Dissertations / Theses: 'Information use'

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Wiberg, Nils. "Use Qualities: An Organic Luxury We Can Afford : A Primer and Implementation of how Organic Interfaces can Improve the Use Quality Affordance." Thesis, Umeå University, Department of Informatics, 2009. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-32874.

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Use qualities are sought after in interaction design and increasingly reachable given the new developments in tangible, ubiquitous and embodied interactions. But are they really obtainable regardless of what approach one chooses. This thesis explores how use qualities can be reached by Organic Interaction Design and in doing so it also provides a primer for what this concept entails: A concept which demands a high level of intuitivity in the designs of new media and new interaction trajectories. It is implemented here in a case of an interactive table complete with tangible interactions. This thesis provides examples of how use qualities such as immersion, playability and even vulnerability are reached not via e.g. system transparency but rather via a mimicry of the tacit cues of biological systems occurring in the natural world. The interaction design need be thoughtful and holistic for such endeavors.

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McKenna, Mary. "User-based criteria for use and evaluation of alert services." Related electronic resource: Current Research at SU : database of SU dissertations, recent titles available, full text:, 2008. http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/syr/main.

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Myers, Robert N. Zapata Edwar. "Linking information for mobile use." Monterey, Calif. : Naval Postgraduate School, 2007. http://bosun.nps.edu/uhtbin/hyperion-image.exe/07Sep%5FMyers_Zapata.pdf.

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Thesis (M.S. in Computer Science)--Naval Postgraduate School, September 2007.
Thesis Advisor(s): Singh, Gurminder ; Das, Arijit. "September 2007." Description based on title screen as viewed on October 25, 2007. Includes bibliographical references (p. 77-78). Also available in print.

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Zapata, Edwar. "Linking information for mobile use." Thesis, Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/10945/3235.

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Information Management (IM) has been an area of research and discussion for several decades. Studies have been conducted by behavioral and computer scientists on how people organize their information and workspaces in order to come up with efficient ways to store, organize and retrieve information on personal computers. This thesis explores improving a user's ability to manage information on mobile devices. The goal is to make placing information on such devices a more attractive prospect, with an emphasis on retrieval of stored information regardless of the document type. This will result in mobile users having quick access to the right information at the right time while away from the office or home. This thesis describes the challenges inherent in a mobile scenario and the system designed to address those challenges. The system provides visual and navigational features that are not currently available on mobile devices, specifically the ability to view multiple types of items in a single interface. Additionally, the ability to logically link related items as an IM tool is examined.

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Brandt, Patrik. "Information in use : aspects of information quality in workflows /." Karlskrona : School of Engineering, Blekinge Institute of Technology, 2007. http://www.bth.se/fou/Forskinfo.nsf/01f1d3898cbbd490c12568160037fb62/e7dea68ff7c42604c12572b10051f3e6!OpenDocument.

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Croon, Fors Anna. "Being-with Information Technology : Critical explorations beyond use and design." Doctoral thesis, Umeå : Umeå universitet, 2006. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-748.

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Lundqvist, Magnus. "Information Demand and Use : Improving Information Flow within Small-scale Business Contexts." Licentiate thesis, Linköping : Department of Computer and Information Science, Linköpings universitet, 2007. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:liu:diva-9666.

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Hill, Belinda Kaye. "Weaving information : students' use of the Internet to find information /." Thesis, Connect to this title online; UW restricted, 1999. http://hdl.handle.net/1773/7667.

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Van, Zee Emily Hanke. "Use of information in decision deliberation /." Thesis, Connect to this title online; UW restricted, 1989. http://hdl.handle.net/1773/9085.

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Dawson, Erika H. "Social information use in social insects." Thesis, Queen Mary, University of London, 2014. http://qmro.qmul.ac.uk/xmlui/handle/123456789/7980.

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Social learning plays a valuable role in the lives of many animal taxa, sometimes allowing individuals to bypass the costs of personal exploration. The ubiquity of this behaviour may arise from the fact that learning from others is often underpinned by simple learning processes that also enable individuals to learn asocially. Insects have proven to be particularly valuable models for investigating parsimonious hypotheses with regards to social learning processes, due to their small brain sizes and the prevalence of social information use in their life histories. In this thesis, I use social insects to further investigate the mechanisms underlying more complex social learning behaviours and explore the circumstances under which social information use manifests. In the first chapter, I investigate the proximate mechanisms underlying social learning and demonstrate that even seemingly complex social learning behaviours can arise through simple associative learning processes. In Chapter two, I investigate whether bees are more predisposed to learning from conspecific cues and discover that social information is learnt to a greater extent than information originating from non-social sources. In Chapter four, I demonstrate that classical conditioning also underpins learning from evolved social signals in honeybees. Finally, I investigate whether social information is used adaptively by bumblebees: Chapter three demonstrates that joining behaviour in free-flying bees is contingent upon whether flowers are familiar or not, and in Chapter six, I show that when social information is costly to acquire, bees are more likely to rely on social information to make foraging decisions. Taken as a whole, my findings suggest that bees may be specially adapted for receiving social information, but the ability to learn from others arises through general associative learning mechanisms.

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Wimalasuriya, Daya Chinthana. "Use of ontologies in information extraction." Thesis, University of Oregon, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/1794/11216.

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xiii, 149 p. : ill. (some col.)
Information extraction (IE) aims to recognize and retrieve certain types of information from natural language text. For instance, an information extraction system may extract key geopolitical indicators about countries from a set of web pages while ignoring other types of information. IE has existed as a research field for a few decades, and ontology-based information extraction (OBIE) has recently emerged as one of its subfields. Here, the general idea is to use ontologies--which provide formal and explicit specifications of shared conceptualizations--to guide the information extraction process. This dissertation presents two novel directions for ontology-based information extraction in which ontologies are used to improve the information extraction process. First, I describe how a component-based approach for information extraction can be designed through the use of ontologies in information extraction. A key idea in this approach is identifying components of information extraction systems which make extractions with respect to specific ontological concepts. These components are termed "information extractors". The component-based approach explores how information extractors as well as other types of components can be used in developing information extraction systems. This approach has the potential to make a significant contribution towards the widespread usage and commercialization of information extraction. Second, I describe how an ontology-based information extraction system can make use of multiple ontologies. Almost all previous systems use a single ontology, although multiple ontologies are available for most domains. Using multiple ontologies in information extraction has the potential to extract more information from text and thus leads to an improvement in performance measures. The concept of information extractor, conceived in the component-based approach for information extraction, is used in designing the principles for accommodating multiple ontologies in an ontology-based information extraction system.
Committee in charge: Dr. Dejing Dou, Chair; Dr. Arthur Farley, Member; Dr. Michal Young, Member; Dr. Monte Westerfield, Outside Member

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Cheng, Grace Y. T., and n/a. "Measuring electronic information systems: the use of the information behaviour model." University of Canberra. Information Management and Tourism, 2002. http://erl.canberra.edu.au./public/adt-AUC20050628.150806.

