JOE KOHLBURN
Doctoral Candidate, Librarian, and Advocate
Joe is a doctoral candidate, librarian, and activist. Joe’s current research interests include activist media ecologies, news journalism information use among self-identified activists, and communities of care for intra-institutional and organizational reform. Joe is also interested in video game and new media studies, and how games and media can impact user wellbeing. Joe works closely with intellectual freedom advocates and activists in Missouri and nationally. He is past chair of the Missouri Library Association’s Intellectual Freedom Committee, and currently still serves as a regular member. Joe advocates for the rights of readers, librarians, teachers, and parents to have access to a diverse collection of materials in their local libraries, and for the rights of historically marginalized communities to see their experiences and identities reflected in institutional and local collections. He is available for collaborations and talks. If you want to chat about information science, intellectual freedom, art, or any of his other interests or projects, please find contact info below.
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Education
Doctor of Philosophy, Information Science & Learning Technologies:–[in progress].University of Missouri- Columbia (anticipated completion 2025).
Master of Arts, Information Science and Learning Technologies: May 2013 University of Missouri- Columbia.
Master of Arts, Art History and Theory: May 2009 University of Cincinnati.
Bachelor of Arts, Art History: May 2006. University of Missouri- St. Louis.
RECENT PUBLICATIONS AND PRESENTATIONS
Adkins, D., Bossaller, J., Butler, E., Castaño, W., Cho, H. and Kohlburn, J. (2024), “Commitment to Justice, Empathy, and Community During COVID-19: Results from a Three-Phase Study of Public Libraries”, Irvin, V. and Mehra, B. (Ed.) Reading Workplace Dynamics: A Post-Pandemic Professional Ethos in Public Libraries (Advances in Librarianship, Vol. 55), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 63-76. https://doi.org/10.1108/S0065-283020240000055006
Bially Mattern, J., Kohlburn, J., Moulaison-Sandy, H. (2024). Why Academics Under-share Research Data: A Social Relational Theory. Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology (JASIST) 75(8). https://doi.org/10.1002/asi.24938
Kohlburn, J. (June 21, 2024). “Latest Missouri book ban isn’t about protecting kids- it’s parents scared of reality.” Kansas City Star. https://www.kansascity.com/opinion/readers-opinion/guest-commentary/article289412116.html
Gould, H. R., Da Silva Santos, D., Kohlburn, J, & Oprean, D. M. (2023, October). Getting to the ❤ of Things: How Game Feedback Enables Failure for Learning. 2023 AECT Proceedings 13(2). DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.59668/1269.15662
Kohlburn, J. (2023). At What Cost?: Missouri Librarians and the Struggle for Intellectual Freedom, The Reference Librarian 64 (2). DOI: 10.1080/02763877.2023.2211059
Cho, H., & J. Kohlburn. Identifying Affective Gameplay Behaviors: how Video Games Help People Feel Better. JASIS&T Mid-Year Conference via Zoom. April 12, 2023.
Bossaller, J., Adkins, D., & J. Kohlburn. Know and Go: Using open science to deal with the next health crisis. Amigos Library Services via Big Blue Button. March 20, 2023.
Kohlburn, J. Presentation to Intellectual Freedom Teen Council. Brooklyn Public Library via Zoom. February 21, 2023.
Kohlburn, J. Intellectual Freedom Under Fire: Banned Books. High Noon Series, High Low, St. Louis, MO. January 19, 2023.
Mautino, T., Kohlburn, J. & C. Norman. Foundations of Intellectual Freedom. Amigos Library Services via Big Blue Button. January 3-5, 2023.
Kohlburn, J., Cho, H., & Moore, H. (2022). Players’ perceptions of sexuality and gender-inclusive video games a pragmatic content analysis of steam reviews. Convergence. https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565221137481
Kohlburn, J, Bossaller, J, Cho, H, Moulaison-Sandy, H, and D. Adkins (2023). Public Libraries and COVID: Perceptions and Politics in the United States. The Library Quarterly: Information, Community Policy 93 (1), 1-19. https://doi.org/10.1086/722547
Brannon, B, Bossaller, J, Dickey, TJ, Hajibayova, L, Kohlburn, J, Oltmann, SM, and Smith, AJM. “Banned. Challenged, Questioned, or Lost? Information Access and the Path to an Information-Resilient Society.” Proceedings of the Association for Information Science and Technology 59 (1), 548-550.October 31, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1002/pra2.623
Fromm, M, Kohlburn, J, Gregory, J, and Farid Johnson, N. Banned in the USA: The Growing Movement to Censor Books in Schools. Media Literacy Week, NAMLE. October 25, 2022.
Kohlburn, J, Bossaller, J, Cho, H, Moulaison-Sandy, H, and D. Adkins (2023). Public Libraries and COVID: Perceptions and Politics in the United States. The Library Quarterly: Information, Community Policy 93 (1), 1-19. https://doi.org/10.1086/722547
Bossaller, J, Kohlburn, K, Cho, H, Moulaison-Sandy, H, and D Adkins. (2022). Health Information Needs of Public Library Leaders during COVID-19. Proceedings of the Association for Information Science and Technology 59(1), 410-414. https://doi.org/10.1002/pra2.643
Cho, H, Lee, WC, Huang, C and J Kohlburn. (2022). User-centered categorization of mood in fiction. Journal of Documentation, (Ahead of print). https://doi.org/10.1108/JD-03-2022-0071
Joe Kohlburn 