Reijo Savolainen

Everyday life information seeking: Approaching information seeking in the context of “way of life”

Abstract The study offers a framework for the study of everyday life information seeking (ELIS) in the context of way of and mastery of life. Way of life is defined as the “order of things,” manifesting itself, for example, in the relationship between work and leisure time, models of consumption, and nature of hobbies. Mastery of life is interpreted as “keeping things in order;” four ideal types of mastery of life with their implications for ELIS, namely optimistic-cognitive, pessimistic-cognitive, defensive-affective and pessimistic-affective mastery of life are outlined. The article reviews two major dimensions of ELIS, there are. the seeking of orienting and practical information. The research framework was tested in an empirical study based on interviews with teachers and industrial workers, eleven of both. The main features of seeking orienting and practical information are reviewed, followed by suggestions for refinement of the research framework.

Information Literacy as a Sociotechnical Practice.

Information literacy has thus far been mostly a practical and strategic concept guiding the library field’s efforts in teaching information seeking and using skills. Texts on information literacy rarely attempt to account for how individuals interact with other people and technical artifacts in their information environments. This article contributes to the literature on information literacy by introducing a definition of information literacy as a sociotechnical practice. Information literacy evolves in the course of realizing specific work‐related tasks and mundane activities, which usually involve a complex system of social relationships, sociotechnical configurations, and work organization. From the perspective of a situated understanding of learning and learning requirements, information skills cannot be taught independently of the knowledge domains, organizations, and practical tasks in which these skills are used. The article suggests that studying and understanding the interplay between information technologies, workplace learning, and domain‐specific knowledge formation processes is necessary for the advancement of information literacy initiatives.

“Isms” in information science: constructivism, collectivism and constructionism

Purpose – Describes the basic premises of three metatheories that represent important or emerging perspectives on information seeking, retrieval and knowledge formation in information science: constructivism, collectivism, and constructionism.Design/methodology/approach – Presents a literature‐based conceptual analysis. Pinpoints the differences between the positions in their conceptions of language and the nature and origin of knowledge.Findings – Each of the three metatheories addresses and solves specific types of research questions and design problems. The metatheories thus complement one another. Each of the three metatheories encourages and constitutes a distinctive type of research and learning.Originality/value – Outlines each metatheorys specific fields of application.

Information Behavior and Information Practice: Reviewing the “Umbrella Concepts” of Information‐Seeking Studies1

Information behavior and information practice, two major concepts denoting the general ways in which people deal with information, are analyzed. Because of their general nature, they may be conceived of as umbrella concepts drawing on “umbrella discourses” with similar names. Information behavior is currently the dominating umbrella concept, while information practice stands as a critical alternative. The discourses above appear to be quite fragmentary, and researchers on information seeking rarely reflect on the discursive nature of the umbrella concepts. The discourse on information behavior primarily draws on the cognitive viewpoint, while information practice is mainly inspired by the ideas of social constructionism. The comparative study of the above concepts and discourses serves the needs to generate a self‐reflective attitude to familiar discursive formations, in particular among researchers of information seeking.

The sense-making theory: reviewing the interests of a user-centered approach to information seeking and use

Abstract The sense-making theory of Brenda Dervin, based on constructivist assumptions on human information seeking and use, is reviewed. The study focuses on the epistemic and practical interests of the theory, discussing them in relation to the interests of the traditional intermediary-centered approach. The interests of the theory are reviewed by analyzing its conceptions of information, information seeking and use, structure, and action. In addition, the assumptions of the theory are assessed in the context of the recent developments of social science and methodology. Finally, the paradigmatic demands of the theory for the study of information seeking and use are considered. Sense-making theory, having its strongest roots in communication research, is a programmatic research effort suggesting user-centered ideas for the conceptualization of information seeking and use. The theoretical assumptions of the theory based on the metaphors of situation-gap-uses/helps has been validated in numerous empirical studies. As to LIS research at large, the major contribution of the present theory seems to be the inspiring critique addressed to the limitations of the traditional intermediary-centered approach.

