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Socio-Demographic Differences in Information Seeking Behavior of Social … Socio-Demographic Differences in Information Seeking
Behavior of Social Science Scholars in Developing Countries:
The Case of Sultan Qaboos University
Mohammed Nasser Al-Suqri
Introduction
Many researchers have studied information-related behavior among various
groups of scholars and have produced theories and models of information-
seeking, which have identified generic features of information-seeking. These
have been useful in the ongoing development of LIS and have helped to inform
the content and the delivery of information services, especially in the university
context. Although the majority of early studies on information-seeking were
based on groups such as scientists and engineers, a number of these studies have
investigated information-seeking among social scientists and have identified
particular characteristics of information-seeking behavior, which to some extent
differentiate social science scholars from those of other disciplines.
Studies, which have investigated the impact of factors influencing the use of information resources, have been valuable in highlighting the influence of personal factors such as age, occupational seniority and previous experience. This is a perspective which has been lacking more generally in research on information-seeking with the majority of studies simply describing behavior, or, at most, comparing it between researchers of different disciplines. אא  ١٠  אא Problem Statement
Many existing studies of information-seeking among social scientists and other scholars are primarily descriptive, or focus only on investigating the relationship between information-seeking and different disciplinary backgrounds. Very little research, which investigates the impact of other socio-demographic factors on information-seeking behavior, such as age, length of service, rank, college, or gender, has been conducted in this area. There is a pressing requirement for research on information-seeking, which examines the relationships between socio-demographic factors and information-seeking behavior and its outcomes. This was the focus of the current study, which investigated patterns of information-seeking behavior by variables such as age, gender, length of service, rank, department, college, and preferred search language. Research Questions
This study attempts to assess the relationships between social science scholars’ information-seeking behaviors and demographic or professional variables. 1. Is age, gender, length of service, rank, department, college, or preferred search language related to whether a scholar prefers print or electronic sources? 2. Is age, gender, length of service, rank, department, college, or preferred search language related to the number of times per month that the scholar physically visits the library? 3. Is age, gender, length of service, rank, department, college, or preferred search language related to the number of times per month that the scholar accesses the library catalog through the Internet? The relationship between information-seeking and a diverse range of demographic and professional variables is investigated for the following reasons: אא Socio-Demographic Differences in Information Seeking Behavior of Social … First, the majority of studies of information-seeking among scholars have only investigated differences by different disciplines; very little attention has been given to the impact of personal characteristics such as age and gender. In addition, various employment-related variables that are likely to influence patterns of information-seeking and their outcomes, such as rank, length of service and department (within social science), were selected for study. Finally, preferred search language (measured on the basis of self- evaluation by participants) is included as an independent variable. Most research on information-seeking has been conducted among English-language speaking scholars and the majority of social science resources are published in English. The study investigated the relationship between preferred search language and information-seeking behavior and its outcomes in order to identify any specific issues or difficulties faced by those scholars who have a low level of competency in English and to explore differences between the information-seeking experiences of scholars who primarily use English sources and those who primarily use Arabic sources in their work. By investigating the impact of a wide range of demographic and professional variables on information-seeking, the researcher will be better placed to explain any observed patterns of information-seeking behavior and its outcomes which are inconsistent with existing models and theories of information-seeking developed in Western, English-speaking countries. Most previous studies of information seeking have focused only on investigating the relationship between information-seeking and different disciplinary backgrounds, therefore, very little research, which investigates the impact of other socio-demographic factors on information-seeking אא  ١٠  אא behavior, such as age, length of service, rank, college, or gender, has been conducted in this area (Abouserie, 2003; ; Tenoir, Hitchcock, & Pillow, 2003; Sathe, Grady, & Giuse, 2002; Finholt & Brooks, 1999). A more recent study with social scientists at the University of Pittsburgh by Abouserie (2000) aimed to test the following hypothesis “There will be a difference in the sources used to perform the basic tasks or activities, teaching, research, and service, according to the school, faculty rank, years spent in the university, and gender.” The study found a difference according to school, rank, and