Students' Formal and Informal Information Sources

2019 ◽  
pp. 209-232
Author(s):  
Corinna Petra Raith
Keyword(s):  
Information Sources ◽  
Interview Study ◽  
User Generated Content ◽  
Academic Learning ◽  
Usage Behavior ◽  
Question And Answer ◽  
Informal Information ◽  
Preparation Work

Based on an explorative interview study, this chapter reports on students' usage behavior concerning formal and informal information sources for academic (learning) purposes. In this regard, a variety of information sources was reported, ranging from scholarly materials to applications based on user-generated content like Wikipedia, Facebook, YouTube, blogs, forums, and question-and-answer sites. The findings showed that students' acceptance of information sources varied with an increase in the academic age: the more experienced students were, the more focused their choice of information sources was. Bachelor students utilized diverse sources, while doctoral and PhD students mainly concentrated on scholarly materials and news articles, but used Wikipedia, YouTube, and blogs as well. Regarding such informal sources, bachelor students mainly consulted these for learning purposes, while doctoral/PhD students primarily utilized them for checking up/acquiring information and their preparation work. The results are preliminary in their nature and are to be validated in further research.

EXPRESS: Interacting User-Generated Content Technologies: How Questions & Answers Affect Consumer Reviews

2021 ◽  
pp. 002224372110202
Author(s):  
Shrabastee Banerjee ◽  
Chris Dellarocas ◽  
Georgios Zervas
Keyword(s):  
Electronic Commerce ◽  
User Generated Content ◽  
Specific Information ◽  
Product Attributes ◽  
Online Retailer ◽  
Consumer Reviews ◽  
Question And Answer ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Product Ratings

This article studies the question and answer (Q&A) technology of electronic commerce platforms, an increasingly common form of user-generated content that allows consumers to publicly ask product-specific questions and receive responses, either from the platform or from other customers. Using data from a major online retailer, the authors show that Q&As complement consumer reviews: unlike reviews, questions are primarily asked pre-purchase and focus on clarification of product attributes rather than discussion of quality; answers convey fit-specific information in a predominantly sentiment-free way. Based on these observations, the authors hypothesize that Q&As mitigate product fit uncertainty, leading to better matches between products and consumers, and therefore improved product ratings. Indeed, when products suffering from fit mismatch start receiving Q&As, their subsequent ratings improve by approximately 0.1 to 0.5 stars and the fraction of negative reviews that discuss fit-related issues declines. The extent of the rating increase due to Q&As is proportional to the probability that purchasers will experience fit mismatch without Q&A. These findings suggest that, by resolving product fit uncertainty in an e-commerce setting, the addition of Q&As can be a viable way for retailers to improve ratings of products that have incurred low ratings due to customer-product fit mismatch.

A theoretical analysis of independent business owners' preferences for informal information sources

2020 ◽  
Vol 57 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joel Chan ◽  
Jonathan Brier ◽  
Zahra Farhadi ◽  
Myeong Lee ◽  
Shawn Janzen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Theoretical Analysis ◽  
Information Sources ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Informal Information

Social Media as Information Sources and Their Influence on the Destination Image

2018 ◽  
pp. 265-283 ◽  
Author(s):  
María Pilar Martínez-Ruiz ◽  
Isabel Llodrá-Riera ◽  
Ana Isabel Jiménez-Zarco
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Web 2.0 ◽  
Information Sources ◽  
Destination Image ◽  
User Generated Content ◽  
Destination Marketing ◽  
Tourist Destination ◽  
Travel And Tourism ◽  
Tourism Destinations ◽  
Travel Decisions

Tourists use social media to share their experiences and obtain information about travel and tourism destinations. Information shared by tourists is different than information published by destination marketing organizations (DMOs) in the sense that it does not include formal messages and photographs. Some researchers have proven that user-generated content (UGC) through social media exerts an influence on the perceived image of a tourist destination and the motivations for visiting it. Tourists and travelers tend to use a combination of official and unofficial information to make travel decisions. Nowadays, there are still plenty of opportunities to advance destination image research using social media. With these ideas in mind, this chapter aims to review different types of Web 2.0 platforms and discuss their influence on destination image formation and sustainability perception.

The right to be included

2018 ◽  
Vol 119 (9/10) ◽  
pp. 486-513 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keren Dali
Keyword(s):  
Information Science ◽  
Current Model ◽  
People With Disabilities ◽  
Psychological Climate ◽  
Academic Learning ◽  
Workplace Environment ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Informal Information ◽  
State Of Affairs ◽  
The Right

PurposeIn the spirit of the growing Time is Up movement in North America, this paper aims to focus on the human dimension of academic learning environments and delves into the reasons for the continuous oppression, discrimination and bullying (ODB) of faculty members with disabilities in academia, showing the particularly detrimental effect of ODB in the small professionally oriented field of information science.Design/methodology/approachThe conceptualizing of continuous ODB of people with disabilities in academia is done by carefully scrutinizing the state of affairs; presenting a nuanced survey of utilized terminology; providing a new and inclusive definition of everyday oppression; introducing a new model of an oppressive workplace environment experienced by people with disabilities; showing the centrality of information behaviours and phenomena in ODB; highlighting the high relevance of this discussion to learning science; and outlining potential detrimental effects of ODB on the psychological climate in and the process of professional higher education.FindingsThe model of an oppressive workplace environment experienced by people with disabilities is presented.Originality/valueUnlike previous models of ODB at the workplace, the current model puts information phenomena as decisive factors in continuous ODB against people with disabilities; particular attention is paid to information avoidance behaviours; distorted or delayed information messages transmitted by managers to employees; gossip as an informal information-based tactic of ODB; the insufficient protection of privacy and confidentiality of information about disabilities and personal health; and vague information messages that diminish the usefulness of university policies on disabilities.

