Name
Abstract | ||
|---|---|---|
This research aimed to gain a detailed understanding of how genealogists and historians interact with, and make use of, finding aids in print and digital form. The study uses the lens of human information interaction to investigate finding aid use. Data were collected through a lab-based study of 32 experienced archives' users who completed two tasks with each of two finding aids. Participants were able to carry out the tasks, but they were somewhat challenged by the structure of the finding aid and employed various techniques to cope. Their patterns of interaction differed by task type and they reported higher rates of satisfaction, ease of use, and clarity for the assessment task than the known-item task. Four common patterns of interaction were identified: top-down, bottom-up, interrogative, and opportunistic. Results show how users interact with findings aids and identify features that support and hinder use. This research examines process and performance in addition to outcomes. Results contribute to the archival science literature and also suggest ways to extend models of human information interaction. |
Year | DOI | Venue |
|---|---|---|
2016 | 10.1002/asi.23436 | Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology |
Keywords | Field | DocType |
human computer interaction | Data mining,World Wide Web,CLARITY,Information seeking,Computer science,Usability,Information access,Archival science,Finding aid,Interrogative | Journal |
Volume | Issue | ISSN |
67 | 4 | 2330-1635 |
Citations | PageRank | References |
3 | 0.51 | 6 |
Authors | ||
2 | ||
Name | Order | Citations | PageRank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Luanne Freund | 1 | 432 | 30.90 |
| Elaine G. Toms | 2 | 1277 | 96.35 |