, parents and other caregivers.