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This study focused on measuring the importance and contribution of information obtained from the library, particularly electronic information services (EIS), to success in solving clinical problems in hospitals. Three research questions with three main hypotheses were advanced and tested on clinicians in 44 hospitals in Hong Kong. The findings were tested against the framework from Wilson's (1996) existing general information behaviour model, from which a new extended model for clinicians was built. Measures of EIS were then derived from the new model. The research was broadly divided into a series of five studies in two stages: nominal group, quantitative survey, and interviews in the first stage, and randomized controlled study as well as the analyses of statistical data and computer transaction logs in the second stage. The key results in Stage I led to the studies in Stage 11. The randomized controlled study in Stage 11 attempted to reduce the barriers identified in the information environment, with a view to test the results of an educational intervention, and to confirm that the hypotheses were true given reduced barriers and the presence of enabling conditions. The effects of the interventions in this experimental study were validated and verified by statistical data and transaction logs. Corroborative evidence from the two-stage studies showed that the three main inter-connected hypotheses were supported: success in problem-solving is related to the information sources used; user satisfaction is related to success in problem-solving; and EIS use is an indicator of user satisfaction. EIS use is determined by a number of factors: the preference for EIS, the use of the library, the skills and knowledge in searching, the profession of the user and the characteristics of the work environment. Educational intervention was found to improve success in problem-solving, the attitudes, skills and knowledge in searching, the satisfaction with and use of EIS, and is an important enabling condition. The research rejected part of the first hypothesis posed that success in problem-solving is related to clinical question posed and suggests that further research is needed in this area. The study supported the extension of the general model to clinical information needs and behaviours and found new relationships. The study found an additional determinant of EIS satisfaction, the satisfaction with the information obtained. EIS satisfaction would not be changed by educational intervention alone if the information obtained was not satisfactory. On the other hand, education can improve EIS satisfaction regardless of whether the problem has been solved. Of critical importance is the time factor in determining the use (or non-use) of EIS. There is new evidence that the awareness of the user of an answer in literature is a determining factor for active searching. Borrowing the concept of opportunity cost from economic theory, the researcher relates it with the differing levels of self-efficacy and postulates a model for planning EIS and related library services. From the new extended model of information behaviour, sixteen main measures or indicators were tested on a proposed framework in developing performance measures to diagnose information behaviours and predict EIS use, satisfaction and success in problem-solving. In measuring EIS, the researcher suggested the holistic approach in assessing traditional (non-electronic) library and information services as part of information behaviours of clinicians. The study pointed to the imbalance between self-efficacy and the actual skills and knowledge of users in their searching mentality and activities and the implication for library practice. Qualitative aspects that require further research on measurement were suggested. The study has important ramifications for theory and practice for the information professional. The new extended model of information behaviour for clinicians establishes deterministic relationships that help explain why an information search is pursued actively, continuously, or not at all. Measures that have been derived from these relationships can help diagnose and predict information behaviours. The study highlights the flexibility and utility of the general model of information behaviour. Also, this is the first time that such a methodological approach has been adopted to derive EIS measures. The application of the randomized controlled study methodology in information science was proven to be feasible and yielded definitive results. The researcher proposes that further development of information behaviour model should incorporate the element of knowledge generation process in an organization.

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Södersten, Fredrik. "The use of information by the decision-maker." Thesis, University of Skövde, Department of Computer Science, 1999. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:his:diva-403.

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In this dissertation different decision-making processes are considered. The concept of information is described and different types of information are identified. These are operative information, supportive information, state-of-the-art-information, feedback information, directive information and private-interpersonal information. The research method, which has been used in this investigation, is personal interviews. Those who participated in the investigation were decision-makers from five different organizations. One aim was to investigate decision-making processes used in organizations and compare them with certain theoretical decision-making processes. Another aim was to identify what types of information were used in the different parts of a decision-making process. One conclusion is that the decision-making processes used in organizations differ from each other, mostly in the first and last phase, but they are still fairly similar. The main difference in the first phase is the focus on the overall goal of the organization and in the last phase if evaluation is included in the decision-making process. Another conclusion is that all types of information, except private-interpersonal information, are used in the different decision-making processes.

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Bullen, Alison Maeve. "Parliamentary Committees : strategy for improved information use /." Thesis, Link to the online version, 2005. http://hdl.handle.net/10019/989.

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Kirk, Joyce. "Theorising information use : managers and their work /." Electronic version, 2002. http://adt.lib.uts.edu.au/public/adt-NTSM20031028.165129/index.html.

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Cameron, Tamara. "Representing information use in an educational setting." Thesis, University of British Columbia, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/3390.

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The purpose of this study is to describe how a high school student retrieves information in order to write a history research paper, and to investigate the role genre plays in this process of search and paper construction. This study interrogates the conditions under which students are sent to the library to complete research assignments. What is absent from the research of school library use is how the kinds of knowledge expected from the students, and how the kinds of uses and manipulations that information is to be put through are connected to the access and retrieval of information. Because use is the final stage in the information process, this problem is approached by examining the assumptions about language, knowledge, and genre that teachers and students bring to research assignments in the school library. Rhetorical genre theory may be used to construct a representation of information use within an educational setting. Rhetorical genre theory will also be used to determine the method of analysis. By examining a few instances of high school history research, we can begin to systematize the features found beyond the sample to a larger study. An interdisciplinary approach that integrates classification theory, information seeking behavior, and rhetorical practices may help to characterize effective models in information retrieval. This model may provide a structure for understanding how a core set of research tasks utilizes a certain set of genres.

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Watson, Neville. "Alcohol use and biases in information processing." Thesis, University of Southampton, 2009. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.505823.

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Ndyetabula, Protas K. G. M. "The use of soil information in Tanzania." Thesis, University of East Anglia, 1995. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.296808.

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China, Samuel Soita. "Land use planning using geographic information systems." Thesis, University of Southampton, 1993. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.239501.

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Rojas-Ferrer, Isabel. "Individual Variation In Information and Its Use." Thesis, Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa, 2021. http://hdl.handle.net/10393/42105.

