Everyday lifeinformationseekingfinal

Reijo Savolainen & Everyday Life Information Seeking

Dr. Reijo Savolainen Professor at the University of Tampere, Finland

Best known for his research into the area of Everyday Life Information Seeking (ELIS). Early work was influenced by Pierre Bourdieu’s concept of Habitus – Internalized socially and culturally determined way of thinking, perception and evaluation.

Daily problem solving is increasingly dependent on the critical selection and use of information sources.

ELIS focuses on how social and cultural factors affect how people acquire information in daily life (non-work context).

• This includes how people acquire information to solve their daily problems or how they monitor daily events in the media.

Everyday Life Information Seeking (ELIS)


Examines the “small worlds” of groups, focusing on the social context in which information is (or is not) accepted in a specific community.

How do we perceive the information world around us?

By which criteria do we accept or reject information in everyday criteria?

ELIS asks the questions:

Gender, age, socioeconomic status, cultural background, location, education level can all affect one’s everyday life information seeking.

Way of Life

How people make sense to operate in their daily world, and what they consider to be normal in the engagement of daily tasks.

Includes: • Structure of time budget (working vs.

leisure time)• Models of consumption of goods &

services• Nature of hobbies

Mastery of Life

Any problem solving necessary to restore one’s order of things

Includes: • General preparedness to

approach everyday problems that align with personal values.

• One’s tendency to adopt a particular information seeking strategy to solve problems.

Information seeking is critical to Mastery of Life , as it closes the gap between how things are and how things should be.


Two core concepts

Seeking Orienting Information Information gathering that takes place

in order to stay abreast of development in everyday contexts.

Various sources provide orienting information that direct individual behavior.

Most active when people are looking for sources on issues of primary interest to them. Orienting information seeking is fragmentary and passive in cases where the issues are of marginal interest.

Seeking Problem-specific Information

Making sense of problematic situations and making source preference decisions when solving everyday problems.

May be episodic in nature, with a starting and end point.

Information seekers try to obtain enough information for decision making and action in areas that matter most to them.

If they have a passive concern, the information they already have may be enough. If it is active, they will seek information satisfactory for their needs.

Everyday Life Information Seeking (ELIS)Two contexts for ELIS


Used when people are assessing such things as media credibility and cognitive authority. If factors such as time constraints or too much information exists, individuals will accept information that is simply “good enough” to meet their needs.

One’s body of knowledge is the basis for their information behavior in daily projects. Accomplishing information practices may add to that knowledge base and enhance one’s daily behavior.

The level of interest one has in a particular daily activities dictates how they prioritize everyday information-seeking.

Principle of “Good Enough”

Information sharing reflects the communicative nature of everyday life information sharing.

•It involves giving information to others to be shared, and receiving information for that purpose.

Through information sharing, people add to their knowledge structure and also create solidarity.

An analysis of reciprocity may enter into play: if one deems the cost of the information sharing greater than the benefit, they are unlikely to share the information.

Information Sharing


How individuals determine what sources of information they prefer in everyday life information seeking.

In Savolainen study, the top criteria for source preference were content of information and availability and accessibility. Usability was found less important.

Information Source Horizons

ELIS draws on the work Patrick Wilson, whose model is based on the assumption that people want to have some control or influence over things that happen in their lives. Wilson’s model consisted of these components.

Interest: one’s desire to know about a particular thing (either active and seeking, or passive and received if available)

Concern: one’s readiness to act, exert control, or influence (for example, if one thinks they might have a disease and they want to learn more)

Caring: one engages in action to change or control the situation. (for example, if one learns they have the disease and they take subsequent action)


Where do you go for your daily information needs?

Documents

Everyday lifeinformationseekingfinal