Data from this empirical study support belief that managers of high users of information give more encouragement for information use. Most important forms of influence are encouragement of interpersonal contacts outside organization, and personal interest in specific pieces of information (as shown in routings, personal example, and assignments).…

This article presents a psychological perspective on research in librarianship and explores potential for application of psychological research principles and practices to behavioral research in libraries. Highlights include evolution of a theory of user behavior and the nature of psychological research and research designs and methodologies.…

Designed to determine to what extent the Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) products and services are utilized by certified school personnel, this study found that, on the average, 25.1% of the teachers, librarians, counselors, and administrators in three educational service regions in west central Illinois have used Resources in…

Reports results of a survey of 613 heavy users of scientific and technical books and journals in U.S. libraries. Information obtained through interviews includes sex and occupation of interviewees; the type of resource most recently used; why and how it was used; and the type of library used. (EM)

Reports on a study designed to investigate the relationship between the length of stay at a national forest visitor center and the density of the visitor population. Results indicate a significant negative correlation exists between the daily number of users and the average duration of their visits. (TW)

Reports study of communication patterns of students and faculty in Psychology department at Georgia State University. Topics covered include pertinence of Garvey's model of information dissemination, methods of information exchange, practicing clinicians and research, research requirements for students, library use among graduate students, and…

Designed to evaluate the usefulness of the BIOSIS PREVIEWS database when searching the psychiatric literature, this study compared the effectiveness of this online database with the effectiveness of two other computerized databases, MEDLINE and PsycINFO (Psychological Abstracts), which psychiatric researchers and clinicians usually rely on when…

This research project investigated the information seeking behavior of Syracuse University doctoral students in six disciplines--economics, English, geology, history, philosophy, and physics. Questionnaires distributed to 112 students elicited data from 69 respondents (61.6%) on their educational environment, search strategies, selection of…

Fifty women enrolled in an urban Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA) program were interviewed about their use of the mass media and the public library for useful information, preferences in the use of mass media, and their attitudes about source credibility. A 23-item interview guide is appended. (25 references) (EJS)

This study examines the following two premises of information-seeking behavior associated with the use of nonfiction books in an electronic mode: (1) individuals generally read nonfiction books for obtaining information; and (2) users read nonfiction books in parts, rather than completely. Study data were collected through interviews with 350…

Analyzes and applies Bettman's information processing theory of consumer choice to information processing, evaluation, and utilization by academic libraries in Zambia to support research and development activities. Certain Zambian cultural and sociopsychological aspects and attitudes that could affect the evaluation and utilization of information…

Presents a framework for measuring the value of information from three perspectives--the reader of information, the organization or funder, and society--which is based on use studies of the Energy Data Base by Department of Energy researchers. (CLB)

This study was conducted to determine how library users in California say library use helps them. While most library effectiveness studies infer effectiveness by looking at the movement of materials or reports of user satisfaction, this study proceeds from the assumption that libraries need to know how library use helps in user terms. The study…

This report assesses the impact of instruction in online bibliographic database searching on high school students' use of library materials and facilities in three Delaware secondary schools (one public, one parochial, and one private) during the spring of 1984. Most students involved in the analysis were given a brief explanation of online…

The Fourth International Research Forum in Information Science (IRFIS 4) focused on two themes: user-oriented research in information science and experimental and practical investigations of the mediation and use of information. An opening speech by Bjorn Tell reviewed information research policy in the United States, France, England, Japan, the…