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What does inspiration mean to creative amateurs? Inspiration as a concept has been hard to define in information science terms. Several theories of information-seeking behavior have also been proposed to be applicable to inspiration-seeking, but have not seen empirical testing. While previous researchers on inspiration have mostly focused on artists and designers, this essay has studied amateurs and makers engaged in creative hobbies. Based on a survey distributed to study circles organized under Swedish adult educational associations, the grounded theory analysis indicated that inspiration is important as a feeling of motivation, joy, well-being and productivity, a source of ideas, and a driving force in the creative process. The results of the survey also showed that more passive information-seeking strategies, such as serendipitous encounters, browsing, and social interaction, were more commonly associated with finding inspiration than active strategies, such as systematic searches and question-based seeking, within the group. The responses showed that the respondents’ perceptions of inspiration were somewhat idiosyncratic, and future research based on individual or focus group interviews would be needed to explore the more ambiguous concepts and answers gleaned in this study. This is a two years master's thesis in Library and information science.

Research has shown that seniors are a group that use digital devices and the internet differently than the ”digital natives” born into the digital era. The senior group is growing and the population in this group is constantly changing. The purpose of this study is to investigate information seeking behaviour among seniors in everyday life practice, related to media- and information literacy. This is a qualitative study and the data was collected through four interviews with seniors in the ages 71-81 years old. The study has a theoretical frame in Reijo Savolainens ”Everyday Life Informations Seeking model”. I have used thematic analysis to identify codes and themes in the empiric material. The results show that the seniors in the study have adopted enough media- and information literacy to function in society and as they age they have less interest in keeping themselves updated with digitalization. The fast digital development and digital literacy is challenging and the seniors feel barriers with orienting in digital environments. The seniors have adopted digital media to both ”practical- and orienting information” but are using these in parallel with traditional media. The seniors have varied digital litteracy and there is some difference between the knowledge and needs of the people who took part in the study. The seniors have adopted the internet and new technology to be able to participate in society, they use the webb and apps for things such as banking, parking and communicating. The telephone is preferred for quick contacts and problem solving but when communicating with relatives and peers the seniors also use communication platforms such as WhatsApp, Facetime and Zoom.

The aim of this study is to identify the information behavior of fanfiction authors by applying Reijo Savolainen’s model of Everyday Life Information Seeking to the function of information in fandom spaces. Fandom is a group of people and a space that is constantly dealing with and surrounded by information, which requires specific strategies and knowledge to be able to search for and find information. Fanfiction authors are in a role where they both require information in order to produce their works, and creators of information which are of use to other members of the fandom and other fanfiction authors. Through qualitative semi-structured interviews with five fanfiction authors who write multi-chapter fanfictions in the Sci-Fi genre this study seeks to answer how they seek, choose and value information in the creation process of their work, how they produce information in their work, and how this behavior can be understood by applying the theory of Everyday Life Information Seeking. A thematic analysis identifies six recurring themes in the interviews: verification of sources; choice of platform for publication; social searching; passive searching; avoidance of searching; attitude towards and utilization of Wikis. The themes are then analyzed to identify whether the Everyday Life Information Seeking model fits these themes. This analysis shows that fanfiction authors have diverse and creative methods for searching for information, methods that are similar to ones developed for other areas of their life. They have good skills in evaluating sources but still end up selecting sources that might be inaccurate if it is more convenient or better suited, and they avoid seeking information they deem too difficult to find, understand, might elicit negative feelings, or they believe the reader won’t notice. In conclusion, fanfiction authors keep within a rigid role of authors, and do not aim to reproduce facts, but to tell a believable story, and in the process they become producers of information themselves.

This paper investigates the patterns of informal scholarly communication on social media as they manifest themselves among scholars at Umeå University. A survey was sent out to the university’s scholars, from PhD students all the way through to professors, and received 747answers from a total of 2646 requests. The survey gathered background data, data on how scholars build and maintain their academic networks via social media, and data on scholars’ use of social media for seeking information. The data thus gathered was interpreted through a comparative analysis. The main hypothesis was that, following the work of Tony Becher and Paul R. Trowler, the various faculties of the university would constitute distinguishable ”tribes” with their own customs regarding using social media for academic purposes. The data was furthermore analysed looking for patterns of use by gender, by academic position, and by the firmness of that position – or, putting it more plainly, job security. The analysis revealed that in terms of networking, the relevant variables were those of gender and academic position, with women being more avid social media networkers than men, and more junior scholars more avid than their seniors. However, in terms of the actual social networks used, there was a distinct tendency for humanist scholars to use Facebook which set them apart from the other three faculties. In terms of information seeking, there was again a finding of the more junior scholars leading the way, but also a clear indication of differences rooted in faculties. The humanist scholars were found to be by some distance more inclined to both seek information on social media, and to help others seeking it on social media, compared to the other faculties. The medical scholars, by contrast, were also by some distance the least inclined to both seeking and helping. As above, the humanists had a marked preference for using Facebook when seeking information through social media.

