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Smartphone Information Behaviour: A Study of the Use of Smartphones in Searching and Evaluating Online Information for Everyday Life and for Academic Purposes.

Record Type:	Electronic resources : Monograph/item
Title/Author:	Smartphone Information Behaviour: A Study of the Use of Smartphones in Searching and Evaluating Online Information for Everyday Life and for Academic Purposes./
Author:	Kumah, Cynthia Henewaa.
Published:	Ann Arbor : ProQuest Dissertations & Theses, : 2020,
Description:	224 p.
Notes:	Source: Dissertations Abstracts International, Volume: 82-10, Section: B.
Contained By:	Dissertations Abstracts International82-10B.
Subject:	Information seeking behavior. -
Online resource:	https://pqdd.sinica.edu.tw/twdaoapp/servlet/advanced?query=28383775
ISBN:	9798708711380

Smartphone Information Behaviour: A Study of the Use of Smartphones in Searching and Evaluating Online Information for Everyday Life and for Academic Purposes.
Kumah, Cynthia Henewaa.

Smartphone Information Behaviour: A Study of the Use of Smartphones in Searching and Evaluating Online Information for Everyday Life and for Academic Purposes. - Ann Arbor : ProQuest Dissertations & Theses, 2020 - 224 p.

Source: Dissertations Abstracts International, Volume: 82-10, Section: B.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--McGill University (Canada), 2020.

This item must not be sold to any third party vendors.

After over a decade of smartphone use, the technology has enhanced access to information everywhere and at all times. Information searching has been part of peoples' lives for a long time. People search for information for various reasons, sometimes to enable them to do their work or to answer questions in their everyday life. In the past, online information searching could only be done on computers in specific locations. Presently, searching can be done on smartphones from anywhere, and at any time. This research, therefore, set out to determine how often smartphones are used in information search for everyday life and academic purposes relative to the computer? Is information found on smartphones evaluated? If so, how is information evaluated? If not, then why not? Why does someone choose one device (smartphone or computer) over the other?The study adopted a mixed methods approach in answering the research questions. Participants for all parts of the study were undergraduate students aged 18-24. The survey was emailed to all undergraduate students at McGill University, yielding 3565 responses. Survey questions asked participants how often they use smartphones and computers to search for information for everyday health, news, leisure, and academic purposes. Interview data was collected using semi-structured interviews with 27 participants. Questions focused on the reasons for searching for information on their smartphones, the type of information they searched for, how the information was evaluated and why they selected one device over the other to search for information. The study findings show that undergraduate students use their smartphones for all four topics (health, leisure, news, and academic information search). However, usage varies across topics. Students use the smartphone more frequently than computers for leisure, news and to some extent health. For academic information search, students use computers more frequently. Information found on smartphones was usually not evaluated for credibility. Evaluation of information differed across topics with some similarities among the categories of health and academic information purposes. Leisure information was mostly not evaluated. In cases where it was evaluated, it was done mainly through recommendations and reviews. In relation to news, most users said they were not concerned about the credibility of the source. Rather, they were concerned about fake news or real and inherent biases that a source might be known for, since most media houses were politically aligned when it comes to topics of interest. Academic related information found on smartphones were mostly not evaluated. Respondents mentioned that they limited the usage of smartphones for academic purposes to definition of terms and concepts or for accessing course related information found on their university website. The smartphone and computer continue to be used interchangeably among users. The present study and previous studies have found that both devices are used interchangeably for many purposes. Results from the study suggested that the purpose or context (e. g. , health, leisure, news, or academic) of information need might influence the choice of device used. The device used for searching affects aspects of information behaviour of users as they apply more diligence when using the computer than when using the smartphone. This study has shown that smartphones play an important role in people's information search behaviour and has provided insights into smartphone use for information searches. It has identified issues related to the evaluation of information found on smartphones and the link between the device used and information behaviour. Theoretically, the present study contributes to the existing literature on information behaviour by shedding new light on smartphone information behaviour. This study showed that some of the activities depicted in Wilson's (1997) revised general model can be found in smartphone information behaviour, thereby suggesting that Wilson's model remains relevant in the smartphone era. The revised general model is detailed and includes all aspects of the information user's processes, from identifying their information need to seeking the information and consequently processing it for use. However, the present study also identified the role of an additional intervening variable - device affordances- to recognize the influence of the device, and its characteristics, in information behaviour.