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Individuals within a population can vary in the way that they acquire, store, and act on information from the environment. Researchers have commonly looked at differences in genetic architecture, physical environment, or personality as possible causes of individual variation in cognition. Though cognition is defined as a suite of mechanisms involving the processing of information, we have yet to asses information (i.e. a numerical measure of the uncertainty of an outcome) as a possible cause of individual variation in cognition. This thesis seeks to understand the causes of individual variation in cognition by using approaches that allow quantifying and/or manipulating information acquisition or its use. In Chapter 1, I look at the link between information gathering and exploratory personality by testing the correlation between activity in a novel environment and attraction to novelty in wild-caught black-capped chickadees (Poecile atricapillus). My results validate exploratory personality assessed in an open field test as a measure of information gathering. Fast exploration of a novel environment was positively correlated with novelty seeking, suggesting that exploration is an information gathering strategy. In Chapter 2, I test for experience with informative vs non-informative cues as a cause for individual differences in decision making and learning performance. Here, I manipulated the informational properties (i.e. presence and number of reliable cues) of the developmental environment of juvenile captive zebra finches (Taenopygia guttata). This rare longitudinal and experimental examination of the effect of informative versus non-informative cues during development suggests that experience with informative cues can cause increased discrimination learning accuracy and decision-making speed later in life. Finally, in Chapter 3 I looked into individual variation in information use and decision making using a game theoretic approach. Using a producer-scrounger game, groups of zebra finches were exposed to varying seed distributions. Individual strategy choice in a social-foraging game was not significantly correlated with an individual’s experience with informative cues or learning performance. Still, contrary to my predictions, fear response significantly predicted strategy choice where more fearful individuals were more likely to choose a producer strategy. By addressing information as a parameter, my results suggest that information can affect individual variation depending on context.

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Ben, Tania, Yuliia Onofriichuk, and Roman Golovatyi. "Use of modern information technology in education." Thesis, Lviv State University of Life Safety, 2019. http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/5997.

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The processes of globalization that characterize the development of modern society, the introduction of digital technologies at all levels of education are significantly changing the requirements for professional education of future educators. Formation of competent specialists, who are free to navigate in the information space of modern education, have a high level of information and communication technologies, use them in training, professional activity, during the conduct of scientific research, is one of the urgent tasks of higher education.

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Sokolova, I. V. "Creativity Through the Use of Information Technologies." Thesis, V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University, 2000. http://essuir.sumdu.edu.ua/handle/123456789/62748.

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Hnatenko, O. S., and V. B. Sivni. "Use of femtosecond lasers to encode information." Thesis, Sumy State University, 2019. http://openarchive.nure.ua/handle/document/8570.

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This paper proposes a method of coding information by changing two interfering femtosecond pulses.There is no secret that using femtosecond lasers it is possible to get supercontinuum, which implies a set of discrete closely spaced spikes of radiation decomposed in the frequency domain.

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Park, Albert. "Intended Use Evaluation Approach for Information Visualization." Thesis, Virginia Tech, 2006. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/36080.

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Information visualization is applied in many fields to gain faster insights with lighter user cognitive loads in analyzing large sets of data. As more products are being introduced each year, how can one select the most effective tool or representation form for the task? There are a number of information visualization evaluation methods currently available. However, these evaluation methods are often limited by the appropriateness of the tool for a given domain since they are not evaluating according to tools' intended use. Current methods conduct evaluations in a laboratory environment with "benchmark" tasks and often with field data sets not aligned with the intended use of the tools. The absence of realistic data sets and routine tests reduces the effectiveness of the evaluation in terms of the appropriateness of the tool for a given domain. Intended use evaluation approach captures the key activities that will use the visual technology to calibrate the evaluation criteria toward these first-order needs. This research thesis presents the results from an investigation into an intended use evaluation approach and its effectiveness of measuring domain specific information visualization tools. In investigating the evaluation approach, criteria for the intelligence analysis community have been developed for demonstration purposes. While the observations from this research are compelling for the intelligence community, the principles of the evaluation approach should apply to a wider range of visualization technologies. All the design rationale and processes were captured in this thesis. This thesis presents a design process of developing criteria and measuring five intelligence analysis visual analytic tools. The study suggests that in selecting and/or evaluating visual analytic tools, a little up front effort to analyze key activities regarding the domain field will be beneficial. Such analysis can substantially reduce evaluation time and necessary effort throughout a longer period of time.
Master of Science

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Tan, Ter Chian Felix. "Conceptualising use for information systems (IS) success." Thesis, Queensland University of Technology, 2010. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/41850/1/Ter_Tan_Thesis.pdf.

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This thesis conceptualises Use for IS (Information Systems) success. While Use in this study describes the extent to which an IS is incorporated into the user’s processes or tasks, success of an IS is the measure of the degree to which the person using the system is better off. For IS success, the conceptualisation of Use offers new perspectives on describing and measuring Use. We test the philosophies of the conceptualisation using empirical evidence in an Enterprise Systems (ES) context. Results from the empirical analysis contribute insights to the existing body of knowledge on the role of Use and demonstrate Use as an important factor and measure of IS success. System Use is a central theme in IS research. For instance, Use is regarded as an important dimension of IS success. Despite its recognition, the Use dimension of IS success reportedly suffers from an all too simplistic definition, misconception, poor specification of its complex nature, and an inadequacy of measurement approaches (Bokhari 2005; DeLone and McLean 2003; Zigurs 1993). Given the above, Burton-Jones and Straub (2006) urge scholars to revisit the concept of system Use, consider a stronger theoretical treatment, and submit the construct to further validation in its intended nomological net. On those considerations, this study re-conceptualises Use for IS success. The new conceptualisation adopts a work-process system-centric lens and draws upon the characteristics of modern system types, key user groups and their information needs, and the incorporation of IS in work processes. With these characteristics, the definition of Use and how it may be measured is systematically established. Use is conceptualised as a second-order measurement construct determined by three sub-dimensions: attitude of its users, depth, and amount of Use. The construct is positioned in a modified IS success research model, in an attempt to demonstrate its central role in determining IS success in an ES setting. A two-stage mixed-methods research design—incorporating a sequential explanatory strategy—was adopted to collect empirical data and to test the research model. The first empirical investigation involved an experiment and a survey of ES end users at a leading tertiary education institute in Australia. The second, a qualitative investigation, involved a series of interviews with real-world operational managers in large Indian private-sector companies to canvass their day-to-day experiences with ES. The research strategy adopted has a stronger quantitative leaning. The survey analysis results demonstrate the aptness of Use as an antecedent and a consequence of IS success, and furthermore, as a mediator between the quality of IS and the impacts of IS on individuals. Qualitative data analysis on the other hand, is used to derive a framework for classifying the diversity of ES Use behaviour. The qualitative results establish that workers Use IS in their context to orientate, negotiate, or innovate. The implications are twofold. For research, this study contributes to cumulative IS success knowledge an approach for defining, contextualising, measuring, and validating Use. For practice, research findings not only provide insights for educators when incorporating ES for higher education, but also demonstrate how operational managers incorporate ES into their work practices. Research findings leave the way open for future, larger-scale research into how industry practitioners interact with an ES to complete their work in varied organisational environments.

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Said, Emanuel. "The value of market research information : how do clients of market research services construct value from their usage of market research information?" Thesis, Cranfield University, 2011. http://dspace.lib.cranfield.ac.uk/handle/1826/7096.

