1. Introduction
        Objective:  Students should be able to define some of the basic concepts of the course.

Tuesday, January 15,  Review course requirements, readings, assignments, and expectations.

        View the EPIC video:  http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/epic    and discuss in class.

Objective:  Students will identify the theoretical overview and context for exploring human information interaction.

Thursday, January 17,  Theoretical perspectives

        Reading:

• Bates, M. (2005). An introduction to metatheories, theories, and models. In K. Fisher, S. Erdelez, & L. McKechnie (Eds.), Theories of Information Behavior (ASIS Monograph Series). New Medford, NJ: Information Today, 1-24. (photocopy in the PAM box, see Blackboard site for other options)

Tuesday, January 22,  Perspectives on communication and fundamentals of interaction.

Reading:

Pierce, J. (1972). Communication. Scientific American, 227(3):31-41. (see course documents section in Blackboard, photocopy in PAM box)

Shedroff, Nathan (2000). Information interaction design: A unified field theory of design. http://www.nathan.com/thoughts/unified/

 

Objective:    Students will define motivations for information seeking, discover some of the barriers and problems people face when they seek information, and describe some of the concepts researchers in the field apply to these problems.

 
Thursday, January 24, Perspectives on the causes/motivation for information seeking.

Reading:

Belkin, N. (1980). Anomalous states of knowledge as a basis for information retrieval.  Canadian Journal of Information Science, 5:133-143.  (on e-reserve, PAM box)

Belkin, N.J. (2000).  Helping people find what they don't know. Communications of the ACM, 43(8):59-61. (on reserve in PAM box, e-journals)

Tuesday, January 29, Analyzing information needs and recognizing barriers.

Reading:

Chatman, E. (1996). The impoverished life-world of outsiders. Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 47(3):193-206, 1996.  (on reserve in PAM box, e-journals, bound journals)

Objective:  Students will be able to describe techniques and strategies people use as they seek answers to questions, and will be able to explain why information behaviors may be affected by the information-seeking context.

Thursday, January 31, Information seeking methods and sources.

Reading:

Marchionini, G. (1995).  Information-seeking perspective and framework. Information Seeking in Electronic Environments.  NY: Cambridge University Press.  Chapter 3, pages 27-60. (book on reserve shelf; also available online at http://ils.unc.edu/~march/isee_book/Chapter_3.pdf)

Solomon, P. (1997).  Conversation in information-seeking contexts: A test of an analytical framework.  Library & Information Science Research, 19(3):217-248.  (on reserve in PAM box, bound journals, also available online through UNC e-journals)
 

Tuesday, February 5, Information retrieval:  Analytical and Browsing strategies

Reading:
 

Marchionini, G. (1995).  Browsing strategies.  Information Seeking in Electronic Environments.  NY: Cambridge University Press. (Chapter 6, pages 100-138). (book on reserve shelf; also available at http://ils.unc.edu/~march/isee_book/Chapter_6.pdf, diagrams on blackboard site)

Optional:

Choo, C.W., Detlor, B., and Turnbull, D. (2000). Information seeking on the Web: An integrated model of browsing and searching.  Firstmonday, 5(2): http://www.firstmonday.org/issues/issue5_2/choo/index.html

Assignment 1 is due.

Thursday, February 7, Summary and Discussion

                    No additional reading - we will recap what we have read to date.

Tuesday, February 12, Information seeking contexts - professionals and organizations.

Reading:

Leckie, G.J., Pettigrew, K.E., and Sylvain, C.  (1996).  Modeling the information seeking of professionals: a general model derived from research on engineers, health care professionals, and lawyers. Library Quarterly, 66(2):161-193.  (bound journals, on e-reserve, in PAM box)

Optional:

Kuhlthau, C.C. & Tama, S.L. (2001). Information search process of lawyers: A call for 'just for me' information services.  Journal of Documentation, 57 (1): 25-43. (campus e-journals)

Thursday, February 14, Information seeking contexts - information grounds and everyday information seeking

Fisher, K.E., Durrance, J.C., and Hinton, M.B. (2004). Information grounds and the use of need-based services by immigrants in Queens, New York: A context-based, outcome evaluation approach. Journal of the American Society for Information Science & Technology, 55 (8): 754-766. (e-journals, also current periodicals)

            Reading:

Heinstrom, J. (2006).  Psychological factors behind incidental information acquisition. Library & Information Science Research, 28(4):579-594. (bound journals; also available online through UNC e-journals; Google scholar)

 

Objective: Students will be able to describe the role of intermediaries in information-seeking and to describe the challenges intermediaries face in this role.

Thursday, February 21, Methods and means of intermediation.

Reading:

Taylor, R.S. (1968).  Question negotiation and information seeking in libraries.  College & Research Libraries, 29(3):178-194, 1968. (on e-reserve, in PAM box, bound journals)

Tuesday, February 26, Technology and intermediation. 

