This report presents findings and recommendations from a 1-year study which identified corporate needs for resource information (particularly statistical information) and assessed the extent to which these needs are being met by various resource-information services, including those of the federal government. Chapter I discusses 11 types of…

Research investigated: 1) the quality of literature disseminated through an educational information channel, 2) its acceptance level, and 3) its effects upon decision-making. Some 102 research documents were selected from the 1971 entries in Research in Education (RIE), the abstracting and microfiche dissemination service for unpublished…

Presents an approach to using online sources of information for competitor intelligence (i.e., monitoring industry and tracking activities of competitors); identifies principal sources; and suggests some ways of making use of online databases. Types and sources of information and sources and database charts are appended. Eight references are…

Describes a project conducted by Canada's International Development Research Centre (IDRC) to determine the possibility of establishing indicators to concretely measure the relevance of information to decision-making processes in the context of assistance to developing countries. Use of a computer conference and a workshop to develop a model are…

The value systems by which the users of purchased information services select which one to use or buy are found to differ sharply among different user populations, but the variable found to control them is a function of use, not of the user as an individual. Selection variables are summarized in a matrix of user values and interaction effects. The…

This report comprises edited versions of the presentations from the 17 participants in a conference under the sponsoreship of the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory. The conference was designed to enable policy-makers, educators, and business people to share perspectives on the most effective methods for identifying and collecting data that…

A context is proposed that not only focuses career exploration in a logical way, beginning with the decision maker and moving to occupations, but also helps organize the process of decision making. Decision makers are seen as part of the context, for they have values, aptitudes, and resources that are relevant to choices of occupations. For career…

Guidelines to help ERIC clearinghouses reach lay persons and inform them of the resources available through the ERIC information network are provided. The guidelines were developed following on-site interviews with persons who have expertise in information dissemination and/or who are actively involved in providing information to citizens involved…

Guidelines to help ERIC microfiche collection holders acquaint lay persons in their community with the resources available through the ERIC information network are provided. The guidelines were developed following on-site interviews with persons who have expertise in information dissemination and/or who are actively involved in providing…

A principal output of the study, "Information Technology; Some Critical Implications for Decision Makers 1971-1990," this paper is an attempt at a selective cognitive mapping that addresses some of the key topics from different angles and perspectives in a manner that might assist in their more comprehensive and interrelated assessment. Topics…

This paper outlines several considerations relating to the preparation of information systems for educational managers. College and university managers must have clearly stated needs for planning and management information and the potential uses to which such information could be put. Information systems should be created to satisfy operational…

This paper argues for a more robust and encompassing understanding of the roles and functions of institutional research in higher education institutions in the context of fundamental shifts in the way decisions are being made in colleges and universities. In particular institutional researchers can no longer simply collect, analyze and disseminate…

Data on the characteristics, information needs, and information dissemination patterns of actual and potential users of educational information were gathered through field interviews with persons representing a variety of educational roles and geographical locations (Vol. I) as well as through a nationwide mail questionnaire survey (Vol. II).…