The role of psychological, skill level and demographic variables in information-seeking behaviours in mental health professionals

The aim of this study was to identify the variables that can potentially affect information-seeking behaviour in mental health service providers using a quasi-experimental research design. The sample included 30 mental health professionals (with minimum 2 years of experience) to each of whom a scenario was presented in which signs and symptoms of three patients were presented, simulating an actual diagnostic interview. Stress response evaluation (SRE), questionnaires, behavioural observation by the Morae software, and semi-structured interviews were used as means of data collection. Our findings showed that variables such as demographic (e.g. field of study, level of education, work experience and age), psychological (e.g. state and trait anxiety, and therapist’s self-assessment) and skill level (e.g. information literacy and expert knowledge) had significant effects on information-seeking behaviour. These results can hopefully provide insights to designers and librarians who seek to create novel or optimise the existing physician-assisted systems.

Answers or no answers: Studying question answerability in Stack Overflow

Some questions posted in community question answering sites (CQAs) fail to attract a single answer. To address the growing volumes of unanswered questions in CQAs, the objective of this paper is two-fold. First, it aims to develop a conceptual framework known as the Quest-for-Answer to explain why some questions in CQAs draw answers while others remain ignored. The framework suggests that the answerability of questions depends on both metadata and content. Second, the paper attempts to empirically validate the Quest-for-Answer framework through a case study of Stack Overflow. A total of 3000 questions divided equally between those answered and unanswered were used for analysis. The Quest-for-Answer framework yielded generally promising results. With respect to metadata, asker’s popularity, participation and asking time of questions were found to be significant in predicting if answers would be forthcoming. With respect to content, level of details, specificity, clarity and the socio-emotional value of questions were significant in enhancing or impeding responses.

Profiling information behaviour of nursing students: part 2: derivation of profiles

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to develop information behaviour profiles for nursing students, to help inform information literacy programmes.

Design/methodology/approach

– The methods include further analysis of quantitative findings (previously reported in part 1), together with qualitative research data collection and analysis. Critical incident type interviews with 11 students were transcribed and analysed using an interpretative categorisation method that used dendrograms for data display and analysis. From the regression analysis of the quantitative data, the micro-processes for information seeking were linked to learning styles, and then to personality traits to generate information seeking profiles. Integration of the qualitative findings led to development of a task-based information search model.

Findings

– The start list of seven categories for qualitative analysis (derived from a literature review) was refined (one category added, one removed, with some relabelling). The quantitative data analysis revealed seven profiles (deep adventurer, deep identifier, deep investigator, strategic all-rounder, strategic collector, surface co-ordinator, surface skimmer, each linked to a particular learning style, personality trait, and preferred information seeking micro-processes).

Research limitations/implications

– The data were collected at only one university and the profiles and the model need to be validated with data from other groups of nursing students. The findings on micro-processes consolidate and extend previous research.

Practical implications

– The profiles should inform information literacy programmes as they show that information search profiles may be more varied than assumed. The information search model extends previous task-based information search models.

Originality/value

– The information search profiles have not been identified previously.