The Journal of Contemporary Archival Studies (JCAS) announces four new articles:
"Leveraging Consumer-Level AI for Descriptive Metadata Creation in Archival Collections," written by Hope Dunbar and Ken Axford.
Download the article: https://elischolar.library.yale.edu/jcas/vol13/iss1/4/
Abstract: This study evaluates the effectiveness of consumer-level AI tools-ChatGPT Pro and Microsoft Copilot-for generating descriptive metadata in digital archival collections. Using a pilot project at the University at Buffalo's University Archives, researchers tested these tools on transcripts from the WBFO radio archives to create program descriptions of varying lengths. Findings demonstrate that both tools significantly reduced processing time for audio collections, with each exhibiting distinct advantages: ChatGPT Pro offered more adaptable outputs while Microsoft Copilot excelled in structured environments with superior privacy protections. The study explores prompt engineering strategies, examines limitations including AI hallucinations when identifying subject headings, and addresses privacy considerations in institutional contexts. This research provides a scalable methodology for implementing AI in archival workflows while maintaining necessary oversight and quality control, contributing to broader discussions on AI integration in digital archiving practices.
"An Archival Responsibility: A Scoping Review of Literature Regarding the Documentary Burdens of Refugees," written by Ana Roeschley, Kinza Alizai, Crystal Tharayil, Amy Lanier, Merrion D. Frederick, and Homero R. Cuevas.
Download the article: https://elischolar.library.yale.edu/jcas/vol13/iss1/5/
Abstract: Documented individuals who do not live in conflict zones can usually access and use their records to migrate, begin new careers, enroll their children in educational institutions, and gain access to healthcare through mostly routine record-related procedures. However, these standard processes become impossible obstacles for refugees when they lose access to their personal records as part of their forced displacement. Though ever-present for refugees, these documentary burdens are compounded in times of societal crises and political upheaval-times when documentation is most critical. If archivists and archival scholars are to address these issues, it is important to understand the scope of existing scholarship on the archival aspects of refugee issues from both archival scholars and researchers outside archival studies. Such insight can highlight core aspects of refugee documentary burdens, areas for further research, and ways in which archivists and archival scholars might better serve refugees in their communities. This scoping review study investigates how research published over the last two decades addresses the issues faced by refugees in relation to their documentary burdens.
Using an iterative analysis approach, the research team found three overarching themes in the literature regarding the documentary burdens of refugees: Records & Policy, Erasure & Preservation of Memory, and Personal (Digital) Archives in Displacement. The results show that the documentary burdens of refugees are both exasperated by and mitigated through archival practices. Critically, this study's findings show that harm is enacted upon refugees whose testimonies are trusted less than the records (mis)representing them. The authors point to archivy's culpability in creating perceptions of textual records as infallible objective evidence, arguing that archivists and archival scholars should bear the responsibility of archival solidarity and advocacy with refugees and other vulnerable people who have been harmed by documentary burdens.
"Accepting and implementing virtual reality in archives: Archivists' perspective," written by Farzaneh Talebhaghighi.
Download the article: https://elischolar.library.yale.edu/jcas/vol13/iss1/6/
Abstract: Virtual reality (VR) has emerged as a transformative technology across various domains, including education, entertainment, and cultural heritage institutions. While libraries and museums have actively explored VR's potential to enhance user engagement and accessibility, its adoption in archival settings remains limited. This study examines the perspectives of academic archivists regarding the acceptance and implementation of VR in archives, identifying key factors that influence their willingness to adopt or reject the technology. Through qualitative interviews with five archivists from the University of Arizona and Arizona State University, this research explores the perceived benefits, challenges, and institutional barriers associated with VR integration. The findings reveal that while VR has the potential to enhance accessibility, reduce physical wear on archival materials, and improve outreach, significant concerns remain regarding financial constraints, technological infrastructure, sustainability, and the archival profession's traditional emphasis on physical materials. Additionally, archivists' express skepticism about whether VR truly improves research outcomes or merely introduces unnecessary complexity. Ethical and environmental concerns, including the high energy consumption of VR infrastructure and its impact on marginalized communities, also emerge as critical considerations. The study highlights the need for institutional support, funding sustainability, and targeted training programs to facilitate VR adoption. Ultimately, this research challenges the overly optimistic narratives in the literature and emphasizes the importance of balancing technological innovation with archival principles and long-term feasibility. The study concludes with recommendations for future research and policy considerations to support the integration of VR in archives while addressing archivists' concerns.
"Archives and Children's Knowledge," written by Elliott Kuecker and Ashley Rockenbach.
Download the article: https://elischolar.library.yale.edu/jcas/vol13/iss1/7/
Abstract: This article argues for the importance of collecting works created by children-not just about and not just for-in formal archival collections. Framed through the ideas of legitimate knowledge and epistemic injustice, this piece combines notions important to children's rights activists and childhood studies scholars with the role archives can play in preserving children's knowledge through child-created materials. The authors describe how researchers struggle to find work created by children within archives, impacting the ability to create child-centered research that centers children's views of the world as prominently as adult views of the world. Some collections that do include child-created materials are used as examples of how this kind of archival collecting can be done, and in what various formats children's knowledge can come.
JCAS is a peer-reviewed, open access journal sponsored by the New England Archivists, Yale University Library, and Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library.
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Sally Blanchard-O'Brien
Marketing & Outreach Associate
Journal of Contemporary Archival Studies
email.jcas@gmail.com
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