Choice Of Information Sources Research Articles

Parent and Child Agreement on Experience of Potential Traumatic Events

The purpose of this study was to investigate the agreement between parent and child report of potential traumas experienced, to look at the agreement by interpersonal versus non‐interpersonal traumas and by gender. A birth cohort of 1723 children and their parents was followed from three months until 12 years after birth (South East Sweden Birth Cohort (SESBiC) study). At 12‐year follow‐up, 1174 children, 875 mothers and 601 fathers completed the Life Incidence of Traumatic Events (LITE) questionnaire. Cohen's kappa was used to assess the agreement between parent and child reports of traumas experienced by the child. The group was split by gender and kappa statistics were computed to determine the level of agreement between the different informants. The sample was also analysed according to the nature of the traumatic event: interpersonal or non‐interpersonal. Agreement was low across most types of traumas reported between parents and children and moderate between mothers and fathers. Agreement was lower when the trauma was interpersonal. No significant discrepancies in general were found on gender. The study highlights the importance of from whom the researcher collects information. In future research, it is important to study the significance the choice of information source might have on reported symptoms and behavioural problems. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.‘A birth cohort of 1723 children and their parents was followed from three months until 12 years after birth’Key Practitioner Messages For children and pre‐adolescents, reliance on parents for emotional support and attention is necessary. Parents need to recognise potential traumatic experiences in order for consultation or treatment to be obtained. Lack of parental recognition of the traumas experienced by the child is likely to result in a failure to seek the intervention required and, consequently, to poorer outcomes for the child. The importance of turning directly to the child for information is highlighted.

Parents of Adolescents with Type 1 Diabetes - Their Views on Information and Communication Needs and Internet Use. A Qualitative Study

BackgroundLittle is known about parents’ views on the use of online resources for information, education and support regarding childhood type 1 diabetes (T1DM). Considering the rapidly evolving new communication practices, parents’ perspectives need to be explored. The main purpose of this paper was to explore parents’ perceptions of their information-seeking, Internet use, and social networking online. This applied to their everyday life, including the contexts of T1DM and contact with peers. A second aim was to identify implications for future development of Internet use in this respect.Methodology/Principal FindingsTwenty-seven parents of 24 young persons aged 10–17 with T1DM participated in eight focus group interviews during their regular visits to a county hospital. Focus group discussions were video/audio-taped, transcribed and analysed using inductive qualitative content analysis. Self-reported demographic and medical information was also collected. A main theme was Finding things out, including two sub-themes, Trust and Suitability. The latter were key factors affecting parents’ perceptions of online resources. Parents’ choice of information source was related to the situation, previous experiences and knowledge about sources and, most importantly, the level of trust in the source. A constantly present background theme was Life situation, including two sub-themes, Roles and functions and Emotions and needs. Parents’ information-seeking regarding T1DM varied greatly, and was closely associated with their life situation, the adolescents development phases and the disease trajectory.Conclusions/SignificanceHealth practitioners and system developers need to focus on creating trust and suitability for users’ needs. They should understand the children’s diverse needs, which depend on their life situation, on the children’s development, and on the disease trajectory. To enhance trust in online health information and support services, the participation of local practitioners is crucial.

Access to and Usage of Information among Rural Communities: a Case Study of Kilosa District Morogoro Region in Tanzania

The study investigated how rural communities in Kilosa District of Morogoro region in Tanzania accessed and used information. Specifically the study identified the information needs of rural people; determined the factors influencing the choice of information sources; and the appropriateness of the information sources basing on usefulness and preference. Three divisions were involved in the study area, choice of the study area was based on the availability of multiple information sources/channels information seekers could consulted. Simple random sampling technique was employed in selecting villages to be investigated and respondents to be interviewed. Findings showed that almost all people needed information of all types. Most of the information needed related to day to day problems. Information was accessed mainly through radio, television sets, newspapers and magazines, and also through cell phones and face to face communication. Choice of information sources was influenced by the respondents’ level of education, income, sex, age, occupation and distance from the information seeker’s residence to the information sources. Findings showed further that people accessed and used information for solving day to day problems and for leisure purposes. The study recommends that it is important to have frequent rural information needs assessments before providing information services to rural areas. Information providers should repackage information in appropriate forms suitable for rural communities. Moreover, radio and television stations should have enough rural related programmes which should be broadcasted during appropriate time.

