Describes a study that collected data on information needs and uses during Internet training from students in information networking classes at Indiana University. Information needs, events which led to the needs, and the sources used to resolve the needs were identified and categorized, and implications for Internet trainers are discussed.…

Describes an inductive, qualitative study of 30 Syracuse University students that investigated the situated nature of action during interactions with an online public access catalog. Highlights include elements of situatedness, with examples; the mapping of individual searches; and users' goals and stopping behavior. (Author/LRW)

Provides an overview of research on notetaking and two related learning strategies: outlining and concept maps. Examines the potential effectiveness of approaches to aid learning in encoding new information and current uses in interactive multimedia instruction. Offers suggestions for incorporating these strategies into future designs. (Author/AEF)

Discusses user-centered thinking and lessons from reader-centered theory. Reviews findings from studies by literary theorists on user-centered approaches to information and uses these findings to support and offer two analogies: (1) an analogy between reader and library user; and (2) an analogy between information and the library. (Author/JMV)

A random sample of bulletin board users was selected from two online services, and they were interviewed using electronic mail; the bulletin board audience was characterized, focusing on adopters (characteristics that users possess) and social impacts (benefits, usage patterns, and how bulletin board use affects other communications media). (AEF)

Discussion of hypertext and its uses in the learning process focuses on an experiment in which undergraduate students used hypertext for computer-based learning about databases. Results of a survey of students which explored when and how they used the hypertext, for what purpose, and the types of searching they preferred are reported. (12…

The first of 2 articles on use of telecommunications in secondary schools uses a table to present brief descriptions, benefits, problems, and recommendations of 45 studies on use of online databases and computer-mediated communication. Overall trends and considerations for organizing educationally effective use of these technologies are…

Discusses the concept of information value and presents major findings of user studies and collection evaluations. A case study describing the implementation of networks for information in the areas of biomedicine and agronomy in Brazil in the late 1960s is presented. (35 references) (MES)

This study examined circulation and inhouse use of 13,029 randomly selected volumes--both serials and monographs in all subject areas--in a university library over a 7-year period. Results challenged inference of internal use from circulation figures and the appropriateness of weeding based on lack of circulation alone. A 26-item chronological…

Examined Medicaid spenddown among nursing home residents from 72 Wisconsin facilities. Found only small proportion of discharges had spent down to Medicaid eligibility, but this group's long stays contributed heavily to nursing home days. Estimated over 40 percent of those who spent down did so within six months, 58 percent within a year, and 76…

Examined factors associated with service use among 186 urban African American elderly people. Interviews with elders and caregivers indicated that many elders were unaware that older adult services were available, that those elders who were socially isolated and who suffered from poor health used services more, and that most elderly respondents…

Analyzed data from Longitudinal Survey of Aging, showing that childless elderly were more likely to say that they lacked informal instrumental support at times of illness than were elderly parents. Childless, however, were no more likely to use social services than were elderly parents. Findings suggest ways to improve childless elderly's social…

Compares results of two empirical studies in which relevance criteria were elicited from individuals seeking information to resolve information problems. Results provide evidence that a finite range of criteria exists and that these criteria are applied consistently across types of information users, problem situations, and source environments.…

Examines 106 World Wide Web sites of schools accredited by the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications. Finds that these sites are primarily informal, rather than formal, in their educational and research content. Notes that educators agree that schools without a significant Web presence are ignoring the impact of…

To explore the influence of digital libraries on knowledge work, this study investigated the use of paper and electronic materials by academic researchers in four disciplines at eight U.S. research universities. Results indicated that, at a given point, the match between "material mastery" and features of using a particular digital…