<p>Nine out of ten larger companies have an intranet today which is supposed to improve the communication withinthe company and save money. A great part of these intranets were established in the beginning of the 1990’swithout giving any thought to the users and their needs. How does the communication inside the corporationslook like when the intranets that are supposed to be the source for every information request, aren’t usable? Whatother sources do the users use and how much?The aim of this master thesis is to examine information source selection at a specific company. In addition,the aim is to study the companies intranet usability from the users’ perspective. Interviews with five employeesat Viking Line were carried out to analyze these questions. The empiric material also consists of a survey carriedout among 78 employees of the company. The principle of least effort and the cost/benefit model is introduced astwo possible theories that can explain the information source selection at the chosen company.The results show that the information source selection at the company cannot be explained by only onetheory or one model, in contrast to a great part of prior research. The selection of information source do dependon factors like perceived accessibility and perceived quality of the information but other factors are shown toaffect information seeking decisions as well. Therefore, the empiric material shows that time pressure affectsusers’ choice of source selection to more accessible information sources. Another factor that can have an effecton the user is how one employee treats another. When the employee has been negatively treated at the momenthe is seeking information, the employee is more likely to use impersonal sources.Furthermore, the intranet at Viking Line is the most used as well as the most reliable source according tothe users, even though the intranet does not satisfy all needs of the employees. The users are also highly accustomedwith the intranet which increases its perceived accessibility.The conclusion of this study is that the principle of least effort and the cost/benefit model do indeed explainthe users’ choice of information source, but only partly. The study was conducted at a specific company but theconclusions drawn could be applied to other similar companies where intranets are a great part of the employeesinformation seeking. Finally, I believe, that the effectiveness of the employee is directly connected to the effectivenessof the information sources available at the company. Moreover, if companies improved their intranetsthe companies would become more effective.This paper is a two years master’s thesis in Library and Information Science.</p>

Nine out of ten larger companies have an intranet today which is supposed to improve the communication withinthe company and save money. A great part of these intranets were established in the beginning of the 1990’swithout giving any thought to the users and their needs. How does the communication inside the corporationslook like when the intranets that are supposed to be the source for every information request, aren’t usable? Whatother sources do the users use and how much?The aim of this master thesis is to examine information source selection at a specific company. In addition,the aim is to study the companies intranet usability from the users’ perspective. Interviews with five employeesat Viking Line were carried out to analyze these questions. The empiric material also consists of a survey carriedout among 78 employees of the company. The principle of least effort and the cost/benefit model is introduced astwo possible theories that can explain the information source selection at the chosen company.The results show that the information source selection at the company cannot be explained by only onetheory or one model, in contrast to a great part of prior research. The selection of information source do dependon factors like perceived accessibility and perceived quality of the information but other factors are shown toaffect information seeking decisions as well. Therefore, the empiric material shows that time pressure affectsusers’ choice of source selection to more accessible information sources. Another factor that can have an effecton the user is how one employee treats another. When the employee has been negatively treated at the momenthe is seeking information, the employee is more likely to use impersonal sources.Furthermore, the intranet at Viking Line is the most used as well as the most reliable source according tothe users, even though the intranet does not satisfy all needs of the employees. The users are also highly accustomedwith the intranet which increases its perceived accessibility.The conclusion of this study is that the principle of least effort and the cost/benefit model do indeed explainthe users’ choice of information source, but only partly. The study was conducted at a specific company but theconclusions drawn could be applied to other similar companies where intranets are a great part of the employeesinformation seeking. Finally, I believe, that the effectiveness of the employee is directly connected to the effectivenessof the information sources available at the company. Moreover, if companies improved their intranetsthe companies would become more effective.This paper is a two years master’s thesis in Library and Information Science.

This study uses focus groups and a questionnaire to examine the information-seeking behaviours of Swedish upper secondary school students. Focus group interviews were conducted among students aged 17-20 at four Swedish upper secondary schools in two different cities. The interviews focused on how the informants themselves experienced their information seeking. In addition, a survey focused on the opinions of upper secondary school teachers regarding the source use of their students. The research questions considered were: What kind of information-seeking behaviour characterizes Swedish upper secondary school students? What kind of information do Swedish upper secondary school students seek when it comes to issues where corporations can be of assistance? How do Swedish upper secondary school students prefer to have information presented? The results of the study provided some valuable insights concerning these questions. The students turned out to use the Internet, and most often Google, in much of their information seeking. However, human contact in the form of face-to-face conversations or presentations was also considered highly important. Furthermore, the information-seeking skills, or information literacy, of secondary school students are not emphasized in their education. The study was performed in cooperation with AstraZeneca in the hope of the results providing the company with valuable information regarding one of their intended target groups.

