Project Information Literacy (PIL) was a research institute conducting national scholarly studies between 2008 and 2025 on how early adults find and use information as they progress through, and beyond, their higher education years at an unprecedented time of rapid technological change.
Organization Based in California's San Francisco Bay Area, Project Information Literacy, Inc. (PIL) was a public benefit 501(c)(3) organization registered in California.Internal Revenue Service. (2020). Project Information Literacy. Retrieved August 28, 2025 from https://rct.doj.ca.gov/Verification/Web/Details.aspx?result=66715b65-38d1-47b5-9aa9-535f2e90574d Alison J. Head, PhD., who was the Executive Director and Lead Researcher, is an expert in the field of information literacy research and new media.Wihbey, J. (Jan. 26, 2012). Research chat: Information scientist Alison Head on student habits. Journalist's Resource: A Research Portal and Curated Database. Retrieved August 28, 2025 from http://journalistsresource.org/reference/research/research-chat-information-scientist-alison-headPurdue Libraries selected as 2017–18 site for Project Information Literacy Visiting Research Scholar Program. (Jul. 26, 2017). Purdue Libraries News. Retrieved August 28, 2025 from http://blogs.lib.purdue.edu/news/2017/07/26/pil-visiting-scholar/
PIL began in 2008 as a partnership with the University of Washington Information School with Alison J. Head and Michael Eisenberg, dean emeritus and professor at the school, as Co-Directors.Head, A.J., Fister, B., Geofrey, S., & MacMillan, M. (2022). The Project Information Literacy retrospective: Insights from more than a decade of information literacy research, 2008-2022. Project Information Literacy Research Institute. Retrieved August 28, 2025 from https://projectinfolit.org/publications/retrospective/ Both Head and Eisenberg have extensive experience conducting and publishing research on information literacy and the information-seeking behavior of Internet users.Roseth, B. (Oct. 8, 1998). New director leads library school into Information Age. University Week. Retrieved August 28, 2025 from http://faculty.washington.edu/mbe/univweek.htmInformation School, University of Washington. (n.d.). Michael Eisenberg. iSchool Directory. Retrieved August 28, 2025 from https://ischool.uw.edu/people/faculty/profile/mbeUC Irvine Faculty Contribute to Project Information Literacy. (Spring, 2010). UCI Libraries Update: a Newsletter for Faculty, 28(2). Retrieved August 28, 2025 from https://update.lib.uci.edu/spring10/spring10-2.html In 2012, PIL became a registered nonprofit with Head as sole director after Dr. Head first became affiliated with the Berkman-Klein Center for Internet & Society and the Library Innovation Lab as a Fellow in 2011.The Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University. (2011). Annual Report Academic Year 2010-2011. Retrieved August 28, 2025 from https://www.aallnet.org/allsis/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2018/01/berkman-harvard-annual-report-2011.pdf In 2016, Dr. Head ended PIL’s formal relationship with the Information School and joined the metaLAB@Harvard, the Berkman-Klein Center’s “idea foundry and knowledge design lab,”American Theatre Editors. (Feb. 7, 2023). Digital access research project launches at Harvard. "American Theatre". Retrieved, August 28, 2025 from https://www.americantheatre.org/2023/02/07/digital-access-research-project-launches-at-harvard/ as a Senior Researcher.The Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University. (2017). Annual Report Academic Year 2016- 2017. Retrieved August 28, 2025 from https://cyber.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/2024-03/2.1-FY17-Berkmand-Klein-for-web.pdfProject Information Literacy. (2022). What is the history of PIL? Retrieved August 28, 2025 from https://web.archive.org/web/20250523035257/https://projectinfolit.org/faq/ After publishing 14 open-access research reports over nearly two decades, PIL ended all research operations in 2025 and archived its materials on the website.Head, A. J. (Sep. 11, 2025). After 17 years, Project Information Literacy to end: One final contribution will launch this month.College and Research Libraries News, 86 (8). Retrieved September 11, 2025 from https://crln.acrl.org/index.php/crlnews/article/view/26954
Work PIL's studies were conducted using small teams of researchers drawn from libraries and schools of library and information science across the United States. The institutional sample for PIL studies consists of 93 public and private colleges, universities, and community colleges, as well as 34 high schools located in the U.S. A 2016 study included data from Canadian institutions.Head, A.J. (2016). Planning and designing academic library learning spaces: Expert perspectives of architects, librarians, and library consultants. Retrieved August 28, 2025 from https://projectinfolit.org/publications/library-space-study/ All together, more than 22,500 participants, mostly students, were interviewed or surveyed for PIL reports.The Project Information Literacy Archive. (2025) About PIL. Retrieved August 28, 2025 from https://projectinfolit.org
PIL established a Volunteer Sample of 260 institutions.Project Information Literacy.(2022) PIL at a Glance. Retrieved August 28, 2025 from https://web.archive.org/web/20220201110511/https://projectinfolit.org/See individual reports for details of participating institutions, ethics approvals, and methods for each study Over 100 schools have partnered with PIL for their studies including Harvard College, The Ohio State University, University of Texas at Austin, University of Michigan, The University of Washington, Arizona State University, Brandeis University, Santa Clara University, University of Alaska, Wellesley College and numerous community colleges. Each PIL study underwent ethical reviews at the participating institutions and at the host institution where the study was based before data collection began.Head, A.J. (2016). Staying smart: How today's graduates continue to learn once they complete college. Retrieved August 28, 2025 from https://projectinfolit.org/publications/lifelong-learning-study/
Studies used a mixed-methods approach from the social science and information literacy fields, including large-scale surveys, focus groups, content analysis, extensive interviews, and computational analysis of social media interactions. Final reports have included summaries of key findings, in-depth data, links to surveys and datasets, and recommendations. All reports produced by PIL are open access under the CC-BY-NC license; many include open access data sets. THE PIL Archive site describes their research in conference as being broken into three phases, as follows:
The Finding Information Studies, 2009 - 2011
These studies examined students’ information seeking practices through the lens of their experiences—their needs, strategies, and workarounds—as they navigate complex networked spaces using rapidly changing technologies. The research broke new ground by establishing baseline information about students’ approaches to online and print information: how they found, evaluated, and used a variety of sources to complete coursework and solve information problems in their everyday lives.
