INLS 180: Human Information Interactions

Spring 2004 (Section 002)

This tentative schedule lists the assignments and readings for each of the topics we'll cover and is subject to revision (see course web page). Readings are listed in the order they should be read.

Weekly reading overviews will be posted on the class weblog: http://inls180.blog-city.com/. Everyone should leave comments on the readings for each entry (unless you are presenting that week).

INTRODUCTION: BASIC CONCEPTS IN HUMAN INFORMATION INTERACTION

Understand course expectations.
Define several of the basic concepts of the course.
Identify the theoretical context and impetus for exploring human information interaction.

Session 1 (Jan 9), Introduction to the class: What is human information interaction?

Session 2 (Jan 16), Fundamentals of information and interaction (notes)

• Pierce, J. (1972). Communication. Scientific American, 227(3):31-41.
• Pool, I.D.S. (1973). Communication Systems. In Handbook of Communication. Chicago: Rand McNally, pages 503-526.
• Rogers, E. (1995). Elements of diffusion. In Diffusion of Innovations, 4th ed. NY: Macmillan.
• Wilson, T. (1997). Information behaviour: an interdisciplinary perspective. In Vakkari, P., Savolainen, R., and Dervin, B. (eds.). Information Seeking in Context. London: Taylor Graham, 39-50.

RECOGNIZING INFORMATION NEEDS

Define motivations for information seeking.
Identify and describe some of the barriers and problems people face when they seek information.
Identify and describe the theoretical concepts researchers in the field apply to these problems.

Session 3 (Jan 23), Information needs and barriers (notes)
Hill, Kome, Raab

• Dervin, B. & Nilan, M. (1986). Information needs and uses. Annual Review of Information Science & Technology, 21:3-33. [PAM, stacks]
• Belkin, N. (1980). Anomalous states of knowledge as a basis for information retrieval. Canadian Journal of Information Science, 5:133-143. [PAM]
• Taylor, R.S. (1968). Question negotiation and information seeking in libraries. College & Research Libraries, 29(3):178-194, 1968. [PAM, journal stacks]
• Chatman, E. (1996). The impoverished life-world of outsiders. Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 47(3):193-206, 1996. [PAM, e-journals, journal stacks]

RESOLVING INFORMATION NEEDS

Describe techniques, processes, and strategies people use as they seek answers to questions.
Explain how and why information behaviors may be affected by the information-seeking context.

Session 4 (Jan 30), Information seeking I (notes)
Farrell, Lambert, Pitts, Wong

• Marchionini, G. (1995). Information-seeking perspective and framework. Information Seeking in Electronic Environments. NY: Cambridge University Press. Chapter 3, pages 27-60. [reserve]
• Bates, M. (1979). Information search tactics. Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 30(4), 205-214. [PAM, journal stacks]
  NOTE: Focus on Introduction, The Concept of the Search Tactic section, and Table 1
• Wildemuth, B. M., & Moore, M. E. (1995). End-user search behaviors and their relationship to search effectiveness. Bulletin of the Medical Library Association, 83(3): 294-304. [PAM, journal stacks]

Session 5 (Feb 6), Information seeking II (notes)
Gorbe, Ito, Wilson

• Kuhlthau, C. (1991). Inside the search process: information seeking from the user's perspective. Journal of the American Society of Information Science, 42:361-371. [e-journals]
• Drabenstott, K.M. (2003). Do nondomain experts enlist the strategies of domain experts? Journal of the American Society for Information Science & Technology, 54 (9): 836-854. [e-journals]
  NOTE: Focus on p. 836-839 and Discussion section
• Chang, S-J. & Rice, R. (1993). Browsing: A multidimensional framework. In M. Williams (Ed.), Annual review of information science and technology (Vol. 28, pp. 231-276). White Plains, NY: Knowledge Industries. [PAM, stacks]
  NOTE: Focus on p.231-4 and p. 250-end

***Assignment 1 Due: Understanding the Needs of Users

THE ROLE OF INTERMEDIARIES

Describe and understand the role and possible effects of intermediaries in information-seeking.
Describe the challenges intermediaries face in this role.

Session 6 (Feb 13), Intermediation and disintermediation (notes)
Belden, Eubanks, Montgomery, Steele

• Roloff, M.E. (1981). Social exchange: key concepts. In Interpersonal Communication: The Social Exchange Approach. [PAM]
• Tibbo, H. (1995). Interviewing techniques for remote reference: electronic versus traditional environments. American Archivist, 58:294-310. [PAM]
• Brown, J.S. and Duguid, P. (2000). Agents and angels. In The Social Life of Information. pages 35-62. [PAM, reserve]
• Dewdney, P. and Ross (1994), Flying a light aircraft: reference service evaluation from a user's viewpoint. Reference Quarterly, 34(2):217-230. [PAM, reserve, journal stacks]

THE USE OF INFORMATION

Explain how the use of information differs from its retrieval.
Provide multiple definitions of relevance.
Describe several ways of measuring relevance and their benefits and drawbacks.

