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The structure of the course is a medium-sized seminar with occasional mini-lectures, break-out groups, student presentations, in-class exercises and occasional guest lectures. This student-centered learning approach relies upon the student's role in preparing for class with questions and issues for discussion. The instructor's role is to guide the student through the literature, integrate the topics raised in class, and provide feedback to the students on their performance on learning objectives. The course will proceed as follows:
Additional readings required to complete the group presentation and the user group paper are available from Alexander Library, next door to the SCILS building. Inquire at the library information desk about tours and classes in how to use the electronic and print materials. Term paper instruction will not be covered in this class. The Kreeger Learning Resource Center next to the Parking Deck and Brower Commons may provide or refer you to additional resources. Finally, citation format should follow APA Style (5th Edition). A variety of online style manuals are available through the Rutgers Library Web Site including http://www.apastyle.org/elecref.html for citing electronic sources.
This course requires keeping a journal of brief writing assignments each week on the assigned readings that will be evaluated twice during the semester. There is also a group presenation, a user group paper and brief individual presentation. Each writing assignment must include:
Students who do well on the user group paper spend a few hours finding several refereed research papers on potential topics even before they settle on a topic. Students typically start by looking up references from class assignments, bibliographic databases and indexes such as Library Literature and Library and Information Science Abstracts (LISA) available via Rutgers University Libraries (RUL), browsing refereed journals such as JASIS and Library Quarterly and checking for survey articles in the Annual Review of Information Science and Technology (ARIST) in Alexander reference. You should not expect to be able to complete the assignment without consulting print sources, even though many materials are available electronically.
You may also use scholarly monographs with permission of the instructor but most students papers draw upon articles recently published in refereed journals. Depending on your topic, you may need to search for articles in refereed research journals in from other disciplines. You can check if a journal is refereed by using http://www.ulrichsweb.com (available through RU Libraries' remote access services). When using ulrich's, note that "reviews" refer to book or software reviews, not "peer-reviewed." Please consult with Alexander reference for additional ideas and resources. Myoung Wilson's Research guide on http://www.libraries.rutgers.edu/rul/rr_gateway/research_guides/lib_info/selected.shtml is helpful.
The following milestone assignments will help you prepare your paper. However, students should not halt their work during the week that the milestone assignments are being graded.
B. User group paper presentation: Each student will give a very brief (5 minutes max) individual presentation highlighting 3 points from their user group paper. You may use one transparency or one screen shot maximum.
In addition, individuals are encouraged to reflect upon their experiences and contribution to the group presentation in their journal. Presentations should last no more than 30 minutes (a grade will be taken off for going over-time), be lively and include some interaction with the audience. Groups can initiate discussions, present panels, conduct skits or lead class exercises. Presentations may include visual aids (posters, overhead transparencies, graphics, electronic presentations) to display citations, brief outlines, figures or charts. Presentations MUST address the following questions
40% |
User Group Paper submitted December 10, preparation assignments and presentation |
30% |
Group Presentation submitted on assigned week |
30% |
Reading and Process Journal submitted December 2 |
DATE | TOPIC, READINGS AND WEEKLY JOURNAL WRITING IDEAS |
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PART 1 | INFORMATION BEHAVIOR OVERVIEW AND ANALYSIS> |
September 7 Week 1 |
INTRODUCTION TO THE COURSE. The concept of information, the
relationships between information and human behavior, and the notion of
human information behavior. Wilson examines how people evaluate
information using cognitive tools. Meltzoff provides an overview of how to
evaluate social science research that we can apply to the articles we read
for class. An in-class exercise will prepare you for next week's
assignment.
