Search (42 results, page 1 of 3)

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Date

22. 5.2005 19:52:29

Source

Toward a theory of librarianship. Papers in honor of J.H. Shera. Ed. by H. Rawski

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Date

22. 5.2005 19:53:09

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Date

5. 8.2006 13:22:44

Source

Theory and application of information research. Proc. of the 2nd Int. Research Forum on Information Science, 3.-6.8.1977, Copenhagen. Ed.: O. Harbo u, L. Kajberg

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Abstract

Human information-seeking behavior is a topic of increasing interest in many disciplines. However, the dynamics of this behavior remain elusive. The extant research has taken cognitive and behavioral perspectives to study information-seeking behavior, and observed its dynamics in multiple sessions. However, the underlying mechanisms that govern the dynamics of information-seeking behavior are not well understood. With a focus on interactive information retrieval behavior, this study proposes an integrated framework based on activity theory. This framework is not only comprehensive and integrated, but also offers an explanation of the mechanisms governing the interaction between users' cognitive states and their manifested behavior when using an information retrieval system. A set of four propositions are advanced to describe the mechanisms. The implications are discussed.

Date

27. 5.2007 13:55:22

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Abstract

The study analyses how students' growing understanding of the topic and search experience were related to their choice of search tactics and terms while preparing a research proposal for a small empirical study. In addition to that, the findings of the study are used to test Vakkari's (2001) theory of task-based IR. The research subjects were 22 students of psychology attending a seminar for preparing the proposal. They made a search for their task in PsychINFO database at the beginning and end of the seminar. Data were collected in several ways. A pre- and post-search interview was conducted in both sessions. The students were asked to think aloud in the sessions. This was recorded as were the transaction logs. The results show that search experience was slightly related to the change of facets. Although the students' vocabulary of the topic grew generating an increased use of specific terms between the sessions, their use of search tactics and operators remained fairly constant. There was no correlation between the terms and tactics used and the total number of useful references found. By comparing these results with the findings of relevant earlier studies the conclusion was drawn that domain knowledge has an impact on searching assuming that users have a sufficient command of the system used. This implies that the tested theory of task-based IR is valid on condition that the searchers are experienced. It is suggested that the theory should be enriched by including search experience in its scope.

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Abstract

This article proposes a theory of information need for information retrieval (IR). Information need traditionally denotes the start state for someone seeking information, which includes information search using an IR system. There are two perspectives on information need. The dominant, computer science perspective is that the user needs to find an answer to a well-defined question which is easy for the user to formulate into a query to the system. Ironically, information science's best known model of information need (Taylor, 1968) deems it to be a "black box"-unknowable and nonspecifiable by the user in a query to the information system. Information science has instead devoted itself to studying eight adjacent or surrogate concepts (information seeking, search and use; problem, problematic situation and task; sense making and evolutionary adaptation/information foraging). Based on an analysis of these eight adjacent/surrogate concepts, we create six testable propositions for a theory of information need. The central assumption of the theory is that while computer science sees IR as an information- or answer-finding system, focused on the user finding an answer, an information science or user-oriented theory of information need envisages a knowledge formulation/acquisition system.

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Abstract

The aim of this article is threefold: (1) to give a summary of empirical results reported earlier on relations between students' problem stages in the course of writing their research proposals for a master's thesis and the information sought, choice of search terms and tactics and relevance assessments of the information found for that task; (2) to show how the findings of the study refine Kuhlthau's model of the information search process in the field of information retrieval (IR); and (3) to construe a tentative theory of a task-based IR process based on the supported hypotheses. The results of the empirical studies show that there is a close connection between the students' problem stages (mental model) in the task performance and the information sought, the search tactics used and the assessment of the relevance and utility of the information found. The corroborated hypotheses expand the ideas in Kuhlthau's model in the domain of IR. A theory of task-based information searching based on the empirical findings of the study is presented.

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Abstract

Human information-seeking behavior is complicated. Activity theory is a powerful theoretical instrument to untangle the "complications." Based on activity theory, a comprehensive framework is proposed in Part I (Y. Xu, 2007) of this report to describe interactive information retrieval (IIR) behavior. A set of propositions is also proposed to describe the mechanisms governing users' cognitive activity and the interaction between users' cognitive states and manifested retrieval behavior. An empirical study is carried out to verify the propositions. The authors' experimental simulation of 81 participants in one search session indicates the propositions are largely supported. Their findings indicate IIR behavior is planned. Users adopt a divide-and-conquer strategy in information retrieval. The planning of information retrieval activity is also partially manifested in query revision tactics. Users learn from previously read documents. A user's interaction with a system ultimately changes the user's information need and the resulting relevance judgment, but the dynamics of topicality perception and novelty perception occur at different paces.