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A significant global industry, the provision of market research is a business to business service where market research organizations provide market research information to customers, who in turn, need to make informed decisions about marketing strategy alternatives. This study involves a systematic literature review of the influences impacting on the use of market research information. It expounds the conditions, factors and mechanisms that induce or hinder the process of use among client organization users. In so doing, this investigation provides a descriptive assessment of the body of knowledge from which this study draws. This study proposes a theoretical framework of the reported conditions, factors and mechanisms that enhance or hinder the process at different stages of usage of market research. Influences like (user) organization’s strategy, structure, market philosophy, stance in the market and access to market research suppliers have a direct effect on how user organizations seek and apply market research information. The process of usage features seven phases, contrasting against the four or five phases that are typically reported in literature. Application of market research information in marketing decisions may follow one of three possible types of application: instrumental, conceptual and symbolic. This study also explores the various limitations in our understanding of this phenomenon. Relying on a number of published positivist contributions, our understanding of this process is composed of narrow views of specific causalities, each investigated independently from the rest. These result in an incomplete, inconsistent picture about a phenomenon. For instance, influences impacting on transformation and dissemination steps remain largely unknown, as are the factors impacting on application of market research information like symbolic use. Equally, published positivist researchoften relies on a single informant approach that is assumed to represent the reality of an entire organization. The study concludes with considerations about future work that may form part of my PhD research, intended to address a selection of gaps in the existing body of knowledge about this phenomenon.

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Kitheka, Julius Mwaniki Carleton University Dissertation Management Studies. "Export information: an investigation into the use of sources of export information." Ottawa, 1994.

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Sundén, Susanne, and Gudrun Wicander. "Information and Communication Technology Applied for Developing Countries in a Rural Context : Towards a Framework for Analysing Factors Influencing Sustainable Use." Licentiate thesis, Karlstad University, Faculty of Economic Sciences, Communication and IT, 2007. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:kau:diva-748.

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Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has been considered a tool that can be used to achieve development goals in developing countries. In the same time, the majority of people living in developing countries, and especially those in rural areas lack access to ICT. Even if there have been many attempts to introduce ICT, they have in general not been long-lasting.

A framework for studying factors that influence use of ICT is desirable. We see it necessary to bring a sustainability aspect into the picture of ICT. In this work the requirement of ‘sustainable ICT use’ stresses that ICT is long-lasting and that ICT meets the needs of the user. Thus, the aim of this work is to develop a tool for conceptualisation that can support the understanding of the conditions for sustainable, and therefore successful, ICT projects in developing countries.

Our theoretical starting point is taken in the Information System (IS) theories. The theoretical base is then broadened to include theories on international development, theories on sustainable development, and theories on diffusion of innovations and transfer of technology. The theoretical foundation, together with four empirical studies, is used to answer the two research questions in this thesis. The first question is: Which are the critical factors influencing sustainable ICT use in developing countries? By using ‘critical factors’ we emphasise a focus on factors which are crucial (even if possibly not sufficient) for bringing about sustainable ICT use. This question is followed by a second question: How would a framework be structured to properly include these factors in order to support analyses of sustainable ICT use?

The framework has evolved through the identification of factors from four empirical studies. Forty-one factors were identified and sorted into fifteen subcategories of five major capital assets. The main contribution of our study is that of a generic framework, which can be used as a guideline for planning, implementation, and evaluation of ICT projects in a rural developing country context achieving sustainable ICT. As argued in this thesis technology is not the key resource; it is the combination and system of different resources distributed along a time and space dimension that is the key. With our framework we have demonstrated that the ICT artefact is not the sustainability tool, it is the combination of different resources that makes it sustainable and competitive.

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Sezgin, Emre. "Itmem - Information Technology Management Enhancement Model: Assessment Of Information Technology Use In Organizations." Master's thesis, METU, 2010. http://etd.lib.metu.edu.tr/upload/12612353/index.pdf.

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This study proposes a new model for the assessment of information technology (IT) use in public and private companies, which is called ITMEM- Information Technology Management Enhancement Model. This model aims to assist decision making processes in information technology management. For this purpose, a tool is developed to explore strengths and weaknesses of a company in IT use. The model was developed upon a three-folded structure including (1) academic studies in technology management, (2) best practices which are developed for control over operations and processes including COBIT, CMMI and ITIL, and (3) standards about IT management and IT security. The conceptual framework of ITMEM is based on technology management process assessment model of M.J. Gregory. Methodological triangulation approach is adopted for the model for retrieving valid and reliable results. Triangulation consists of (1) semi structured interview, (2) presented company documents and (3) questionnaire developed upon relevant academic researches, best practices and standards. ITMEM was practiced on ten domestic and experienced companies in software &
development and manufacturing industries which were appraised in or in progress of being appraised in CMMI. The study revealed the benefits and deficiencies of IT use in the company. It also provided information for decision makers about IT value within companies, and demonstrated the effects of best practices and standards over IT use.The reported findings should be valuable assets to researchers studying on IT management and IT use in organizations.

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Fung, Yat-chu, and 馮一柱. "Information technology and empowerment in information society: use of computers amongst senior persons." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 2003. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B31245298.

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Molenaar, Daryn. "Perception of information : enriching location specific information through the use of calm computing." Thesis, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11838/2276.

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Thesis (MTech (Design))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2011.
Many studies have been conducted on the interaction between environments and relevant information in the field of interaction design. Most of these studies are focused on increasing the awareness of technology, information and the interaction between them. This awareness could negatively lead to an increase in information overload where each bit of information is competing to be the centre of a person's attention. This information overload gets compounded even more when a person is in a public place because of the amount of available commercial information like billboards, digital displays and printed media which are constantly pushing information into the space. Cognitive studies have shown that human beings have a limit to the amount of information they can consciously focus on and process. When a person reaches information saturation, the quality of their decision-making ability deteriorates drastically (Bray, 2008). Information overload can lead to a situation called decision paralysis. The research proposed an investigation into the possibility of decreasing information overload through the use of calm computing. Relevant information could be pushed to the periphery where it could be accessed or attended to when it was needed. It was argued that when the intake of peripheral information could become an unconscious activity, mainly through the use of ubiquitous computing, more attention could be given to other important activities like increasing social interaction in public spaces.

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Sun, Heshan. "Towards a better understanding of dynamics of IT use a new concept of adaptive IT use /." Related electronic resource: Current Research at SU : database of SU dissertations, recent titles available, full text:, 2007. http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/syr/main.

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Woods, Rebecca Jindalee. "Infants' use of luminance information in object individuation." Thesis, Texas A&M University, 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/261.

