Learning from digital disorientations: Navigating virtual and physical spaces in library and information science research during lockdowns and beyond

The forced shift to virtual-first data collection resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic consequentially impacted Library and Information Science (LIS)-based qualitative and mixed methods researchers. Further, the ongoing presence of the COVID-19 pandemic forever altered the perceived norms and values of conducting research within virtual, as opposed to, physical environments. To understand the unique impacts of COVID-19 on virtually mediated LIS research this paper conducted four comparative case studies regarding the challenges and success of forced virtual research. Findings reveal that although a sudden shift from physical to virtual methods may not occur again, pandemic period research resulted in innovations related to accessibility and inclusivity using existing technologies. The pandemic also reinforced the unique role that LIS scholarship and praxis played in ensuring ethical and sustained research protocols from the planning stages through distributing and curating data for writing and publishing findings.