Agri(eno)turismi e sviluppo rurale: una proposta metodologica per analisi settoriali-territoriali

The Italian wine sector is part of a highly competitive international framework. It requires companies to define strategies to maintain and improve their results over time. Surveys conducted Europe on farms strategies showed that diversification of assets and income is an alternative strategy to business modernization based on enlargement of scale and/or intensification of production. This is the case of agritourism enterprises that combine the production of agricultural goods with some services like catering, hospitality, recreation, education, etc. These enterprises are the most widespread form of multifunctional agriculture. Agenda 2000 has recognized the existence of a European model of agriculture based on multifunctionality and the central role of rural areas the diversification of farmers’ economic activities. Agritourism enterprises are part of rural tourism, which is an answer to the demand of enogastronomic, cultural, environmental, social goods which are specific components of local areas. The attractiveness of these areas depends on the possibility to strengthen and enhance existing relationships between the different actors of those systems (non only farms), also through public investment. The definition of rural development policies and instruments needs to measure the dimensions of multifunctionality (economic, social and environmental functions) and to decline it within specific local contexts. This study would represent a methodological contribution to analysis that combine sector and spatial elements, aimed to provide useful information to the regionalization of public expenditures. The process here implemented - choice of information sources and functional indicators, construction of datasets, use of clustering algorithm, with particular reference to the fuzzy one - provided a description of agri(eno)touristic characterization of the region Friuli Venezia Giulia (study area). The municipalities (statistical units) were grouped into five different clusters function of the number of wine companies, the number of agritourism enterprises and the services offered to their customers. Moreover, fuzzy clustering allowed to identify those municipalities that have the properties of different clusters. They were regarded as in transition, meaning that they can be moved the desired group through specific projects. From an operational point of view this information is important because enables to elaborate development programs taking into account both differences between clusters and some peculiar characteristic inside each group. Not least, the results can be a support for identifying other variables able to better describe multifunctionality, hopefully with the participation of institutions actively engaged the development of rural areas

Discovering wildlife tourism: a whale shark tourism case study

This paper investigates the different sources of information used by tourists to learn about a particular wildlife tourism activity, specifically, whale shark tourism at Ningaloo Marine Park in Western Australia. The findings from this research concur with previous studies of wildlife tourism showing that wildlife tourism operations are reliant on more informal and general forms of promotion, in particular word of mouth and guide books. Conversely, more deliberate marketing mechanisms, such as the internet and documentaries, are not extensively utilised. To disaggregate consumer preferences for various information sources, this article segments the population into more homogenous groups, thereby demonstrating distinct differences in the choice of information source based on the participants’ normal place of residence.

Does training on behavioural finance influence fund managers’ perception and behaviour?

This article provides survey evidence on the influence of training on Behavioural Finance (BF) on professional fund managers’ perception and investment behaviour. In particular, it examines whether ‘trained’ fund managers differ from the ‘untrained’ ones in their perception of markets and themselves, as well as in their choice of information sources and investment strategies. Additionally, the influence of integration of BF approaches into investment processes is also considered. The results reveal that training on BF basically intensifies the perception of biases in the behaviour of others, i.e. the reflection effect and the home bias. Training also reduces the affinity to conformity, leading to less reliance on colleagues and other market participants as information sources. However, pure training is insufficient to significantly affect fund managers’ investment behaviour, but BF approaches need to be integrated into investment processes.

Technology and customer expectation in academic libraries: A special reference to technical/management libraries in Karnataka

Technology has transformed the way people live. Current day information seekers are empowered with multiple choices of information sources and libraries no longer remain the primary centre for information seekers. With diminishing time and geographical barriers the world has become a global village and information seekers are stressed with time constraints. It is the duty of library and information professionals to address these tech-savvy library users' needs and align their services to satisfy them.Recently, the author of this paper conducted a research study on the “Impact of technology on quality of services in technical and management libraries in Karnataka” sponsored by the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR), Government of India, New Delhi. The study was approved in 2005 and the final report was submitted to the government in 2007. This paper carries some of the results of this research study conducted by the author in Karnataka state in Southern India.

Technology and customer expectation in academic libraries: A special reference to technical/management libraries in Karnataka

Technology has transformed the way people live. Current day information seekers are empowered with multiple choices of information sources and libraries no longer remain the primary centre for information seekers. With diminishing time and geographical barriers the world has become a global village and information seekers are stressed with time constraints. It is the duty of library and information professionals to address these tech-savvy library users' needs and align their services to satisfy them. Recently, the author of this paper conducted a research study on the “Impact of technology on quality of services in technical and management libraries in Karnataka” sponsored by the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR), Government of India, New Delhi. The study was approved in 2005 and the final report was submitted to the government in 2007. This paper carries some of the results of this research study conducted by the author in Karnataka state in Southern India.

