From the Archival Bond to the Informational Bond

Abstract

The archival bond is the embodiment of the relationships shared amongst records generated in the course of the same activity, by the same creator. It has been one of the key governing principles of the archival profession since its inception. At the heart of this concept is the notion that records only acquire meaning and identity in the context of the aggregation they originally belong to. This interpretation has been guided by an analog worldview of archives in which creators, activities, and fonds are easily delimited constructs. With the digitalization of recordkeeping, these boundaries are meshed in favor of more fluid processes that prioritize the flow and recombination of information across several systems and classification schemes. This article attempts to revisit the concept of archival bond under the light of the current information paradigm with the goals of examining its fundamental notions, discussing its application and limitations. The methodology is qualitative and relies on documentary research. A literature review on the archival bond is conducted through the consultation of Web of Science and Scopus databases. As an expansion of the archival bond, a novel concept of informational bond is suggested as an attempt to more accurately capture the context of digital information and to reinforce the trustworthiness of archival representations.