This thesis is focused on the issues of information behaviour of editors from publishing with an emphasis on information needs and the sources of information. The first part deals with the position in the information publishing companies, the trend for electronic publishing and its influence on the book market. The following is an overview of selected terminological terms from publishers and their analysis. The next chapter is a summary of information behaviour theories, related concepts, models and current research in the Czech republic. The results of research that was realized for the purpose of the thesis between Czech editors are summarized and analyzed in the conclusion. Based on these results, proposals for the increasing of information literacy of editors are included in the thesis.

(anglicky) This thesis entitled Information support in a financial institution discusses how information services and resources are currently used internally in an institution focusing on the Czech banking environment. The reader is thus provided an insight directly into the organization and the position it takes towards working with information aiming at fulfilment of its employees' information needs. The thesis also reflects description of the most important information sources. Information needs of employees were analyzed and identified based on their frequency of occurrence and distribution across the bank. The following part of the work covers detailed identification of information services. The reader is hereby given the opportunity to find out where, by whom and to what extent the services are used. The conclusion deals primarily with the information models of the flow of information in the organization and the analysis of various entities affecting the relevant processes.

Denna studie har syftat till att nå ökad kunskap om hur myndigheter kan utveckla sin kriskommunikation med barn i åldern 12-13 år, utifrån ett barnrättsperspektiv. Webbplatsen Lilla Krisinfo har utgjort ett exempel för studien. Studiens teoretiska perspektiv har bestått av inkodning- och avkodningsmodellen, användning- och gratifikationsteorin, förväntning-bekräftelseteorin samt retorik, vilka har sammanförts i en egen teoretisk modell. Metoderna som användes var retorisk analys av webbplatsen och fokusgruppsintervjuer med barn. Genom att undersöka barns informationsbehov och informationssökningsstrategier gällande kriser samt deras uppfattning av Lilla Krisinfos webbplats har studien kunnat nå ökad kunskap för att besvara syftet. De huvudsakliga resultaten innefattar att myndigheter bör betona krisers relevans för barn, skapa trygghet men samtidigt inte undanhålla information, anpassa sitt språk efter olika nivåer och sträva efter att vara och upplevas trovärdiga. / This study has aimed to reach further knowledge about how authorities can develop their crisis communication with children aged 12-13, based on a children's rights perspective. The website Lilla Krisinfo has been an example for the study. The study's theoretical perspective has consisted of the encoding and decoding model, the uses and gratification theory, the expectation-confirmation theory and rhetoric, which were brought together in a theoretical model. The methods used were rhetorical analysis of the website and focus group interviews with children. By investigating children's needs of information and strategies for searching information regarding crises as well as their perception of Lilla Krisinfo's website, the study has been able to achieve further knowledge to answer to the study’s purpose. The main results include that authorities should accentuate the relevance of a crisis for children, create a feeling of security but at the same time not withhold information, adapt the language to different levels and strive to be perceived as credible.

This study examines the efficacy of collection development and management practices, policies, guidelines and standards in universities of technology to meet the information needs of academics and researchers at such institutions. In South Africa, as in Australasia, technikons or polytechnics have been upgraded first into degree granting institutions and then, at the beginning of the 21st century, into universities of technology. The researcher was concerned that library collections in South African universities of technology have not grown to meet the research and teaching needs of academics at the level of universities offering instruction up to a doctoral level. As research funding, government grants and the general prestige of the institutions depend on the research output of the institutions, it is essential that academics and researchers find the information resources they require in their institutional libraries. Case studies of universities of technology in New Zealand and South Africa reveal that, while Auckland University of Technology has been successful in extending its collection to meet the increasing demands placed on it, the collection development policies, standards and guidelines in a South African university of technology need to be upgraded in order to meet the information needs and information behaviour of their researchers and academics. Current levels of funding for the acquisition of information resources in South Africa lag behind those found at the New Zealand university of technology. The university of technology that was the object of the South African case study needs to bring its collection in line with that of similar institutions worldwide. This entails adapting goals and objectives stating how the collection is to develop, evaluating the collection and the needs of users, changing the Collection Development Policy to reflect the direction collection development will take and ensuring that the institution and the government back this project financially. To this end, a model Collection Development Policy has been drawn up that can be adapted to the local requirements of South African universities of technology to assist with the process of developing and managing library collections that will be worthy of such an institution. / Information Science / D. Litt. et Phil. (Information Science)

The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of academic libraries in providing services to culturally diverse student populations. In this study the information needs and information-seeking behaviour of the culturally diverse students of the Technikon Witwatersrand were analysed. The study also tried to establish whether there are differences in information needs and information-seeking behaviour of various cultural groups. The empirical investigation was conducted by means of focus group interviews and a questionnaire survey on a sample of undergraduate students of the Technikon Witwatersrand. There were assumptions that African students have limited experience in using the academic library, have no computer and information handling skills and might have language difficulties. Therefore, the expectation was that African students might have problems in the use of the academic library. However, the results of the empirical study show that English and Afrikaans speaking students are experiencing more problems than African students. / Information Science / M.Inf.

