Experts' Opinions on the Impact of Community Archives on Archival Science, Archival Institutions and the Archival Profession

Abstract

The article analyzes interviews with 12 experts from Poland and abroad on their perceptions of the impact of community (independent) archives on archival science as an academic discipline, on heritage institutions (especially public archives) and on the archival profession. The purpose of the work is to present the partial results of the project entitled «The impact of independent community archives». Methodology. Data were collected through semi-structured qualitative interviews, which were then analyzed using a priori codes (based on literature and previous interviews with community archivists), supplemented with new codes – new meanings observed during the iterative analysis performed by two team members. Scientific novelty: The article is the first study analyzing expert opinions on the impact of community archives, comparing views of different types of experts (e. g. academics, advocates for community archives, active or former community archivists). Prospects for further studies: Future research should also analyze the contributions of people from other cultures, continents and archival traditions, and should be based on sources that directly describe the influence of community archives on archival science and archival practice. Conclusions. Experts pointed to the significance of community archives in reshaping the foundations of archival science (e. g. terminology, archival value). Experts from Anglophone countries and Chile emphasized the relationship of community archives to decolonization of archives and critical archival studies. Experts from continental Europe focused on the acceptance of the existence of grassroots archives and their distinct archival practices. Some experts noted the impact on archival education. Experts variously assessed the effect on the practice of public archives.