A question of quality: The effect of source quality on information seeking by women in IT professions

Abstract

AbstractThis paper presents preliminary results from a study of how women in information technology (IT) professions use a range of information sources in their day‐to‐day work activities. Through a questionnaire survey, the study investigates the effects of Perceived Source Accessibility and Perceived Source Quality on the selection and use of information sources. Thirteen information sources, including the World Wide Web and Web‐based computer‐mediated communication, were identified. Sixty‐seven participants completed the survey. The most frequently used information source is the World Wide Web, followed by mass media, colleagues in the same department, computer‐mediated communication, business professionals and associates, and colleagues in a different group/department. The least used information sources are the internal library, and competitors. For many of the sources, there was a strong relationship between perceived source quality and source usage. This finding runs counter to early, well‐known studies that concluded that scientists and engineers selected sources based only on their accessibility. Surprisingly, the present study did not find a significant relationship between source accessibility and source usage. The implications for research are discussed.