The purpose of this bachelor’s thesis is to explore the information practices present in hobby genealogy. The thesis uses a qualitative content analysis to analyse two popular Swedish genealogy magazines published between 2016 and 2019. The study investigates the information sources, objects, competences and emotions that the practice is built on. Our theoretical framework is centred around Reckwitz’ ideas of practice theory (2002), and the practice theory model introduced by Shove, Pantzar, and Watson (2012). The study finds that the information practices within hobby genealogy are heterogenous and extensive, and that information is a central part of the practice. The study also finds that emotions and motivations are important parts of understanding how the practice is maintained.

The aim of this bachelor thesis is to investigate how readers go about selecting fiction in their everyday life. The aims are to get information on where readers get their information regarding which books to read in their everyday life, which sources they use and why they use those sources. The study focuses on readers who are 18+ and that practice leisure reading in their everyday life. The research questions are: What sources do adult readers use to find book tips? How do grown up readers describe and motivate the sources they use to find book tips? The methodology used is qualitative semi-structured interviews with eight adult readers. The theoretical framework used in the study comes from Kirsty Williamson’s theory of the role of incidental information acquisition in regards to the everyday life information needs and seeking. The results of the study show that the majority of the participating readers’ sources for their everyday life information seeking align with earlier studies. From the perspective of Williamson’s theory readers use sources such as family and friends which are categorized as intimate personal networks, social media, blogs and book clubs which falls under broader personal networks, mass media such as news paper, hash tags, TV and internet, and institutional sources such as the library and book shops.

Denna rapport presenterar en utveckling av uDecide, som är ett sorts hjälpmedel för att lättare kunna ta beslut. Ett verktyg som man kan använda för att ställa frågor till andra människor med hjälp av en bild och svarsalternativ för att få ett personligt svar eller åsikt. Syftet med detta projekt är att utveckla en användbar hi-fi prototyp som i sin tur ska vidareutvecklas av webbyrån Roxbury och uDecidegrundarna. Arbetet utgår från en befintlig uDecide iOS mobilapplikation, och fokus har lagts på att förbättra användarupplevelsen och implementera nya funktioner. Med hjälp av förstudier och användartester har vi utvecklat en webbaserad, responsiv hi fi-prototyp. Lösningen presenterar ny utveckling av navigering, struktur på inlägg och ny meny. Ett kommentarsfält har implementerats i hi-fi prototypen vilket kommer att ge användarna möjlighet att interagera med varandra och ge mer personliga åsikter. This report describes a development of the mobile application uDecide. uDecide is a tool which you can use to ask other people a question including a picture and alternative answers to get an individual answer or opinion. The objective of this project is to develop an usable hi-fi prototype, which in turn will be further developed by the web designers Roxbury and the founders of uDecide. The development originates from a current uDecide IOS mobile application and focus is to improve user satisfaction and to implement new functions. Supported by pre-development research and user tests we have developed a webbased, responsive and interactive hi-fi prototype. The solution presents a new development in navigation, structure of additions and responses, including a new menu. A commentary function has been implemented in the hi-fi prototype, which will give the users the option to interact and provide more personal opinions.

Denna rapport presenterar en utveckling av uDecide, som är ett sorts hjälpmedel för att lättare kunna ta beslut. Ett verktyg som man kan använda för att ställa frågor till andra människor med hjälp av en bild och svarsalternativ för att få ett personligt svar eller åsikt. Syftet med detta projekt är att utveckla en användbar hi-fi prototyp som i sin tur ska vidareutvecklas av webbyrån Roxbury och uDecidegrundarna. Arbetet utgår från en befintlig uDecide iOS mobilapplikation, och fokus har lagts på att förbättra användarupplevelsen och implementera nya funktioner. Med hjälp av förstudier och användartester har vi utvecklat en webbaserad, responsiv hi fi-prototyp. Lösningen presenterar ny utveckling av navigering, struktur på inlägg och ny meny. Ett kommentarsfält har implementerats i hi-fi prototypen vilket kommer att ge användarna möjlighet att interagera med varandra och ge mer personliga åsikter. This report describes a development of the mobile application uDecide. uDecide is a tool which you can use to ask other people a question including a picture and alternative answers to get an individual answer or opinion. The objective of this project is to develop an usable hi-fi prototype, which in turn will be further developed by the web designers Roxbury and the founders of uDecide. The development originates from a current uDecide IOS mobile application and focus is to improve user satisfaction and to implement new functions. Supported by pre-development research and user tests we have developed a webbased, responsive and interactive hi-fi prototype. The solution presents a new development in navigation, structure of additions and responses, including a new menu. A commentary function has been implemented in the hi-fi prototype, which will give the users the option to interact and provide more personal opinions.

