Identifying the implied information ‘user’ in models of information behaviour through a meta-ethnographic approach

Introduction. Information seeking and avoidance have often been treated as two unequal concepts favoring information discovery, though information may not always be “good” and wanted. With a focus on the methodological approach, this poster addresses the notion of information use and non-use in models of information behaviour (IB) to identify the implied information ‘user’.
Methods. The meta-ethnographic methodology (Noblit and Hare, 1988) was employed in a new way to strengthen the systematic and inductive analysis of ‘meanings’ emerging from five IB-models.
Analysis. Each model was systematically examined according to the seven meta-ethnographic phases in an ongoing “dialogue” between the model, a conceptual framework of information avoidance (IA) and prior writings about the model.
Results. The implied ‘user’ emerging from the models (still) appeared to be driven by a need to discover, seek, find and use information to solve a problematic situation, hence, positioned as an active or passive information seeker. The methodological potentials, barriers and limitations are discussed guiding further research.
Conclusion.
The study suggests a new analytical approach to IB research fostering deeper insight into tacit and underlying notions of information behavior that may affect how we understand, study and support human information users. Further research is needed for validation.