years spent in the university, and found no difference according to gender. For example, the study found that professors focus on print journals, while associate professors use electronic journals most and assistant professors, lecturers, and instructors use directories and search engines most frequently. Likewise, Tenner and Yang in their study entitled “End-User Acceptance of Electronic Journals: A Case Study from a Major Academic Research Library” reported that assistant professors made heavily use of electronic journals more than full professors and associate professors. Moreover, research by Monopoli, Nicholas, Georgiou, and Korfiati (2002) at the University of Patras, Greece, indicated that male faculty members rely heavily on electronic journals more than female faculty members. Fortin (2000) found a significant difference between faculty members at Anglo State University in the use of the Internet to access databases according to employment status. Tenure-track faculty members were found to make more use of the Internet to meet their information needs than tenured faculty members do. A survey of faculty members across the United States by Magner (1999, p. A18, as cited in Fortin, 2000) indicate that many older faculty members reported they were “being more stressed by information technology even though they aren’t using it as much as younger faculty.” Similarly, Palmer and Sandler (2003) in their study concluded that younger faculty members at the University of Michigan expressed a preference for electronic resources and older faculty members prefer to use print resources. אא Socio-Demographic Differences in Information Seeking Behavior of Social … Quigley, Peck, Rutter, McKee, and Williams’ (2002) survey of 230 science faculty and researchers at the University of Michigan also observed different levels of use of preprint literature and noted the important tradition of using this publication format in certain scientific disciplines, notably mathematics (78%) and astronomy (70%). In disciplines where preprinted literature was used less frequently, such as geology (13.3%) and chemistry (9.1%), the research team noted that it is sometimes the case that the use of preprint literature is actively discouraged by their respective professions. Methodology
Quantitative data was collected using a questionnaire. The questionnaire is developed in its initial form based on the previous studies. The questionnaire was distributed to 367 social science faculty members who were actively teaching during the 2006-2007 academic year, including full-time and adjunct lecturers, assistant professors, associate professors, and professors in the college of Arts and Social Sciences, the college of Education, the college of Commerce and Economics, and the Law College. In addition, the study broke new methodological ground in LIS studies by attempting not simply to describe information seeking behavior but also to analyze statistically the relationships among social science scholars’ information-seeking behaviors and a number of demographic variables. Data Analysis
Inferential analysis is used to test the research questions. Independent samples t-test, chi-square test of independence, Pearson correlations and oneway ANOVA tests are performed to determine whether observed differences between the dependent variables and independent variables are statistically significant. Where the ANOVAs are statistically significant, follow up test are carried out. The independent variables of this study are: אא  ١٠  אא The dependent variables on the other hand are: 1. Preference for print or electronic resources Findings
Demographic and Background Information
Sample profile. A total of 218 faculty members out of 367 participated in the current study, which represented a response rate of 59.4%, a good level of response in survey research. The first set of questions in the survey assessed the demographic characteristics of the sample. Descriptive statistics for the categorical demographic characteristics are shown in Table 1. Descriptive Statistics for Categorical Demographic and Background
Variables (N=218)
Gender Frequency
Percentage
אא Socio-Demographic Differences in Information Seeking Behavior of Social … Gender Frequency
Percentage
Other* 131
* Only those departments with 15 or more individuals formed separate groups, with the reminder of the sample placed in an “other” department group. אא  ١٠  אא The majority of the sample (74.3%, N=162) was male and female comprised only 25.7% (N=56). It is important to note that women at SQU hold high academic positions and play a vital role in the education system. Respondents reported being from 23 different nationalities, with the most common nationalities being Omani (48.2%, N=105) and Egyptian (24.3%, 53). In terms of academic rank, most of the respondents (60.6%, N=132) were assistant professors, with 19.7% lecturers, 12.8% associate professors, and 6.9% professors. Nearly half of the respondents (47.2%, N=103)) came from the College of Arts & Sciences, with an additional 28.9% coming from the College of Education. The colleges of Commerce and Economics (17.9%, N=39) and Law (6.0%, N=13) had the lowest number of respondents. Percentage of respondents based on the Available Social Sciences Faculty Members in However, as shown in Table 3 above, 65.2% (N = 103) of an available 158 Arts & Social Sciences faculty responded to the survey. These 103 respondents constituted 47.2% of the sample (N = 218). The group constituting the third -highest proportion in the sample was the Education faculty, with 28.9% of the sample and 56.3% of available faculty. The Commerce & Economics faculty, which constituted 17.9% of the sample, accounted for the second-highest response rate in the sample, with 59.1%. This