Bakgrund: Graviditet och tidigt moderskap är perioder då kvinnor aktivt söker ny kunskap. Tillgången till hälsorelaterad information är enorm men kvaliteten på innehållet varierar mellan olika källor. För att kunna göra informerade val i hälsofrågor behöver mödrar evidensbaserad information, och det är en barnmorskas ansvar att kunna guida dem till högkvalitativa källor. Syfte: Syftet med denna studie var att kartlägga nyblivna mödrars informationssökning samt att undersöka om det finns samband mellan informationssökning och olika sociodemografiska bakgrundsvariabler. Metod: Undersökningen baserades på delar av en pilotstudie inför ett större europeiskt projekt och data från 137 enkäter till nyblivna mödrar analyserades. Resultat: De mest använda informationskällorna bland mödrarna var barnavårdscentral och vårdsidor på Internet, således källor som tillhandahåller evidensbaserad information. Nästan lika populärt var dock att vända sig till familj och vänner och till Internetforum, där kvaliteten på informationen kan variera och ibland skapa missförstånd och oro. Slutsats: Barnmorskor bör därför hålla sig uppdaterade på det informationsflöde som finns, känna till vilka informationskällor deras patienter använder och vilken typ av information de hämtar. De bör också kunna guida sina patienter till högkvalitativ information. Background: Pregnancy and early motherhood are periods when women are actively seeking new knowledge. The public access to health information is enormous but the quality of the content varies between different sources. To make informed health choices, mothers need evidence-based information, and midwives have a responsibility to guide them to highqualitative sources. Aim: The aim of this study was to explore new mothers’ information seeking and to investigate the relationship between information seeking and various sociodemographic background variables. Method: The study was based on parts of a pilot study prior to a wider European project, and data from 137 questionnaires to new mothers were analysed. Results: The most frequently used sources of information among the mothers were childcare centres and health sites on the Internet, thus sources that provide evidence-based information. Almost as popular was, however, to turn to family / friends and to Internet forums, where the quality of information can vary and sometimes create confusion and anxiety. Conclusion: Midwives should therefore stay updated on the predominant flow of information, know which sources of information their patients are using and what type of information they obtain. They should also be able to guide their patients to high-quality information.

Idag är det mycket vanligt att man använder internet för att söka reda på och ta till sig information, detta är ofta en mycket snabb och enkel metod. För personer med språkliga problem är det dock inte alltid lika enkelt, dagens sökmotorer tar inte hänsyn till hur lättläst en text är (Google har börjat experimentera lite med detta på engelska). En metod för att hjälpa personer med sådana behov är att sortera sökträffar efter hur läsbara de är enligt olika läsbarhetsmått som beräknas automatiskt av en dator. Risken är då att en sådan omfördelning av resultaten premierar träffar som innehåller mindre information eller är irrelevanta givet sökningen. Syftet med studien är att undersöka samband mellan läsbarhet innehåll och relevans för att i förlängningen kunna utforma algoritmer som kan användas för att hitta texter med lagom läsbarhet och informationstäthet åt personer med eller utan lässvårigheter. 21 texter hämtades från sökmotorn Google via sju olikasökningar. Försökspersoner har därefter fått läsa texterna och svara på frågor kring hur de upplevde dem. Alla automatiska läsbarhets och idédensitetsmått ser ut att ge viss indikation på hur en text upplevs av försökspersonerna och därigenom påverka vilka texter som föredras, även antalet ord i en text ser ut att vara en viktig indikator här. In todays society it is common to use the Internet to search for and take in information, it is often a quick and easy method. For people with language problems it is not always as easy, todays major search engines do not take the readability of a text. One way to help peope with such needs is to sort the search result by readable the are according to automatic readability-measures. There's a risk that such re-ordering of the results will promote results containing less information or even being irrelevant to the search. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between readability, content and relevance in order to, in the future, produce algorithms aimed at finding texts with a good readability for people with or without a reading disability. Three searches were made with Google, collecting seven texts in Swedish per search. The subjects read texts from the searches and answered questions about their experience of them. All automatic readability and content measures seem to give some indication of how a text was experienced and therefore seem to affect which text is preferred, even the number of words seem to be an important indicator.

