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Dissertation Information for DeEtta Catherine Wilson

NAME:
- DeEtta Catherine Wilson

DEGREE:
- Ph.D.

DISCIPLINE:
- Library and Information Science

SCHOOL:
- University of Southern California (USA) (1983)

ADVISORS:
- Edward Kazlauskas

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
- Martha Hale
- Roger Greer

MPACT Status: Incomplete - Not_Inspected

Title: AN ANALYSIS AND COMPARISON OF INFORMATION NEEDS AND INFORMATION-SEEKING BEHAVIOR OF FACULTY IN THREE ACADEMIC DIVISIONS IN A COMMUNITY COLLEGE

Abstract: This study sought to determine whether the patterns of information seeking behavior that can be identified in the methods used by instructors in a community college setting are role related or discipline related. Thirty-nine faculty members in the three divisions of Humanities, Social Sciences, and Sciences at Windward Community College in Hawaii made up the universe of the study.

Instructors' information needs and sources for meeting those needs were examined in the context of six roles--teacher, researcher, counselor, committee member, community service provider, and administrator. Also analyzed were elements of the teaching role, time spent and barriers encountered in information gathering, information seeking for specific class preparation, and the extent of information transfer among faculty within a division and between divisions.

It was hypothesized that information needs and patterns of information seeking behavior of community college instructors are more closely related to their roles than their particular academic disciplines.

Instructors were interviewed using two pre-tested questionnaires, and the data gathered were recorded and organized into tables comparing the elements of the study among the three divisions. The chi-square test for significance was used to compare common elements in each role and context.

The theories applied in examining information needs and information seeking behavior of faculty in this exploratory study were role theory and symbolic interactionism. Roles instructors play on the college campus, their information needs for these roles, and the interaction that takes place in meeting these needs could thus be analyzed in the context of these theories.

The study indicates that instructors' information needs are role related, and the data revealed no significant differences in the information needs and information seeking behavior of instructors among the three academic divisions.

The results suggest that the role of the academic librarian should include increased involvement as part of an instructional team, participating in the planning of courses and teaching strategies. Repackaged information would speed up the information transfer process, and require that librarians be knowledgeable in the areas of subject matter fields, teaching methodologies, and technological developments in information storage and retrieval.

MPACT Scores for DeEtta Catherine Wilson

A = 0
C = 0
A+C = 0
T = 0
G = 0
W = 0
TD = 0
TA = 0
calculated 2008-07-25 19:04:14

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