On user studies and information needs

Journal of Documentation

Volumn 37, Issue 1, 1981, Pages 3-15

  Wilson, T D ^a  

^a UNIVERSITY OF SHEFFIELD   (United Kingdom)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

INFORMATION SCIENCE;

EID: 0019534346     PISSN: 00220418     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1108/eb026702     Document Type: Review

References (24)

1. Belkin, N. Information concepts for information science. Journal of Documentation, 34, 1978, 55-85.
2. Farradane, J. The nature of information. Journal of Information Science, 1, 1979, 13-17.
3. Couldner, A. W. The norm of reciprocity. American Sociological Review, 25, 1960, 161-178.
4. Jackson, J. M. The organization and its communication problems. Journal of Communication, 9, 1959, 158-67.
5. Royal Society Scientinc information conference, London, 1946. Report and papers submitted. London: Royal Society, 1948.
6. Menzel, H. Review of studies in the flow of information among scientists. 2 vols. New York: Columbia University, Bureau of Applied Social Research, 1960.
7. Paisley, W. J. The flow of (behavioral) science information-a review of the research literature. Palo Alto, Calif.: Stanford University, 1965.
8. Annual review of information science and technology. Vol. 1; 1966. (Various editors and publishers).
9. Rord, G. User studies: an introductory guide and select bibliography. Sheffield: Centre for Research on User Studies, 1977.
10. See, for example, Line, M. B. Draft definitions: information and library needs, wants, demands and uses. Aslib Proceedings, 26,1974, 87; roberts, n. Draft definitions; information and library needs, wants, demands and uses: a comment. Aslib Proceedings, 27, 1975, 308-13; and, for a philosophical view drawn to my attention by Colin Harris: white, a. r. Needs and wants. Philosophy of Education Society, Proceedings, 8,1974,159-80.
11. An earlier version of this diagram was used by the author in a discussion at IRFIS 3, Oslo, Norway, 1979, and was modified as a result of the participants' comments. It has been further modified since that meeting.
12. See, for example, The entry for the word NEED in Encyclopaedia of psychology, edited by H.J. Eysenck, W. Arnold and R. Meili. London: Search Press, 1972.
13. Wersig, G. Information-Kommunikation-Dokumentation. Pullach bei München: Verlag Dokumentation, 1971. (Cited by Belkin, op. cit.).
14. Hollnagel, E. Is information science an anomalous state of knowledge? Journal of Information Science, 2, 1980,183-87.
15. The significance of affective needs was first drawn to the author's attention when carrying out evaluation interviews with the users of a current awareness bulletin; see, Wilson, T. D. Information uses in social services departments. In: Proceedings of the 3rd international research forum in information science, Oslo, 1979, edited by Tor Henriksen. Oslo: Statens Bibliotekskole, 1979.
16. It is recognized, of course, that social roles other than work role may influence information system design in other contexts. Thus, a citizens' information service ought to be designed in full awareness of the implications for information seeking of social roles such as houseowner, tenant, parent or voter.
17. See, for a review of the literature on motivation and work: Katz, D. and Kahn, R. L. The social psychology of organizations. 2nd edn. New York: Wiley, 1978. Ch. 13.
18. 'Organizational climate' is a rather fuzzy concept (see, for a review, Payne, R. and Pugh, D. S. Organizational structure and climate. In M. D. Dunnette, cd. Handbook of industrial and organizational psychology. Chicago: Rand McNally, 1976, 1125-1173), and whilst work conducted in some types of organization indicates a relationship between climate and information-seeking behaviour, e.g. Olson, E. E. Organizational factors affecting information flow in industry. Aslib Proceedings, 29, 1977, 124-9, other work finds no such relationship, e.g. Wilson, T. D., Streatfield, D. R. and Mullings, C. Information needs in local authority social services departments: a second report on Project INISS. Journal of Documentation, 35, 1979,120-36.
19. Warner, E. S. et al. Information needs of urban residents. Washington: U.S. Department of Health Education and Welfare, Bureau of Libraries and Learning Resources, 1973.
20. Evidence for this interest has appeared in many sources from the emergence of ‘ethnomethodology’ in the late sixties (carfinkel, h. Studies in ethnomethodology. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 1967) to Douglas, jack d. Investigative social research. Beverly Hills, Calif.: Sage publications, 1976; and, more recently, in a symposium on the subj'ect organized by the Social Science Research Council, The analysis of qualitative data: a symposium. Sociological Review, New Series, 27, 1979, 648-827 (Issue editor, Mildred Baxter) and another symposium, Qualitative methodology. Administrative Science Quarterly, 24,1979, 520-671.
21. Halfpenny, P. The analysis of qualitative data. Sociological Review, New Series, 27, 1979, 799-825.
22. Shannon, C. E. and Weaver, W. The mathematical theory oj communication. Urbana, Ill.: University of Illinois Press, 1960.
23. Roberts, N. Social considerations towards a definition of information science. Journal of Documentation, 32, 1976, 249-257.
24. See, for example, Lucas, H. C. Why information systems fail. New York: Columbia University Press, 1975.