Cognitive Context. Paucity of Personal Traits in Information Search (PDF)

Document from the year 2016 in the subject Library Science, Information- / Documentation Science, , language: English, abstract: This book continues a line of research developed in three previous studies. The first study in the series, by Karunanayake & Nagata examined some affected variables of information need occurrence of an information seeker and developed a comprehensive hypothetical model. The second study, by Karunanayake & Nagata, looked at influences of personal traits (combination of both cognitive and psychological context as a whole) in the process of information searching. The results of the third study are limited to the two personal traits and excluded psychological traits. Hence, this book is a continuing result of the previous three research studies.

With the rapid development of information systems, libraries try to provide wider information opportunities for the users through ever-growing innovative services and informative resources. Contemporary, academic programs and the method of teaching in universities, as well as the choice of information of students, are also being changed. Though there are wider learning opportunities at a glance, it is uncertain whether the students are achieving the required learning outcome through their process of seeking information from libraries. Therefore, it is imperative to comprehend whether and how library users obtain comfortable experiences or difficulties in library use when designing library systems. Study of users' behavior directed towards the cognitive context is analyzed and explained by this study. Analyzing the cognitive context of library users is vital to understand how libraries are being used and what kinds of patterns they constitute. Hence, this study tries to explain students' library use in the process of information searching and obtaining to understand their core efforts, and identifying patterns of library use.

At the set out this study reviewed two kinds of forerunners' researches. The first is an examination of arguments about the process of information search. Theories which argued on crucial points of searching behaviors of people with regard to their knowledge, skill, and others psychological elements, namely Gaps of knowledge (Allen), Uncertainty (Kuhlthau), Gaps through sense making process (Dervin), and Anomaly status (Belkin), were examined. Secondly, the recent researches on pattern development of students' library use, in general, were also reviewed.