ISBN: 9798708711380Subjects--Topical Terms:

3563454
Information seeking behavior.
Subjects--Index Terms:

Smartphones

Smartphone Information Behaviour: A Study of the Use of Smartphones in Searching and Evaluating Online Information for Everyday Life and for Academic Purposes.
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100 1 $a Kumah, Cynthia Henewaa. $3 3563453
245 1 0 $a Smartphone Information Behaviour: A Study of the Use of Smartphones in Searching and Evaluating Online Information for Everyday Life and for Academic Purposes.
260 1 $a Ann Arbor : $b ProQuest Dissertations & Theses, $c 2020
300 $a 224 p.
500 $a Source: Dissertations Abstracts International, Volume: 82-10, Section: B.
500 $a Advisor: Bartlett, Joan.
502 $a Thesis (Ph.D.)--McGill University (Canada), 2020.
506 $a This item must not be sold to any third party vendors.
520 $a After over a decade of smartphone use, the technology has enhanced access to information everywhere and at all times. Information searching has been part of peoples' lives for a long time. People search for information for various reasons, sometimes to enable them to do their work or to answer questions in their everyday life. In the past, online information searching could only be done on computers in specific locations. Presently, searching can be done on smartphones from anywhere, and at any time. This research, therefore, set out to determine how often smartphones are used in information search for everyday life and academic purposes relative to the computer? Is information found on smartphones evaluated? If so, how is information evaluated? If not, then why not? Why does someone choose one device (smartphone or computer) over the other?The study adopted a mixed methods approach in answering the research questions. Participants for all parts of the study were undergraduate students aged 18-24. The survey was emailed to all undergraduate students at McGill University, yielding 3565 responses. Survey questions asked participants how often they use smartphones and computers to search for information for everyday health, news, leisure, and academic purposes. Interview data was collected using semi-structured interviews with 27 participants. Questions focused on the reasons for searching for information on their smartphones, the type of information they searched for, how the information was evaluated and why they selected one device over the other to search for information. The study findings show that undergraduate students use their smartphones for all four topics (health, leisure, news, and academic information search). However, usage varies across topics. Students use the smartphone more frequently than computers for leisure, news and to some extent health. For academic information search, students use computers more frequently. Information found on smartphones was usually not evaluated for credibility. Evaluation of information differed across topics with some similarities among the categories of health and academic information purposes. Leisure information was mostly not evaluated. In cases where it was evaluated, it was done mainly through recommendations and reviews. In relation to news, most users said they were not concerned about the credibility of the source. Rather, they were concerned about fake news or real and inherent biases that a source might be known for, since most media houses were politically aligned when it comes to topics of interest. Academic related information found on smartphones were mostly not evaluated. Respondents mentioned that they limited the usage of smartphones for academic purposes to definition of terms and concepts or for accessing course related information found on their university website. The smartphone and computer continue to be used interchangeably among users. The present study and previous studies have found that both devices are used interchangeably for many purposes. Results from the study suggested that the purpose or context (e. g. , health, leisure, news, or academic) of information need might influence the choice of device used. The device used for searching affects aspects of information behaviour of users as they apply more diligence when using the computer than when using the smartphone. This study has shown that smartphones play an important role in people's information search behaviour and has provided insights into smartphone use for information searches. It has identified issues related to the evaluation of information found on smartphones and the link between the device used and information behaviour. Theoretically, the present study contributes to the existing literature on information behaviour by shedding new light on smartphone information behaviour. This study showed that some of the activities depicted in Wilson's (1997) revised general model can be found in smartphone information behaviour, thereby suggesting that Wilson's model remains relevant in the smartphone era. The revised general model is detailed and includes all aspects of the information user's processes, from identifying their information need to seeking the information and consequently processing it for use. However, the present study also identified the role of an additional intervening variable - device affordances- to recognize the influence of the device, and its characteristics, in information behaviour.
