Towards the empowered commuter : exploring information behaviour of informal public transport users

Papers presented virtually at the 41st International Southern African Transport Conference on 10-13 July 2023.Information is emerging as one of the key dimensions of mobility, and as an important lever through which sustainable access can be promoted in Sub-Saharan African (SSA) cities. Information acts as an enabler of transport, by allowing travellers to make informed decisions on whether, when, and how they travel. The lack of information can also act as a barrier to accessing desired services, with consequences for the attainment of equity and human development goals. Little is known about what information passengers need and how they find and use information. This paper reports on a qualitative mixed-methods study to explore information behaviour amongst informal transport passengers in Tshwane, South Africa. We use the theory and methods of information science (with information behaviour as a subdiscipline) to provide a lens for the investigation. We collected mobility data through travel diaries, user-submitted photos of the travel context and voice messages to explain these, and in-depth individual interviews combined with drawings of situations where respondents used information and its sources (called information horizon mappings). The drawings and interviews revealed the information-poor environment within which informal transport operates, and the strong reliance on other people as well as tacit embedded knowledge for gaining access to information. The paper concludes by offering directions for further research around digital information

Innovative methods in health information behaviour research

PURPOSE : This paper introduces a special issue on innovative methods in health information behaviour research. It puts the papers in context and comments on the potential of the papers and methods covered to both encourage and enrich health information behaviour research. METHODOLOGY : The paper outlines the scope and contribution of papers in a special issue on innovative methods in health information behaviour research. It also adds additional references to confirm the limited uptake of these methods in research on information behaviour as well as in Information Science and the Health Sciences. FINDINGS : The methods discussed in the special issue hold significant value for health information behaviour research, across a range of potential research topics. ORIGINALITY : The paper introduces papers in a special issue and seeks to stimulate research employing innovative methods in health information behaviour research.http://www.emeraldinsight.com/loi/ajimhj2020Information Scienc