This study investigated access and use of information in the health-care of home-based elderly people (EPs) in Nakuru District, Kenya. The literature review revealed a gap with respect to information behaviour in health-care of EPs in a development context. The researcher used qualitative methods; with exploratory and descriptive research design because the focus of the study was on the littleknown and socially disadvantaged community of EPs in Nakuru District. Respondents were sampled by using the snowball technique. At the end of an interview session, each respondent was encouraged to nominate someone who either shared the same or had different experiences, views, socio-economic levels and gender. The researcher collected data through face-to-face interviews with EPs, informal care providers (ICPs) and formal health-care providers (FHCPs), in order to gain insight of information behaviour in health-care of EPs, by focusing on aspects of information needs; sources; use of information and factors that influence the respective groups of respondents to access and use health-care information health-care of EPs. The findings showed that the respective groups of respondents had similar as well as diversified needs for information for health-care. The groups used both formal and informal sources of information and channels of communication to access information for health-care, with FHCPs using authoritative sources more than the EPs and ICPs. Factors such as being a professional or a lay person, cost, ease of accessibility, availability of sources and channels of communication, time and trustworthiness of a source or channel of communication determined preference for use of information. The major contribution of the study is to the theory about information behaviour: some EPs and ICPs used CAM services without informing FHCPs, thereby revealing a form of concealed information use behaviour (CIUB). / Information Science / D. Litt. et Phil. (Information Science)

Text in Afrikaans / Dit is belangrik vir 'n inligtingsdiens wat inligting aan die gemeenskap beskikbaar wil stel, om sekere faktore in ag te neem. 'n Belangrike aspek is of die instansie in staat is om 'n bepaalde diens te lewer wat betref voorraad, fasiliteite en personeel. 'n Vraag wat gevra moet word, is of hierdie diens teen betaling gelewer, of as 'n gratis diens aangebied moet word. 'n Belangrike aspek is die bemarking van dienste wat vroeer nie as deel van 'n ondememing sander winsoogmerke gesien is nie, maar deesdae deel van die bestuursproses uitmaak. Daar behoort ook 'n goeie verstandhouding en 'n vennootskap tussen die inligtingsdiens en die gebruiker in die gemeenskap te bestaan en samewerking tussen die partye behoort op hierdie wyse bewerkstellig te word. Om 'n pro-aktiewe inligtingsdiens aan te hied, is dit belangrik dat kennis geneem word van die inligtingsbehoeftes van die bestuurder in die handel en nywerheid. / Certain factors should be taken into consideration when an information service wishes to provide information to the community. An important matter is whether the institution is able to provide certain services as far as the collection, facilities and personnel are concerned. A question that should also be asked, is whether this should be a fee-based service, or a free service. Another important matter is the marketing of services, which in earlier times did not form part of a non-profit organization, but is nowadays regarded as part of normal management practice. There should also exist a good understanding and a partnership between the information service and the user in the community, and in this way co­ operation between both parties should be established. In order to provide a pro-active information service, it is important to have knowledge of the information needs of the manager in industry and commerce. / Information Science / M.Bibl. (Inligtingkunde)

This dissertation analysed the information needs and information-seeking behaviour of visual artists. An empirical survey was conducted on a sample of the more informationliterate visual artists in South Africa. A model of the information environment of South African visual artists was developed. This model provides a basis for another model which represents the optimal service that should be rendered to meet the needs of this user group. It was found that the general information needs of South African artists are fairly adequately met, but that there are several shortfalls, especially in serving their more complex information needs. The most important problems are the lack of training in the use of information sources and services, inadequate marketing of services and inadequate coverage of South African art. It was also found that greater coordination between service providers is urgently required, especially in the provision of information about South African art. / M. (Information Science)