Session 7 (Feb 20), Relevance and information value (notes)
Braun, Phillips

• Schamber, L., Eisenberg, M.B., and Nilan, M.S. (1990). A re-examination of relevance: toward a dynamic, situational definition. Information Processing & Managment, 26(6):755-776, 1990. [PAM, journal stacks]
• Harter, S.P. (1992). Psychological relevance and information science. Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 43(9):602-615. [PAM, journal stacks, e-journals]
• Amento, B.L. (2000). Does authority mean quality? Predicting expert quality ratings of web documents. [PAM]
• Bateman, J. (1999). Modeling the importance of end-user relevance criteria. ASIS '99, Proceedings of the 62nd ASIS Annual Meeting, pages 396-406. [PAM]

Session 8 (Feb 27), Snow day -- class cancelled

Session 9 (Mar 5), Information dissemination and use & Semester Review (notes)
Hill, Kome, Raab

• Reeves, B. and Nass, C. (1996). The media equation: how people treat computers, television, and the new media like real people and places. [PAM]
• Gladwell, Malcolm. (2000). The law of the few: Connectors, mavens, and salesmen (Ch 2). In: The Tipping Point: How little things can make a big difference. [PAM]
• Sonnenwald, D.H. (1998). Perspectives of human information behavior: contexts, situations, social networks, and information horizons. In Wilson, T.D. & Allen, D.K. (eds.). Exploring the contexts of information behaviour. Proceedings of the Second International Conference on Research in Information Needs, Seeking, and Use in Different Contexts, 13-15 Aug. 1998, Sheffield, UK, London: Taylor Graham, 176-190. [Z674.2 .I558 1998] [PAM]
• Weedman, J. (1992). Informal and formal channels in boundary-spanning communication. Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 43(3):257-267. [PAM, e-journals, journal stacks]

***Assignment 2 Due: The Structure of Information

SPRING BREAK

INFORMATION FLOW IN CONTEXT

Identify ways that organizations and social groups influence information seeking and use.
Describe roles that technology can play in information dissemination.
Define the challenges facing individuals and organizations in distributed environments. Describe the cycle of scholarly communication.
Explore techniques used to measure the significance and impact of scholarly communication.

Session 10 (Mar 19), Organizational contexts (notes)
Gorbe, Ito, Wilson

• Moorhead, G., Ference, R., & Neck, C.P. (1991). Group decision fiascoes continue: Space Shuttle Challenger and a groupthink framework. Human Relations, 44(6):539-550. [PAM]
• Constant, D., Kiesler, S., & Sproull, L. (1994). What's mine is ours, or is it? a study of attitudes about information sharing. Information Systems Research, 5(4):400-421. [PAM, journal stacks]
• Ackerman, M.S. (1998). Augmenting organizational memory: A field study of Answer Garden. ACM Transactions on Information Systems, 16 (3): 203-224. [PAM, e-journals]
• Barreau, D. (2001). "Making do": adapting transaction systems to organizational needs. Library & Information Science Research, 23:27-43. [e-journals]

Midterm Evaluation

Session 11 (Mar 26), Scholarly contexts (Midterm evals, notes to come)
Braun, Phillips

• Garvey, W. D. & Griffith, B.C. (1967). Scientific communication: Its role in the conduct of research and the creation of scientific knowledge. American Psychologist 349-62. [PAM]
• Smith, Linda (1981). Citation analysis. Library Trends, Summer 1981, 30(1), 83-106.
• Kling & McKim (2000) Not just a matter of time: Field differences and the shaping of electronic media in supporting scientific communication. Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 51(14), 1306-1320.

Session 12 (Apr 2), Computer-mediated interaction
Belden, Eubanks, Montgomery, Steele

• Dibbell, J. (1996). A rape in cyberspace: how an evil clown, a Haitian trickster spirit, two wizards, and a cast of dozens turned a database into a society. In Stefik, M. (ed.), Internet Dreams: Archetypes, Myths, and Metaphors. Cambridge: MIT Press, 293-315. [ZA3250 .U6 I58 1996] [PAM, reserve]
• Cummings, J.N., Butler, B, and Kraut, R. (2002). The quality of online social relationships. Communications of the ACM 45(7):103-108. [e-journals, ACM dig lib]
• Ackerman, M. S. (2000). The intellectual challenge of CSCW: The gap between social requirements and Technical Feasibility. Human-Computer Interaction, 15(2/3):181-206. [e-journals]

University holiday (Apr 9)

No class
***Term Project Draft Due (optional for those who want feedback)

Session 13 (Apr 16), Policy and ethics, Semester wrap-up
Farrell, Lambert, Pitts, Wong

• Samuelson, P. (2001). Toward a new politics of intellectual property. [e-journals, ACM dig lib]
• Huff, C. (1996). Unintentional power in the design of computer systems. Computers & Society, 26(4), 6-9. [ACM dig lib]
• TBD

FINAL PRESENTATIONS

Synthesize existing literature in order to expose gaps and direct novel lines of questioning
Apply theoretical terms and concepts to a practical and/or professional question
Present finalized project work to an audience of colleagues
Be able to address questions and criticisms orally and on the spot

Session 14 (Apr 23), Final Presentations
Presentations should last 10 minutes each. Students will present in the following order:

1. Farrell, Ito
2. Lambert
3. Montgomery
4. Braun, Eubanks, Kome
5. Hill, Wilson, Wong
6. Phillips
7. Gorbe
8. Raab
9. Steele
10. Pitts
11. Belden

***Term Project Due
Course Evaluation

Christy Adessa Wilkens