55,952 research outputs found
The effects on topic familiarity on online search behaviour and use of relevance criteria
This paper presents an experimental study on the effect of topic familiarity on the assessment behaviour of online searchers. In particular we investigate the effect of topic familiarity on the resources and relevance criteria used by searchers. Our results indicate that searching on an unfamiliar topic leads to use of more generic and fewer specialised resources and that searchers employ different relevance criteria when searching on less familiar topics
Culture and e-commerce: An exploration of the perceptions and attitudes of Egyptian internet users
This paper examines the perceptions and attitudes that Egyptian users hold towards electronic shopping sites. Internet sites are globally available, opening up huge potential markets for online retailers. However, it remains unclear whether sites designed for the US or European markets will be acceptable in other cultures. This paper describes an exploratory card sorting study conducted with Egyptian consumers. The study was designed to examine the e-commerce interface features that are most salient to this user group and to explore how these relate to user intentions to engage in internet shopping. The results support the role of site familiarity in predicting purchase intentions within this cultural setting
From physical to digital: A case study of computer scientists' behaviour in physical libraries
There has been substantial research on various aspects of people's usage of physical libraries but relatively little on their interaction with individual library artefacts; that is: books, journals, and papers. We have studied people's behaviour when working in physical libraries, focusing particularly on how they interact with these artefacts, how they evaluate them, and how they interact with librarians. This study provides a better understanding of how people interact with paper information, from which we can draw implications for some requirements of the design of digital libraries, while recognising that the term 'library' is a metaphor when applied to electronic document collections. In particular, improved communication with other library users and with librarians could facilitate more rapid access to relevant information and support services, and structuring information presentation so that users can make rapid assessments of its relevance would improve the efficiency of many information searches. © Springer-Verlag 2004
How users assess web pages for information-seeking
In this paper, we investigate the criteria used by online searchers when assessing the relevance of web pages for information-seeking tasks. Twenty four participants were given three tasks each, and indicated the features of web pages which they employed when deciding about the usefulness of the pages in relation to the tasks. These tasks were presented within the context of a simulated work-task situation. We investigated the relative utility of features identified by participants (web page content,structure and quality), and how the importance of these features is affected by the type of information-seeking task performed and the stage of the search. The results of this study provide a set of criteria used by searchers to decide about the utility of web pages for different types of tasks. Such criteria can have implications for the design of systems that use or recommend web pages
Recommended from our members
Researching participants taking IELTS Academic Writing Task 2 (AWT2) in paper mode and in computer mode in terms of score equivalence, cognitive validity and other factors
Computer-based (CB) assessment is becoming more common in most university disciplines, and international language testing bodies now routinely use computers for many areas of English language assessment. Given that, in the near future, IELTS also will need to move towards offering CB options alongside traditional paper-based (PB) modes, the research reported here prepares for that possibility, building on research carried out some years ago which investigated the statistical comparability of the IELTS writing test between the two delivery modes, and offering a fresh look at the relevant issues. By means of questionnaire and interviews, the current study investigates the extent to which 153 test-takersâ cognitive processes, while completing IELTS Academic Writing in PB mode and in CB mode, compare with the real-world cognitive processes of students completing academic writing at university. A major contribution of our study is its use â for the first time in the academic literature â of data from research into cognitive processes within real-world academic settings as a comparison with cognitive processing during academic writing under test conditions.
The most important conclusion from the study is that according to the 5-facet MFRM analysis, there were no significant differences in the scores awarded by two independent raters for candidatesâ performances on the tests taken under two conditions, one paper-and-pencil and the other computer. Regarding analytic scores criteria, the differences in three areas (i.e. Task Achievement, Coherence and Cohesion, and Grammatical Range and Accuracy) were not significant, but the difference reported in Lexical Resources was significant, if slight. In summary, the difference of scores between the two modes is at an acceptable level. With respect to the cognitive processes students employ in performing under the two conditions of the test, results of the Cognitive Process Questionnaire (CPQ) survey indicate a similar pattern between the cognitive processes involved in writing on a computer and writing with paper-and-pencil. There were no noticeable major differences in the general tendency of the mean of each questionnaire item reported on the two test modes. In summary, the cognitive processes were employed in a similar fashion under the two delivery conditions.
Based on the interview data (n=30), it appears that the participants reported using most of the processes in a similar way between the two modes. Nevertheless, a few potential differences indicated by the interview data might be worth further investigation in future studies. The Computer Familiarity Questionnaire survey shows that these students in general are familiar with computer usage and their overall reactions towards working with a computer are positive. Multiple regression analysis, used to find out if computer familiarity had any effect on studentsâ performances on the two modes, suggested that test-takers who do not have a suitable familiarity profile might perform slightly worse than those who do, in computer mode.
In summary, the research offered in this report offers a unique comparison with realworld academic writing, and presents a significant contribution to the research base which IELTS and comparable international testing bodies will need to consider, if they are to introduce CB test versions in future
The Impact of Cultural Familiarity on Studentsâ Social Media Usage in Higher Education
Using social media (SM) in Higher education (HE) becomes unavoidable in the new teaching and learning pedagogy.
The current generation of students creates their groups on SM for collaboration. However, SM can be a primary source of
learning distraction due to its nature, which does not support structured learning. Hence, derived from the literature, this study proposes three learning customised system features, to be implemented on SM when used in Higher Education HE.
Nevertheless, some psychological factors appear to have a stronger impact on studentsâ adoption of SM in learning than the proposed features. A Quantitative survey was conducted at a university in Uzbekistan to collect 52 undergraduate studentsâ perception of proposed SM learning customised features in Moodle. These features aim to provide localised, personalised, and privacy control self-management environment for collaboration in Moodle. These features could be significant in predicting studentsâ engagement with SM in HE. The data analysis showed a majority of positive feedback towards the proposed learning customised SM. However, the surveyed studentsâ engagement with these features was observed as minimal. The course leader initiated a semi-structured interview to investigate the reason. Although the students confirmed their acceptance of the learning customised features, their preferences to alternate SM, which is Telegram overridden their usage of the proposed learning customized SM, which is Twitter. The students avoided the Moodle integrated Twitter (which provided highly accepted features) and chose to use the Telegram as an external collaboration platform driven by their familiarity and social preferences with the Telegram since it is the popular SM in Uzbekistan. This study is part of an ongoing PhD research which involves deeper frame of learnersâ cognitive usage of the learning management system. However, this paper exclusively discusses the cultural familiarity impact of studentâs adoption of SM in HE
Users' trust in information resources in the Web environment: a status report
This study has three aims; to provide an overview of the ways in which trust is either assessed or asserted in relation to the use and provision of resources in the Web environment for research and learning; to assess what solutions might be worth further investigation and whether establishing ways to assert trust in academic information resources could assist the development of information literacy; to help increase understanding of how perceptions of trust influence the behaviour of information users
- âŠ