L’encyclopédie Wikipédia se caractérise par un mode d’élaboration ouvert et collaboratif. La singularité de son modèle éditorial amène à s’interroger sur la crédibilité que lui attribuent ses lecteurs ainsi que sur l’activité normative de la communauté wikipédienne pour la garantir. Une hypothèse serait ainsi que le référencement est un moyen de renforcer la crédibilité des informations encyclopédiques, ce qui pose la question de l’identification de la fonction de ce procédé rhétorique par le lecteur. Pour appréhender les questions relatives à la valeur épistémique de l’information, un modèle de communication documentaire articulant autorité cognitive, confiance, crédibilité et référencement est proposé. Une enquête par questionnaire auprès de jeunes scolarisés (11-25 ans) montre que la confiance envers Wikipédia varie selon le niveau de scolarité. Elle est influencée par la réputation académique, majoritairement négative, de l’encyclopédie. Par la suite, les effets d’un projet pédagogique dans lequel des lycéens deviennent des contributeurs à l’encyclopédie sont analysés. Une évolution positive de la confiance envers l’encyclopédie est relevée tant chez les professeurs que chez les élèves, ceux-ci prenant conscience de l’importance des règles communautaires et du référencement. Enfin, les évolutions des règles relatives au référencement au sein de la Wikipédia en langue française et les débats que ces règles ont suscités entre 2002 et 2013 sont étudiés. L’approche anthropologique et historique adoptée met en évidence le rôle central attribué au référencement pour faire face aux problèmes de confiance épistémique rencontrés par la communauté wikipédienne. Elles révèlent également les tensions inhérentes à ce projet éditorial. / Wikipedia is an open-content encyclopedia that anyone can edit. Its editorial process is unique. Thus this study is focused on the users’ perception of its credibility and on the wikipedian community policy to guaranty it. One hypothesis might be that referencing is a way of guaranteeing the content's credibility which naturally leads to another question: how do the users/readers identify this rhetorical device? To approach the matter of the epistemic value of information, a documentary communication model combined with cognitive authority, trust, credibility and referencing is proposed. Firstly, a survey of 11 to 25 year-old students highlights that their trust for Wikipedia varies according to the level of studies. This level of trust is also influenced by the overall negative reputation of this encyclopedia in the academic community. Secondly we observe the effects of a project where students become editors to the encyclopedia. There is a clear improvement in the trust toward Wikipedia amongst students and teachers as they realize the importance of community policies and referencing. Finally, we analyze the changes in referencing policies and guidelines in the French Wikipedia as well as the controversies they provoked between 2002 and 2013. The historical and anthropological approach highlights how key the role of referencing to the wikipedian community is, in order to face the issues of epistemic trust. It also reveals the tensions inherent to the editorial policy of this project.

Information-seeking behavior is a mixture of activities and attitudes, oftentimes motivated by an individual's need to make a decision. One underlying element of this mixture is cognitive authority - which sources (e.g., individuals, institutions, texts, etc.) can be trusted to fulfil the information needs? In order to gain insight into the dynamics of cognitive authority selection behavior which is an information seeking behavior, this study explored primary source text data (316 text records) that reflected selection in the mundaneness of life (advice column submissions and responses). Linguistic analysis was performed on the data using the Linguistic Inquiry Word Count (LIWC2015) software package. Pearson correlation and 1-sample T tests revealed the same 45 statistically significant relationships (SSRs) in the word usage behavior of all subgroups. As a result of the study, the gap in research formed from the lack of quantitative models of cognitive authority relationships was addressed via the development of the Wordprint Classification System which was used to generate a cognitive authority relationship model in the form of a cognitive authority intra-segment wordprint. The findings and implications of this study may provide a contribution to the body of work in the area of information literacy and information seeker behavior by revealing factors that information scientists can address to help meet information seekers' needs. Additionally, the Wordprint Classification System may be used in such disciplines as psychology, marketing, and forensic linguistics to create to create models of various relationships or individuals through the use of written or spoken word usage patterns.

This study explores information seeking behavior of second-generation Muslim immigrants utilizing factors such as critical, cultural, and religious literacy skills. The study examined the second-generation immigrants' ability to balance their parents' and grandparents' native culture and traditions with the culture and traditions of their country. The interview questions were designed using the cognitive authority theory and the figured worlds theory that provides an explanation for the mentality of those who are in environments influenced by culture or religion. An interesting main finding of the study is that participants sought more religious-based rather than culturally-based information. Participants seek information from their parents, communities, and religious leaders, but are particular with who they consider credible and reliable; if the person providing the information follows a similar lifestyle to the participants, they are more likely to hold cognitive authority. Four different themes emerged from the study. The first is "religious focus" where many participants stated that religion is rather static whereas culture can evolve and change with time, location, and events. The second theme emerged is the reliance on family members for religious literacy given the close upbringing of Muslim extended family system. The third theme indicated that although information seeking behavior relied on Google and mobile devices to locate information, in verifying religious content they depended on parents and religious cognitive authorities. The fourth theme emerged is the loss of richness going forward and the concerns about the possible decline in religious information literacy for future generations.

