Date of this Version
Spring 7-5-2026
Document Type
Article
Abstract
Knowledge organization (KO) systems such as the Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) structure human knowledge primarily through disciplinary subject relationships, leaving the subjective, experiential dimension of knowledge engagement largely unexamined. This conceptual study extends David Gamez's (2018) distinction between "online" (environmentally-coupled) and "offline" (environmentally-decoupled) bubbles of experience into Library and Information Science (LIS), proposing that DDC's ten main classes can be interpreted as differing in the dominant mode of conscious engagement they require. Drawing on Integrated Information Theory, Global Workspace Theory, and Default Mode Network research, the study maps each DDC class onto this experiential spectrum and examines the cognitive capacities each mode is associated with in the existing literature. The framework is offered as a complementary, human-centered interpretive lens rather than a replacement for subject-based classification, and its scope, internal tensions, and boundary conditions are discussed explicitly. The paper concludes by identifying empirical pathways for testing the framework and situating it within future LIS research on user-centered knowledge organization