Idag är det mycket vanligt att man använder internet för att söka reda på och ta till sig information, detta är ofta en mycket snabb och enkel metod. För personer med språkliga problem är det dock inte alltid lika enkelt, dagens sökmotorer tar inte hänsyn till hur lättläst en text är (Google har börjat experimentera lite med detta på engelska). En metod för att hjälpa personer med sådana behov är att sortera sökträffar efter hur läsbara de är enligt olika läsbarhetsmått som beräknas automatiskt av en dator. Risken är då att en sådan omfördelning av resultaten premierar träffar som innehåller mindre information eller är irrelevanta givet sökningen. Syftet med studien är att undersöka samband mellan läsbarhet innehåll och relevans för att i förlängningen kunna utforma algoritmer som kan användas för att hitta texter med lagom läsbarhet och informationstäthet åt personer med eller utan lässvårigheter. 21 texter hämtades från sökmotorn Google via sju olikasökningar. Försökspersoner har därefter fått läsa texterna och svara på frågor kring hur de upplevde dem. Alla automatiska läsbarhets och idédensitetsmått ser ut att ge viss indikation på hur en text upplevs av försökspersonerna och därigenom påverka vilka texter som föredras, även antalet ord i en text ser ut att vara en viktig indikator här. In todays society it is common to use the Internet to search for and take in information, it is often a quick and easy method. For people with language problems it is not always as easy, todays major search engines do not take the readability of a text. One way to help peope with such needs is to sort the search result by readable the are according to automatic readability-measures. There's a risk that such re-ordering of the results will promote results containing less information or even being irrelevant to the search. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between readability, content and relevance in order to, in the future, produce algorithms aimed at finding texts with a good readability for people with or without a reading disability. Three searches were made with Google, collecting seven texts in Swedish per search. The subjects read texts from the searches and answered questions about their experience of them. All automatic readability and content measures seem to give some indication of how a text was experienced and therefore seem to affect which text is preferred, even the number of words seem to be an important indicator.

In education today, self-directed learning is promoted as an ideal as opposed to teacher-led instruction. This approach is reflected in public inquiries, proposals, syllabi and grading criteria, as we... merll as in schoolwork in practice. The approach has implications for various stakeholders in education, for example, students, teachers and librarians. Students at different educational levels are expected to develop their understanding of how to seek and select information, access, critically examine and understand different texts and their relations to other texts as well as produce their own texts in different contexts. Information seeking and use are key aspects of schoolwork and learning, and students are assumed to develop competence in information literacy. The thesis aims to deepen our knowledge of information practices in municipal adult education, by exploring the information seeking and information use associated with a specific school assignment. The theoretical framework used is a socio-cultural approach. In the study the following concepts have been identified as particularly important: mediation, sense-making, learning, practice, tools, scaffolds and interaction. From a socio-cultural perspective, the thesis explores 1) how adult students, teachers and librarians interact in information seeking and use in the practice of working with a complex school assignment, 2) what tools and scaffolds are used, and why, 3) how information is used by adult students to construct knowledge and make sense, and 4) what elements of information literacy emerge in the interaction around the assignment. To answer the research questions, a qualitative case study was conducted. The case study included 43 interviews, 30 observations and 17 documents, which provided in-depth knowledge of the interaction between individuals, practice and tools. Study results reveal an absence of interaction in information seeking and use in the educational context, as well as a lack of common references in the form of tools and support, leading to difficulties for the participants in achieving the results that were expected, according to learning objectives. In the tension between the school's discursive practice and the participants' self-directed learning, several critical elements of information literacy emerged, including the distinction between quantitative and qualitative information seeking, critical approaches towards information, knowledge of genres, the ability to identify and use various tools, and the ability to communicate conceptually about information seeking and use. The self-directed learning approach entails a number of challenges for adult students, teachers and librarians. These challenges involve building bridges between the rhetoric and practice of information literacy, developing institutional and social structures that facilitate and benefit the quality of interaction, creating common frames of reference for school assignments and clarifying standards and rules in the school context. Akademisk avhandling som med tillstånd av samhällsvetenskapliga fakulteten vid Göteborgs universitet för vinnande av doktorsexamen framläggs till offentlig granskning kl. 13.15 fredagen den 19 mars 2010, i hörsalen Sappören, Göteborgs universitet, Sprängkullsgatan 25.