Academic libraries are increasingly collecting e-books, but little research has investigated how students use e-books compared to print texts. This study used a prompted think-aloud method to gain an understanding of the information retrieval behavior of students in both formats. Qualitative analysis identified themes that will inform instruction and collection practices. / Selinda Adelle Berg, Clinical Medicine Librarian, University of Windsor, Windsor, Ontario, Canada, sberg@uwindsor.ca; Kristin Hoffmann, Head, Research & Instructional Services, The University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada, khoffma8@uwo.ca; Diane Dawson, Natural Sciences Liaison Librarian, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, diane.dawson@usask.ca

An increasing proportion of people in the United Kingdom are living longer with long-term conditions. The National Health Service is facing the challenge of increased pressure on its service provision. A number of key health policy initiatives encourage individuals to make informed choices and purport to give them rights and control over their own health and healthcare. Within this context, people are actively encouraged to self-care, manage diseases, and make decisions and choices about healthcare in an informed way. To facilitate this, it is important to gain an understanding of the health information seeking behaviours of older people. Health information is available from various sources but little is known about the health information seeking behaviours of older people and what affects this. By exploring this, it helps to reveal how health information is sought regarding on-going health conditions and provides greater depth in understanding the health information seeking process. The study explores older people's experiences and views on their health information seeking behaviours and endeavours to gain a better understanding of these experiences and views. The study draws on constructivist grounded theory with two phases to data collection: Nine participants completed un-structured diaries over two months with follow up semi-structured interviews, a further twenty participants participated in semi-structured interviews. Major categories were inductively drawn from participant's responses. Strategies of health information seeking behaviours are not necessarily fixed, but subject to change over time. The analysis suggested three main categories that explained the health information seeking behaviours of older people. Three interrelated conceptual categories were identified: (1) Regulating self (2) Self managing and (3) Self-mobilisation. These categories formed the basis of the emergent substantive theory called 'navigating later life'. There were different patterns of behaviours between participants which captured variations in information seeking; these informed the development of a typology of health information seekers. Ageing in the 21st century is a complex process; with older people inhabiting a world of more choice, multiple sources of knowledge, changed healthcare roles and increased self-care undertaken within the home. The study provides important insights for healthcare professionals and raises implications for strategies aimed at improving older people's access to appropriate health information. The navigation model provides a potentially valuable tool for policy makers when considering the support older people require to self-care.

The present study investigates the information gathering behaviour of the academic researchers at Sultan Qaboos University in the Sultanate of Oman. It endeavours to explore researchers' awareness and attitudes towards information sources and services. Research methods for this study were designed from the user-centred perspective with triangulation approach. Hence, data was collected by the use of semistructured interviews as the main instrument with journal study and observation as supplementary tools. The information was collected from the members of the research community in their capacity as users of information. The study investigates the information needs and information gathering habits of the research community and attempts to identify the problems experienced by researchers in accessing and using information. It also seeks to explore the national policy for planning and provision of information. Finally the study examines the performance of the various information services in the context of user needs and the status of the institution library information service provision. The research concludes that present information environment at Sultan Qaboos University is inadequate to meet the information needs of the research community. It was found that the major causes for the situation was the lack of clear information policies, inadequate funding, ineffective partnership between top management and academic researchers, lack of effective in house training and finally absence of a reliable information technology infrastructure.

Les médecins, et en particulier les médecins généralistes, sont confrontésquotidiennement à la difficulté de ne pas tout savoir. En médecine générale, l’étendue duchamp d’activité impose aux professionnels une maîtrise de plus en plus aiguë del’information, qui doit s’appuyer sur le développement d’une littératie numérique, c’està-dire la capacité d’utiliser et de comprendre les outils et médias numériques. Lesobjectifs de ce travail étaient d’identifier les obstacles à la recherche d’information chezles médecins généralistes et de développer et d’évaluer des outils susceptibles desurmonter ces difficultés.Pour cela, nous avons réalisé une étude qualitative auprès d’internes de médecinegénérale et de médecins généralistes français. Elle a permis de mettre en évidence denombreux obstacles à la recherche d’informations en santé en ligne. Ces obstaclesconcernent les professionnels et les outils, certains sont également d’ordre institutionnel.Parmi ces obstacles figure la langue anglaise, qui semble constituer un repoussoir pourles médecins installés mais également pour les médecins en formation. D’après lesdonnées que nous avons recueillies, ce frein concerne aussi bien l’information en ellemêmeque son support.Plusieurs des outils développés par l’équipe du Département d’Informatique etd’Information Médicales du CHU de Rouen ont vocation à répondre à ces difficultés. Labase de données bibliographiques LiSSa permet l’accès à plusieurs centaines de milliersde références francophones en santé, issues de PubMed mais également de revuesfrancophones non indexées dans PubMed. Le constructeur de requêtes bibliographiquesmédicales permet à des utilisateurs non anglophones de construire des équations derecherche complexes dans leur langue maternelle, leur permettant de requêter dansPubMed, LiSSa ou CISMeF. / Physicians, and especially general practitioners, are not « all-knowing ». As they areconfronted with a large amount of clinical situations, information and knowledgemanagement are essential topics of interest. This management is mainly based on thedevelopment of numeric literacy, that is the ability to use and understand digital tools andmedia. The aims of this work were to identify the obstacles encountered by generalpractitioners when seeking health information online and to develop and assess tools tohelp them to overcome these barriers.We performed a qualitative study among general practice residents and generalpractitioners. This allowed us to highlight several obstacles encountered by them whenseeking medical information online. These obstacles include both tools and professionals’issues. Institutional obstacles were also identified. Of these barriers, the insufficientcommand of English was cited as an important issue by both residents and physicians.The Department of Medical Information and Informatics of the Rouen University Hospitalhas developed several tools in order to facilitate access to knowledge for healthprofessionals. LiSSa is a bibliographic database containing only articles written in French.It allows health professionals and researchers, whose native language is not English, toaccess to hundreds of thousands of references, from PubMed and from journals notindexed in PubMed. A multi-lingual query builder to facilitate information retrieval wasdesigned. It appears to be an effective tool to improve the quality of PubMed queries inparticular for users whose first native language is not English.

