Utilizing Systems Development Methods in Archival Systems Research: Building a Metadata Schema Registry

This paper discusses the use of systems development research methods in the context of ongoing research that is formulating a specification for a metadata schema registry. The paper extrapolates from this discussion how such methods can be utilized in archival systems research and how such an approach differs from commercial systems engineering. In particular, the paper suggests that adopting a user-centred prototyping approach in a research context allows for exploration of the interplay between theory and practice, advancing the practice, while also offering new insights into theoretical concepts. It argues that these research methods are of increasing interest to the archival profession in order to conceptualise and realise the tools necessary to support recordkeeping and archival processes in digital environments.