Information literacy on Facebook: an analysis

Purpose – This analysis, being part one of a two‐part study, aims to illustrate the attitudes and patterns users are being habituated to through the functionality of Facebook, relate them to information literate practices and behaviors, and speculate their application to information literacy instruction within an academic context. It also aims to lay the groundwork for part two, which is to be reported on in a later issue of this journal.Design/methodology/approach – For this first part of the study, the Association of College & Research Libraries (ACRL) Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education have been aligned with common behaviors on Facebook, examining each standard, performance indicator, and outcome for possible parallels in common Facebook tools and behaviors. These behaviors have then been connected to the process of conducting research in an academic context.Findings – Three Facebook functions – Feeds, Share, and Comment – emerged as the primary means by which information li...