From the ground up. The publication of archaeological projects: a user needs survey

From The Ground Up

The Publication of Archaeological Projects

a user needs survey

Dr Siân Jones
Dr Ann MacSween
Stuart Jeffrey
Richard Morris
Dr Mike Heyworth

Council for British Archaeology

May 2001

Funded by English Heritage, together with Cadw; Dúchas; Historic Scotland;
and the Northern Ireland Environment and Heritage Service

Statement of responsibilities

1 Introduction and background

1.1 Introduction
1.2 Aims
1.3 Objectives
1.4 The survey and report

2 Archaeological project publication: an historical review

2.1 Introduction
2.2 Publication as preservation

2.2.1 Traditional principles: the 'Cranborne Chase tradition'
2.2.2 The influence of the traditional model

2.3 The development of selective publication and research strategies

2.3.1 Pressures, influences and crises: an outline
2.3.2 The Frere Report: 'Principles of Publication in Rescue Archaeology'
2.3.3 The Cunliffe Report: 'The Publication of Archaeological Excavations'
2.3.4 'Management of Archaeological Projects'
2.3.5 'Archaeological publication, archives and collections. Towards a national policy'

2.4 National/Regional diversity in policy and practice

2.4.1 State-funded archaeology
2.4.2 The broader archaeological community
2.4.3 Summary publication and indexing

2.5 Principles of publication and the generation of archaeological knowledge: theoretical issues
2.6 Publication outlets, media and costs

2.6.1 Traditional print publishing
2.6.2 Microfiche
2.6.3 The new electronic information technology

2.7 The audience and the role of project publications within the discipline
2.8 Summary

3 Survey methodology

3.1 Overall survey methodology
3.2 Defining the survey population
3.3 The mail questionnaire

3.3.1 Design of questions
3.3.2 Pilot survey
3.3.3 Sampling methodology
3.3.4 Reminders and response rate
3.3.5 Database design
3.3.6 Analysis

3.4 Phase I interviews

3.4.1 Sampling for interview
3.4.2 Design of interview questions
3.4.3 Analysis

3.5 Phase II interviews
3.6 Citation analysis
3.7 Library consultation
3.8 Consultation with editors and publishers

4 Results

4.1 Questionnaire response rate
4.2 Demography of the response group
4.3 Use of archaeological publications: in general

4.3.1 Information sources
4.3.2 Means of obtaining archaeological publications
4.3.3 Monitoring and use of archaeological publications

4.4 Use of fieldwork publication

4.4.1 Use of published and grey literature
4.4.2 Use of the components of fieldwork reports

4.5 Use of archives
4.6 Fieldwork publications: attitudes, opinions and expectations

4.6.1 Reporting on recent fieldwork
4.6.2 Purpose of publishing fieldwork projects
4.6.3 Content of fieldwork publications
4.6.4 Grey literature
4.6.5 Synthesis of archaeological knowledge
4.6.6 Dissemination of information to the public

4.7 Publication media

4.7.1 Access
4.7.2 Computerised services
4.7.3 Publication mechanisms
4.7.4 Fieldwork publication on the Internet

5 Results of additional analysis

5.1 Follow-up interviews

5.1.1 Reasons for publishing archaeological reports
5.1.2 Level of publication
5.1.3 Level of data
5.1.4 Reinterpretation of data
5.1.5 Integration of specialist work
5.1.6 Grey literature
5.1.7 Archives
5.1.8 Present situation and use of the Internet
5.1.9 Other comments

5.2 Citation analysis
5.3 Library consultation
5.4 Interviews with editors and publishers

5.4.1 Appropriate level of detail
5.4.2 General problems encountered by editors
5.4.3 The question of Internet publication

6 Discussion and recommendations

6.1 General
6.2 Discussion

6.2.1 The function of publication
6.2.2 Summary reports, grey literature and archiving
6.2.3 the structure of fieldwork publications
6.2.4 Sources of information about fieldwork projects
6.2.5 Media of publication
6.2.6 The shape of reports: current and future practice

6.3 Recommendations

Appendices

3.1 Questionnaire
3.2 Report on the pilot survey for the questionnaire
3.3 The questionnaire sample frame and sample
3.4 Sampling strategy for phase I interviews
3.5 Interview design
3.6 Summary of questions asked during interviews with editors and publishers
4.1 Questionnaire section 1 results
4.2 Questionnaire section 2 results
4.3 Questionnaire section 3 results
4.4 Questionnaire section 4 results
4.5 Questionnaire section 5 results
4.6 Analysis of questionnaire responses broken down by response time
5.1 Phase I interview analysis
5.2 List of Monographs used in citation analysis and library survey
5.3 Results of Citation Analysis
5.4 Results of Library Survey

Figures

Statement of responsibilities

This report was commissioned from the Council for British Archaeology by English Heritage, Cadw, Dúchas, Historic Scotland and the Northern Ireland Environment & Heritage Service in 1998. Dr Adrian Olivier of English Heritage acted as the Project Monitor on behalf of the funding bodies throughout the extended life of the project.

The resulting report is the work of a number of individuals:

Dr Siân Jones was initially employed by the CBA as the Project Officer, and was directly responsible for the design of the survey methodology, the historical review of publication policy, the survey questionnaire, the analysis of the questionnaire data, and the phase I interviews. She is the primary author for Sections 1-4 within the final report and offered much guidance and support in the drafting of other sections following her departure from the CBA in the course of the project to take up a post at the University of Manchester.

Dr Ann MacSween took over from Dr Siân Jones as Project Officer, on a paid freelance basis, and was largely responsible for the Phase II interviews, the citation analysis, the library consultations, and the interviews with editors and publishers. She is the primary author for section 5 of the final report and offered continued advice after she left the project to take up a post with Historic Scotland.

Stuart Jeffrey working as a paid freelance consultant, was responsible for the computing aspects of the project: the design of the databases used to analyse the data from the questionnaire, the input of the questionnaire data into the databases, and the subsequent output of results from the databases in the form of spreadsheets and graphs.

Richard Morris oversaw the development of the project when he was Director of the CBA, and subsequently drafted Section 6 (the discussion and recommendations) of the project report on behalf of the CBA working as a paid freelance consultant.

Dr Mike Heyworth (CBA Deputy Director) acted as Project Manager throughout the life of the project on behalf of the CBA, and undertook the overall editing of the final report and its HTML publication.

All the contributors would like to thank everyone who took time to help with the project, particularly those individuals who gave up their valuable time to complete questionnaires and participate in interviews.

The CBA would like to thank the organisations which commissioned the survey, and particularly Adrian Olivier as their Project Monitor, for their continuing faith in the project during its extended life.

Any communications relating to this report should be sent to Dr Mike Heyworth, Council for British Archaeology, St Mary's House, 66 Bootham, York YO30 7BZ, tel 01904 671417, fax 01904 671384, email mikeheyworth@britarch.ac.uk.

Contents

1 Introduction and background

2 Archaeological project publication: an historical review

3 Survey methodology

4 Results

5 Results of additional analysis

6 Discussion and recommendations

Bibliography

Appendices

Figures

Statement of responsibilities