The intelligence professional: A new career profile in Librarianship and Information Science studies? Analysis of LIS study plans in Spain

Abstract

Librarianship and Information Science (LIS) studies have undergone a decline in many countries that is visible in various ways, among which are the disappearance of these degree courses in different universities around the world. These studies need to seek new scenarios to avoid becoming obsolete in a world in which information is undergoing constant change. The profile of the Head of Intelligence in general, and of the Intelligence Analyst in particular, can serve to develop new areas of study and research, and new professional careers. This work analyses the training of Intelligence professionals, the organisms related to that field, and the role those professionals play in the Intelligence Cycle in Spain. The main objective of this study was to determine whether the subjects taught in the LIS Degree courses offered in Spanish universities make it possible to highlight a profile that has never as yet been recognized as a career opportunity within these studies – that of the figure of the Intelligence Professional in general, and of the Intelligence Analyst in particular. An exhaustive and detailed content analysis was carried out of the teaching plans of all the subjects in the curricula of the eleven LIS Degree courses taught in Spain during the 2019/2020 academic year in terms of their adaptation to the phases of the Intelligence Cycle. There was found to exist an important set of subjects related to that cycle, which have the possibility of giving rise to a new professional profile in the LIS field: the Intelligence Professional.