Constructing ‘users’ in library and information science

This article issues a challenge to information service providers and to researchers in information management to reflect on the ways the concept of ‘users’ has been constructed and applied. It is argued that we need to be mindful of the conceptual parameters we establish by our notions of users and the implications of those parameters as these inform our attitudes and endeavours. Alternate labels are considered but found wanting. Thus, the author puts out a call for a worthy replacement that can enlarge the scope of our understanding and help us to reconstruct our thinking.