The present study focussed on the information needs of the academic staff of Batchelor College.* It examined their access to and the provision of adequate and appropriate resources for the implementation of the Diploma and Associate Diploma level courses offered through the College. Batchelor College, an institute of tertiary education, is situated 100 kilometres south of Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. The content and the modes of delivery of Batchelor College courses are specifically designed to be culturally and socially appropriate to Aboriginal people, particularly those from traditionally oriented and 'remote' communities. It can only be within this framework that informed and sensitive research can be conducted. The main purpose of the current study was to investigate the information needs of staff delivering higher education courses to 'remote' Aboriginal students of Northern Australia. Six distinct areas of study emerged: 1, to identify the information needs; 2, to analyse the information-seeking behaviour; 3, to assess the level of satisfaction with current information sources; 4, to identify inadequacies in the existing information seeking processes; 5, to identify constraints experienced; and 6, to explore how future information needs may be catered for. A mailed survey instrument was specifically designed and implemented, and it attracted a response rate of eighty-seven percent. The population under investigation was the academic staff of Batchelor College, and the variables of: 1, location; 2, sex; 3, academic school; 4, designation; 5, tenure; 6, length of service; and 7, educational background were studied in relation to the questions asked. Results of the survey were analysed using 'Mystat: Statistical Applications', (1990). Frequency distributions were computed to determine the number of respondents who selected each option. A number of questions that elicited a written response were analysed, as were the many extra comments staff members made throughout the survey. The study found that the academic staff of Batchelor College are most affected by the location variable. It appears that how staff members use, regard and value the information sources used to inform their academic practice is affected by where a staff member is located. That is, the more isolated a staff member was, both geographically and professionally, the more significant were the findings of use of information sources. The study concludes with considerations of future planning strategies that could improve the access to and use of information. The study also identifies areas for further research. * Batchelor College, an institute of tertiary education, is situated 100 kilometres south of Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia (see Appendix 3).

Construction is one of the largest industry sectors in terms of size and output in the United Kingdom (UK). The sector contributes about 10% directly to the UK's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and drives historical GDP growth. However, Construction projects and Organisations continue to underperform at significant levels which is underpinned by actors' Information Behaviours (IBs).

In this study health information seeking behaviour among young adults is investigated and attitudes toward available health information examined. Further, the electronic health record(EHR), ‘Journalen’, is investigated among young adults that use the health services in Sweden. The aim of this study is to gain insight in young adults’ health information seeking behaviour on the Internet.   A survey of health information seeking behaviour among young adults, 18-29 years old, reports that as well as searching for information for their own use, searching for information to help family and friends is also their practice. 95.4% say that they search for health information on the Web.   Overall, the top five categories of information searched are Personal Health, Symptoms, Healthy Diet, Mental Health and Treatment. For the Top five Information searches for themselves(’Self’), Mental Health is displaced by Disease Prevention. Health information categories sought the least by the young adults are information about Illegal Drugs, Allied Health, Alternative medicine and Support Groups. Respondents mostly report a high regard for the information they retrieve in their searches.   The majority rate the quality of health information as ‘Good’ or ‘Very Good’. Broadly speaking the young adults trust the health information found online but say that the quality of health information varies from source to source. 1177.se is often referred to as a trustworthy source among the respondents and according to them good quality information can be found there. The respondents use of support groups for themselves is reported, as well an altruistic motivation to support others. While the motivation for many searches is to avoid attending a health professional, approximately one-third report searching after their visit.   This study demonstrates that young adults are active consumers of health information on the Internet and their attitudes toward the available health information are generally positive. Of the respondents who are Swedish residents, 42% are unaware of the availability of their electronic health record in Sweden, Journalen, and of those 56.7% who know of it, 18% have never accessed their EHRs.  More research is needed to investigate the reason for the relatively low numbers of the young adults’ awareness and use of the Journelen. The aim of the study is discussed in the Introduction chapter and research questions identified. The research design is described in the methodology chapter and how data is collected through a survey. Results are presented in Tables and Figures and further analysed in the Analysis chapter in context of earlier research. Finally, the researcher concludes on the study and what could be learned from the findings.