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Recent research suggests that by 4 months of age infants are able to individuate objects using form features, such as shape and size, but surface features, such as pattern and color, are not used until later in the first year (Wilcox, 1999). The current study sought to investigate two possible explanations for this developmental hierarchy. The visual maturation hypothesis suggests that the order in which infants use features to individuate objects corresponds to the order in which they are most readily processed by the developing visual system. A second hypothesis, the information processing biases hypothesis, suggests that infants are biased to attend to form features because form features provide information that is relevant to reasoning about object interactions. One way to test these hypotheses is to investigate infants' ability to individuate objects based on luminance. Luminance is detected at birth, so, according to the visual maturation hypothesis, luminance, like shape and size, will be used to individuate objects early in the first year. However, luminance is a surface property, so according to the information processing biases hypothesis, luminance, like pattern and color, will be used to individuate objects late in the first year. In the current study, 7-month-old (Experiment 1) and 11-month-old (Experiment 2) infants' use of luminance information in an object individuation task was investigated. The narrow-screen event-monitoring paradigm developed by Wilcox and Baillargeon (1998a) was used. Infants saw an event in which a ball moved behind a screen and a second ball emerged from behind the opposite edge of the screen. In one condition, the balls were identical, suggesting the presence of one object (same-luminance condition), and in another condition, the balls differed in luminance, suggesting the presence of two objects (different-luminance condition). The screen was either too narrow (narrow-screen event) or sufficiently wide (wide-screen event) to occlude two objects simultaneously. Seven-month-olds looked equally at each event, whereas 11.5-month-old's looked longer at the narrow-screen event in the different-luminance condition. These results suggest that 11.5-month-olds, but not 7.5-month-olds used luminance information to conclude that two distinct objects were involved in the event, thus supporting the information processing biases hypothesis.

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Backlund, Per. "The Use of Patterns in Information System Engineering." Thesis, University of Skövde, Department of Computer Science, 2001. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:his:diva-619.

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The aims of this dissertation are to investigate the use and usefulness of patterns in Information Systems Engineering and to identify future areas of research. In order to do this there is a need to survey different types of patterns and find a common concept of patterns. A pattern is based on experience found in the real world. A text or a model or a combination of the both can describe the pattern. A pattern is typically described in terms of context, forces, problem, and solution. These can be explicitly expressed or implicitly found in the description of the pattern.

The types of patterns dealt with are: object-oriented patterns; design patterns, analysis patterns; data model patterns; domain patterns; business patterns; workflow patterns and the deontic pattern. The different types of patterns are presented using the authors' own terminology.

The patterns described in the survey are classified with respect to different aspects. The intention of this analysis is to form a taxonomy for patterns and to bring order into the vast amount of patterns. This is an important step in order to find out how patterns are used and can be used in Information Systems Engineering. The aspects used in the classification are: level of abstraction; text or model emphasis; product or process emphasis; life cycle stage usage and combinations of these aspects.

Finally an outline for future areas of research is presented. The areas that have been considered of interest are: patterns and Information Systems Engineering methods; patterns and tools (tool support for patterns); patterns as a pedagogical aid; the extraction and documentation of patterns and patterns and novel applications of information technology. Each future area of research is sketched out.

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Häggquist, Elisabeth. "The Economic Value and Use of Geological Information." Doctoral thesis, Luleå tekniska universitet, Samhällsvetenskap, 2017. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:ltu:diva-65731.

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The overall purpose of this thesis is to investigate the economic value and use of geological information. Earthobservations of a geological nature, may have profound impacts on peoples everyday lives. Geological informationplays a key role in addressing the challenges of sustainable development, and contributes to improved decisionmakingprocesses related to, for instance, land degradation and water protection. Still, few have researched theeconomic values attached to such information. This thesis contains an introduction and five self-contained papers.Paper (I) provides a review of previous research addressing the economic value of geological information andother earth observations, as well as, related products, services and infrastructure. The paper also identifiesimportant lessons and topics that require increased attention in future research. The review of prior research showsthat significant economic benefits can be attached to the use of geological information. Still, it is often difficult tocompare results across studies since they differ in scope and make alternative assumptions concerning whichsectors to cover. Furthermore, previous research is not uniform in its treatment of potential (rather than onlyexisting) users, and it employs varying conceptions of avoided costs. The paper concludes that future researchshould devote more attention to the public and experience good characteristics of geological information and othertypes of earth observations, thus highlighting the preconditions for information adoption as well as addressing therole of potential users.Papers (II) and (III) investigate the determinants of adopting geological information in the public sector, with anemphasis on Swedish municipalities. Paper (II) contributes to the literature by providing theoretical explanationsand empirical findings on various individual and organizational factors influencing the adoption of geologicalinformation. The paper employs an information adoption model based on literature on diffusion of innovation. Itis estimated using data collected from 677 officials in all Swedish municipalities. The results indicate thatperceived usefulness and educational efforts have the largest influence on the adoption decision followed by agender effect. Furthermore, the results also show that organizational effects exist at the working unit level, butthere appear to be no spatial interactions across municipal boundaries.Paper (III) further investigates the adoption of geological information in the public sector by considering whetheranalyses of user patterns can be improved by considering an interrelated model estimation involving two types ofgeoinformation. The empirical tests focus on whether there are gender differences in how peer advice affects theuse of geoinformation. The information adoption model is estimated using probit and bivariate probits. Overall theresults indicate a more accurate prediction pattern when a secondary geoinformation decision was included, thussuggesting that different types of geoinformation should be analyzed jointly. The officials at Swedishmunicipalities tend to use both types of geoinformation, thus alluding to a demand for combined geoinformationproducts among the target population. Finally, there is evidence of women’s decisions to use geoinformation beingaffected by peer advice.Paper (IV) focuses on the economic value of hydrogeological information, namely water quality. The willingnessto pay (WTP) for reduced health risks following the exposure to emerging contaminants and microbial outbreaksin drinking water is assessed. Emerging contaminants, such as highly fluorinated substances (e..g., PFOA andPFOS), have been found in drinking water post treatment on a global level. The drinking water is the main sourceof exposure for humans. The WTP is assessed through a choice experiment approach, which also accounts fordifferences in perceptions between PFASs and microbial outbreaks due to parasites or bacteria. Knowledge aboutpublic preferences across different health threats is key to assessing support for policies aimed at reducing suchhealth risks. A majority of the respondents were found to have a higher WTP for reducing the risk of chemicalexposure to PFASs than reducing the corresponding risk of microbial outbreaks.In Paper (IV) it is evident that risk adverse individuals have a higher WTP for reducing health risks of drinkingwater, compared with individuals with other risk preferences. However, there is no consensus in the literature onhow to accurately capture risk preferences beyond financial decisions. Paper (V) therefore discusses thetheoretical assumptions used when measuring risk preferences and whether it is necessary to address domain riskspecific preferences. In order to test if a general risk preference is enough we present a hypothetical experimenton risk preferences for the health and financial domains, respectively. We also consider the design of theexperiment and compare the format with a reduced form to control for potential framing effects. The riskpreferences were elicited using switch multiple price list lotteries with hypothetical payments, and the questionswere adapted to the health domain by framing the lotteries as improvements in current health status using a visualanalogue scale as the reference point. The results show that individual risk preferences tend to be relativelyinconsistent across the two studied domains, and that the respondents appear to be more risk averse in the healthdomain than in the financial. The majority of the respondents tend to give too much weight to low-probabilityevents, which is consistent with cumulative prospect theory.

