Library & Information Science Research最新文献

This scoping review investigates rigour from phenomenological and phenomenographic orientations and their appropriate fit into the discourses identified by researchers. The scoping review addresses the following central research question: Do phenomenological and phenomenographic studies in published library science research share the same criteria of rigour? Library and information science (LIS) multi-disciplinary bibliographic databases were searched. Basic keyword searching was conducted in databases and conference proceedings were hand-searched to ensure that no articles were missed because of indexing lags. The review found that there are 18 explicitly stated phenomenological orientations and six phenomenographic orientations across LIS. Specific frameworks were applied to each method while strategies from positivism were used interchangeably. There must be a balance between generalizability, reliability, and validity, rather than an over-reliance on one of these pillars. Furthermore, LIS researchers must familiarize themselves with different phenomenological and phenomenographic orientations to apply their methodologies appropriately.

Existing research in urban and rural contexts has found that community members use public libraries to access needed information and resources to improve health and wellbeing; however, little is known about the social and health needs of patrons in suburban public libraries. In this study, 95 staff from 32 public libraries in two contiguous suburban counties were interviewed to understand perceived health and social needs of their patrons. Interview transcripts were analyzed using thematic analysis. The top needs identified were mental health, exercise, diet/nutrition, technology literacy, housing, and employment. Library staff described responding to patrons' intersecting health and social needs despite not having had formal training to do so. Engaging social workers, public health educators, and health care professionals in the public library space may be one way for librarians to respond to the health and social needs of patrons using evidence-based tools and best practices.

In the “digital intelligence” environment, the service quality of online health information services has become increasingly prominent. Using the Information Ecology theory as the research perspective, the factors affecting the quality of online health information service was investigated. Using the fuzzy D-I-S (Decision-making rial and Evaluation Laboratory- Interpretive structural modelling- system dynamics simulation) method, various factors of online health information service quality, such as importance, role and hierarchical relationship, and the impact of these factors on future services were analyzed. The main factors affecting the service quality were identified. Four of the most important core factors, the intelligence of technology, interactivity of services, ease of use of information, system ease-of-use, were simulated. Results showed that the service quality could be significantly improved by increasing the investment proportion of these four core factors. A basis for the construction of online health information service quality evaluation indicators, and also a reference for the improvement of online health information service quality was provided.

College students with a life experience of chronic illness and impairments grow into young adulthood as health information monitors as well as communicators with healthcare professionals. This interview study focused on the health information management practices of college and graduate students living with disabilities and chronic illness. SEIPS (Systems Engineering Initiative for Patient Safety), a work system model drawn from human factors engineering, was used as a conceptual framework for qualitative analysis. This revealed the importance of other people, particularly parents, in patients' information worlds. Digital technologies were ubiquitous; analog tools from business cards to binders were also key components of students' information systems. Using the SEIPS structure to interrogate the data allowed an understanding of how health experiences are integrated into everyday life. The findings of this research may provide health information technology designers and information science researchers insight into how to meet the needs of this population.

To solve the problem of information poverty, it is necessary to understand the factors influencing it. Past studies have examined information poverty from the perspectives of economic poverty and deficiency or deprivation. However, these studies do not fully explain the formulation of information poverty because they may overemphasize the economic and material side of information and neglect the social and communicative aspects. A quantitative study was conducted to examine how contextual factors (i.e., external situations, social relations, individual situations, and social interactions) affected the information poverty of ethnic villages in rural Southwest China. Research results showed that geographic locations, information assets, individual literacy, and individual psychology significantly influenced information poverty. Social norms and beliefs also affected information poverty; however, this influence was insignificant. These findings extend existing studies on information poverty and provide practical guidance for stakeholders (e.g., governments, libraries, and intellectual works) to alleviate information poverty.

Searches with learning intent typically require the users to interact with the searching environment and perform knowledge acquisition features such as scan, read, and process the online content to fulfill their information needs. To capture indicators from searching behaviors that could account for the knowledge gained during a Web search, a qualitative study was performed using the Concurrent Think-Aloud protocol to observe the mechanisms of transfer and map knowledge flows during 78 search sessions. Findings indicate evidence of transfer of learning in the form of sixteen online information searching strategy indicators. This research aids the understanding of how knowledge is gained during search sessions and how to identify behaviors that could indicate that learning has occurred, which could be used to represent knowledge gain on Web search engines. In this way, it can aid search engines to become not only better tools of searching, but also tools of learning.

Library and information science (LIS) provides only limited support for evidence-based decisions in the field of collaborative information behavior (CIB). In this study using the Web of Science and Library and Information Science and Technology Abstracts databases the researcher identified applied studies in LIS research on CIB, reviewed the studies' ability to provide scientifically proven support for practice, the general goals, and the basic methodological decisions upon which the studies were based. A mixed qualitative/quantitative approach was used, along with the content analysis method. The analysis showed that approximately 50% of the LIS studies on CIB were to some extent applied research, but only 8% concluded with specific recommendations verified during the research. Generally, they were development-oriented, exploratory, explanatory, and descriptive at the same time, synchronic, conducted without specifying the research setting, and based on survey techniques and elicited data. The results reveal the limitations of the potential of LIS research for CIB practice and thus indicate the possibilities of its development.

As the use of arts-involved and data visualization methods increases in information science, it is essential to reflect on the strengths and weaknesses of various methods. An international lineup of information researchers shares their experiences using the participatory, visual elicitation technique Information World Mapping (IWM) in their work. The authors begin with an overview of IWM, detailing its origins and emerging directions. They summarize their application of IWM to describe information behaviors/practices across various locations, cultures, disciplines, and technology access environments. The authors conclude by discussing key questions and areas of exploration for IWM in information research, including cultural influences, changes in media and methods for data collection, power dynamics, and researcher positionality and reflexivity. Insights offer new possibilities for the next phase of IWM in information research, including challenges and areas for innovation.