Analyzes the half-life of book use through analysis of over 10,000 regional and statewide interlibrary loan requests. Correcting for the growth of the literature, this study indicated that the half-lives of monographs may increase from lower to higher levels of the hierarchy in a library network. (CWM)

Seeks conditions that improve group performance on "hidden profiles." Finds that, among undergraduate student groups, group information sharing and decision-making effectiveness were higher in small groups with a low percentage of shared information, and lower when groups either were large or shared a high percentage of information.…

Discusses the increasing emphasis on evaluation in the fields of training and performance improvement. Suggests considering why the evaluation is being done, what is being evaluated, and how the data will be used to make it more useful. (LRW)

Knowledge management (KM) has risen out of organizational downsizing and technology innovation and is an attempt to cope with the information explosion and to capitalize on increased knowledge in the workplace. This article examines the emergence of KM, business world variations on its concepts, the role of and opportunities for librarians, and…

Argues that like other technological innovations, the rise of the digital information age is contributing to shape people's mode of cognition. Reviews the use of computers in teaching and learning in terms of their impact on our ability to process parallel data, access information in a non-linear order, and visualize information. (Author/LRW)

Studies how technical communicators use the Internet. Finds that the Internet plays a significant role in the work practices of technical communicators--respondents find the Internet helpful for contacting customers, obtaining updated technical information, and publishing online documentation, but they encounter company resistance and are…

Discusses how school librarians can use self-interest to increase their influence with the principal. Topics include demonstrating how the library can help; providing pertinent information; increasing interaction with the principal; accuracy and speed of providing information; helpful Web sites; and organizing and presenting the information. (LRW)

A study looked at the effectiveness of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Science and Education Impact Fact Sheet program. Less than half of the eight congressional aides surveyed reported having seen or used the fact sheets prior to the survey. They were unaware of land-grant universities as sources of nontraditional information. (Contains 16…

Means by which educational research information is disseminated to researchers and practitioners are examined. The analysis shows an increasing reliance on journals and on recent literature by preparers of research reports. An assessment of an educational research encyclopedia indicates shifts in the level of usage of various journals. (TJH)

Effective communities are well-educated about themselves, have a better understanding of public information, talk through public issues to generate shared knowledge, appreciate the difference between public opinion and public judgment, and believe in public leadership as the key to using public power to solve community problems. (SK)

It is argued that human memory is adaptively designed and that much can be learned by understanding its adaptiveness. The information-retrieval problem is framed, and optimal memory behavior is derived. Applying this framework to the classic free-recall paradigm is discussed. (SLD)

Defines environmental scanning as the acquisition and use of information about an organization's external environment to assist managers in planning. Highlights include a historical review; organizational theories; information needs and uses; managers as information users; and a review of research on environmental scanning. (Contains 124…

Examines the relationship between identity style and the need for cognition, openness to experience, and introspection. Results indicated that self-reported use of a cogitative information-oriented style was related to two factors: information-seeking variables, and self-reflective tendencies. Norm-oriented individuals tend to protect themselves…

Conditions that can enhance college teachers' acceptance and productive use of feedback about instruction are outlined, including understanding of the purposes of evaluation, who provides the feedback, the message itself (form, timing, sources, and subsequent messages), characteristics of the recipient, immediate environment, and consequences…

Analyzes developments in the study of user needs to determine areas of consensus in the field, particularly areas of greatest value to practicing librarians. Topics discussed include the user; conceptual frameworks for information and knowledge; information seeking; the use of information and knowledge; system design; and future research needs.…