scholarly journals Information seeking behaviors, attitudes, and choices of academic mathematicians

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian D. Gordon ◽  
Brian D. Cameron ◽  
Debbie Chaves ◽  
Rebecca Hutchinson
Keyword(s):  
Information Seeking ◽  
Information Needs ◽  
Academic Librarians ◽  
Success Rates ◽  
University Libraries ◽  
Perceived Success ◽  
Survey Results ◽  
Use Of Social Media ◽  
Information Seeking Behaviors

Mathematicians in academic institutions utilize a variety of resources and strategies to seek, find, and use scholarly information and news. Using a sample of mathematicians, researchers surveyed 112 students and faculty at four Canadian university institutions to explore self-perceived success rates, resources consulted, databases used, use of social media, and citation management systems. Further, 12 follow-up interviews were completed with mathematicians to better interpret survey results, resulting information-seeking behaviors, choices, strategies, and feelings on keeping up to date with information needs. According to survey results, a minority of mathematicians (12.5 percent) acknowledged that they were successfully keeping up to date. However, a significant number of mathematicians (28.6 percent) indicated that they were unsuccessful and could do better in remaining current with information needs. Co-investigators, using qualitative analyses, identified four emergent themes related to remaining current: (1) The “slower pace of math” pervades all aspects of this discipline;” (2) There are “too many papers – and not enough time” to effectively search, evaluate, and read scholarly papers of interest; (3) Mathematicians collectively acknowledge that they are open to strategies and technologies where they “could do better” keeping up to date; and (4) Mathematicians have divided loyalties using databases when searching for information by means of “MathSciNet in a Google world.” Additional insights document how mathematicians are guided by mathematical peculiarities and discipline-specific practices. This study helps to shed light on opportunities for academic librarians to identify and meet mathematicians’ evolving information needs. Keywords: Mathematicians, information-seeking behaviors, information needs, information sources, graduate students, faculty, academic (university) libraries, knowledge management

scholarly journals Information seeking behaviors, attitudes, and choices of academic mathematicians

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian D. Gordon ◽  
Brian D. Cameron ◽  
Debbie Chaves ◽  
Rebecca Hutchinson
Keyword(s):  
Information Seeking ◽  
Information Needs ◽  
Academic Librarians ◽  
Success Rates ◽  
University Libraries ◽  
Perceived Success ◽  
Survey Results ◽  
Use Of Social Media ◽  
Information Seeking Behaviors

Mathematicians in academic institutions utilize a variety of resources and strategies to seek, find, and use scholarly information and news. Using a sample of mathematicians, researchers surveyed 112 students and faculty at four Canadian university institutions to explore self-perceived success rates, resources consulted, databases used, use of social media, and citation management systems. Further, 12 follow-up interviews were completed with mathematicians to better interpret survey results, resulting information-seeking behaviors, choices, strategies, and feelings on keeping up to date with information needs. According to survey results, a minority of mathematicians (12.5 percent) acknowledged that they were successfully keeping up to date. However, a significant number of mathematicians (28.6 percent) indicated that they were unsuccessful and could do better in remaining current with information needs. Co-investigators, using qualitative analyses, identified four emergent themes related to remaining current: (1) The “slower pace of math” pervades all aspects of this discipline;” (2) There are “too many papers – and not enough time” to effectively search, evaluate, and read scholarly papers of interest; (3) Mathematicians collectively acknowledge that they are open to strategies and technologies where they “could do better” keeping up to date; and (4) Mathematicians have divided loyalties using databases when searching for information by means of “MathSciNet in a Google world.” Additional insights document how mathematicians are guided by mathematical peculiarities and discipline-specific practices. This study helps to shed light on opportunities for academic librarians to identify and meet mathematicians’ evolving information needs. Keywords: Mathematicians, information-seeking behaviors, information needs, information sources, graduate students, faculty, academic (university) libraries, knowledge management

Unlearning and Relearning in Online Health Education

2011 ◽  
pp. 294-309 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suptendra Nath Sarbadhikari
Keyword(s):  
Medical Education ◽  
Collaborative Learning ◽  
Information Seeking ◽  
Information Needs ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Online Collaborative Learning ◽  
Internet Infrastructure ◽  
Online Health Education ◽  
Information Seeking Behaviors

This chapter discusses the role of integrating medical education with medical practice through online collaborative learning among the various stakeholders involved with healthcare education and practice. It elaborates the discussion with examples of information needs and information-seeking behaviors of patients and physicians. The role of the Internet (infrastructure), and especially the WWW (applications and content), is elucidated with respect to the concepts of online collaborative learning as applied to medical education and practice where the emphasis is on user driven healthcare. “

Coffee House as Information Place?

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurie J Bonnici ◽  
Lynne Watson
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Academic Libraries ◽  
Information Seeking ◽  
Third Place ◽  
Analyse Comparative ◽  
Information Seeking Behaviors

Through observations at two U.S. Starbucks locations and neighboring academic libraries the researchers conducted a comparative analysis of clients engaged in information seeking behaviors. A follow-up survey of client populations revealed reasons for preference of “information place.” Oldenberg’s theory of Third Place provides a lens for analysis of data findings.Par le biais d’observations effectuées à deux cafés Starbucks des États-Unis et aux bibliothèques universitaires du voisinage, les chercheurs ont mené une analyse comparative des comportements de recherche d’information des usagers. Un sondage de suivi effectué auprès de la population d’usagers a révélé les raisons de la préférence du « lieu d’information ». La théorie d’Oldenberg d’un « troisième lieu » offre un point de vue pour l’analyse de ces résultats. 

scholarly journals How COVID-19 Changed the Information Needs of Italian Citizens

