Library support for the research lifecycle / Starr Hoffman
Short video outlining how the library can work to support different areas of the research lifecycle
Article outlining the variety of ways in which academic libraries can support the lifecycle of a research project
This resource is licenced under a CC-BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence by Claire Sewell, the Office of Scholarly Communication, Cambridge University Libraries.
The research lifecycle is a visual representation of the different stages of the research process. The exact nature of the lifecycle will vary depending on both the project and the institution but will cover broadly the same stages.
The stages are introduced in the short video below:
The lifecycle model has been used by many institutions around the world to help represent both the stages of a project and the services they offer. They range from the very simple to the more complex depending on the needs of the institution.
Although lifecycles are frequently used to represent the research process there are some problems with using this as a model. The main criticism has been that not all research projects follow prescribed stages in a defined order and representing research in this way can be misleading. Research can and often does move around the stages of a cycle non-sequentially but the support needs at each stage remain the same.
You can see a very basic model of the research lifecycle below but you can also look for local examples.
Explore at least one example of a research lifecycle and identify where your role or service fits. Think about the different activities that could be covered at each stage and if you or your library offer any services which can help with these.