Head, A.J. & Eisenberg, M.B. (2011). Balancing act: How college students manage technology while in the library during crunch time. Project Information Literacy Research Report. Information School, University of Washington. Retrieved August 28, 2025 from https://projectinfolit.org/publications/technology-usage-study/ Head, A.J. & Eisenberg, M.B. (2010). Truth be told: How college students evaluate and use information in the digital age. Project Information Literacy Progress Report. Information School, University of Washington. Retrieved August 28, 2025 from https://projectinfolit.org/publications/evaluating-information-study/ Head, A.J. & Eisenberg, M.B. (2010). Assigning inquiry: How handouts for research assignments guide today's college students. Project Information Literacy Progress Report. Information School, University of Washington. Retrieved August 28, 2025 from https://projectinfolit.org/publications/research-handouts-study/ Head, A.J. & Eisenberg, M.B. (2009). Lessons learned: How college students seek information in the digital age. Project Information Literacy First Year Report with Student Survey Findings. Information School, University of Washington. Retrieved August 28, 2025 from https://projectinfolit.org/publications/information-seeking-habits/ Head, A.J. & Eisenberg, M.B. (2009). Finding context: What today's college students say about conducting research in the digital age. Project Information Literacy Progress Report. Information School, University of Washington. Retrieved August 28, 2025 from https://projectinfolit.org/publications/finding-context-study/
The Passage Studies, 2012 - 2016
These studies investigated how early adults navigate major information transitions in their lives as they move from high school to college, from college to the workplace, and from being college students to lifelong learners. The research explores how students experience profound changes in life at the intersection of evolving technologies, pedagogies, and expectations within the contexts of academic libraries, workspaces, and everyday life.
Head, A.J. (2016). Planning and designing academic library learning spaces: Expert perspectives of architects, librarians, and library consultants. Project Information Literacy, Practitioner Series Research Report. Retrieved August 28, 2025 from https://projectinfolit.org/publications/library-space-study/ Head, A.J. (2016). Staying smart: How today's graduates continue to learn once they complete college. Project Information Literacy, Passage Studies Research Report. Retrieved August 28, 2025 from https://projectinfolit.org/publications/lifelong-learning-study/ Head, A.J. (2013). Learning the ropes: How freshmen conduct course research once they enter college. Project Information Literacy, Passage Studies Research Report. August 28, 2025 from https://projectinfolit.org/publications/first-year-experience-study/ Head, A.J. (2012). Learning curve: How college graduates solve information problems once they join the workplace. Project Information Literacy, Passage Studies Research Report. August 28, 2025 from https://projectinfolit.org/publications/workplace-study/
The Zeitgeist Studies, 2018 - 2024
These studies widened the scope of information literacy research by exploring key questions of our time, especially for early adults: how they engage with news they trust in light of “fake news,” how algorithms shape their beliefs about the world around them, and how their information worlds inform their understanding of Covid-19 and climate change. Ultimately, this research investigated how students can develop information agency when confronting complex, polarizing issues with lasting implications.
Head, A.J., Geofrey, S., Fister, B., & Hostetler, K.(2024). How information worlds shape our response to climate change. Project Information Literacy Research Institute. August 28, 2025, from https://projectinfolit.org/publications/climate-study/ Head, A.J., Fister, B., Geofrey, S., and MacMillan, M. (2022). The Project Information Literacy Retrospective: Insights from more than a decade of information literacy research, 2008-2022. Project Information Research Institute. Retrieved August 28, 2025, from https://projectinfolit.org/publications/retrospective Head, A.J., Braun, S., MacMillan, M., Yurkofsky, J. & Bull, A.C. (2020).Covid-19: The first 100 days of U.S. news coverage: Lessons about the media ecosystem for librarians, educators, students, and journalists. Project Information Literacy Research Institute. Retrieved August 28, 2025, from https://projectinfolit.org/publications/covid-19-the-first-100-days/