MEASURING THE IMPACT OF INFORMATION - DEFINING THE CONCEPTS

This paper results from the sense of frustration of the authors, as we ll as other authors, working in the field of measuring the impact of i nformation on development, at the number of different definitions of i nformation and other closely related terms and the fact that the diffe rences significantly impede the ability of information scientists and practitioners to communicate among themselves and to build upon each o thers' work. We present here a compilation of definitions that have ap peared in the literature with an attempt to organize and interrelate t hem. The goal is to provide a basis for members of the profession to h ave a common basis for referring to key concepts, not to specify how a given entity should be defined. The major terms included are: data, i nformation, knowledge, impact, and development. (C) 1997 Elsevier Scie nce Ltd.