Modelling the user education domain : a grounded theory approach.

This thesis reports a research work whose objective was to derive a grounded
model of the user education domain, which was
identified as pertaining to subject
librarians' expertise, using a
knowledge elicitation approach
in the field of
agricultural sciences. The knowledge elicitation
framework adopted was that
which sees knowledge acquisition as a process of modelling expertise, and the
models derived as qualitative
in nature. Accordingly, the main methodological
approach
involved was based on qualitative research and use of grounded theory
methods.
The
research design was divided into three studies, all based on
interview data.
The
research started by studying the role of subject
librarians in academic
libraries in
the UK (Study One), which
identified the area of user education
for
further study. Study Two proceeded
to elicit
information seeking practices and
user education processes
from academics and
librarians. Finally, Study Three
elicited
information seeking practices of students who were engaged
in library
research. A model of the user education domain in the field of agricultural
sciences
in a Brazilian university was derived from the combination of the
analysis of Study Two and Three.
The model describes the library
research process of
individuals as happening in
discipline specific contexts,
influenced by the world at
large. The process takes
place through a series of
information-seeking
tasks and task-related strategies,
which are employed to search external
knowledge
sources and satisfy an
information need. During this interaction, internal knowledge sources are used and
modified according to the tasks and strategies being carried out.
If these internal
knowledge
sources are deficient for effective use of external knowledge sources,
mediation strategies by an expert can help
readjust the information-seeking process
and alter
the state of related
internal knowledge
sources
The model proposed
is used to derive
recommendations
for
the design of user
education programmes, subject
librarians' work, and domain modelling using
grounded theory.