Filtering and withdrawing: strategies for coping with information overload in everyday contexts

The study investigates the ways in which people experience information overload in the context of monitoring everyday events through media such as newspapers and the internet. The findings are based on interviews with 20 environmental activists in Finland in 2005. The perceptions of the seriousness of problems caused by information overload varied among the participants. On the one hand, information overload was experienced as a real problem particularly in the networked information environments. On the other hand, information overload was perceived as an imagined problem with some mythical features. Two major strategies for coping with information overload were identified. The filtering strategy is based on the determined weeding out of material deemed useless. This strategy is favoured in networked information environments. The withdrawal strategy is more affectively oriented, emphasizing the need to protect oneself from excessive information supply by keeping the number of information sources to a minimum.

Source preferences in the context of seeking problem-specific information

The study focuses on the ways in which people define their source preferences in the context of seeking problem-specific information for non-work purposes. The conceptual framework draws on two major concepts, that is, information source horizon and information pathways. The former denotes the ways information sources are mapped in preference order in an imaginary field, while information pathways refers to the sequences in which sources placed on the information source horizon are actually used. The empirical part of the study draws on semi-structured interviews with 18 individuals active in environmental issues. Human sources and the Internet were preferred most strongly in seeking for problem-based information. The major source preferences were content of information, and availability and accessibility. Usability of information sources and user characteristics were mentioned less frequently as preference criteria. Typically, information pathways consisted of the use of 3-4 sources. On average, human and networked sources were favored in the early phases of information seeking. Printed media such as magazines and organizational sources were often used to complement information received from human sources and the Internet. However, the source preferences varied considerably, depending on the requirements of the problem at hand.

Information use as gap‐bridging: The viewpoint of sense‐making methodology

The conceptual issues of information use are discussed by reviewing the major ideas of sense-making methodology developed by Brenda Dervin. Sense-making methodology approaches the phenomena of information use by drawing on the metaphor of gap-bridging. The nature of this metaphor is explored by utilizing the ideas of metaphor analysis suggested by Lakoff and Johnson. First, the source domain of the metaphor is characterized by utilizing the graphical illustrations of sense-making metaphors. Second, the target domain of the metaphor is analyzed by scrutinizing Dervins key writings on information seeking and use. The metaphor of gap-bridging does not suggest a substantive conception of information use; the metaphor gives methodological and heuristic guidance to posit contextual questions as to how people interpret information to make sense of it. Specifically, these questions focus on the ways in which cognitive, affective, and other elements useful for the sense-making process are constructed and shaped to bridge the gap. Ultimately, the key question of information use studies is how people design information in context.

Network competence and information seeking on the Internet. From definitions towards a social cognitive model

The author reflects the conceptual and practical questions of network competence in the context of information seeking. Network competence is seen as one of the information‐related competences and is defined as the mastery of four major areas: knowledge of information resources available on the Internet, skilled use of the ICT tools to access information, judgment of the relevance of information, and communication. Drawing on the ideas of the social cognitive theory developed by Albert Bandura, a model of network competence is introduced in order to discuss network competence “in action”. In the model, network competence is put in practical context by relating five major factors: network competence, self‐efficacy, outcome expectations, affective factors such as anxiety, and experiences received from information seeking on the Internet. Particular attention is devoted to the connections between network competence and self‐efficacy which denote a person’s judgment of his or her ability to organize and execute action, such as finding information on the Web.

The role of the internet in information seeking: putting the networked services in context

Abstract The author explores the place of the internet among other sources and channels in information seeking. Both qualitative and quantitative data were combined in the study. In 1997, the author conducted 23 theme interviews in Tampere, Finland, Secondly, the data of the national survey on the use of information technology at Finnish households conducted in 1996, based on the interviews of 2360 persons, aged 10–74 yr, were utilized. Both the features of job-related and nonwork information seeking will be discussed; however, the emphasis is on the latter. The conceptual framework of the study draws on the findings of the studies of computer-mediated communication and the uses and gratifications approach; the ideas of the ‘media richness’ theory and the ‘social influence’ theory are also utilized. E-mail and WWW appeared to be the most frequently used services in information seeking, but discussion groups and IRC were also utilized to some extent. The major research criteria for preferring the internet are the (relative) easiness of accessing a huge amount of data, savings in time and money, the opportunity to consult a number of experts simultaneously and a greater independence of certain time and place in information seeking. Thus far, the internet has not been able to supplant other sources and channels but rather complements them. This is evident, for example, in the utilization of electronic newspapers in the search for orienting information.