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (19) ◽  
pp. 6988
Author(s):  
Rino Falcone ◽  
Alessandro Sapienza
Keyword(s):  
Public Opinion ◽  
Information Seeking ◽  
Information Needs ◽  
Seeking Behavior ◽  
Virtuous Behavior ◽  
Survey Results ◽  
Restrictive Measures ◽  
Role Of Information ◽  
Political Decisions

Italy was the first European country to be affected by COVID-19, facing an unprecedented situation. The reaction required drastic solutions and highly restrictive measures, which severely tested the trust of the Italian people. Nevertheless, the effectiveness of the introduced measures was not only linked to political decisions, but also to the choice of the Italian people to trust and rely on institutions, accepting such necessary measures. In this context, the role of information sources was fundamental, since they strongly influence public opinion. The central focus of this research was to assess the information seeking behavior (ISB) of the Italian citizens, to understand how they related to information and how their specific use of information influenced public opinion. By making use of a survey addressed to 4260 Italian citizens, we identified extraordinarily virtuous behavior in the population: people strongly modified their ISB in order to address the most reliable sources. In particular, we found a very high reliance on scientists, which is particularly striking, if compared to the past. Moreover, starting from the survey results, we used social simulation to estimate the evolution of public opinion. Comparing the ISB during and before COVID-19, we discovered that the shift in the ISB, during the pandemic, may have actually positively influenced public opinion, facilitating the acceptance of the costly restrictions introduced.

Information needs and information-seeking behaviors of on-call radiology residents

1999 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 16-21 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael P. D'Alessandro ◽  
Bao C. Nguyen ◽  
Donna M. D'Alessandro
Keyword(s):  
Information Seeking ◽  
Information Needs ◽  
Radiology Residents ◽  
Information Seeking Behaviors

The effect of socio-demographic characteristics on the information-seeking behaviors of police officers

2015 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
pp. 350-365 ◽  
Author(s):  
Idris Guclu ◽  
Ali Can
Keyword(s):  
Police Officers ◽  
Information Seeking ◽  
Quantitative Research ◽  
Information Needs ◽  
Information Sources ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Information Seeking Behavior ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Seeking Behavior ◽  
Information Seeking Behaviors

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to determine the information-seeking behaviors of police officers who work in police stations in the context of staying current. Leckie et al.’s (1996) model of the information-seeking behavior of professionals is tested. Design/methodology/approach – A quantitative research design was employed for data collection. The sample includes 642 cases. It is both descriptive and exploratory. Findings – Police officers first rely upon their personal knowledge and experience, then their colleagues and then official documents. On the other hand, they rarely consulted informants, libraries, journals, books, and attendance at conferences as information sources. There were significant differences in the information sources used by police officers based on their gender in the context of staying current. Lastly, the results of this study indicated that service years in policing and the roles in police station were significantly correlated with the information sources used by police officers regarding staying current. Originality/value – This study, being the first, provides a huge theoretical base for future studies. It contributes to the discipline of information science by validating a theoretical model in a different context. In addition, it contributes to public safety by understanding the frontline police officers’ information needs and information-seeking behavior.

Investigating the Seeking Behavior for Religious Information in Social Media

2021 ◽  
pp. 765-779
Author(s):  
Abdullah Almobarraz
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Information Seeking ◽  
Media Technologies ◽  
Seeking Behavior ◽  
Use Of Social Media ◽  
Information Seeking Behaviors

Reading and learning about religious information is a habit that Saudis practice to increase their understanding of Islamic rules. It is common now for people to learn about religion from social media. Therefore, the study reports on a survey that was distributed to people in Saudi Arabia to investigate the use of social media technologies for religious information seeking. The objective is to determine if Saudis utilize social media to search for religious information and to understand their information-seeking behaviors when using such a resource. In addition, the study is an attempt to investigate how religious information on social media changes and influences people, and what obstacles and difficulties Saudis encounter when they use social media to obtain religious information.

scholarly journals Learning from degree-seeking older adult students in a university library

2015 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 215-230 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary C. Aagard ◽  
Marilia Y. Antunez ◽  
Jaime N. Sand
Keyword(s):  
Adult Students ◽  
Older Adult ◽  
Academic Libraries ◽  
Information Seeking ◽  
Information Needs ◽  
Student Population ◽  
Content Type ◽  
University Services ◽  
Information Seeking Behaviors ◽  
Older Adult Students

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the use of library resources and services by degree-seeking older adult students (aged 50 years and over) and it is driven by the role of libraries in serving this often overlooked student population. Older adult students bring many benefits to the life of college campuses; nevertheless, many of these students also face challenges in meeting their information needs in academic libraries. Design/methodology/approach – The authors surveyed degree-seeking older adult students at a comprehensive metropolitan university in the western USA. Surveys were distributed to 579 students enrolled in the spring semester 2013, 134 students completed the 15-question online survey about the use of the library, information-seeking behaviors and use of other university services. Findings – The self-reported findings confirmed that the library meets most of the information needs of this student population. Students commented on satisfaction with the library services, barriers to using the library, areas in need of improvement and use of other university services. Research limitations/implications – Survey participants were gathered from one university and a corresponding sample size of 18-24-year-old students were not surveyed. More research is needed to demonstrate how this particular group varies from their traditional aged counterparts. Practical implications – This paper can be used as a starting point for future research into the information-seeking behaviors and needs of degree-seeking older adult students to develop greater understanding of this diverse population and their unique strengths and challenges. There is an absence in the literature on this demographic group in academic libraries. Originality/value – The article includes recommendations for further study and suggests outreach opportunities directed to older adult students that can also benefit the growing diversity of college students.

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