Online Information Search Research Articles

Dark Patterns and Epistemic Ignorance: an Educational Crisis

In this paper, we discuss how online AI stimulates epistemic ignorance. Early visions of online information search and retrieval processes proposed a utopian and empowering space for individuals. Today’s crisis paradoxically presents us with an unprecedented accumulation of new information and access to it, yet also the colonisation of this knowledge by those who seek to erode critical thought. By ‘epistemic ignorance’, we mean the condition which is systematically created by the patterns of mis- and disinformation that prevent knowledge seekers from gaining verified knowledge. We argue not only has the ‘knower’ or knowledge seeker become the ‘known’ (sometimes without knowing it), their ability ‘to know’ is also intentionally manipulated by dark patterns. Moreover, their ‘known’ status allows for their subtle indoctrination, and erosion of criticality. This makes the crisis an educational one. To illustrate, we consider epistemic mechanisms on Facebook pertaining to the early stage of the Covid-19 pandemic. We contend these ‘dark AI patterns’ intentionally aim for systemic indoctrination, and affective indoctrination, by engaging in the construction of epistemic ignorance. Our focus is on the political agenda; which is common in the wider discussion of indoctrination in education. Many educational philosophers have taken a critical interest in the power of education to indoctrinate. The formal educational space is an effective vehicle to do so – and now the informal education we receive through social media is as well. Through algorithms, we are taught to think a certain way. This new crisis has not yet been considered an educational one, while in every moment, the coercive powers of online AI drive audiences towards greater uncritical acceptance of knowledge and information. Perhaps we can reverse the educational oppression with the introduction of ‘light patterns’.

Online Health Information Seeking Behavior and Thriving Quotient in the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Mediating Role of Mental Toughness

Accurate and dependable health information has been shown to support students’ thriving capacity and overall well-being, especially during a pandemic, when students’ well-being is critical. The issue is unclear as to what truly supports the established link between students’ ability to thrive in the event of a COVID-19 pandemic. This study looks at the correlation between online health information seeking behavior (OHSIB) and thriving quotient (TQ) and the role of a positive construct known as mental toughness (MT). Researchers enrolled 830 males and females from universities in the Philippines. Online Health Seeking Information Behavior (OHSIB-12), the modified and adapted Mental Toughness Questionnaire (MTQ-18), and the Thriving Quotient (TQ-30) were used as accurate and legitimate research instruments. We discovered meager levels of MT and TQ subcomponents and a high level of OHSIB in most university students. Correlation analyses revealed a positive relationship between online health information seeking behavior, mental toughness, and the thriving quotient. Mediation analysis revealed a significant mediation effect, but only on a partial scale. Developing a healthy online information search can assist students in making healthier choices, which in turn helps them feel better, thrive in an uncertain world, and achieve academic success. Mental toughness is also critical for students to access reliable health information online and thus achieve their goals even in the event of a pandemic. Proper guidance from education and health authorities was recommended for students’ OHSIB. The implications of the findings for future research were discussed.

Parents’ concerns and understandings around excessive infant crying: Qualitative study of discussions in online forums

Crying is an essential behaviour in infants, occurring on a continuum, and only rarely indicates serious underlying diagnosis. Searching online for information about excessive crying has become common, using the internet to seek health information and support through forums. The aim of this study was to examine data systematically derived from discussion threads on two online parent forums to explore discussions around excessive infant crying. This study utilised two qualitative approaches; the first, a thematic analysis to explore concerns around excessive crying, and the second, discursive psychology, to explore how diagnostic labels (underlying medical cause of crying) are negotiated within an online thread. The thematic analysis identified a tension between interpreting what is ‘normal’ crying and when crying is a sign of an ‘underlying problem’ leading to a search for a diagnostic label. This tension seemed to be heightened when expectations that infancy should be a ‘happy time’ were threatened by excessive crying. Responses to original posts offered support for parents/caregivers to ‘trust their instincts' and to explore different diagnostic labels. The discursive psychology analysis explored responders' accounts of their experiences to increase credibility and showcase expertise. Forums play an important social role, meeting needs for reassurance, validation, and empowerment. This study suggests that labels are used interchangeably, and further work is needed to understand how perceptions are developed and acted on in the community, as well as online. Furthermore, this study suggests there is a need for supporting parents/caregivers in understanding and managing common behaviours such as excessive crying.