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Morris, Anne. "Expert systems and their use in information science." Thesis, Loughborough University, 1993. https://dspace.lboro.ac.uk/2134/28110.

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The overall aim of the work submitted here was to advance and disseminate knowledge In the field of expert systems in information science. More specifically the objectives were: (1) to review the field to date; (2) to develop expert system prototypes which give advice on online database selection and, to a much lesser extent, search statement modification; (3) to examine the roles which information professionals might play in expert system development; (4) to examine the expert systems teaching and research being undertaken in Library and Information Science (LIS) departments in the UK, North America and Australia.

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Chanana, Vivek, University of Western Sydney, of Science Technology and Environment College, and School of Computing and Information Technology. "Enhancing information retrieval effectiveness through use of context." THESIS_CSTE_CIT_Chanana_V.xml, 2004. http://handle.uws.edu.au:8081/1959.7/719.

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Information available in digital form has grown phenomenally in recent years. Finding the required information has become a difficult and challenging task. This is primarily due to the diversity and enormous volume of information available and the change in the nature of people now seeking information – from experts to ordinary users of desktop computers with varying interest and objectives. The problem of finding relevant information is further impacted by the poor retrieval effectiveness of most current information retrieval (IR) systems that are primarily based on keyword indexing techniques. Though these systems retrieve documents that contain those keywords specified in the query, the documents that are retrieved may not necessarily be in the context in which the user would have wanted them to be. This research works argues that exploiting the user’s context of the information need has the potential to improve the performance of information retrieval systems. Context can reduce the ambiguity by associating meanings to request/query terms, and thus limit the scope of the possible misinterpretations of query terms. A new way of defining context categories based on information type is proposed and this notion of context differs from the conventional way of defining information categories based on subject topics as it is closely linked with the situation in which the user’s needs for information originates. A new context-based information retrieval system where users could specify the context in which they are seeking information is presented. This work also includes a full-scale development, implementation and evaluation of the new context-based information system
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

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Andersson, Rikard. "Historical land-use information from culturally modified trees /." Umeå : Dept. of Forest Vegetation Ecology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, 2005. http://epsilon.slu.se/200561.pdf.

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Al-Yaseen, Hussein M. "The evaluation of information technology in operational use." Thesis, Brunel University, 2004. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.402511.

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Soto, Susana. "Information in dentistry : patterns of communication and use." Thesis, University of Sheffield, 1992. http://etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/2955/.

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The aim of the present study is to develop an explanation of the information seeking behaviour of dental professionals that relates the three main instances of this behaviour (users, their information needs, use of information sources) in a meaningful way. The research looks into the information-seeking behaviour of one of the less investigated groups of health practitioners and it does so from a qualitative point of view, using data collected by means of semi-structured interviews. 110 dental professionals were interviewed between May 1989 and June 1990. The interviewees were dental professionals in Sheffield District Health Authority (postgraduate students; academic staff; community service dentists; hospital staff and general dental practitioners). A coding paradigm based on grounded theory was applied to analyze their replies. This basic paradigm explains the information-seeking behaviour of dental professionals in terms of 'conditions' that provoke seeking information; 'strategies' implemented to seek information; 'interactions' the ways in which information sources are used. The conditions for their information needs are created by their clinical tasks (diagnosis, treatment and delivery of dentistry) or their academic tasks (teaching and lecturing, research and publications). Dental professionals apply six basic strategies for seeking information: Reading, Talking, Enquiring, Attending/organizing continuing education events, Watching and Using the library. Each of these strategies is associated with the use of certain information sources: Reading with written/printed literature, Talking with colleagues, Enquiring with individuals from other occupations or professions, Attending... with courses and conferences, Watching with audiovisual materials and Using the library with the use of printed literature via a library service. While the strategies are common to every subgroup in the study, the actual patterns of information-seeking vary from subgroup to subgroup because the strategies are implemented in different ways by each of them. The reason for this variation is determined by the particular combination of clinical and academic tasks of each subgroup. The findings - apart from describing how a representative group of dental professionals uses a variety of information sources - have several implications for library and information services, computer applications, dental training and further research in health care user studies.

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PIRES, CLAUDIA MACHADO. "USE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IN SUPPLY CHAIN HOSPITAL." PONTIFÍCIA UNIVERSIDADE CATÓLICA DO RIO DE JANEIRO, 2013. http://www.maxwell.vrac.puc-rio.br/Busca_etds.php?strSecao=resultado&nrSeq=23015@1.

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O presente trabalho tem como objetivo apresentar os principais problemas e desafios da logística hospitalar e como o uso da tecnologia da informação pode ajudar a indústria da saúde a minimizar os impactos destes problemas e desafios. O mercado de saúde, envolvendo fabricantes, distribuidores, fornecedores e estabelecimentos de saúde, sofre grande controle dos órgãos reguladores para atendimento de exigências quanto à rastreabilidade, manipulação, acondicionamento, dispensação e descarte de produtos para a saúde. Complexidades como a dificuldade de gestão pela falta ou excesso de estoques, multiplicidades de itens comerciais, embalagens, especificações e apresentações de medicamentos e a obrigatoriedade de controle de lote de fabricação e data de validade de insumos para a saúde, são grandes impactantes e responsáveis por custos com suprimentos representarem 25 por cento a 35 por cento dos custos totais operacionais de uma organização de saúde. Outro grande desafio do gestor de saúde está em garantir a segurança do paciente, através de processos de prescrição, dispensação e administração de medicamentos de forma controlada, estruturada e segura. Estudos afirmam que os erros com medicação representam a maior causa de não conformidades no ambiente hospitalar. Neste contexto a tecnologia da informação se apresenta como ferramenta para realizar a gestão adequada da logística hospitalar, minimizando a complexidade e os desafios da indústria de saúde, destacando a utilização de código de barras e identificação por rádio frequência – RFID como umas das principais ferramentas da tecnologia da informação adotadas pelas organizações de saúde em busca de realizar uma gestão logística eficaz e eficiente.
This paper aims to present the main problems and challenges of hospital logistics and how the use of information technology can help the healthcare industry to minimize the impacts of these problems and challenges. The healthcare market involving manufacturers, distributors, suppliers and healthcare facilities, suffers great control of regulators to fulfill such requirements as traceability, handling, packaging, dispensing and disposal of health products. Complexities such as the difficulty of managing the lack or excess inventories, multiplicities of commercial items, packaging, specifications and presentations of medicines and compulsory control of batch manufacturing and expiry date of health inputs are large and impactful responsible for costs with supplies representing 25 per cent to 35 per cent of total operating costs of a health organization. Another major challenge of the health manager is to ensure patient safety, through processes of prescribing, dispensing and administration of drugs in a controlled, structured and safe way. Studies claim that medication errors represent the major cause of non-conformity in the hospital setting. In this context information technology presents itself as a tool to achieve the proper management of hospital logistics, minimizing the complexity and challenges of the healthcare industry, highlighting the use of barcode and radio frequency identification - RFID as one of the main tools information technology adopted by healthcare organizations seeking to conduct an effective and efficient logistics management.

