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Personal information management (PIM) is an interdisciplinary research area with established theoretical foundations from information science and applied empirical research from human‐computer interaction (HCI). The increasingly popular activity tracking technology (ATT) has given rise to a new type of personal information about one's daily physical activities, which has not been scrutinized under theoretical frameworks in PIM. This article presents an in‐depth qualitative interview study supplemented by participant‐driven photo elicitation with 20 long‐term activity tracker users about how they manage personal information generated by ATT. Key findings include the identification of two distinctive user groups (i.e., consistent casual users and powers users) among long‐term activity tracker users and an in‐depth portrayal of these groups' PIM behaviors with ATT. These behaviors include concurrent and subsequent PIM practices, 6 types of PIM activities, and the use of a spectrum of PIM tools. This research provides timely theoretical updates to PIM under the background of self‐tracking technologies, outlines empirical implications to improve ATT in support of PIM, and offers recommendations for incorporating participant‐driven photo elicitation as a supplementary method for qualitative interviews in information behavior research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction. This exploratory study investigates the phenomenon of mobile information overload. We present a multi-faceted picture of smartphone users’ information tasks in relation to their experience of mobile information overload. Method. We used qualitative interviewing methods, incorporating a modified critical incident technique and elements of contextual inquiry, to collect data from nine smartphone users. Analysis. Interviews were audio recorded and transcribed, and notes from the contextual inquiry were added to the transcription. We used thematic analysis to identify significant themes in the data. Results. This study presents findings on the types, contexts and preferences of mobile information tasks reported by participants; their experiences of mobile information overload, including symptoms and causes; and their mobile information overload coping strategies. The findings indicate that: (1) mobile information tasks are closely related to the experience of mobile information overload; (2) mobile information overload is a prevalent phenomenon among smartphone users; (3) mitigating interventions for mobile information overload should aim at designing for personal boundaries and removing technological constraints. Conclusion. This study is an initial examination of smartphone users’ mobile information tasks and experiences of mobile information overload. We present implications for future mobile technologies to mitigate the negatives of mobile information overload. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This is the second part of a two-part article that presents a theoretical and an empirical model of the everyday life information needs of urban teenagers. Part 2 focuses on the derivation of the empirical model and on its relationship to the theoretical model presented in Part 1. Part 2 also provides examples from the project data to support each of the components of the empirical model, which ties 28 information needs topics to the seven independent variables in the theoretical model. Comparison of the empirical model to the results of past youth information behavior research shows that the participants in this study tended to have the same types of information needs as previous researchers have found with more advantaged, nonminority groups of teens. This finding is significant because it suggests that teenagers have similar information needs across socioeconomic, ethnic, cultural, and geographic boundaries. Due to the exploratory nature of this study, however, additional research is necessary to confirm this possibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This is the first part of a two-part article that offers a theoretical and an empirical model of the everyday life information needs of urban teenagers. The qualitative methodology used to gather data for the development of the models included written surveys, audio journals, written activity logs, photographs, and semistructured group interviews. Twenty-seven inner-city teens aged 14 through 17 participated in the study. Data analysis took the form of iterative pattern coding using QSR NVivo 2 software (QSR International, 2002). The resulting theoretical model includes seven areas of urban teen development: the social self, the emotional self, the reflective self, the physical self, the creative self, the cognitive self, and the sexual self. The researchers conclude that the essence of teen everyday life information seeking (ELIS) is the gathering and processing of information to facilitate the teen-to-adulthood maturation process. ELIS is self-exploration and world exploration that helps teens understand themselves and the social and physical worlds in which they live. This study shows the necessity of tying youth information-seeking research to developmental theory in order to examine the reasons why adolescents engage in various information behaviors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reviews the book "Human Information Interaction: An Ecological Approach to Information Behavior," by Raya Fidel.