|
September 14 Week 2 |
PERSPECTIVES ON INFORMATION BEHAVIOR: This topic orients you to a
range of approaches to the study of human information behavior including
cognitive, situational and social constructivist. Julien provides a
succinct overview of the nature of the literature in this field Consider
comparing Julien & Duggan to Wilson's studies of the field. Wilson
focuses on scope to help us identify central concepts of the field. Choose
2 of the following:
|
September 21 Week 3 |
ANALYZING
INFORMATION BEHAVIOR: WORKING FROM PRACTICE TO THEORY AND FROM THEORY TO
PRACTICE: These seminal works in human information behavior introduce
two approaches to understanding human information behavior. Taylor's
classic article develops a model of information services as a series of
question-negotiation filters. Belkin starts with cognitive theory to
describe a model of information transfer that was implemented into
software for practical information retrieval. Pay particular attention to
his diagrams.
|
September 28 Week 4 |
METAPHORS FOR UNDERSTANDING INFORMATION BEHAVIOR: "SENSE-MAKING" AND
"BERRY-PICKING" Dervin proposes sense-making as a set of methods for
understanding how people utilize information. Sense-making views
information use as a constructive process of bridging a "gap" or
discontinuity between perceived reality and the judgment of that reality.
The construction process develops through an interactive communication
process and results in an interpretation of perceived reality that helps
people move to another step in understanding. Marcia Bates uses the
metaphor of "berry-picking" to model the actual information search
processes people use.
|
October 5 Week 5 |
TESTING
THEORIES IN RESEARCH AND PRACTICE: THE INFORMATION SEEKING PROCESS AND
USER-CENTERED INFORMATION SERVICES: Kuhlthau provides an overview of
her research program on the information seeking process and describes how
she tested her theory in different studies using different research
methods. Tuomin & Savolainen describe information behavior as
constructive social action.
JOURNAL WRITING IDEAS: Keep notes on these readings to add to your journal when it is returned this week. Create a chart of Kuhlthau's different studies and their data, methods, and major findings. Review the critical reading selection and consider what kinds of questions and methods you'd like to learn more about. Which of the various theories describe information behaviors you've observed thus far? Chart the proximity of each theory to the practices they purport to explain. |
PART 2: | STUDIES OF INFORMATION BEHAVIOR CONTEXTS |
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October 12 Week 6 |
INTRODUCTION
TO RESEARCH ON INFORMATION SEEKING IN CONTEXT. This session will
provide an overview of the key factors established in the research that
shape/influence information behavior. The Melzoff selection is provided
for background only discusses research questions, hypotheses, strategies
and variables. You need not write about this piece. Cool reviews
literature describing situation as context and Dervin describes how
researchers can or should investigate context. We will discuss Talja et al
(1999) in class, but you are not required to write separately about this
article.
JOURNAL WRITING IDEAS: Try to interpret parts of the digital divide report using the criteria from the critical thinking chapters. This week, undertake some discreet observations of people encountering a range of information services and systems. See if you can identify some of the factors that shape their interaction or patterns of use. Also, bring to class a list of 5-10 information systems you encounter in the course of your day, week or month. For each information system, list at least two information behaviors you associate with that system. Keep in mind that a system in this context is not just an electronic database or printed catalog. |
October 19 Week 7 |
INFORMATION
BEHAVIOR IN PERSONAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXTS: This week's readings explore
the relationship between information behavior and the social resources
accessible by battered women and prisoners serving time. These readings
challenge us to consider ways to look beyond our own circumstances in
order to meet diverse information needs.
Group 1 Presentation JOURNAL WRITING IDEAS: Reflecting on the list you created last week, where do you see parallels between your own personal and social information behavior and the behavior described in these articles? What do you find most interesting about these conceptions of information behavior? How does an understanding of the information needs of people in everday situations shape the work of an Information Professional? |
October 26 Week 8 |
INFORMATION
BEHAVIOR IN EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS: The readings for this week look
at very different behaviors. Brown et al review work about the use (or
nonuse) of traditional classroom skills in real-world settings. Gross'
study discusses an "imposed query" model as a way to discuss information
seeking on behalf of another person.