Selection of information sources: Accessibility of and familiarity with sources, and types of tasks

AbstractWhile many studies have investigated information source selection in different user groups, few have explored the types of factors and how they influence resource selection. This study examines the types of information sources users select as well as the reasons behind their choices of information sources based on their actual searches. Thirty‐one participants representing the general public with different demographic characteristics were recruited for the study. Data collected from diaries and questionnaires were analyzed by applying both qualitative and quantitative methods. The findings of this study show that electronic resources are the dominant information sources selected by participants. Seventeen types of factors including some new factors in relation to dimensions of tasks, characteristics of users, and attributes of sources were derived from the data. The results also indicated that multiple factors co‐determined participants' selection of resources. Descriptive and statistical analysis of the data demonstrated that accessibility and familiarity of sources were correlated to information source usages, and the results suggested that participants utilized more print or human resources in accomplishing scholarly tasks while they were more dependent on electronic resources in achieving popular tasks.

Post-graduate students and learning environments: Users’ perceptions regarding the choice of information sources

The purpose of this paper is to investigate, through empirical analysis, whether or not post-graduate students choose information technology or other information sources such as home institution libraries for the purposes of learning, expanding their knowledge and/or completing their studies. A survey was conducted to gather primary source data for the paper. Questionnaires were administered to 211 education post-graduate students. Results showed that Greek post-graduate students from different fields of study chose the Internet as their primary information source for a number of reasons but mainly: for the provision of creditable and up-to-date information, for easy access to information at home, for the time of day they can access the material and for fast information retrieval. Although the Greek post-graduate students believed the Greek information network to be satisfactory up to a degree, this paper identifies that greater access to Internet resources, training programs providing students with tools to effectively use the network's resources and more online databases, combined with a historical and statistical database of libraries’ online catalogs are key issues in improving both information source performance and the link between strategy and implementation.

Post-graduate students and learning environments: Users’ perceptions regarding the choice of information sources

The purpose of this paper is to investigate, through empirical analysis, whether or not post-graduate students choose information technology or other information sources such as home institution libraries for the purposes of learning, expanding their knowledge and/or completing their studies. A survey was conducted to gather primary source data for the paper. Questionnaires were administered to 211 education post-graduate students. Results showed that Greek post-graduate students from different fields of study chose the Internet as their primary information source for a number of reasons but mainly: for the provision of creditable and up-to-date information, for easy access to information at home, for the time of day they can access the material and for fast information retrieval. Although the Greek post-graduate students believed the Greek information network to be satisfactory up to a degree, this paper identifies that greater access to Internet resources, training programs providing students with tools...

Affect, emotional intelligence and librarian‐user interaction

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore practical ways in which librarians may better assist, understand and manage a library user's experience.Design/methodology/approachThis paper is based on earlier work by Mills where 34 academics were interviewed on their information seeking behaviour. The concepts of affect and emotional intelligence have been introduced so information professionals can obtain a more clear understanding of the information environment.FindingsIn order to connect more closely with their user populations' information professionals could consider the following: embrace the key tenets of emotional intelligence as useful assistance strategies in user‐librarian interaction; understand that personal interaction is important for many users; understand that such interaction can offer valuable insights into user understandings of the role of the library; understand that there is more to a library than resource access; understand that not all users share the same perceptions as librarians of the information values of such tools as catalogues and databases; appreciate that users see many roles for a library and these are individually constructed based upon past experience and current needs; extending the physical boundaries of the library into user communities is important for role development and accept that the key marketing strategy of commercial retailers to get customers to “buy” and return to buy, is relevant in environments such as libraries.Originality/valueThe paper builds upon research on the information seeking behaviour of academics and explores the idea that users select information sources for more than cognitive reasons, i.e. just to find out. The importance of the emotional aspect of user interaction with sources, including information professionals, in their search for information has been neglected. It is necessary to re‐examine why and for what reasons users discriminate in their choice of information sources.