Acceleration of Environmental Sustainability in Tourism Village

The research aims to determine the factors causing the low achievement of environmental sustainability in tourist villages and accelerate it. This study uses a desk research method with online data and information search techniques, secondary sources, and other scientific publications. Meanwhile, the analysis technique used is a descriptive qualitative analysis technique, analogy, and comparison of several research results and other scientific publications related to environmental sustainability in tourism villages through the local wisdom approach and digital transformation. The research was conducted by interviewing several sources to get input on ecological sustainability standards in Tourism Villages. The result shows that the standards used to measure environmental sustainability in tourist villages can be used because of the global nature of the standards. Tourism Villages have local wisdom that has become part of the community's life. This local wisdom is very likely to have encouraged the tourism village community to behave environmentally friendly. Local wisdom becomes the focal point and main attraction of a tourist village that can be disseminated to villagers and tourists. The results of the study suggest the optimal way in which sustainable environmental development in the village can occur.

Differential Effects of Device Modalities and Exposure to Online Reviews on Online Purchasing: A Field Study

We model the effect of online information search across mobile (smartphone and tablet) and nonmobile (personal computer [PC], both desktop and laptop) platforms on frequency of purchasing per online shopping session. Using clickstream data from a multinational retailer, we find that device modality drives purchase frequency, likely due to the differential ease of use of PCs, tablets, and smartphones. In particular, frequency of completed orders is highest when information search and purchase completion are highly convenient, such as when shopping via tablet. We also determine that information search in the form of reading online product reviews has no effect on mobile platforms, while it does on other platforms. These findings contribute to information search theory, suggesting that information search increases purchase likelihood when it is goal directed, extensive, and easy to conduct. Thus, the broad role of digital advertising should be to make the information search process easier and more convenient for consumers to stimulate purchases. These findings help digital advertisers understand information search patterns across device modalities. Implications for digital advertisers on electronic commerce (e-commerce) platforms are offered.

Factors Affecting Decisions on Imports of Goods on E-Commerce Platforms

The study aims to establish a model analyzing factors affecting the import decisions of customers on E-commerce platforms. The study was conducted through an online interview using a structured questionnaire with 323 customers. The results indicate seven main factors affecting customers’ import decisions on E-commerce platforms including (1) Search for information online; (2) Perceived usefulness; (3) Perceived ease of use; (4) Price; (5) Trust; (6) Perceived risks; and (7) Online purchasing experience. Additionally, the result of the study also shows customers’ gender, age, matrimonial status, occupation, education, and income make no significant difference to their importing decision for goods via E-commerce.

Factors Affecting Decisions on Imports of Goods on E-Commerce Platforms

The study aims to establish a model analyzing factors affecting the import decisions of customers on E-commerce platforms. The study was conducted through an online interview using a structured questionnaire with 323 customers. The results indicate seven main factors affecting customers’ import decisions on E-commerce platforms including (1) Search for information online; (2) Perceived usefulness; (3) Perceived ease of use; (4) Price; (5) Trust; (6) Perceived risks; and (7) Online purchasing experience. Additionally, the result of the study also shows customers’ gender, age, matrimonial status, occupation, education, and income make no significant difference to their importing decision for goods via E-commerce.

Examining German and American teachers’ perceptions about students’ use of the internet to conduct research

ABSTRACT There is a critical need to understand the factors that influence the development of students’ skills for using the Internet to search for and locate information. Teachers play an important role in this process and there is a related impetus to identify the dynamics of instruction in information-seeking activities. This study investigated German and American middle and secondary school teachers’ perceptions about preparing students to use the Internet as a tool for research. Utilizing theoretical thematic analysis, results indicated teachers from both countries felt specific student attributes contributed to and inhibited processes associated with online information searches. Importantly, there were also similarities and differences in the strategies teachers perceived as necessary for preparing students that were linked to pedagogical and contextually-specific factors. Implications for future investigations include incorporating observations of instruction and collecting teaching artefacts to further identify the pedagogical strategies implemented by teachers from each country.

Spatiotemporal Mapping of Online Interest in Cannabis and Popular Psychedelics before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Poland.

