Stage-driven information seeking process: Value and uncertainty of work tasks from initiation to resolution

Abstract

The stage-driven information seeking process to reduce uncertainty and increase value is systematically validated with real users (n=60) with real work tasks from social sciences and applied sciences domains in a UK and Danish university. A broad set of information sources are applied and core relevance criteria are measured. The research seeks to test the hypothesis that the information seeking process is seen as a dynamic and iterative development to reduce uncertainty through four stages until the problem is solved: (1) problem recognition: kind of problem, (2) problem definition: nature of the problem, (3) problem resolution: finding an answer to the problem, (4) solution statement: answer to the problem or how to deal with it. The hypothesis can be rejected in this case since there is no significant decrease in uncertainty level from stage 1 to 4.