{"title":"Young adults’ information behaviour during the COVID-19 pandemic: a pilot study","authors":"J. Bartlett, Aaron D. Bowen-Ziecheck","doi":"10.47989/irisic2223","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"This paper presents the results of a pilot study exploring the information behaviour of young adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. The pilot study data were collected using semi-structured interviews with five undergraduate students. Questions included what information was needed regarding COVID-19, where and how it was obtained, and how it was evaluated. Analysis. Coding followed a thematic analysis approach. At this early stage, coding involved emergent open coding to identify themes within the data. The information most needed by the participants related to local policies and restrictions (e.g., lockdowns, mask mandates, university policies) as well as policies relating to international travel. The main health related topic was where to get vaccinated. Participants preferred government, university, and mainstream media sources, while largely avoiding social media. They reported various approaches to determining the credibility of sources, including relying on known sites, and prioritizing first-hand sources such as government and public health. Participants also reported that their credibility assessment varied geographically, with government and mainstream media more or less trusted depending on location. The findings provide insight into young adults’ information behaviour, and provide the basis for the continuation of this study.","PeriodicalId":47431,"journal":{"name":"Information Research-An International Electronic Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.7000,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"1","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Information Research-An International Electronic Journal","FirstCategoryId":"91","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.47989/irisic2223","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"INFORMATION SCIENCE & LIBRARY SCIENCE","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 1
Abstract
This paper presents the results of a pilot study exploring the information behaviour of young adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. The pilot study data were collected using semi-structured interviews with five undergraduate students. Questions included what information was needed regarding COVID-19, where and how it was obtained, and how it was evaluated. Analysis. Coding followed a thematic analysis approach. At this early stage, coding involved emergent open coding to identify themes within the data. The information most needed by the participants related to local policies and restrictions (e.g., lockdowns, mask mandates, university policies) as well as policies relating to international travel. The main health related topic was where to get vaccinated. Participants preferred government, university, and mainstream media sources, while largely avoiding social media. They reported various approaches to determining the credibility of sources, including relying on known sites, and prioritizing first-hand sources such as government and public health. Participants also reported that their credibility assessment varied geographically, with government and mainstream media more or less trusted depending on location. The findings provide insight into young adults’ information behaviour, and provide the basis for the continuation of this study.
期刊介绍:
Information Research, is an open access, international, peer-reviewed, scholarly journal, dedicated to making accessible the results of research across a wide range of information-related disciplines. It is published by the University of Borås, Sweden, with the financial support of an NOP-HS Scientific Journal Grant. It is edited by Professor T.D. Wilson, and is hosted, and given technical support, by Lund University Libraries, Sweden.