Information literacy programs need to prepare young people to access information in a range of formats and through various technologies. Information-seeking strategies of young adults have been an overlooked area of information science research. As these same young adults gravitate towards the Internet, and especially the information space of the World Wide Web, there is a need to examine the types of networked information-seeking strategies exhibited by these users. Data from such an examination would allow the identification and description of the various user strategies and provide a basis for categorization of effective strategies related to different information needs. The study results would serve information literacy programs and possibly contribute to new ways of thinking about interface design for networked information seeking and use.

The Problem

Educators teach various information-seeking strategies to help users acquire information. Understanding the strategies young adults utilize in their information-seeking behavior should guide the development of instruction. The Internet, with its graphical browsers and variety of search tools, creates new challenges in developing appropriate information-seeking skills curriculum. Studies of young people's use of the Web and the Internet, however, have not focused on the broader information-seeking strategies.

The study will address the questions:

• What are the networked information-seeking strategies of young adults?
• How can effective networked information-seeking strategies be categorized to assist their use in appropriate situations of information need?

Recent studies that look at Internet or Web use by students have typically focused on "searching," that type of information seeking strategy used with the web search engine technology (see Chelton & Thomas, 1999; Fidel et al., 1999; Schacter, Chung & Dorr, 1998). There is a common acknowledgement by web users that search engines are not the only way we "seek and find" information.

Focusing on young adults is useful since many information and network literacy programs attempt to "teach" students effective searching strategies. Yet, a focus on "searching" may be misplaced if more effective strategies involve "non-searching" actions. Although considered "novice" searchers in their ability to locate information, young adults may have a comfort and familiarity with the networked environment than typical population studied in more traditional information retrieval research (e.g., university undergraduate and graduate students, adult professionals). Young adults may be creating and evolving techniques in locating networked information resources not characteristic of previously studied populations nor utilized in other media used for information retrieval.

The Study and its Method

This study proposed an exploratory research project to identify, describe, and categorize the networked information-seeking strategies of a group of young adults.

The researchers will develop and/or deploy appropriate qualitative methodological techniques, including observation, interviews, and verbal think-aloud protocols. These methods will collect reliable data that capture the richness of these information-seeking strategies. Further, the researchers will analyze and categorize the strategies to lay a both a conceptual and methodological foundation for studies of networked information-seeking strategies of other populations.

Qualification of the Investigators

Janet R. Walker is a doctoral student in the Interdisciplinary Ph.D. Program in Information Sciences, University of North Texas. Walker recently conducted a study on "Internet Use and Policy Issues in North Texas Schools" with Dr. Barbara Stein and Dr. Yvonne Chandler. She has presented results from that study at the Texas Association for Educational Technology 1998 Conference and to the Dallas Area Independent School Librarian Association. In addition to her student activities, Walker is the Technical Services Librarian at St. Mark's School of Texas where she maintains the library's networked services and assists in the instruction of information literacy skills. Her study interests include children's information seeking behavior in the classroom environment and use of instructional media for information literacy skills development.

William E. Moen is Assistant Professor in the School of Library and Information Sciences, University of North Texas. One of his primary research interests is networked information discovery and retrieval and the use of metadata for such discovery and retrieval.

Budget

Total funds requested from the Interdisciplinary Ph.D. Program in Information Science are $3000.00. The study will pay a salary of $2800.00 for research and data collection assistance. The salary is to be paid from the award of the grant or March 15, 1999 (whichever occurs first) until July 15, 1999 in monthly payments for hourly work not to exceed 19.5 hours a week. $200.00 will be allocated for clerical supplies including copies, mailings, and materials needed for the data collection methods.

Benefits and Contributions of the Study

The results of this exploratory study can demonstrate the utility of a broader-based "information-seeking strategies" approach to understand networked information behaviors. The understanding of types and categories of information-seeking strategies may shed new light on approaches to information and network literacy instruction. The study will suggest methodological approaches for subsequent studies to examine evolving networked information-seeking strategies. Finally, it may provide new perspectives for improved interface design based on user studies.

A publishable paper will be submitted to refereed journals and a conference and colloquium presentation will be prepared from the experiences and results gathered from this study.

References

Chelton, M.K. & Thomas, R.P. (1999). Introduction: Why a special topic issue on youth issues? Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 50, 7-9.

Fidel, R., Davies, R., Douglass, M, Holder, J., Hopkins, J., Kushner, E., Miyagishima, B., & Toney, C. (1999). A visit to the information mall: Web searching behavior of high school students. Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 50, 24-37.

Schacter, J. Chung G.K.W. K., & Dorr, A. (1998). Children's Internet searching on complex problems: Performance and process analyses. Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 49, 840-849.