Work roles, tasks, and the information behavior of dentists

AbstractThe purpose of this study was to determine the effects work roles (patient management/service provider, administrator/manager, researcher, educator, and student) and their associated tasks have on the choice of information sources used to meet private practice dentists' information needs. Additionally, the study investigated how the Internet has affected the information seeking of dentists. Using Leckie, Pettigrew, and Sylvain's (1996) model of the information seeking of professionals as the conceptual framework, vignette‐based, in‐depth interviews were conducted with 12 dentists in the metropolitan areas of Seattle, Tacoma, and Everett, Washington. Follow‐up interviews were used to investigate dentists' use of the Internet. Findings revealed that the type of work role‐related task significantly shapes dentists' choices of information sources; the Internet emerged as a significant information source because it provides up‐to‐date information in a convenient and timely manner; the Internet is a complement to traditional information sources, not a replacement for them; and the Leckie and associates (1996) general model of professional information seeking is supported by this study.

Psychosocial Factors Associated with Knowledge about Affective Disorders in Patients with Depression

Background: Increasing importance is attributed to the knowledge that patients have concerning their illness. For psychiatric disorders, imparting information about the illness has become a standard part of treatment. Despite the great clinical relevance of knowledge about depression, only few empirical studies on this subject have been carried out. This study aimed to identify psychosocial factors associated with greater or lesser knowledge about affective disorders. Methods: Sixty-one in-patients with depression were recruited and tested with the Knowledge about Depression and Mania Inventory. Results: Almost all patients sought specific information about their disorder prior to admission to hospital. There were large differences in patients’ knowledge about the disorder and their choice of information source. Older and less educated patients had less knowledge about affective disorders. Patients with less illness knowledge also have a less favourable illness concept, poorer interpersonal relationships and more passive coping strategies. Conclusions: The results show that knowledge about affective disorders is a central illness characteristic that has numerous implications for the ability to cope with the disorder, as well as for psychotherapeutic management. The results contribute to a clarification of the relationship between psychoeducation and psychotherapy.

Can anticipatory feelings explain anomalous choices of information sources?

The well-being of agents is often directly affected by their beliefs, in the form of anticipatory feelings such as anxiety and hopefulness. Economists have tried to model this effect by introducing beliefs as arguments in decision makers' vNM utility function. One might expect that such a model would be capable of explaining anomalous attitudes to information that we observe in reality. We show that the model has several shortcomings in this regard, as long as Bayesian updating is retained.

Information Search Behavior and Tourist Characteristics

SUMMARY The Internet as a new form of media is impacting tourist information provision and acquisition. A better understanding of the use of the Internet and other information sources by tourists will benefit the marketing efforts of destination organizations. Based on a general consumer behavior theory by Berkman and Gilson (1986), this study examined the relationships between tourists' use of the Internet vs. other information sources and their characteristics. It was found that demographic characteristics of gender and household income and situational factors of trip purpose and travel party type were significantly related to tourists' choices of information sources; and such behavior was associated with their trip outcomes of accommodation types and expenditure. The study's implications were discussed in the context of destination marketing.

Work roles, tasks and the information behavior of dentists

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects work roles (patient managementsservice provider, administratorsmanager, researcher, educator, and student) and their associated tasks have on the choice of information sources used to meet private practice dentists' information needs. Additionally, the study investigated how the Internet has affected the information seeking of dentists. Using Leckie, Pettigrew, and Sylvain's (1996) model of the information seeking of professionals as the conceptual framework, vignette-based, in-depth interviews were conducted with 12 dentists in the metropolitan areas of Seattle, Tacoma, and Everett, Washington. Follow-up interviews were used to investigate dentists' use of the Internet. Findings revealed that the type of work role-related task significantly shapes dentists' choices of information sources; the Internet emerged as a significant information source because it provides up-to-date information in a convenient and timely manner; the Internet is a complement to traditional information sources, not a replacement for them; and the Leckie and associates (1996) general model of professional information seeking is supported by this study. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The Impact of the Internet on Information Search for Automobiles