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Source

Library and information science research. 22(2000) no.4, S.371-382

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Abstract

To be successful at online searching, students must be able to apply the concepts and skills learned in the classroom to a variety of complex products and search conditions. Examines an online searching instructional programme for high school seniors from the perspective of several cognitive learning theories, and proposes a synthesized approach to applying learning theory to bibliographic instruction

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Abstract

For millennia humans have sought, organized, and used information as they learned and evolved patterns of human information behaviors to resolve their human problems and survive. However, despite the current focus an living in an "information age," we have a limited evolutionary understanding of human information behavior. In this article the authors examine the current three interdisciplinary approaches to conceptualizing how humans have sought information including (a) the everyday life information seeking-sense-making approach, (b) the information foraging approach, and (c) the problem-solution perspective an information seeking approach. In addition, due to the lack of clarity regarding the rote of information use in information behavior, a fourth information approach is provided based an a theory of information use. The use theory proposed starts from an evolutionary psychology notion that humans are able to adapt to their environment and survive because of our modular cognitive architecture. Finally, the authors begin the process of conceptualizing these diverse approaches, and the various aspects or elements of these approaches, within an integrated model with consideration of information use. An initial integrated model of these different approaches with information use is proposed.

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Abstract

Multitasking is the human ability to handle the demands of multiple tasks. Multitasking behavior involves the ordering of multiple tasks and switching between tasks. People often multitask when using information retrieval (IR) technologies as they seek information on more than one information problem over single or multiple search episodes. However, limited studies have examined how people order their information problems, especially during their Web search engine interaction. The aim of our exploratory study was to investigate assigned information problem ordering by forty (40) study participants engaged in Web search. Findings suggest that assigned information problem ordering was influenced by the following factors, including personal interest, problem knowledge, perceived level of information available on the Web, ease of finding information, level of importance and seeking information on information problems in order from general to specific. Personal interest and problem knowledge were the major factors during assigned information problem ordering. Implications of the findings and further research are discussed. The relationship between information problem ordering and gratification theory is an important area for further exploration.

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Abstract

While surprisingly little has been written about context at a meaningful level, context is central to most theoretical approaches to information seeking. In this essay I explore in more detail three senses of context. First, I look at context as equivalent to the situation in which a process is immersed. Second, I discuss contingency approaches that detail active ingredients of the situation that have specific, predictable effects. Third, I examine major frameworks for meaning systems. Then, I discuss how a deeper appreciation of context can enhance our understanding of the process of information seeking by examining two vastly different contexts in which it occurs: organizational and cancer-related, an exemplar of everyday life information seeking. This essay concludes with a discussion of the value that can be added to information seeking research and theory as a result of a deeper appreciation of context, particularly in terms of our current multi-contextual environment and individuals taking an active role in contextualizing.

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Abstract

The goal of this study is to understand whether providing a search intermediary familiar with a problem domain and its topical structure would support a user's Web searching tasks, especially complicated tasks with multifaceted topics, and whether the order of searching tasks or system usage influences their successful completion. This study investigates the effect of two factors, the interaction mode and the display layout, on the three main measures of the user's Web searching behaviors: effectiveness, efficiency, and usability. Two interaction modes are compared, mediation via a domain-specific document collection versus nonmediated search, and two display layouts, a combination of browsing-supporting hierarchic display and ranked list of results versus the simple linear list of search results. The results are analyzed in the Flow theory point of view; they were analyzed by order of the tasks and system usage order. The findings of this study contribute to a better understanding of how the mediation system and/or the combined display support a Web information user.

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Abstract

Discusses the results of a survey sent to online searchers in the United Kingdom, USA, Australia and Canada. The purpose of the study was to investigate the influence of national culture on information retrieval skills. The survey form provided a sample question and asked searchers to prepare a preliminary strategy for a search on the Sociological Abstracts online database. Cultural patterns to online searching were discerned. American searchers were found to depend on controlled vocabulary much more than British searchers. Australian searchers seemed to have created a search style of their own, while Canadian searchers blended the American and British patterns. In reviewing results of the searches, over half of the citations retrieved were retrieved by more than one search. Australian searchers were more likely to retrieve items that no other search retrieved, while Canadian searchers had the highest overlap rate. If the theory that citations retrieved by the most searches are the most relevant is correct, then the Canadian searchers prepare the best searches. The Canadian searchers also seemed to be the most international, as their search results overlapped with those from the other 3 countires more often than did searches from other countries. One question contained in the survey asked searchers to suggest related databases for their searches. PAIS and SSCI were the databases mentioned most often in all 4 countires. Nevertheless, cultural differences and ethnocriticism could be discerned in the results with searchers listing databases specifically relating to their own countries or regions: Australian PAIS and US Political Science Abstracts being 2 examples

