Transcript Understanding Users Context, Communication & Construction

Understanding Users
Context, Communication & Construction
Michael Olsson
Lecturer, Information and Knowledge Management
University of Technology, Sydney
Theory & Practice



We all have a
conceptual framework
Lens through which we
see ourselves, our work
and our clients
Theory & research
allow us a richer, better
informed view of our
world
Users - Prevailing Approaches




Fundamental Shift - User-centered Paradigm
Cognitive Theory & Research
Not custodians of information artifacts &
systems but as active facilitators assisting
individuals & organisations in meeting their
information needs
Strengths but also weaknesses
Focus on the Individual




Focus on Individual Information Seeker
Neglects role of social context
Objective Reality – Individual Subjectivity
Researching the unknowable – cognitive structures
‘Needy’ Information Users




Strong Focus on
Information Need, ASK
Users as ‘Children’ or
‘Patients’
Unequal Power
Relationship
Construct Users based
on what they do know
Purposive Seeking & Affective Factors





Focus on active, purposive
seeking & searching
Only one aspect of information
behaviour
Rational problem solving
Either ignore affective factors
or regard them as a barrier to
‘effective’ information seeking
Ignores central role of social
relationships
Social Constructivism



sees individuals not as
isolated intellects, but as
inextricably linked to their
social environment.
Dervin – Sense-Making
Foucault - Discourse
Making Sense



Information is not a ‘thing’ to be transferred
An interpretive, constructive process of meaning
making
‘Death of the Author’
Social Construction
Individuals & groups make sense using:
 Language
 Existing knowledge & beliefs, previous experience
 Social norms & conventions – ‘rules of the game’
Knowledge & Power



Knowledge & Power are two sides of the same coin
We relate new knowledge to established knowledge
power structures e.g. recognized authors, theories
institutions, etc
Inductive view of Power – based on our Acceptance
Practice Implications
Reconceptualise Clients
 Not isolated ‘needy’ individuals but dynamic
members of a community
 Embedded in networks of ongoing
relationships and power relations
 What is the social role of information
professionals in the communities they serve?
SC Information Professionals


Reference Interviewing
Classification Schemes



Reject objectivized, reductionist approaches
Recognize multiple ‘truths’
Build on existing Knowledge/Power relations
within communities to provide clients with
information they will regard as ‘authoritative’