JOURNAL WRITING IDEAS: Consider how the findings from these studies explain information behavior in the classroom or school library. How do the researchers described in the Material Mastery article resemble the dieters in the Situated Cognition piece? What distinguishes the problem-solving skills dieters in the Situated Cognition piece from children learning in school? With respect to this Library and Information Science masters program, what is the "ideal" human information behavior for successful learning? In reality, how do students use information? In your reading, please be able to address differences between the context of learning and information behavior in a personal context. |
November 2 Week 9 |
INFORMATION BEHAVIOR IN ORGANIZATIONS AND WORKING ENVIRONMENTS: One
aspect of an "information society" is the economy's dependence upon
expertise and intellectual capital for competitive advantage. Kuhlthau
provides a case study of the development of expertise and experience and
relates it to her information seeking process framework. Davenport's case
depicts strategies used in a large accounting firm to manage their
intellectual capital.
Midcourse Evaluation JOURNAL WRITING IDEAS: How does organization of information relate to uncertainty and other individual emotions? How would you differentiate knowledge managers and information service providers in organizations? This week consider a case concerning yourself or someone you know working in an organization. Describe how that person interacts with their experience, expertise and the management of knowledge during a typical day or week. |
November 9 Week 10 |
MEDICAL
AND HEALTH INFORMATION BEHAVIOR: These two selections provide two
contrasts. Pettigrew explores how people interact with information in a
clinical setting (think about the conversations that take place in the
waiting room versus the conversations with doctor or nurse practitioners).
Todd examines formal drug-education programs and the gaps between learning
in the classroom and interpersonal experience.
JOURNAL WRITING IDEAS: How has the availability of medical and health information in the media and on the web influenced your own information behavior? What are some special issues that differentiate the use of health information from other types of information? What are some cultural differences in assessing the authority of medical information. |
November 16 Week 11 |
LEGAL AND
GOVERNMENT INFORMATION BEHAVIOR: This week we explore a seeming irony
between information about rules for the benefit of society, namely the
law, and the unique aspects of how people interact with this information.
Kuhlthau and Tama find that tailor-ability and value-added interpretation
are critical information needs in a law firm. Dilevko explores the
information behavior on both sides of the reference desk and the unique
problems of government and legal repositories.
Group 5 Presentation JOURNAL WRITING IDEAS: This week, visit a government repository (Alexander Library has one) or law library. Briefly interview a reference librarian and consult reference documentation to determine answers to the following. What is the difference between what is in this collection and what is available online? What kinds of questions are easier and what kind of questions are harder to answer? What differentiates the ways lay people use the collection versus experts in the field? |
November 23 Week 12 |
ARTS
& LETTERS (HUMANITIES) INFORMATION BEHAVIOR: These two studies
examine two aspects of humanities information behavior in universities. de
Tiratel explores differences between humanists and social scientists in
terms of how they use materials. Case revisits a previous study about
historians and how they interact with information. Humanities scholars are
very interested in "texts." Consider how texts and information differ for
this user group.
JOURNAL WRITING IDEAS: Consider what distinguishes the interactions of humanists, social scientists and historians from other types of researchers or knowledge workers. During the course of the week, consider the typical kinds of encounters you have with visual art or music other than popular (symphonic, jazz, concert, cabaret, etc.). How would you categorize these sources? What authoritative sources are available to you? |
November 30 Week 13 |
SCIENCE
& TECHNOLOGY INFORMATION BEHAVIOR: Anderson et al tests the
hypothesis that aerospace scientists and engineers use the principle of
least effort and perceived relevance to guide their human information
behavior. Brown compares scientists in different disciplines and found a
mismatch between preference for print and desire to use electronic
materials. How does her explanation resolve her dilemma? How would her
research support or undermine Anderson et al's work?
Course Evaluation JOURNAL WRITING IDEAS: How do you interact with science and technology during your week? How does that differ from the information behavior of scientists and engineers in these readings? From a situated cognition perspective, how does that affect how they work with information? From a sense-making perspective, what are they doing when the engineers search for information? |
December 7 Week 14 |
INDIVIDUAL USER GROUP PAPER PRESENTATIONS Note: Hand in User Group Paper this week |
December 14 Week 15 |
HIB IN THE INFORMATION SOCIETY
We will discuss the emergence of Social Informatics in Information Science. |
Back to Course and Assignment Schedule
Last Updated: 8/22/04