Gray literature refers to various types of publications, including technical documents, government publications, and field reports. They are often difficult to obtain and not held by libraries. The term emerged in the 1970s to describe publications by organizations that were not primarily publishers. Gray literature can be useful but poses challenges due to limited access and incomplete bibliographic data. Efforts have been made to improve access and standards for gray literature, such as the Archearchy Data Service and the Gray Literature International Steering Committee.
In academia, ‘grey literature’, which is often spelled ‘grey literature’ in British usage, is a term that refers to certain types of publications. Gray literature refers to a wide variety of documents, including technical documents; internal publications of corporate or university research departments; government publications, sometimes known as “white papers”; field reports; and more. While these documents may be of interest to scientists and academics, they are often difficult to obtain because they are neither books nor journals and may therefore not be held by libraries. Even gray literature is often only published in small print runs.
The term “grey literature” began to emerge in the 1970s to fill the demand for a phrase to describe the ever-increasing number of publications by organizations that were not primarily publishers, as opposed to what was commonly thought of as academic literature: the main content of academic books and journal articles. These publications contained large amounts of useful data. They were especially useful because the academic publishing process often resulted in delays in publishing research. In contrast, publication of less formal reports was much quicker and could be achieved up to a year or more before publication in academic journals. Those with access to this type of data enjoyed a useful advantage.
The gray literature had the potential to be a boon to researchers, but it also posed challenges. Not all libraries or researchers had access to this type of literature. Even if they had access, the bibliographic data for reports and publications of this type was often absent or incomplete, which meant that the necessary publications could be difficult to locate. A researcher may simply not be aware that there are relationships relevant to his or her work. This began to change as the 1980s and 1990s saw a growing awareness of the importance of gray literature, but many of the problems were difficult to overcome.
In response to these challenges, the academic community has made numerous efforts to improve access to gray literature, both in specific fields and in general. In the field of British archaeology, for example, the Archearchy Data Service (ADS) maintains a library of unpublished fieldwork reports known as the Gray Literature Library. In the wider academia, organizations such as the Gray Literature International Steering Committee work to make sure that producers of gray literature adhere to certain standards that make their work more user-friendly for librarians and researchers.
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