was followed by Law, with the smallest אא Socio-Demographic Differences in Information Seeking Behavior of Social … number of available faculty (N= 31), constituting 6% of the sample and having a 41.9% response rate. Thus, the available number of faculty in each college were unequal and, therefore, account for widely varying proportions of the overall sample. Response rates, though they varied from a low of 41.9% for Law to a high of 65.2% for Arts & Social Sciences faculty, were all of an acceptable range. There were 27 academic departments represented in the sample, with the most common being English Language (10.1%), Curriculum & Instruction (8.7%), Sociology & Social Work (7.3%), Arabic Language (6.9%), and Geography (6.9%). The employment status of over three-quarters of the sample (95%, N=207) was full time instructors, and (4.1%, N=9) reported being visiting instructors. There were 28 different countries reported as the place where the highest degree was earned, with the United Kingdom (31.7%, N=69), Egypt (21.1%, N=46), the United States (13.3%, N=29), and Australia (11.0%, N=24) being the most common. As a result, the majority of respondents earned their highest degrees in English speaking countries. Most of the respondents (70.2%) reported publishing on a regular basis. The age of the respondents ranged from 24 to 70 years old with a mean of 42.67 years (SD=9.52 years). Approximately 40% of respondents were 40-49 years of age, with the remainder being 30-39 (29.9%, N=65), 50-59 (16.5%, N=36), or 20-29 (9.2%) years of age. Only 10 respondents (4.6%) were 60 or upward years of age. Table 3 shows the distribution of the social science faculty by age. Illustrates the distribution of respondents by age
אא  ١٠  אא In regard to length of services, the respondents had been employed at SQU for between 1 and 21 years (M=8.31 years, SD=5.02 years). Consistent with relative maturity of the sample, most of the respondents (36.9%, N=80) reported having been faculty at SQU for 6-10 years. Faculty who had been at the university for 1-5 years made up 30.0 percent of the sample, followed by those who had been at the university for 11-15 years (14.7%, N=32) and 16-20 (12.9%, N=28) years. Only one respondent reported that he has working at the university for 21 years or more. Table 4 shows length of services at SQU. Shows length of service of respondents at SQU Frequency
Percentage
Predictors of Preference for Print or Electronic Resources The first research question of the current study is: Is age, gender, length of service, rank, department, college, or preferred search language related to whether a scholar prefers print or electronic sources? For this question, the outcome variable of interest is whether the respondent indicated a preference for print or electronic resources. Table 5 shows T-test of age and tenure versus format of resources, visit to library, and access library catalog through the Internet, and table 6 shows Chi-Square test, T-test, and ANOVA test of gender, rank, department, college, and preferred search language versus format of resources, visit to library, and access library catalog through the Internet. אא Socio-Demographic Differences in Information Seeking Behavior of Social … The first test compared those who preferred print to those who preferred electronic in term of age, and this test was statistically significant, t(216)=2.35, p=.020. Those who preferred print documents were generally older (M=43.78, SD=9.76) than those who preferred electronic documents (M=40.65, SD=8.78). The next test compared those who preferred print versus electronic documents in terms of their tenure at SQU. This test was not statistically significant, (t(215)=- 1.08, p=.282), indicating that the two groups did not differ in terms of tenure. Next, a χ2 test of independence was performed between gender and a preference for print versus electronic resources. This test was not statistically significant, (χ2(1)=2.58, p=.108), indicating that males and females did not differ in terms of whether they preferred print or electronic resources. T-test of Age and Tenure versus Types of Information Resources, Format of Resources, Visit to Library, and Access Library Catalog Through the Internet Age Tenure
Format of Resources
Correlation test
Age Tenure
Visit to Library
Access Library Catalog
through the Internet
אא  ١٠  אא Chi-Square test, T-test, and ANOVA test of Gender, Rank, Department, College, and Preferred Search Language versus Types of Information Resources, Format of Resources, Visit to Library, and Access Library Catalog Through the Internet Chi-square (χ2) test
Departmen
Language
Statistically Statistically Statistically Format of
Resources
χ2(3)=9.47, χ2(5)=18.38, χ2(3)=19.84, t-test ANOVA
Departmen
Language
Statistically Statistically Statistically Not Significant Significant Significant Significant Significant Visit to Library
F(3,212)=1. F(5,210)=2. F(3,212)=6. F(2,213)=9.46 52, p=.211 60, p=.026 83, p<.001 Access Library
through the
F(3,213)=.3 F(5,211)=.7 F(3,213)=2. F(2,214)=1.81 Internet