Background: Psychedelics represent a unique subset of psychoactive substances that can induce an aberrant state of consciousness principally via the neuronal 5-HT2A receptor. There is limited knowledge concerning the interest in these chemicals in Poland and how they changed during the pandemic. Nonetheless, these interests can be surveyed indirectly via the web. Objectives: We aim to conduct a spatial-temporal mapping of online information-seeking behavior concerning cannabis and the most popular psychedelics before and during the pandemic. Methods: We retrieved online information search data via Google Trends concerning twenty of the most popular psychedelics from 1 January 2017 to 1 January 2022 in Poland. We conducted Holt–Winters exponential smoothing for time series analysis to infer potential seasonality. We utilized hierarchical clustering analysis based on Ward’s method to find similarities of psychedelics’ interest within Poland’s voivodships before and during the pandemic. Results: Twelve (60%) psychedelics had significant seasonality; we proved that psilocybin and ayahuasca had annual seasonality (p-value = 0.0120 and p = 0.0003, respectively), and four substances—LSD, AL-LAD, DXM, and DOB—exhibited a half-yearly seasonality, while six psychedelics had a quarterly seasonal pattern, including cannabis, dronabinol, ergine, NBOMe, phencyclidine, and salvinorin A. Further, the pandemic influenced a significant positive change in the trends for three substances, including psilocybin, ergine, and DXM. Conclusions: Different seasonal patterns exist for psychedelics, and some might correlate with school breaks or holidays in Poland. The pandemic induced some changes in the temporal and spatial trends. The spatial-temporal trends could be valuable information to health authorities and policymakers responsible for monitoring and preventing addictions.

Disinforming the unbiased: How online users experience and cope with dissonance after climate change disinformation exposure

The emergence of disinformation challenges today’s democracies. Selective exposure research assumes that psychological biases cause people to turn to attitude-reinforcing disinformation, though studies indicate that this only holds true for small niches of online audiences. However, when online, unbiased users as well may encounter disinformation, which for them appear to be attitude-challenging. How unbiased online users experience and cope with dissonance triggered by this, and whether this affects their pre-existing attitudes, has hardly been explored. This research gap is addressed using the polarized topic of climate change as an example. An experimental research design is applied combining stimulus exposure, survey research, eye tracking, and interviews ( n = 50). The findings indicate that unbiased users are not entirely resistant to disinformation influence. However, attitude effects could not be fully explained by selection behavior but instead through different feelings and strategies of coping with dissonance and patterns of performing online information searches.

Students’ Online Information Searching Strategies and Their Creative Question Generation: The Moderating Effect of Their Need for Cognitive Closure

With the wide application of computers and digital technologies, online information searching is being integrated into students’ learning process. Improving students’ creative question generation through online information searching is an emerging research topic in the creativity and pedagogy field. Online information searching brings diversified information, but it also leads to cognitive load brought by a large amount of online information. Using online information searching to generate creative questions depends on students’ cognitive properties. However, the existing literature ignores the joint influence of students’ online information searching strategies and cognitive properties on their creative question generation. This study puts forward three hypotheses: first, the two strategies of students’ online information searching (“keywords” and “Web page exploration”) will increase their creative question generation; second, the impact of “keywords” is negatively moderated by students’ need for cognitive closure (NFCC); third, the impact of “Web page exploration” is positively moderated by NFCC. The main reason is that high NFCC prevents students from obtaining diversified perspectives by using different keywords, but it helps to avoid distractions caused by a large amount of online information and promote the persistency of their reading information. Based on the data of quasi-experimental tasks completed by 90 students in Grade 7 and Grade 8, the results support the above hypothesis. The contributions of creative question generation theory and NFCC theory, as well as important issues of future study, are discussed.

Online Information Search Behaviour During Pandemic Covid – 19 among Young Travellers in Malaysia

During the Coronavirus illness (COVID-19) epidemic, young generations became accustomed to searching for travel and tourism information on the internet. As a result of the pandemic's limits on movement, Internet usage has risen dramatically. The developments in online information search related to travel and tourism must be investigated in order to aid the tourist industry's sustainability. During the Movement Control Order (MCO) period, this study looked at how young Malaysians searched for travel and tourism-related information online. The descriptive study was used to evaluate four variables: prior travel experience, online information participation, content, and travelling needs. An online poll was used to gather information from Malaysians across the country's 14 states. The replies of 348 people were analysed to see how the younger generation in Malaysia uses the internet to find information. According to the findings, nearly 90% of those surveyed have travelled at least once. Trivago.com is the most popular travel site, and Facebook is the most popular social networking platform, according to the statistics. In terms of content, the majority of searches are for travel destinations, although the majority of travellers' needs are for domestic travel. The findings of this research can be used to design marketing tactics for tourism products as well as recovery measures for the travel and tourism industry. This research can also add to our understanding of Malaysia's information search systems. This will assist Malaysia's tourism industry in making more informed decisions.