The researcher investigated internet usage among students at the University of Nairobi using a quantitative case study method. A questionnaire-based survey was done among 381 students and face-to-face interviews were conducted with the university‟s library staff. The research findings indicate that the students' level of awareness about the internet services offered at the university was high. The students had good basic computer and internet skills; however, they lacked more advanced skills and this negatively affected their use of internet resources. The students used the internet for various purposes, including to study, teach and do research; to communicate; and for social interaction. The major recommendations of the study include providing formal internet training and adequate facilities; implementing a better, inclusive policy on internet use; and better co-ordinated university efforts. Free internet access should be made available to all the university students, if not all members of the university community. / Information Science / M.A. (Information Science)

近年來我國致力於改善公共圖書館的資源與環境，希望能夠提供更好的服務給讀者，且提升公共圖書館的使用率，但從一些圖書館使用者的相關統計獲知，農業背景使用圖書館的比例皆不達百分之一。另外對於許多政策上的變革，增添農業推廣發展的難度，其中農業推廣人員，也因自認專業知識的不足，無法完善服務農民多變的需求，產生工作上的許多壓力。 基於以上的原因，且在農業推廣的體系中，家政推廣的內容較貼近於一般民眾，所以本研究針對家政推廣人員進行探討，瞭解其資訊需求，以及圖書館要如何提供良好的服務與館藏，吸引並協助家政推廣人員為主要的目的。 問卷調查的對象，以我國農會與漁會的家政推廣人員為主，分作資訊需求、閱讀習慣以及圖書館使用狀況三方面，根據問卷調查結果，發現到家政推廣人員，多基於工作上的需求，透過網際網路獲取所需資訊，所需的資訊內容也多與工作相關；最多家政推廣人員選擇閱讀的地點，是自家與工作的場所，閱讀資料的來源多是農漁會機構所提供，另外在每週閱讀的平均時數以及每年夠書金額，都高於我國國民平均。分析有使用圖書館習慣的家政推廣人員，大部分是平均每週去圖書館一次、一個月平均借書量為1-5本，鄉鎮圖書館是最多人使用的，使用圖書館的主要目是借還圖書，而一般圖書也是最多人使用的館藏，對於圖書館的最滿意的地方是地點設立的便利性，最不滿意的是圖書館的檢索系統。 依據問卷所得結果，提出鄉鎮圖書館改進的項目，以提升家政推廣人員的圖書館使用率，例如：改善開閉館時間、根據家政人員的推廣活動提供適當館藏、加強宣導圖書館服務項目、舉辦兒童教育與醫療保健相關的推廣活動、改善圖書館的檢索系統、與家政推廣人員合辦社區活動。並且建議我國能夠設立農業專門圖書館以及博物館、農業資訊服務中心應彙整網路資源以及農業推廣充電站可導入知識管理的技術，藉以提昇我國農業推廣的發展。 / In recent years, Taiwan government makes efforts to improve public libraries, and hopes to provide better services and environment to the readers for promoting library usage, but a number of library users studies showed that the users with agriculture background did not reach to 1%. Many policy changes make developments of agricultural extensions harder. Even some agricultural extension staffs feel lacking of professional knowledge to serve farmers, and that results in their pressure at agricultural extension work. Based on the above reasons, and the Home Economics’ services are closer to the general public’s life, so this study aimed at Home Economics Extension agents to explore and understand their information needs, and find out how to provide good library services and collections, in order to attract and assist in Home Economics Extension agents. The questionnaires survey aimed at the home economics extension agents in the framers’ association and fishers’ association. It includes three parts: information needs, reading habits and library usage. According to survey findings, the home economics extension agents would like to obtain the required information about working via the internet, most Home Economics workers prefer reading at home or the offices, and the most sources are from the farmers’ associations or fishers’ associations. Home economics extension agents’ average reading hours per week and spending on buying books every year are above the average of Taiwan populace. Analysis of the home economics extension agents with the habit of using libraries demonstrates that most of them go to the library once per week, every month borrow 1 to 5 books from the library, and primarily use the township libraries. They go to the libraries for the circulations as mainly goal, and feel most satisfied with the location of the library, and most dissatisfied with the library's OPAC system. Based on the results of the questionnaire, the township libraries could improve the following to attract and assist in Home Economics Extension agents: regulating the open hour, according to agents’ needs to provide adequate collections, enforcing marketing the services, conducting extension activities about education and health, improving the OPAC system, and organizing community activities with home economics extension agents. The study makes final suggestions to enhance the promotion of Taiwan's agricultural development as follows: establish the agricultural libraries and museums, agriculture science information center shall collect network resources about agriculture, and use knowledge management technology to manage agricultural resources in Council of Agriculture.