Announcing and Advocating: The Missing Step in the EBLIP Model

The Evidence Based Library and Information Practice (EBLIP) model “has been described as a structured approach to decision making” (Hallam, 2018, p. 456) and a method for problem solving (Howard & Davis, 2011). It consists of five sequential stages that step a Library and Information Science (LIS) professional or team through the EBLIP process. The five stages are Articulate, Assemble, Assess, Agree and Adapt, colloquially known as “The 5As” (Koufogiannakis, 2013). The model has iteratively evolved over the past 17 years. Yet it fails to include one of the most important characteristics of evidence based practice. This article argues that the model needs to evolve again to explicitly highlight the importance and relevance of communicating EBLIP outcomes and process to the local community and the professional evidence base. A sixth “A” of Announcing or Advocating is proposed.