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Joneidy, S. "Making sense of the information systems use field." Thesis, University of Salford, 2015. http://usir.salford.ac.uk/35919/.

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Information Systems (IS) Use has been discussed for more than three decades. During this time various perspectives of IS Use are found in the literature, which leads to a complex picture. Thus the main research question is “How to make sense of the IS Use field?” To begin to address this question I discuss the diversity and development of IS Use discourses as contributing to this complexity. The standard ways of understanding diversity and development of perspectives or discourses as paradigms (Burrell and Morgan, etc.) are found to be insufficient. A deeper understanding of what paradigm means is required. Yet, discussion of what paradigms are in philosophy of science (Kuhn, etc.) is controversial and is unable to address both diversity and development in the IS Use field. This thesis argues that Dooyeweerd’s philosophy can provide fruitful understanding of these. This is given an indicative test by investigating ‘what is important’ to the authors of seminal papers who stimulated the main IS Use discourses. A desk study approach was used to aspectually analyse the relevant texts in these papers. The findings are that I) Dooyeweerd's philosophy can provide new insight into the nature of paradigms. II) Dooyeweerd's aspects can provide a rich understanding of the diversity and development of Information Systems Use paradigms. These give one way of making sense of IS Use field that overcomes problems of existing approaches. This way making sense of the IS Use field can contribute: I) To theory, first in IS, by bringing integration to the field of IS Use and stimulating new avenues of research, Second to philosophy of science, by Dooyeweerdian insight into the nature of paradigms; II) To methodology in IS by using Dooyeweerd’s aspects as a tool to investigate what is implicitly held as important to the authors; III) To Dooyeweerd research community by showing the application of it in addressing the diversity and development of IS Use perspectives. Limitations of the research and possible further research are discussed in the conclusion.

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Stringer, Neil Simon. "The use of enhanced depth information in telepresence." Thesis, University of Surrey, 2003. http://epubs.surrey.ac.uk/2181/.

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Краснюк, Світлана Олександрівна. "The use of information technologies in learning process." Thesis, Київський національний університет технологій та дизайну, 2020. https://er.knutd.edu.ua/handle/123456789/15316.

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Дядечко, Алла Миколаївна, Алла Николаевна Дядечко, Alla Mykolaivna Diadechko, and V. Rudenko. "Ecological aspects of use the information-communication technologies." Thesis, Видавництво СумДУ, 2008. http://essuir.sumdu.edu.ua/handle/123456789/16072.

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Rudenko, Viktoria. "Influence of use information-communication technologies on environment." Thesis, Видавництво СумДУ, 2008. http://essuir.sumdu.edu.ua/handle/123456789/8293.

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Developments in computer and telecommunications technology have pushed information into the forefront of business. Information is now considered the most important factor of production in a world economy that is gradually becoming globalised. These developments are also the principal pillars upon which the change from an industrial age to an information society hinges. This paper spells out the role of information in the new “information society” and how it affects the fortunes of a nation. When you are citing the document, use the following link http://essuir.sumdu.edu.ua/handle/123456789/8293

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Dolezel, Paul Matthew. "Student Use of Information Sources About Student Activities." Thesis, Virginia Tech, 1997. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/36857.

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The ability of professionals in student activities to inform students of scheduled events is a key factor in the success of their programs. While traditional forms of communication with students, such as newspaper announcements and campus flyers, have not been totally reliable, they remain among the standard forms of getting the word to students about campus activities and events. Other forms of communication with students now are available, such as web pages and electronic infolines, but student activities professionals still do not know with any degree of certainty which forms are preferred by students and which are most effective. The study was guided by the question, " What are students' preferred and actual record of use of selecting sources of information about campus activities at Virginia Tech?" and was intended to collect and analyze data about actual student use of various forms of formal communication to inform them about campus events. Descriptive statistics and chi-square analyses were used to portray actual use patterns of students and to test whether these patterns differ by class standing and gender. It is anticipated that findings from this study will be useful to all student groups who plan events for wide-spread participation by students, to advisors of student groups including the Virginia Tech Union, and to student affairs professionals who are responsible for enhancing student involvement on campus.
Master of Arts

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Carthy, Laura. "Linking Wheels for use in quantum information processing." Thesis, University of Manchester, 2010. https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/linking-wheels-for-use-in-quantum-information-processing(ca5addcd-5ce1-4e9d-86f5-e56405a4092c).html.

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Heterometallic Cr7Ni-containing wheels have been identified as potential qubits for use in quantum information processing. The work described in this thesis details attempts to form a variety of multi-qubit systems for the purposes of better understanding the interactions occurring between the wheels and also forming potential 2-qubit quantum gates using redox/photo-active links. Mono-substituted wheels of type [Pr2NH2][Cr7MF8(O2CCMe3)15(L)], where L is acarboxylate with a pendant coordinating group, have been synthesised for use as bulky ligands in coordination chemistry with metal complexes. Various carboxylates have been substituted into the wheels and the products reacted with first row transition metal complexes in order to extend the series of linked-wheel systems. Many of these novel complexes have been characterised by X-ray crystallography, and in certain cases EPR studies have been undertaken to probe the strength of interactions occurring via different bridging units. The first well-established substituted wheel, [Pr2NH2][Cr7NiF8(O2CCMe3)15(O2CPy)] (Py= pyridine), has also been used in reactions with second and third row transition metal centres to show its ability to act as a ligand under more harsh conditions. In addition, the disubstituted product [Pr2NH2][Cr7NiF8(O2CCMe3)14(O2CPy)2] has been reacted with a copper complex in order to form a polymeric structure. Purple wheels of type [Cr7NiF3(O2CCMe3)15(EtGu)(H2O)] have been linked through a variety of extended organic molecules containing a minimum of two pendent pyridyl groups. Use of a ligand containing four pyridyl groups, 2,2´:4,4´´:4´,4´´´-quaterpyridyl(qpy) produced a three-wheel-containing system, creating an interesting modification of the wheel backbone not seen before. A series of transition metal complexes, containing qpy and its extended derivative bbpe, has been synthesised in order to form linked-wheel systems. While none of these systems has to date yielded a crystal structure, a significant amount of evidence has been collected to confirm successful formation of the desired products. UV-vis spectroscopic and electrochemical measurements show that these compounds are photo and/or redox-active,and preliminary luminescence studies indicate that the presence of the wheels quenches the emission from metal-to-ligand charge-transfer excited states. A series of mixed-wheel systems has been synthesised by reacting four different monosubstituted green wheels with four purple wheels (Cr7M, where M = Ni, Co, Mn or Zn). A total of fourteen novel systems has been formed, with two of the attempted reactions failing to occur. EPR studies on Cr7Ni-Cr7Ni linked systems show that the strongest interaction occurs when using isonicotinate as a link, with 4-pyridazinecarboxylate giving the weakest coupling. Studies have also been undertaken on Cr7Ni-Cr7Mn and Cr7Ni-Cr7Zn systems, with the former showing interactions and the latter showing none. Initial work to link wheels together indirectly via their templates was ultimately unsuccessful, but a variety of potential linker molecules were synthesised and are described.

