Wood, Flour, Journal: How the Electronic Turn Has Affected the Way Journals are Found, Used, and Read

Abstract

The repercussions of the recent dramatic shift in journal publication from a print to a digital platform – a shift termed by the author “the electronic turn” - are far-reaching. Delivered originally as a part of a panel discussion, this essay marks out the profound changes around journal content: how academic libraries purchase it, in how they provide access to it, and in how people use it.

Factors contributing to the process include the growth of technological capacity, new publishing models, economic necessity, user preference, and changes in the way people prefer to read.

The “electronic turn” is viewed as at the same time unavoidable and calling for corresponding changes in the mindsets of libraries, of publishers, and of researchers.