Using the web to explore scientific knowledge and extend the desktop information space
Co-authors: Brendan Cleary, Wendy Mackay, Paulo Lício de Geus
We conducted a study on how academic researchers manage multiple documents acquired from the web for later retrieval.... more We conducted a study on how academic researchers manage multiple documents acquired from the web for later retrieval. We interviewed 11 participants and identified their strategies when trying to re-find specific documents. We found that they often prefer web-based search for re-finding documents, despite knowing that the document of interest is stored on their computers. We argue that Web search engines can act as an extension of the desktop information space. We found that users choose keyword-based search not only when the document’s location is unknown but also when the retrieval cost is very low: they do not bother about properly storing files because most files are easily found again with a web-based search engine. We close by discussing the implication of these findings for the design of future document management tools.
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Seen by:Exploring gendered notions: Gender, job hunting and web search engines
Martey, Rosa Mikeal. (2008). “Exploring gendered notions: Gender, job hunting and web search engines” in A. Spink and M. Zimmer (Eds.) Web search: Interdisciplinary perspectives. New York: Springer.
Job seeking can be viewed as an information-seeking activity, in which social, cultural, psychological, and personal... more Job seeking can be viewed as an information-seeking activity, in which social, cultural, psychological, and personal factors are crucial influences on the search process. Job-seeking can also be viewed as a socio-economic activity, in which considerations of their employment options, necessary information, market conditions, and employability are affected by gender associations with industries, positions, and firms. Based on analysis of a series of interviews, this chapter suggests that in looking for jobs online, women confront gendered notions of the internet as well as gendered notions of the jobs themselves. It argues that the social and cultural contexts of both the search tools and the search tasks should be considered in understanding how web-based technologies serve women in a job search. For these women, the opportunities and limitations of online job-search tools were intimately related to their personal and social needs, especially needs for part-time work, maternity benefits, and career advancement. Although job-seeking services such as Monster.com were used frequently by most of these women, they did not completely full all their informational needs, and became an – often frustrating – initial starting point for a job-search rather than an end-point.
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Seen by:Find more, do more, reveal less: Women's strategies for navigating gendered contexts online
Martey, Rosa Mikeal. (2010). Find more, do more, reveal less: Women's strategies for navigating gendered contexts online. Information, Communication & Society, 13(8), pp. 1207-1229.
Understanding the relationship between gender and technology demands more than simply tracking the numbers of women... more Understanding the relationship between gender and technology demands more than simply tracking the numbers of women and men online or lists of their activities. Gender theorists call for more research into how and why women perform certain online activities, emphasizing the role of identity and the importance of context on perceptions and behavior. In order to examine the influence of gender in everyday online activities, this project examines women's perceptions of the internet within a specific context: looking for a job. It asks, how do perceptions of the internet influence women's techniques and strategies in navigating gender barriers and affordances in a job search? Interviews with 20 women looking for jobs online reveal that associations between gender and technologies and between gender and occupations can affect the job search process at various stages, including how and where people look for jobs, which jobs they apply to, and feelings of confidence and interest. Three characteristics of the internet emerged as central to women's strategies for navigating gender associations: (1) the volume and range of information online; (2) productivity and efficiency; and (3) anonymity. These characteristics are aspects of the ways in which the internet can both improve and limit women's online job searches.
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Seen by:Adolescents Seeking Nutrition Information: Motivations, Sources and the Role of the Internet
Larsen, Jessica and Rosa Mikeal Martey (2011). Adolescents seeking nutrition information: Motivations, sources and the role of the internet. International Journal of Information and Communication Technology Education, 7(2).
Much research exploring the potential of the internet for providing effective nutrition information to adolescents... more Much research exploring the potential of the internet for providing effective nutrition information to adolescents focuses on the design of websites and uses of the internet. This study takes a step back to investigate the specific reasons adolescents do and do not use the internet to learn about nutrition. This paper asks, “What motivates adolescents to select the internet when learning about nutrition?” Using in-depth interviews and a survey, two stages of the information-seeking process are examined: initiation and selection. Results reveal that because school classes are serving as a primary entry point for learning about this topic, even personal nutrition needs are often conceptualized as formal and education-related. The internet is less appealing than books and teachers for fulfilling those needs because adolescents primarily use it for social, not formal tasks. The paper concludes that educators should incorporate more directed use of the internet into nutrition classes and assignments.
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