Journal of Information Science

Few studies have been conducted to identify users’ desired semantic levels of image access when describing, searching, and retrieving photographs online. The basic level, or the level of abstraction most commonly used to describe an item, is a cognitive theory currently under consideration in image retrieval research. This study investigates potential basic levels of description for online photographs by testing the Hierarchy for Online Photograph Representation (HOPR) model, which is based on a need for a model that addresses users’ basic levels of photograph description and retrieval. We developed the HOPR model using the following three elements as guides: the most popular tags of all time on Flickr, the Pyramid model for visual content description by Jörgensen, Jaimes, Benitez, and Chang, and the nine classes of image content put forth by Burford, Briggs, and Eakins. In an exploratory test of the HOPR model, participants were asked to describe their first reaction to, and possible free-text indexing terms for, a small set of personal photographs. Content analysis of the data indicated a clear set of user preferences that are consistent with prior image description studies. Generally speaking, objects in the photograph and events taking place in the photograph were the most commonly used levels of description. The preliminary HOPR model shows promise for its intended utility, but further refinement is needed through additional research.

The aim of this study is to analyse the perceptions and demands concerning educational and working requirements of the information profession from the perspectives of employers and employees in the Chinese public and private information sectors, with focus on information science and information management (IS/IM) training and skills. The paper introduces recent developments of Chinese information education as background for two surveys, one targeting 49 employers of information professionals in public institutions and small, medium and large enterprises, and one aiming at 68 employees from the same sectors, all with academic degrees in IS/IM. Central findings demonstrate a mismatch between the perceptions of the employees with IS/IM background and those of the employers concerning central work functions, actual positions, importance to and status in institutions and enterprises. IS/IM staff are primarily employed for their information retrieval skills, but are also used in clerical work; in contrast, the employers perceive market analytic skills and industrial expertise as most central for the information profession. (Dis)advantages of the current curriculum and proposals for specific reforms of the Chinese IS/IM educational objectives, structure and curriculum are discussed.

Facilitating employees’ knowledge transfer to colleagues is a critical, yet challenging task. This study suggests that an individual’s social networks and motivational factors facilitate knowledge transfer based on the social capital theory and the theory of collective action. More importantly, this study also proposes that the facilitating effects of social networks and motivational factors differ depending on the different modes of knowledge transfer, namely, the closed (one-to-one) and the open (one-to-many) modes. By analysing 325 survey responses of eight research and development groups from five firms with structural equation modelling, we found that network centrality and organizational reward were influential only on open knowledge transfer while expected reciprocity was influential only on closed knowledge transfer. On the other hand, average strength of ties and intrinsic motivational factors such as group identification and self-efficacy seemed to affect both types of knowledge transfer. Additionally, the facilitating effects of social networks were found to be partially mediated by motivational factors.

Existing studies have reported that significant gender differences exist in the use of technology. For example, males have higher levels of computer self-efficacy, which enable them to utilize technology more so than their counterparts. This difference could create a potential disparity in the benefits of the utilization of university library website resources (ULWR). The findings of this study show that male and female users’ computer self-efficacy is very different. Female users have lower levels of computer self-efficacy and subsequently, their intention to use ULWR is derived from a website’s ease-of-use. In contrast, male users’ intentions to use ULWR are derived from the subjective norm, a finding that challenges expectations based on social cognitive theory which posits that females are more likely than males to be influenced by others’ opinions. It is interpreted that males are much more goal- and performance-oriented than females. Detailed theoretical and managerial implications are offered.

In the context of information literacy studies, the research put forward in this paper is focused on the individual and subjective levels of motivation and self-efficacy, together with the sources of learning used by a population of translation students from three Spanish universities. The data were collected by means of the self-evaluating and specific IL-HUMASS survey, and are analysed using a mixed (quantitative and qualitative) case study methodology. From the 26 variables of the survey, the most and least consistent and important ones with regard to motivation and self-efficacy are detected. In general, central tendency scores regarding motivation and self-efficacy increase as respondents advance academically. The most striking opportunities for improvement emerged in relation to the following issues: using bibliographic reference managers, knowing the laws on the use of information, using database managers and communicating in other languages. The surveyed population prefer autonomous learning, with the library being a much underused source of learning.

The development of education for information and library science at City University London over a 50-year period is described in this article. The development of the Masters course in Information Science, and the later equivalent courses in Library Science and in Information Management in the Cultural Sector are described in detail, together with shorter-lived Masters courses in pharmaceutical and health information. The rationale for changes to the courses, and the influence of the professional and educational contexts, are analysed. Issues emerging from this analysis are discussed in seven themes: the nature of the discipline; the library/information spectrum; the student group; the academic/professional balance; curriculum design; local and global issues; and teaching methods. The discussions of the courses are set in the wider context of changes in library/information education over the period in the UK and worldwide.

This paper critically examines the notions of the ‘knowledge society’ and ‘access to knowledge’ to uncover some underlying assumptions, with special reference to sub-Saharan Africa. We borrow from constructivist learning theory and argue that it is helpful to see knowledge as a process rather than as an outcome or state. In discussions of access to knowledge, much emphasis has been placed on the physical dimension of access (connectivity, bandwidth and the digital divide) and on the legal, economic and political dimensions that form the embattled terrain of the ‘Access to Knowledge’ movement. However, if knowledge is conceptualized as a process, the concept of ‘access’ has to be extended to the epistemological dimension, which takes into account the construction of knowledge in the mind of the individual while interacting with the community. This has important implications for libraries. We suggest the deployment of re-skilled and re-motivated information intermediaries working in and around libraries to motivate, teach, interpret and facilitate ‘access’ to knowledge.