Reading:

Brown, J.S. and Duguid, P. (2000).  Agents and angels.  In The Social Life of Information. pages 35-62 (see Blackboard, PAM box and shelf)

Objective:  Students will be able to explain how the use of information differs from retrieval.  Students will also be able to provide one or more definitions of relevance and ways of measuring it.

Thursday, February 28, Assessment of Value

Reading:

Amento, B.L. (2000).  Does authority mean quality? Predicting expert quality ratings of web documents.  (supplemental readings, ACM portal).

Tuesday, March 4, Relevance

Reading:

Tombros, A., Ruthven, I., and Jose, J.M. (2005) How users assess Web pages for information seeking.  Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 56 (4):327-344.  (available through UNC e-journals)

Team Project Idea is Due (1-2 page description)

 Assignment 2 is Due

7.  The Dissemination of Information

Objective:  Students will be able to describe ways that information is shared within and between organizations and describe the role that technology has and can play in information dissemination.  Additionally, students will be able to discuss unintended effects of technology, the ways that technology has influenced the way we communicate that were unforeseen.

Thursday, March 6, Diffusion theory, social network theory and the sharing of technology.

Reading:

Rogers, E. (1995).  Elements of diffusion.  In Diffusion of Innovations, 4th ed.  NY: Macmillan.  (on Blackboard, in PAM box, shelf).

SPRING BREAK: NO CLASSES MARCH 11 or MARCH 14

Objective:  Students will be able to describe the cycle of scholarly communication, explore some of the techniques used to measure the significance and impact of scholarly communication, and identify the challenges facing those who are concerned with disseminating and sharing the results of scholarly communication.

Tuesday, March 18,  The cycle of scholarly communication.

Reading:

Borgman, C.L. (2000). Digital libraries and the continuum of scholarly communication. Journal of documentation, 56 (4): 412-430. (Available through UNC e-journals; Google scholar)

Optional:

Nasser, R. and Abouchedid, K. (2001).  Problems and the epistemology of electronic publishing in the Arab World: the case of Lebanon. Firstmonday, 6(9).  http://www.firstmonday.org/issues/issue6_9/nasser/index.html

 

Objective:  Students will be able to identify ways that organizations and social groups influence information seeking and use, and will define the challenges facing individuals and organizations in distributed environments.

Thursday, March 20, The home

Reading:

Rieh, S.Y. (2004).  On the Web at home: Information seeking and web searching in the home environment. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 55 (8): 743-753.  (e-journals, bound journals)

Tuesday, March 25,  Organizational information seeking
 

Reading:

Tannen, D. (1995).  The power of talk: who gets heard and why. Harvard Business Review, 73:138-148. (on e-reserve, PAM box)

Thusday, March 27,  Information sharing in organizations

Reading:

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.  (on e-reserve, in PAM box, bound journals)

Tuesday, April 1, Technology, organizational communication, and social networking
 

Reading:

Lippincott, J.K. (2005). Net generation students and libraries. In D.G. Oblinger & J.L. Oblinger (Eds.) Educating the Net Generation. Educause. Available at http://www.educause.edu/educatingthenetgen and on through the Blackboard site.

Optional:

Snyder, J., Carpenter, D., Slauson, G.J. (2006). MySpace.com - A social networking site and social contract theory.  Proceedings of ISECON. (see the Blackboard site for access instructions)

Thursday, April 3: Meet with your groups [no formal class, presenting paper at PIM workshop, CHI conference]

Tuesday, April 8: Online class at your leisure on Blackboard [still at CHI]

Thursday, April 10, Controlling interaction and managing overload. 

    Reading:

Levy, D.M. (2005). To grow in wisdom: Vannevar Bush, information overload, and the life of leisure.  Proceedings of the 5th ACM/IEEE-CS Joint Conference on Digital Libraries, pages 281-286. (e-journals: ACM Digital Library)

Assignment 3 is due.

10.  Policy Issues

Tuesday, April 15,  Ownership and protection of information.

Reading:

Roel, Eulalia (2005). Intellectual Property: Ethical Economics. Journal of Information Ethics, Spring: 60-63. (Available through campus e-journals)

  Thursday, April 17, Access to information and information technology: fair use

Reading:

Thatcher, Sanford G. (2006). Fair Use in Theory and Practice: Reflections on its History and the Google Case.  Journal of Scholarly Publishing, April: 215-229. (Available through campus e-journals - via Project MUSE)

ALA Resolution on the Patriot Act, http://www.ala.org/ala/washoff/WOissues/civilliberties/theusapatriotact/alaresolution.htm

    

11. Project Presentations

Tuesday, April 22:  first groups

Thursday, April 24: remaining groups

Final Projects are due by 5:00 p.m. on Monday, April 28