ONLİNE BİLGİ ARAMA SÜRECİNDE TÜKETİCİLERİN AKIŞ DENEYİMLERİNE YÖNELİK KAVRAMSAL BİR MODEL ÖNERİSİ

Many previous studies have explained the relationship between flow experience and consumer behavior in the context of human-computer interaction. However, studies have inconsistently evaluated the flow experience in terms of its relevant dimensions. Autotelic experience, curiosity, intrinsic interest, sense of control, focused attention, and time distortion are dimensions of online flow experience that have been inconsistently evaluated across different studies. Unlike previous studies, this current study characterizes flow experience with these six dimensions. This study aims to put forth a conceptual model suggestion on the flow experiences of consumers in their online information search processes. It is thought that this conceptual model will contribute to future consumer studies in explaining the effect of flow situations that occur in consumers' computer interactions on their behavior.

Comparison of Hand Eczema in Iraq Before and During SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic Using Frequentist Statistics and Polynomial Models

Introduction. SARS-CoV-2 pandemic spread around the world exponentially. People use disinfectants excessively to protect themselves from the novel coronavirus, which may cause contact eczema; local health authorities can monitor these. Our study explores the internet to detect significant changes in online information search (seeking) behaviors connected with eczema in Iraq during the pandemic. Material and Methods. We searched the internet, via Google Trends, using five search terms; "اكزيما", "الاكزيما", "اكزيما اليد", "كحول", and "مطهر"; these are the Arabic translation for "eczema", "the eczema", "hand eczema", "alcohol", and "disinfectant". We explored the internet covering two years, one before and one during the pandemic. Results. Spatial mapping conveyed data from six governorates in Iraq, including Ninawa, Babil, Al-Najaf, Baghdad, Basrah, and Erbil. Basrah governorate had the highest score (interest) for the search term "the eczema" (الاكزيما), while Al-Najaf had the highest score for the search term "disinfectant" (مطهر). Temporal mapping exhibited high variability, the highest of which was for the search terms "the eczema" (الاكزيما) and "alcohol" (كحول). Exploring the temporal variabilities, using polynomial models showed weak predictive power over the two years. However, during the pandemic year, the predictive models for each search term possessed a moderate power. Conclusions. Changes in human behavior during pandemic events are of prime importance for pharmacovigilance experts. Pandemics can influence medical conditions, including hand eczema, as a manifestation of disinfectants' overuse. Combining data analytics and artificial intelligence facilitates screening, detecting, and collecting pharmacovigilance and safety data.

Practical aspects of the electronic system functioning in the field of medicine of the future (Pakistan)

This article focused on “Practical aspects of the electronic system functioning in the field of medicine of the future in Pakistan” Aims: To explore the practical aspects of the electronic systems functioning in the field of medicine of the future, the challenges and opportunities of implementing these systems, and the potential solutions for optimising and enhancing their impact on outcomes in Pakistan. Methodology: A descriptive cross-sectional study design was used. A sample of 323 was selected through non-random convenient method. Data collected through interview. Chi square test was applied. Results: The results on telemedicine showed, out of 323 participants who practiced telemedicine, 52% had 19-24 months of medical practice experience. Among the doctors, 19.3% used laptops, 22.7% used mobile phones to search information online, while 41.1% connected with their patients through WhatsApp and 16.9% through Facebook. 80% of the doctors agreed that telemedicine was beneficial for saving money, time, effort, and for the patients. Among the group with experience above 24 months, 59% were practicing EHR systems and 41% were not utilising them. When it came to CDS Systems, 64.2% of the more experienced group were using the system, while 35.8% were not. In addition, 71.2% of the more experienced group were practicing Digital Medical Imaging. During the COVID-19 pandemic, all medical institutes taught, assigned tasks, and evaluated students through online mechanisms. However, after the pandemic, 100% of the institutes returned to traditional teaching methods. Interestingly, 60% of the participants favoured online education, considering it an easier, more effective and efficient way of learning. Scientific Novelty: Examines Pakistan's computerised healthcare system and its impacts. Conclusion: Improved infrastructure, healthcare education, patient computer literacy, privacy and data security rules may have the largest impact on healthcare outcomes. An international help is needed to reach global electronic health care standards. Note: Review paper may have different types of subsections.