In the next test, individuals of differing academic ranks were compared in terms of whether they preferred print or electronic resources, and the result was statistically significant, (χ2(3)=9.47, p=.024). Lecturers (51.2%) and assistant professors (62.9%) were less likely to prefer print documents than associate professors (85.7%) or professors (73.3%). Next, individuals from different departments were compared on their preference for print or electronic resources, and the result was statistically significant, (χ2(5)=18.38, p=.003). Faculty members in the Curriculum & Instruction department were least likely to prefer print אא Socio-Demographic Differences in Information Seeking Behavior of Social … resources (47.4%), while those in the Sociology & Social Work (100.0%), Arabic Language (86.7%), Geography (80.0%), English Language (63.6%), and other (58.0%) departments were more likely to prefer print resources. In fact, those in the Curriculum & Instruction department were the only group with a preference for electronic resources. Next, faculty members from various colleges were compared in terms of their preference for print versus electronic documents, and the result was statistically significant, (χ2(3)=19.84, p<.001). Those in the College of Education (42.9%) were least likely to prefer print resources, while those in the Colleges of Law (84.6%), Arts & Social Sciences (74.8%), and Commerce & Economics (64.1%) were more likely to prefer print resources. In this case, those from the College of Education were the only group to prefer electronic resources. The final test for this research question compared those who preferred to search in English, Arabic, or both in terms of their preference for print versus electronic resources, and the result was statistically significant, (χ2(2)=11.59, p=.003). Those who searched in Arabic (85.1%) were more likely to prefer print resources than those who searched in English (56.6%) or those who searched in both languages (60.0%). Predictors of Visits to the Library The second research question is: Is age, gender, length of service, rank, department, college, or preferred search language related to the number of times per month that the scholar physically visits the library? The outcome variable for this research question was the number of times that the faculty member reported physically visiting the library. The first test examined the correlation between age and the number of times that the scholar physically visited the library, and the correlation was not statistically significant (r=-.03, p=.657) indicating that there was no relationship between age and visits to the library. Similarly, there was no relationship between tenure at Sultan Qaboos University and visits to the library (r=-.13, p=.056). The next test compared males and females in terms of the number of visits to the library, and this test was not statistically significant, t(214)=.99, p=.324. A oneway ANOVA was then performed comparing individuals grouped אא  ١٠  אא by academic rank with the number of times they visited the library as the dependent variable. The result of this test was not statistically significant, F(3,212)=1.52, p=.211. This indicated that individuals of differing academic ranks did not differ in terms of visits to the library. Individuals in different academic departments were then compared via a oneway ANOVA, and the result was statistically significant, F(5,210)=2.60, p=.026. Tukey HSD post-hoc tests were then performed to determine which groups differed from which other groups. The only statistically significant difference was that those in the English Language department (M=1.77, SD=1.54) visited the library less than those from the Arabic Language department (M=4.60, SD=2.38), p=.011. Next, a oneway ANOVA was performed comparing individuals from different colleges in terms of the number of times they visited the library, and the result was statistically significant, F(3,212)=6.83, p<.001. Tukey HSD post-hoc tests revealed that those from the College of Law (M=5.75, SD=2.93) visited the library more frequently than those from the College of Arts & Sciences (M=3.05, SD=2.66), p=.002, more frequently than those from the College of Commerce & Economics (M=2.18, SD=1.65), p<.001, and more frequently than those from the College of Education (M=2.71, SD=2.36), p=.001. In the final test for this research question, those who preferred to search in English, Arabic, or both were compared in terms of the number of monthly visits to the library. The result of this test was statistically significant, F(2,213)=9.46, p<.001. Tukey HSD post-hoc tests indicated that those who preferred to search in English made fewer visits to the library (M=2.07, SD=2.23) than those who preferred to search in Arabic (M=3.98, SD=2.71), p<.001, and fewer visits than those who preferred to search in both languages (M=3.15, SD=2.47), p=.012. Predictors of Internet Access of Library Catalog
The third and final research question of the current study is: Is age, gender, length of service, rank, department, college, or preferred search language related to the number of times per month that the scholar accesses the library catalog through the Internet? For this question, the outcome variable was the number of times that אא Socio-Demographic Differences in Information Seeking Behavior of Social … the faculty member reported accessing the library catalog through the internet. First, age was not related to the number of times than a faculty member accessed the library catalog via the Internet (r=-.06, p=.401). However, there was a correlation between tenure at SQU and the number of times that the library catalog was accessed through the Internet (r=-.15, p=.028). The negative correlation indicates that those with longer tenures at SQU tended to access the library catalog through the Internet less frequently. A t test was then performed comparing males and females in terms of the number of times that they accessed the library catalog through the Internet, and the result was not statistically significant, t(215)=.75, p=.452, indicating that males and females did not differ. A oneway ANOVA was then performed comparing scholars of differing academic ranks in terms of the number of times that they accessed the library catalog through the Internet. The result was not statistically significant, F(3,213)=.31, p=.822, indicating that the groups did not differ. The oneway ANOVA comparing those from different academic departments was also not statistically significant, F(5,211)=.72, p=.611. This indicated that scholars from different academic departments did not differ in terms of the frequency with which they accessed the library catalog through the Internet. When individuals from the different academic colleges were compared, the results was not statistically significant, F(3,213)=2.09, p=.103, indicating that scholars from different academic colleges did not differ in terms of accessing the library catalog through the Internet. Finally, those who preferred to search in English, Arabic, or both did not differ in terms of the frequency with which they accessed the library catalog through the Internet, F(2,214)=1.81, p=.166. Discussion
