INLS 500 - Human Information Interactions

Fall 2007

Team Project: Problems and Resolutions

Students will form small groups of 3-5 people to study a human information interaction problem. This may include focusing on the information needs and uses of a population that is of interest to you, or looking at the problem from the side of an information system or a service provider. Your project will take the form of a written report and an oral presentation.

The human information interaction problem

This course is structured to provide an overview of several research/subject areas of interest to the field of Library and Information Science. Your group will identify a human information interaction question or problem that you wish to investigate in more depth. Problems will usually take the form of a research question.  Some examples:

• Is mastering the jargon of a discipline more important or less important than acquiring credentials in distinguishing group insiders from outsiders?
• What are the most important reference sources to students of LIS?
• How do the needs of distance education students differ from on-campus students?
• What are the most serious barriers to using the local public library?
• Are internet users more knowledgeable about local issues than non-internet users?
• Does the Daily Grind qualify as "information grounds" in the way Fisher defines?
• Who blogs and why?
• What technologies are most important to sustaining social relationships?

Coming up with a good question is probably the most difficult part of this assignment. A good question is one that you can place in a theoretical context, that is measurable, and that will either inform practice or contribute to the knowledge base. You should be able to explain why the question is worth answering.

The human population

If you were going to study the problem, you would need to identify a user population and a methodology for doing the study. Choice of the population must be appropriate to the question. For example, if you chose the question "who blogs and why?" then the population you would study is most likely bloggers and possibly the readers of blogs. It is doubtful that people who do not blog and do not read blogs would know much about the phenomenon. For this assignment, you need only identify a population or group that might be a target for study. You should be able to defend your choice - explain why this is a good or important population.

Literature review

Conduct a search of the literature to see if there are reports of related research - people who have researched the problem and/or the population. You will need to include a summary of the literature in your written report. The literature review will help you to identify aspects of the problem. For example, the question "Who blogs and why?" is more complex than it may seem. How does blogging compare with other self-publishing options (pamphleteers in the 18th Century, columnists in modern newspapers, for example)? What factors attract readers to blogs? What are the characteristics of bloggers (age, race, gender, other)? What subjects are covered in blogs? Is there a blogging life cycle?  Your literature review should draw upon the relevant theories or models that apply to your population and the problem you are investigating.

The methodology

The methodology concerns how you would gather the information to answer your question if you were actually going to study the problem.  In some cases, your approach might be purely historic. For example, your literature review may be extensive enough to be the methodology. Again, using the above question of "Who blogs and why?" a literature review that examines pamphleteering and compares it to blogging and that suggests that it is simply old wine in new bottles might be adequate.  However,  another approach might be to develop a questionnaire that would be sent to bloggers to ask them more directly about who they are and why they blog.  Still another approach might be a content analysis of blogging sites to determine what they offer that may be unique or interesting.  Choice of methodology would depend upon the question, the population, and what you find in the review of the literature. 

There are other methods of inquiry as well, such as simulation. This method may be favored by those of you with strong technical skills who would like to conduct an experiment. In the past, students have set-up a MUD (multi-user dimension environment, also known as a MOO) to provide others in the class with a virtual experience.  If you choose this approach, it must relate to the course and you must still submit a report (although it may be briefer).

Structure of the Report

 The report should include the following:

• an introduction that includes a statement of your research question and a discussion of why the problem is important and should be studied
• a literature review that describes similar work that has been done, relevant theories or models, and places your problem in that context
• a description of the methodology that you would use to research the problem - being specific about the steps you would follow and how you would analyze results
• a description of the benefits and limitations of the methodology (no method is perfect)
• a bibliography of resources used
• an attachment describing briefly the role that each team member played in producing the final project

You do not have to actually conduct the research. Those who wish to conduct some research may do so and would need to include the following:

• a discussion and summary of your results, including charts and graphs

The final presentation will be limited to about 10 minutes, so it must summarize your results concisely. You may use audiovisuals if you would like, but you should rehearse prior to class to ensure smooth transition and timely completion.

Each member of  the team is expected to contribute a major share of the effort. If the work is shared, the burden on any one person should not be excessive.

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You may use the discussion boards in Blackboard to solicit members for your team and to discuss ideas if you wish.

Group ideas are due:  October 11

What you will submit on October 11 is a brief description of your problem area. A one-page description is adequate, but it should reflect your project plan and list the members of your team.