Acquisition of false certainty: Learners increase their confidence in the correctness of incorrect answers after online information search

AbstractBackgroundExplorative online information search activities are self‐regulated learning processes that require monitoring in the form of accurate metacognitive judgments about one's own knowledge. People have to judge what they know, but also understand what they do not know. Previous research has explored those two aspects in relation to each other mostly by employing measures of metacognitive calibration and points toward a potential detrimental effect of using the internet to answer knowledge test items.ObjectivesThis research aimed to disentangle those two aspects of knowledge and to describe a false certainty effect (FaCE), indicating an increase in confidence in the correctness of incorrect responses in a knowledge test after online information search. We also aimed to further explore the conditions under which this effect occurs.MethodsIn two studies participants’ knowledge and on‐item confidence ratings were measured before and after a short online information search activity. In Study 1, we analyzed data of two samples with and without knowledge gain. In Study 2, we manipulated the familiarity of knowledge test items and whether there was an information search activity.ResultsStudy 1 showed that false certainty occurred even when a search activity did not lead to any learning success. This FaCE, however, was stronger when there was actual knowledge gain. In Study 2, we found that the effect was caused by the information search activity itself and not by the pre‐post methodology of identical knowledge‐test items.ImplicationsOur results demonstrate the emergence of increased confidence in the correctness of incorrect responses in knowledge tests after online information search activities. Educators and researchers should be aware of this undesired false certainty effect of computer‐assisted learning on individuals’ knowledge monitoring.

A Decision Tree Approach to Predict the Online Information Search Performance of 8- 13 Year Old Students in French-Speaking Belgium

A Decision Tree Approach to Predict the Online Information Search Performance of 8- 13 Year Old Students in French-Speaking Belgium

Fake News and Tourism – Whose Responsibility is it?

Fake news was Collins Dictionary’s 2017 word of the year. The term was made extremely popular before and during the 2016 U.S elections where sensationalist news reporting, often unverified, were disseminated by political actors in their bid to secure support towards their campaigns. In brief, fake news refers to the reporting of articles that has been manipulated so that information is re-presented in a manner determined by a sender. For this reason, interest has been piqued to mitigate the effects of fake news given the ease of publicizing and disseminating user-generated contents digitally, especially so in the realm of social media. However, it has been conceded that fake news has hardly been addressed in tourism academic scholarship. This is somewhat surprising, given that online information search and dissemination is a core feature of a technologically mediated tourism industry, with recent instances of fake online reviews emerging. This project will explore the current scope of fake news in tourism, propose future areas of investigation, and discuss theoretical and practical implications for responsible tourism management.

Aplikasi Penyedia Lowongan Kerja Di Wilayah NTB Berbasis Web Menggunakan Framework Laravel Dan Mysql

This research is motivated by employment that tends to be difficult when looking for work in companies. In other words, applicants still use the usual methods to find information about job vacancies. They go to companies to look at job vacancies notice boards, and look in print media such as newspapers, magazines, brochures, or person-to-person information. Companies that want to open job vacancies also do the same thing. This method has the disadvantage that it is not effective and efficient, because it requires time and money. Therefore, this researcher built a web-based job vacancy provider system using the waterfall model with observation data collection techniques and literature study. This will increase effectiveness in finding work according to their respective fields or abilities. The purpose of this system is to provide convenience for job seekers and companies. Job seekers can obtain job search information online, companies can provide job search information through the website and assist companies in finding prospective applicants according to the desired criteria. From this research, it produces information on web-based job vacancies equipped with a search menu for the desired vacancy category

The Prevalence of Internet Addiction and Associated Factors among School-Going Adolescents in Ahmedabad

Background: The Internet is an integral part of modern life, and for the vast majority of Internet users, its benefits far outweigh the adverse consequences secondary to excessive use. Increasing internet use among adolescents is also likely to pose a major public health concern that is internet addiction (IA). Aim: To assess the prevalence of IA among school?going adolescents and the factors associated with IA. Methodology: A cross?sectional study was carried out to survey adolescents studying in 8th to 10th standard of three schools of Ahmedabad. The sample size was calculated 384 by using the formula (n = Z2pq/d2). Information regarding sociodemography and various patterns of internet use were obtained by using survey forms. Young’s IA test (IAT) Questionnaire was used to screen for IA. Results : The prevalence of Internet Addiction (IA) was 67.5%, 27% and 5.5% with normal (IAT < 50), moderate (IAT 50-79) and severe addiction (IAT 80-100) respectively. Age, male gender, owning a personal device, hours of internet use per day, use of smartphones, permanent login status, online shopping, watching movies, online gaming, searching information online were found to be significantly associated with severity of IA. Conclusion: Our study revealed a relatively high prevalence of internet addiction among younger participants and that requires awareness and intervention towards risk factors of internet addiction.