While the Internet has apparently become a major source of information about many items, including real estate, travel, computer equipment, books, records, and automobiles, little is known about how it is used, and about its impact on search behavior. The objective of this study is to shed light on this question by studying the use of the Internet as an information source for one good, automobiles. In order to accomplish our objective, we need to construct a model of the choice of information sources. We liken the time spent with each alternative source to the choice of factors of production. In our case, different sources are combined to produce current information, which, when combined with prior information, produces gains to information, defined as the difference in monetary value between the best choice given complete information and a random choice. Assuming that consumers choose the optimal amount of time to allocate to each source, given their time costs, we derive first-order conditions that lead to expressions for the share of time spent with each source and total search time. These expressions become the basis for our empirical analysis. Consistent with past literature and our data, we define four major categories of sources of information on automobiles. These are interpersonal sources such as friends and relatives, non-advocate or neutral sources of print information such as Consumer Reports, dealer/manufacturer sources, and the Internet. We use data on information source use obtained from recent new car buyers in one market in 1999, after the Internet became established, and compare this with data obtained from a survey of recent car buyers obtained in 1989 in the same market, before the Internet was introduced. The two data sets allow us to create baseline estimates of what buyers with a particular set of characteristics would have done in the absence of the Internet, and then to determine how the presence of the Internet is associated with deviations from this baseline. Our descriptive results indicate that about 40 percent of our sample used the Internet as a source in their purchase decision, which is very consistent with other evidence on Internet use in 1999, the time of our survey. The share on Internet use in total search is significantly related to younger age, higher education, higher wage, dissatisfaction with the dealer of the previous car, and no decision on which manufacturer to buy from prior to the search. A testable prediction of our model is that the Internet should draw proportionally from each other source. Since dealer/manufacturer sources get the biggest share of time in the absence of the Internet, this implies that the Internet has the greatest absolute impact on time with these sources. Tests of the proportional draw assumption indicate that this hypothesis cannot be rejected, and that the assumption provides a good approximation for our data. Our analysis of total search indicates that total search increases with factors that determine gains to search, such as price level of the chosen model, and decreases with prior information and efficiency at search. Specifically, total search decreases with a prior decision on a manufacturer or dealer to buy from, satisfaction with the previous dealer, and age. Search also decreases with wages, a measure of time costs. Putting all of the pieces of our model together allows us to estimate the effects of the Internet and other consumer characteristics on search, and on gains to search. We simulate overall behavior, and that of Internet users and certain other groups, both with and without the Internet. Our simulations indicate that the Internet both reduces total search time, and leads to improved purchases. These effects are largest for younger, more educated consumers, particularly those that were dissatisfied with their previous dealer. Conversely, the Internet has very little value for older consumers, and younger consumers with high school or less education. Our simulations also indicate that the Internet leads to a considerable reduction in time spent with dealer/manufacturer sources, most of which is time spent at the dealership requiring the presence of a sales person. This suggests that, by making it easier for consumers to be better informed when they arrive at the dealer and hence cutting down on the demand for sales person time, the Internet can lead to a substantial improvement in the efficiency of dealer operations. Thus the Internet is likely to benefit dealers as well as consumers.

The importance of trust in software engineers' assessment and choice of information sources

Engineers such as systems developers get most of their information from colleagues and internal reports. In the literature on engineers' information-seeking practices the generally agreed-upon explanation of this preference for close-by, internal information sources is that engineers follow a principle of least effort by choosing their information sources on the basis of ease of access rather than quality of contents. This study argues that engineers' preference for internal sources such as their colleagues is just as much a preference for sources with a known or easily determinable trustworthiness as it is a preference for information that is easily accessible. Trust is of central importance because quality is a perceived property and, thus, assessing the quality of an information source is essentially a matter of establishing to what extent one is willing to place trust in it. This can be done with greater ease and precision for familiar sources. A field study of the meetings in a software design project shows that in discussing and selecting information sources the software engineers devote significantly more attention to quality-related factors than to cost-related factors. It is also normal conversational practice at the meetings to accompany the mentioning of information sources that may be unknown to some project participants by information that puts them in context. Systems for managing knowledge and sharing expertise must recognise these rich means of forming a perception of the credibility of individual pieces of information.

Gender Differences in Opinions and Practices with Regard to a "Healthy Diet">

Socio-cultural theories about gender differences with regard to food and health constitute the point of departure for this paper, which is based on data from two representative surveys in the Norwegian population. Both were carried out in the autumn of 1994; the first with 1050, the second with 13 200 respondents above 15 years of age. The surveys included questions on: (1) opinions on food and health related issues; (2) self reported dietary changes during the last 3 years prior to the study; (3) frequency of consumption of selected foods. Gender differences are analysed and related to various socio-economic variables. Such differences, although not as pronounced as expected, were found for most of the aspects studied. The responses from women were less related to socio-economic variables than those of men, both concerning opinions on what constitutes a healthy diet, and frequency of consumption of some foods (vegetables, fruits and dairy products). Gender differences were more pronounced between than within socio-economic groups. In line with theories about women's higher health consciousness, women in general reported dietary changes corresponding to the dietary recommendations, and may also have learned more about health than men through their choice of information sources.