Z. Bigdeli; N. YousefAgoli
Abstract
This research attempted to investigate the information needs and information- seeking behavior of experts at Sugarcane and By-Products Development Company, Khuzestan Province, to suggest ways of meeting these needs. The study also considered motivations to seek information, subjects sought, use of information ...
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This research attempted to investigate the information needs and information- seeking behavior of experts at Sugarcane and By-Products Development Company, Khuzestan Province, to suggest ways of meeting these needs. The study also considered motivations to seek information, subjects sought, use of information resources, ways and channels of information- seeking, and the barriers to accessing information. The research is a descriptive (survey type) study, using a questionnaire with 28 items to collect data. Of the 250 copies of the questionnaire distributed, 158 were completed and returned, thus yielding a response rate of 63.2 percent. Descriptive statistics as well as analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey test were applied to analyse the findings of the study. The results of the study revealed that there are significant differences among experts in various departments and sites of the company in terms of information- seeking behavior. The results also showed that experts seek information to upgrade their knowledge, to use new technologies, and to update their general information. Experts mostly study in the fields of agriculture, accounting, civil and electrical engineering, respectively. The pattern of using information sources is as follows: Persian books (59.2%), Persian journals (51.9%), English books (41.1%), printed technical records and reports (41.1%), plans (37.3%), English journals (36.7%), theses (34.2%), CDs (27.8%), and floppies (24.1%). Among information channels, experts consult with friends and colleagues (72.7%), participate in conferences and seminars (44.3%). But among formal channels, they prefer to use personal libraries (62.2%) and Sugarcane Scientific and Technical Information Center (55.1%). However, use of agricultural databanks stands at the lowest rate (1.9%). Experts also prefer to browse book-shelves and refer to the librarians rather than use library catalogs independently. It was also revealed that 84.8% of experts depend on the Sugarcane Scientific and Technical Information Center for their research, although most of them use the library only once in more than a month. The barriers to use the Sugarcane Scientific and Technical Information Center effectively are: poor library collection, long daily working hours, long distance between the Sugarcane Scientific and Technical Information Center and the plants, and time constrain.