The study aims to investigate student’s attitudes and experiences of information retrieval on the Internet, as tools for learning. I have been interested of their own views about their own knowledge and experience in the subject, information seeking on the Internet. The focus is on what they perceive as problematic, what skills they consider they have and what needs they have in terms of teaching. Data were collected via questionnaires. About 200 students at the second year in high school have been asked about the problems and difficulties they have within seeking on the Internet. The study is especially framed within a sociocultural perspective of learning. The study aims to answer following questions: Do the students think that they, in a concentrated way, can orient themselves and seek information on the Internet? Do the students think that they had received education in information seeking on the Internet? Do the students think that they need more skills in information seeking on the Internet? The result shows that this millennial generation see themselves as competent users of the Internet, the World Wide Web (www). Young people are attracted by working with the computer as tool for learning, while teachers may feel that the boundary between school and leisure time is small. The students have a sense of success in every moment of internet seeking. Pupils and teachers have different skills on the Internet. This applies to teachers gain knowledge of it and how to teach the skills students need. Since the computer is a common tool in our workplaces in the community, is it important for the school to prepare the students for the future. It is important for all educators in the school, individually and jointly to reflect on the information that will contribute to the student's own knowledge creation and in what way.

Facing both technological, educational and vocational change, the professional practices ofacademic librarians are subjects of interest within LIS research today. Information seekingand literacy are often spoken of as important competences; therefore, the assumed informationseeking expertise of academic librarians stands out as a significant matter to investigate. Thisarticle aims at gaining a deeper understanding of the information seeking behaviour ofacademic librarians. For this purpose, two theoretical perspectives are tested in terms of theirusefulness as analytical tools. This is accomplished primarily through theoretical discussionsand literature studies. The conceptualisationof imposed and self-generated informationseeking by Melissa Gross is found applicable, along with central concepts derived from asocio-cultural perspective as presented by Olof Sundin and Jenny Johannisson, and a newinstitutional perspective in accordance with Ragnar Audunson’s viewpoint.

Väitöskirjassa tarkastellaan humanististen tutkijoiden tiedonhankintaa. Arkeologian, filosofian, taidehistorian sekä kielitieteen ja lingvistiikan aloilta haastateltiin 32 tutkijaa, ja 24 tutkijan haastattelut otettiin yksityiskohtaisempaan analyysiin. Kaikki tutkijat toimivat Etelä-Suomen yliopistoissa. Tutkimus tuotti kaksi typologiaa. Toinen niistä tyypittää tutkimusprosesseja ja toinen tietoa hakevia tutkijoita. Tutkimuksessa tunnistettiin seitsemän tutkimusprosessityyppiä, ts. seitsemän eri tapaa tehdä tutkimusta: kärpänen, kiitäjäperhonen, mehiläinen, mittaritoukka, maamyyrä, kultarinta ja hämähäkki. Saman tieteenalan edustajat eivät välttämättä tehneet tutkimusta samalla tavalla, vaan suuriakin eroavuuksia olivat havaittavissa. Tiedonhankkijan tyyppejä löytyi viisi: nuuskija, itsevarma keräilijä, herkuttelija, haulikkoampuja ja elitisti. Niiden suhteen saatiin sama tulos kuin tutkimusprosessityyppien osalta: tietyn tyypin edustajat eivät aina edusta samaa tieteenalaa. Samaa tiedonhankkijatyyppiä edustavat eivät kuitenkaan tehneet tutkimusta samalla tavalla. Tutkimuksessa havaittiin mm., että laitoskirjaston laadulla ja laajuudella ei ollut merkitystä sen suhteen mihin tyyppiin tutkija kuuluu. Tutkimusprosessia ja tiedonhankintaa kuvaavat typologiat ovat uusia informaatiotutkimuksen alalla. Tärkeä havainto on, että tieteenala ei välttämättä määritä tiedonhankkijan tyyppiä. Tutkimus osoitti, että laitoskirjastojen merkitys humanististen tutkijoiden tiedonhankinnassa on melko suuri. Tutkimuksen tulokset voivat olla hyödyksi kehitettäessä humanistisen alan tutkijoiden kirjasto- ja tietopalveluja. Tulokset osoittavat selvästi että laitoskirjastojen lakkauttaminen ja kokoelmien sisällyttäminen humanistisen tiedekunnan keskitetyn kirjaston kokoelmiin hankaloittaisivat merkittävästi tutkijoiden tiedonhankintaa. Internet ei korvaa laitoskirjaston kirjoja, jotka ovat lähellä tutkijaa. Tutkimusta voidaan jatkaa mm. selvittämällä humanististen alan tutkijoiden kokemuksia kirjasto- ja tietopalveluista sekä tutkimalla heidän asenteitaan niitä kohtaan.