Records provide answers to the researcher's goals. 

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

In government archives, there are a set of relationships between the "I" and government archives that explain why a government archive exists:

- records and the actions of the government
- records and the functions of the government
- government and its accountability
- government and the governed
- records and the public researcher
- nation as a whole and its inhabitants

Relationships Between "I" and Government Archives

Trudy, H. P. (2019). The “I” in government archives: The individual as stakeholder. Asian Education and Development Studies, 8(2), 98-108. doi:http://dx.doi.org.proxy.lib.umich.edu/10.1108/AEDS-01-2017-0005

The Relationships of Government Archives

Records are created as a result of government actions, whether it be because of laws, regulations, or doing everyday businesss.

Records and Actions of The Government

Records help preserve legislative, fiscal and legal functions of the government, primarily via electronic storage. 

Records and Functions of the Government

Accountability is achieved through three actions: preserving, creating and access to the records. Records have to be created promptly for accountability's sake. Although most records created aren't saved, those that remain have to be preserved with accountability and transparency in mind. Access to important records is an expectation of the people by the government. They expect transparency of national governmental records but privacy for their personal records.

Records and Government Accountability

Records of citizen's rights (birth, employment, identity and marital status) are expected to be preserved by the government. The government is also expected to provide access to these records.

Records and the Governed

Records help the nation feel connected to their country's history and help explain a nation's history to other nations. 

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