Where Students Start and What They Do When They Get Stuck: A Qualitative Inquiry into Academic Information-Seeking and Help-Seeking Practices

Thomas, Susan and Tewell, Eamon and Willson, Gloria Where Students Start and What They Do When They Get Stuck: A Qualitative Inquiry into Academic Information-Seeking and Help-Seeking Practices. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 2017, vol. 43, n. 3, pp. 224-231. [Journal article (Paginated)]

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English abstract

This study investigates two questions key to academic library resources and services: Which sources are students most likely to use to begin their academic work? Whom do students tend to consult for research assistance? In-depth interviews conducted with 15 undergraduate and graduate students were thematically analyzed through a three-step process. The findings indicate that students are most likely to consult faculty and peers for assistance and are largely unaware of librarians' roles, while they tend to begin research using library databases and do not necessarily start with Google. In addition, student use of small study groups as learning networks and reliance upon alternate sites to conduct research emerged as unanticipated themes.

Item type: Journal article (Paginated)
Keywords: University students, Academic libraries, Information seeking, Interviews, Academic work
Subjects: C. Users, literacy and reading. > CB. User studies.
D. Libraries as physical collections. > DD. Academic libraries.
Depositing user: Eamon Tewell
Date deposited: 12 Sep 2017 17:21
Last modified: 12 Sep 2017 17:21
URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10760/31469

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