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Moghe, Rashmi. "Consumer use of the Internet for insomnia information." Thesis, The University of Sydney, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/2123/12347.

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Introduction Initiating various self-help strategies whilst delaying professional help-seeking is a common phenomenon reported among patients with insomnia. Clearly, patients with insomnia have avenues of seeking help outside the conventional health professional channels. One of these avenues may include the Internet. The Internet has been recognised as a cost-effective means of disseminating health information to a wide patient audience who are otherwise not reached through conventional modes of health care delivery. Thus, the Internet is an easily accessible health information resource for people with insomnia, especially as this help is available 24 hours a day. The utilisation of the Internet has been recognised within insomnia research, both as a causative risk for those using it into the early hours of the night, or as a medium to deliver interventions. However, little research has been published concerning the use of the Internet as a source of information about insomnia by Australian consumers. Although the Internet offers a convenient, accessible, and private source of information to those with a health problem, the diversity and variability of information available online can make consumers with limited training in health information retrieval especially susceptible to accessing information with questionable integrity. Based on the premise of Spielman’s 3Ps model (predisposition, precipitants, and perpetuation), adopting non-evidence–based sleep-promoting strategies (e.g. drinking alcohol) gleaned from, for example, the Internet, could potentially contribute to the development of maladaptive behaviors that perpetuate insomnia rather than resolve it. Poorly managed insomnia poses a significant burden on society through increased health-care expenditure and reduced workplace productivity. Despite these potential implications, little is known about the accuracy of the information about insomnia that is retrieved or how the consumers utilise this information. Thus, consumers’ online behaviour, experiences and preferences, as well as the effects of and the problems associated with online information about insomnia need to be evaluated. Exploring consumers’ health information-seeking patterns and behaviors on the Internet may also provide insight into their health-care needs and illuminate some of the upstream issues that may affect health information seeking in this insomnia patient group. Therefore, the overarching aim of this study was to explore consumer use of the Internet for accessing information about insomnia. We primarily focussed on the social, health and sleep demography of insomnia patients who used the Internet and explored patterns of information seeking as well as the implications of this use. Methods An online survey about sleep health information seeking on the Internet was circulated to Australian consumers registered on the database of a commercial market research company (online panel). The questionnaire was comprised of seven sections containing 65 questions related to demographics, medical history and lifestyle. Included in the questionnaire were also two validated instruments including: the Insomnia Severity Index (ISI), and the Dysfunctional Beliefs and Attitudes about Sleep Scale (DBAS-16). The questionnaire queried general patterns of seeking information and help for sleep problems, and specifically queried health information seeking patterns on the Internet. Inclusion criteria for this study mandated that participants: be ≥ 18 years of age; with adequate English comprehension; be experiencing insomnia or insomnia symptoms and; have used the Internet. Sampling continued until at least 1000 complete responses were obtained. Results 1013 participants completed the questionnaire. Equal numbers of male and female subjects participated (mean age: 45.0 ± 16.0 years). A majority of participants were middle aged, married, eastern state residents with subclinical levels of insomnia and marked levels of dysfunctional beliefs. The Mean ISI score was 12.33 (SD ± 4.0) and the mean DBAS-16 score was 5.8 (SD ± 1.5). Only a third of the participants had consulted a physician for their sleep problems. The ‘physician’ was ranked first as a preferred source of health information by participants followed closely by the ‘Internet’ in second place. Most of the participants were frequent Internet users who mainly used Google for searching health information. Information of interest revolved around insomnia treatment options and symptomology. All participants accessed fewer than 10 websites for a given search and less than one quarter of participants (21%) discussed online information with their healthcare provider. However, 80% of participants’ decisions about seeking medical help and/or medication use were influenced by this information. In the logistic regression analysis, having a higher score in DBAS 16 questionnaire (e.g. having a high level of beliefs about sleep that are detrimental to sleep health) and medication for insomnia were identified as significant predictors for insomnia-related Internet use. Conclusion To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to exclusively explore insomnia- related Internet search patterns of consumers in Australia. Therefore, this study represents an important step forward for optimising insomnia information on the Internet. Given that the Internet has become a widely used tool for sourcing information about health, this study can guide professional experts to structure key sleep health messages for the public. Knowing the profile of consumers who access the Internet for information about insomnia can also help insomnia experts to shape content that is targeted and helpful for information seekers. A knowledge of ‘who’ uses the Internet to search for information about insomnia and ‘what’ sites have been accessed may be helpful in understanding the health beliefs and expectations of consumers and in targeting health-related information. This study can help inform the design of websites with information about insomnia because it demonstrates what topics are frequently searched for, what search terms are used and the difficulties consumers have with using the Internet. Finally, consumers who took medications for insomnia were half as likely to look for insomnia information on the Internet than those who did not take medication for insomnia. Clearly, when prescribed a medication by a physician or recommended one by a pharmacist, there is sufficient detail about the medication provided to satiate the need for information. Mostly, it is expected that the detailed counselling is more a role of the pharmacists, given time pressures on primary care physicians. This implies that though pharmacists were not listed as one of the top ranked sources of information about insomnia; in practice, they are possibly providing adequate information and counselling with regards to insomnia treatment to those asking for insomnia medications. To conclude, the Internet does represent an important health-care portal for insomnia patients and warrants further investigation as targeted e-health interventions become more prominent in the routine management of insomnia.

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Koo, Michelle Mui Sze. "The use of written medicine information by consumers." Phd thesis, Faculty of Pharmacy, 2005. http://hdl.handle.net/2123/9989.

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Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Information use'

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