520 $a Apres plus d'une decennie d'utilisation du telephone intelligent, la technologie permet d'avoir acces a des informations partout dans le monde, et a tout moment. La recherche d'information fait partie de la vie des gens depuis longtemps. Les gens recherchent des informations pour diverses raisons telles qu'effectuer leur travail ou repondre a des questions de la vie quotidienne. Auparavant, la recherche d'informations en ligne ne pouvait etre effectuee que sur des ordinateurs situes a des endroits bien specifiques, alors qu'aujourd'hui, elle peut etre effectuee sur un telephone intelligent en tout temps et en tout lieu. Cette recherche vise donc a determiner la frequence d'utilisation du telephone intelligent pour effectuer des recherches d'information traitant de la vie quotidienne ou de nature academique comparativement a l'utilisation de l'ordinateur ? Est-ce que la pertinence ou la fiabilite des informations trouvees a l'aide du telephone intelligent est evaluee ? Si oui, comment, et si non, pourquoi ? Enfin, pourquoi privilegie-t-on le telephone intelligent plutot que l'ordinateur ou vice versa?Pour repondre aux questions de recherche, cette etude a privilegie une approche de methodes mixtes : sondage et entrevue. Les participants etaient des etudiants de premier cycle ages entre 18 et 24 ans. Le sondage a ete envoye par courriel a tous les etudiants de premier cycle de l'Universite McGill; 3565 reponses ont ete recues. Pour le sondage, les questions portaient sur la frequence d'utilisation du telephone intelligent ou de l'ordinateur pour effectuer des recherches sur des sujets lies a la sante, a l'actualite, aux loisirs ou a des recherches academiques. Les donnees d'entrevues ont ete recueillies a l'aide d'entrevues semi-structurees aupres de 27 participants. Les questions ont porte sur les raisons justifiant l'utilisation du telephone intelligent pour la recherche d'information, sur le type d'information recherchee, sur la facon dont les informations trouvees ont ete evaluees et sur la raison pour laquelle le participant a privilegie un appareil plutot qu'un autre.Les resultats de cette etude demontrent que les etudiants de premier cycle utilisent leur telephone intelligent pour trouver des informations sur des sujets lies aux domaines de la sante, de l'actualite, des loisirs et d'ordre academique. Toutefois, l'utilisation varie selon les sujets de recherche.Le telephone intelligent, comparativement a l'ordinateur, est davantage utilise pour des recherches liees aux loisirs, a l'actualite, et dans une certaine mesure, a la sante. Pour les recherches d'ordre academique, les ordinateurs sont plus frequemment utilises. Les resultats de cette etude demontrent que l'intention et le contexte de la recherche d'information influent le choix de l'appareil utilise par le participant.Cette etude demontre l'importance qu'accordent les gens au telephone intelligent pour les assister lors d'une recherche d'information, et elle fournit egalement des renseignements sur son type d'usage lors de cette recherche. La presente etude contribue a la recension des ecrits sur les comportements de recherche des utilisateurs du telephone intelligent et lui ajoute une nuance.Il a ete constate que certaines des activites decrites dans le modele Wilson (1997) peuvent etre trouvees dans le comportement d'information des telephones intelligents. Le modele, qui a ete cree en 1997, est toujours d'actualite a l'epoque des telephones intelligents. Les points focaux qui incluent les types de recherches, les variables intermediaires et les mecanismes d'activation dans le modele ont ete decrits comme des activites qui sont egalement presentes dans le comportement des informations des telephones intelligents. Il a cependant ete constate qu'il existe un besoin d'une variable intermediaire supplementaire pour le dispositif. Depuis l'appareil joue un role important dans le comportement d'information des personnes.
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653 $a Searching
653 $a Online information
653 $a Everyday life
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