scholarly journals Information Sources Utilization among Potato Farmers in North East India

2022 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-49
Author(s):  
Rajib Das ◽  
◽  
K. K. Jha
Keyword(s):  
Mass Media ◽  
Information Sources ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
North East India ◽  
Related Information ◽  
North East ◽  
Societal Needs ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Informal Information ◽  
User Friendly

Information technology has transformed many other aspects of human endeavor and has helped create systems for responding to a wide range of societal needs. The benefits of pertinent farm related information in empowering farmer are significant and remain to be exploited. Potato is one of the most important crops grown successfully in North East India but farmers have limited access to the updated information. A research study was undertaken in four major potato growing states of NE including Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura with a sample of 480 farmers. It was found that potato farmers preferred to utilize informal information sources more than formal as well as the mass media sources with respect to using inputs and taking pertinent decisions with respect to sustainable potato cultivation. Farmers urgently require timely and reliable sources of information for taking important farm management decisions. Therefore, it is recommended to popularize the strategic use of mass media including user friendly ICT tools for better and faster outreach to the target farmers.

Inside the library: Academic librarians’ knowing in practice

2018 ◽  
Vol 50 (3) ◽  
pp. 254-263
Author(s):  
Ola Pilerot ◽  
Jenny Lindberg
Keyword(s):  
Professional Practice ◽  
Information Sources ◽  
Practice Theory ◽  
Academic Library ◽  
Information Use ◽  
Ethnographic Study ◽  
Academic Librarians ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Informal Information ◽  
Professional Field

There is a dearth of studies on librarians’ information practices, in particular their information use. At the same time the professional field of librarianship is infused with an imperative dictating that the work of librarians should be evidence based. This paper presents an ethnographic study of academic librarians’ information use in professional practice. On the basis of the analysis, which is rooted in practice theory, it is concluded that in the academic library under investigation, information use is an ongoing practice shaped in and by the specific areas in which the work is carried out. Rather than primarily relying on evidence in terms of formal research results, the librarians in the study relate to and make use of a multitude of both formal and informal information sources.

Supplier Selection and Assessment by University Procurement Officers

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dan Bouhnik ◽  
Yahel Giat ◽  
Issachar Zarruk
Keyword(s):  
Strong Evidence ◽  
Supplier Selection ◽  
Information Sources ◽  
Procurement Process ◽  
The Core ◽  
Informal Information ◽  
Information Channels ◽  
Official Sources ◽  
Selection And Assessment

Supplier selection and assessment is at the core of the procurement process. This study investigates how procurement officers in Israel's universities select and assess their suppliers. The authors explore which information channels officers use to assess suppliers and find that incidental and informal information sources are the most frequently used followed by official sources. The authors examine the criteria used by officers to select suppliers and identify quality and price as significantly more important than most other criteria. Finally, the authors do not find strong evidence that officers categorize suppliers to key and non-key suppliers according to the university's goals.

What do the public really know about dementia and its risk factors?

Dementia ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 147130122199730
Author(s):  
Alana K Nagel ◽  
Tobias Loetscher ◽  
Ashleigh E Smith ◽  
Hannah AD Keage
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Information Sources ◽  
Health Concern ◽  
Modifiable Risk Factors ◽  
The Public ◽  
Empirically Supported ◽  
Informal Information ◽  
Social Media Platforms ◽  
And Function

Dementia has become a major public health concern globally. With no cure available and strong evidence for modifiable risk factors, it is imperative that the public are knowledgeable about dementia and to reduce their risk. The aim of this study was to measure the knowledge of dementia and its risk factors in the Australian public, as well as the number and type of information sources used. An online survey promoted through various social media platforms was completed by 596 Australian adults aged 18–78 years (59% aged 18–44 years; 78% female). Eighty-eight percent of respondents were able to recognise dementia from a vignette, more so from a moderate than from a mild symptom vignette. Only 19% of respondents had a good understanding of dementia, that is describing impairment in both cognition and function. Ninety-five percent of respondents recognised that genetics and old age contributed to a person getting dementia. However, respondents had poor knowledge of empirically supported modifiable risk factors, with most viewed as likely contributors to dementia at chance levels (50%) or below. Respondents reported using informal information sources more often than formal information sources to learn about dementia. The public appear to be able to recognise the symptoms of dementia but lack understanding of how dementia impacts both a person’s cognitive functioning and ability to perform everyday tasks. Furthermore, the public remain largely unaware of empirically supported modifiable risk factors that contribute to the development of dementia. It is imperative that the public are educated on how to access and evaluate dementia-related information sources in order to increase their knowledge and understanding of dementia.

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