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Abstract

Purpose - To explore information behavior from a psychological perspective by relating information seeking to personality traits and study approaches. Design/methodology/approach - The research design was quantitative and consisted of statistical analysis of three questionnaires, i.e. the NEO Five-Factor Inventory measuring personality, the ASSIST test measuring approaches to studying, and a questionnaire regarding information behavior. A total of 305 university students who were in the process of writing a Master's thesis responded to the questionnaires. Findings - Three information-seeking patterns - fast surfing, broad scanning and deep diving - emerged from the statistical analyses. Fast surfing could be related to a surface study approach and emotionality, as well as to low openness to experience and low conscientiousness. Broad scanning was linked to extraversion, openness, and competitiveness, whereas deep diving was a search pattern typical of analytical students with a deep and strategic study approach. Research limitations/implications - The results are based on descriptions of behaviour, not actual observations. Although the statistical results were significant, generalisable conclusions would have required more convincing figures. Further research is recommended in order to explore the three search styles in other populations and contexts. Originality/value - Information-seeking behaviour has not previously been studied in relation to the five-factor model, which is regarded as the most modern personality theory to date. Understanding of the psychological reasons behind different information-seeking styles is important for a holistic view of information behavior. These insights are valuable for researchers interested in user behavior as well as for practitioners like teachers and information professionals.

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Abstract

To better understand how individuals and groups derive satisfaction from information, it is important to identify the information source preferences they apply in information seeking and decision making. Four informal propositions drove the structure and underlying logic of this study, forming a preliminary outline of a theory of information source preference profiles and their influence an information satisfaction. This study employed Social Judgment Analysis (SJA) to identify the information judgment preferences held by professional groups for six selected information sources: word of mouth, expert oral advice, Internet, print news, nonfiction books, and radio/television news. The research was designed as an hypotheses-generating exploratory study employing a purposive sample (n = 90) and generated four empirically supported, testable hypotheses about user satisfaction with information sources. The SJA judgment functions revealed the influences of volume and polarity (i.e., positive versus negative information) an information satisfaction. By advancing the understanding of how information source preferences can be identified empirically and their influence an information satisfaction, this research reflects a first, small step toward understanding "satisficing." Satisficing behaviors result in early termination of information search processes when individuals, facing incomplete information, are sufficiently satisfied to assume risks and execute decisions.

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Abstract

In this research, we investigated whether a learning process has unique information searching characteristics. The results of this research show that information searching is a learning process with unique searching characteristics specific to particular learning levels. In a laboratory experiment, we studied the searching characteristics of 72 participants engaged in 426 searching tasks. We classified the searching tasks according to Anderson and Krathwohl's taxonomy of the cognitive learning domain. Research results indicate that applying and analyzing, the middle two of the six categories, generally take the most searching effort in terms of queries per session, topics searched per session, and total time searching. Interestingly, the lowest two learning categories, remembering and understanding, exhibit searching characteristics similar to the highest order learning categories of evaluating and creating. Our results suggest the view of Web searchers having simple information needs may be incorrect. Instead, we discovered that users applied simple searching expressions to support their higher-level information needs. It appears that searchers rely primarily on their internal knowledge for evaluating and creating information needs, using search primarily for fact checking and verification. Overall, results indicate that a learning theory may better describe the information searching process than more commonly used paradigms of decision making or problem solving. The learning style of the searcher does have some moderating effect on exhibited searching characteristics. The implication of this research is that rather than solely addressing a searcher's expressed information need, searching systems can also address the underlying learning need of the user.

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Abstract

Previous studies have shown that users' cognitive styles play an important role during web searching. However, only a limited number of studies have showed the relationship between cognitive styles and web search behavior. Most importantly, it is not clear which components of web search behavior are influenced by cognitive styles. This article examines the relationships between users' cognitive styles and their web searching and develops a model that portrays the relationship. The study uses qualitative and quantitative analyses based on data gathered from 50 participants. A questionnaire was utilized to collect participants' demographic information, and Riding's (1991) Cognitive Styles Analysis (CSA) test to assess their cognitive styles. Results show that users' cognitive styles influenced their information-searching strategies, query reformulation behavior, web navigational styles, and information-processing approaches. The user model developed in this study depicts the fundamental relationships between users' web search behavior and their cognitive styles. Modeling web search behavior with a greater understanding of users' cognitive styles can help information science researchers and information systems designers to bridge the semantic gap between the user and the systems. Implications of the research for theory and practice, and future work, are discussed.