Information activities within information horizons: A case for college students' personal information management

Abstract

Personal information management behaviors appear differently by sources and by context. This study investigates personal information spaces from a quantitative approach and factors specific information behaviors and sources into information contexts. Using the information source horizon theory as a theoretical framework, college students' information behaviors to specific information sources were investigated in three personal information contexts (academic, health, and personal history contexts). In the college setting, students' personal information horizons echo the findings of previous studies that information contexts determine information horizons in general. In addition, specific information behaviors (collect, organize, and utilize) in this study are an important factor to influence personal information horizons. Certain information activities are observed in similar patterns regardless of contexts. The study suggests that the Information Horizon theory could be expanded to include information behaviors as an important determinant. From the data, radar charts visually present the relationships between information sources and activities, and they served as a collective form of information horizon maps.