Reading affects everything we do in life. Sometimes it is difficult to determine how many people have a reading disability, and what tools can be used to overcome it. The main aim of this thesis is to gain insight into how and if audio recordings (audiobooks, talking books or mobile apps for reading) are used in elementary schools by teachers as a tool for pupils with reading disabilities. A quantitative approach was adopted for data collection in the form of a self-administered online survey created by using Sunet Survey software. The survey, with 15 questions in Croatian, was sent to 63 elementary schools in Primorje and Gorski Kotar County in Croatia. The sampling frame consisted of 541 elementary school teachers teaching first through fourth grades. 98 responded to the survey. To support the results, 2 theories were used. The cognitive authority theory to support the notion that teachers play a large role in pupils' relationship with reading, and the cognitive load theory to support the notion that assistive technology can help pupils with reading disabilities. The results elucidate that our sample consists of 96.6% female respondents who are between 45 and 54 years old, have 10 to 20 years of professional experience, and mainly teach first grade. 75% of the respondents currently have and 89.8% used to have pupils with reading disabilities in their class. Although audiobooks are not the most popular tool in Croatia, 63.6% of respondents recognize them as a tool they use. The results also show that schools and school libraries are not sufficiently equipped with tools to help pupils with reading disabilities. Most involvement depends on the individual will of teachers.

Video games are common hobbies today, and as such they have been studied within the field of LIS. However, video gaming is a wide subject, and therefore there still exist areas that have not yet been properly researched. This bachelor thesis investigates the ways video game players experience the use of external and internal information and the effect it has on their gameplay experiences. The aim of this study is to determine players’ motivations behind searching for information in relation to gaming and the factors they consider when doing so. Metagaming, which is a commonly used term when it comes to describing what is popular and considered optimal within gaming communities, is explored within the thesis. The theoretical framework that is being adopted for this study and which is being used to interpret the empirical data is Information Practices, Cognitive Authority and McKenzie’s Information Practices model, with related terms. This study is qualitative in nature, and the method that is being used is semi-structured interviews. The results indicate that the kinds of information sources and media types that are used by the players are varied. Furthermore the type of game that is being played has a significant impact on the ways in which the players view external and internal information seeking. Metagaming is shown to be a strong influence on how information is searched for in relation to online games. The impact of communally negotiated norms is clear and is clarified within the thesis.

[pt] A presente tese tem como objetivo discutir o fenômeno do pensamento singular. Mais precisamente, meu propósito é o de investigar criticamente os fundamentos da tese que afirma existirem pensamentos singulares sobre números naturais. Para desenvolver tal investigação, aborda-se, por um lado, o papel desempenhado pelos pensamentos singulares em nossa vida mental, e, por outro, os debates acerca das condições a serem satisfeitas no desenvolvimento de tais pensamentos. A argumentação aqui construída favorece uma abordagem cognitiva para os pensamentos singulares, o que significa que as condições a serem satisfeitas em seu desenvolvimento devam ser consideradas como cognitivas, assim como o papel desempenhado por eles, os pensamentos singulares, em nossa vida mental. Deste modo, procuro argumentar que se a questão sobre a possibilidade de um indivíduo desenvolver pensamentos singulares sobre números naturais recebe uma resposta positiva, isso se deve ao fato de que tal possibilidade constitui-se como um fato cognitivo. Em consequência, sendo um fato cognitivo, também se procura argumentar que a investigação ontológica sobre a natureza dos números naturais, embora possivelmente relevante, não é essencial para fundamentar a tese sob análise. / [en] In this dissertation, I tackle the issue of singular thought. More precisely, my main purpose is to critically investigate the grounds for the claim that there are singular thoughts about natural numbers. To do so, I review some of the debates concerning the conditions to be met in order to have (be ascribed) such thoughts and the role played by singular thinking in our mental lives. I clearly favor here a cognitive approach, which means that the conditions to be met must be thought of as cognitive, and the role played by singular thinking in our mental lives as cognitive too. Accordingly, I argue that if the question as to whether one can have singular thoughts about natural numbers is to be given a positive answer, it is because it is a cognitive fact that one can. Being a cognitive fact, I also argue that an ontological investigation into the nature of natural numbers, though possibly relevant, is not essential to support the claim under analysis.