The study found that information needs and information-seeking practices of social science scholars at Sultan Qaboos University are found to vary with age, academic rank, and academic department or college. The overall results of the study can be presented as follow: אא  ١٠  אא The first research question of the current study is: Is age, gender, length of service, rank, department, college, or preferred search language related to whether a scholar prefers print or electronic sources? Results showed that: 1. Those who preferred print documents were generally older than those who 2. Lecturers and assistant professors were less likely to prefer print documents than associate professors or professors. 3. Faculty members in the Curriculum & Instruction department were least 4. Those in the College of Education were least likely to prefer print resources. 5. Those who searched in Arabic were more likely to prefer print resources than those who searched in English or those who searched in both languages. The second research question is: Is age, gender, length of service, rank, department, college, or preferred search language related to the number of times per month that the scholar physically visits the library? Results indicated that 1. Those in the English Language department visited the library less than those 2. Those from the College of Law visited the library more frequently than those 3. Those who preferred to search in English made fewer visits to the library than those who preferred to search in Arabic, and those who preferred to search in both languages. The third and final research question is: Is age, gender, length of service, rank, department, college, or preferred search language related to the number of times per month that the scholar accesses the library catalog through the Internet? The only statistically significant relationship for this research question was that those with longer tenures at Sultan Qaboos University tended to access the library catalog through the Internet less frequently than those with shorter tenures. אא Socio-Demographic Differences in Information Seeking Behavior of Social … Conclusion
The research makes a theoretical contribution to the field of knowledge on information-seeking behavior by examining the impact on information-seeking of various socio-demographic factors such as age, length of service, and gender. Most previous studies of information-seeking have been primarily descriptive, or have focused only on investigating the relationship between information-seeking and different disciplinary backgrounds. In contrast, this research has investigated the ways in which information-seeking behaviors vary among sub-groups within a particular academic field, and what variables are associated with different types of behavior, thus helping to refine the overall understanding of information-seeking and the factors that contribute to its effectiveness. Indeed, it was found that there were differences in information needs and information-seeking practices between sub-groups of respondents, particularly by age, academic rank and academic department or college. References
Abouserie, H. E. M. R. (2003). Information-seeking and communicating behavior of social science faculty in an academic environment with special reference to the use of electronic journals: A field study. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh. Finholt, T. A., & Brooks, J. (1999). Analysis of JSTOR: The impact on scholarly practice of access to on-line journal archive. In R. Ekman & R. E. Quandt (Eds.), Technology and Scholarly Communication. (pp. 177-194). Berkeley: University of California Press. Fortin, M. G. (2000). Faculty use of the World Wide Web: Modeling information seeking behavior in a digital environment. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of North Texas, Taxes. Monopoli, M., Nicholas, D., Georgiou, P., & Korfiati, M. (2002). A User- oriented evaluation of digital libraries: Case study: The 'Electronic Journals' Service of the Library and Information Service of the University of Patras Greece. Aslib Proceedings 54(2): 103-117. אא  ١٠  אא Palmer, J. P., and Sandler, M. (2003). What Do Faculty Want? Netconnect Quigley, J., Peck, D. R., Rutter, S., & Williams, E. (2002). Making choices: Factors in the selection of information resources among science faculty at the University of Michigan. Issues in Science and Technology Librarianship, 34. Retrieved June 20, 2008, from http://www.istl.org/02-spring/refereed.html. Tenopir, C., Hitchcock, B., Pillow, B. (2003). Use and users of electronic library resources: An overview and analysis of recent research studies. Washington, D.C.: Council on Library and Information Resources. Retrieved May 12, 2008, from http://www.clir.org/pubs/abstract/pub120abst.html. Sathe, N. A., Grady, J. L., & Giuse, N. B. (2002). Print versus electronic journals: A preliminary investigation into the effect of journal format on research processes. Journal of the Medical Library Association 90(2): 235-243.
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