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Niusha Bagheri, Margan Kian, Masoud Gramipour, Vaghar Ali Ali Azimi, Youssef Mahdavi Nesab,
Volume 11, Issue 3 (12-2024)
Volume 11, Issue 3 (12-2024)
Abstract
Objective: Virtual classes, virtual schools, smart schools, and virtual universities, and generally, electronic learning, are considered reliable capacities and capabilities for developing academic skills. The aim of this study is to evaluate the e-learning program at Kharazmi University using the HELAM conceptual model.
Method: This research is practical in terms of its objective and descriptive-survey in terms of method. A quantitative approach was used to collect data. The statistical population consisted of postgraduate students at Kharazmi University. The sample size was 536 postgraduate students, and stratified random sampling was used. A standardized researcher-made questionnaire was used for data collection. The main structure of the questionnaire is based on the HELAM model, along with an additional “overall satisfaction” factor, which was adapted and translated using specialized literature and relevant research. For data analysis, various statistical tests including one-sample t-test and one-way ANOVA in SPSS, and confirmatory factor analysis in R software were used.
Findings: The results indicated that the status of Kharazmi University’s e-learning program, evaluated using the HELAM conceptual model and its seven aspects (student attitude, instructor attitude, system quality, content quality, service quality, support issues, and overall satisfaction), is significantly above the community average with over 99% confidence. Moreover, the support issues aspect showed a significant difference compared to other dimensions, followed by content quality and service quality, which are close to each other and separated from other sub-scales, while system quality, instructor attitude, overall satisfaction, and student attitude have the lowest mean rankings.
Conclusion: Managers and experts at the Information and Communication Technology Center of Kharazmi University should take measures to improve system quality, instructor attitude, overall satisfaction, and student attitude aspects to enhance their performance in parallel with support issues.
Method: This research is practical in terms of its objective and descriptive-survey in terms of method. A quantitative approach was used to collect data. The statistical population consisted of postgraduate students at Kharazmi University. The sample size was 536 postgraduate students, and stratified random sampling was used. A standardized researcher-made questionnaire was used for data collection. The main structure of the questionnaire is based on the HELAM model, along with an additional “overall satisfaction” factor, which was adapted and translated using specialized literature and relevant research. For data analysis, various statistical tests including one-sample t-test and one-way ANOVA in SPSS, and confirmatory factor analysis in R software were used.
Findings: The results indicated that the status of Kharazmi University’s e-learning program, evaluated using the HELAM conceptual model and its seven aspects (student attitude, instructor attitude, system quality, content quality, service quality, support issues, and overall satisfaction), is significantly above the community average with over 99% confidence. Moreover, the support issues aspect showed a significant difference compared to other dimensions, followed by content quality and service quality, which are close to each other and separated from other sub-scales, while system quality, instructor attitude, overall satisfaction, and student attitude have the lowest mean rankings.
Conclusion: Managers and experts at the Information and Communication Technology Center of Kharazmi University should take measures to improve system quality, instructor attitude, overall satisfaction, and student attitude aspects to enhance their performance in parallel with support issues.
Dr. Afshin Hamdipour, Dr. Hashem Atapour, Negin Kajaiee,
Volume 11, Issue 3 (12-2024)
Volume 11, Issue 3 (12-2024)
Abstract
Information Seeking Behavior is a broad term encompassing a series of actions undertaken to articulate individuals’ information needs, search for information, evaluate it and select relevant data, ultimately leading to its use (Ozowa and Aba, 2017). According to Case and Given (2016), information-seeking is an integral part of human life. They note that humans frequently feel the need for information and actively seek it throughout their daily lives. In their research, which examined the information-seeking behaviors of professionals from various fields, including physicians, nurses, managers, engineers, journalists, customers, and other groups, the authors found significant differences in the information-seeking behaviors of various professions. These differences can be attributed to professional roles, work environments, and specific information needs. As a dimension of human behavior, information-seeking is influenced by numerous factors. Given the critical role of psychological aspects in shaping human information-seeking behavior and their impact on the interaction between humans and information, addressing these factors is vital. The increasing focus on user-centered (human-centered) studies in recent decades highlights the importance of such studies. This research explores personality traits that influence the information-seeking behavior of graduate students at the University of Tabriz.
Methods and Materials
This study used a descriptive-survey method. The statistical population comprised 2,826 graduate students (2,258 master’s and 568 doctoral students from 17 faculties at the University of Tabriz, excluding dependent units and the international campus, during the first semester of the 2022-2023 academic year. The students were enrolled in four fields: humanities, basic sciences, engineering, and agriculture. Using Cochran’s formula, the sample size was calculated to be 338 students selected through stratified random sampling. The study employed a localized version of John and Srivastava’s (1999) questionnaire for data collection. The questionnaire included two sections: six demographic items and 42 items rated on a five-point Likert scale to assess information-seeking behavior and five personality traits (Extraversion, Conscientiousness, Agreeableness, Openness to Experience, Neuroticism). Validity was ensured through expert review by five faculty members, and reliability was confirmed using Cronbach’s alpha, with coefficients ranging from 0.588 to 0.903. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (frequency, mean, standard deviation) and inferential statistics (multiple linear regression). Skewness and kurtosis coefficients that fell within ±2 confirmed the normal distribution of the data.
Results and Discussion
The findings of the present study showed that all five dimensions of personality traits (extroversion, conscientiousness, adaptability, acceptance of experience, and neuroticism with averages of 4.13, 3.94, 3.99, 4.11, and 2.69 respectively) have a significant effect on the information-seeking behavior of graduate students at Tabriz University; Specifically, Extraversion, Conscientiousness, Agreeableness, and Openness to Experience demonstrated positive effects, while Neuroticism exhibited a negative effect. Other results showed that among information-seeking behaviors, "referring to the Internet to obtain information" has the highest priority among students, with an average of 4.72. In the extraversion dimension, "being friendly in the process of acquiring information" is the most important, with an average of 4.34. In the dimension of conscientiousness, "observance of order in the process of obtaining information" has the highest average score, with an average score of 4.22. In the adaptability dimension, "tendency to cooperate with others during information searching" has the highest score with an average of 4.29. In the experience acceptance dimension, "having an active imagination in the information seeking process" has the highest rank with an average of 4.42. In the dimension of neuroticism, "being nervous in the process of finding information" is the highest average score (3.03). The results of multiple linear regression also showed that the independent variables, extroversion, conscientiousness, adaptability, acceptance of experience, and neuroticism are significant predictors of information-seeking behavior, which explain 25.6% of the changes related to the dependent variable. Among the 5 independent variables, the conscientiousness variable, with a beta coefficient of 0.220, made a greater contribution than the other variables.
Conclusion
The findings of this study confirmed the effect of five important personality traits on information-seeking behavior. It is expected that librarians and information specialists will consider the different aspects of personality traits in information-seeking behavior and pay attention to the fact that knowledge of these issues will help them to provide effective information services to students. According to the findings of the present study, it is recommended that the libraries of University of Tabriz establish information systems based on individual student differences to facilitate an optimal environment for information searching. In addition, organizing workshops on communication skills can help students perform more effectively in information-seeking activities. These skills can be beneficial for both extroverted and even neurotic students. It is also recommended that information system designers tailor their systems and services based on the needs and personality traits of students. Furthermore, it is recommended that librarians receive the necessary training to identify students’ individual characteristics and differences and provide information services tailored to their personality traits during interactions with users. Finally, offering psychological counseling and stress management support for students can help them reduce their anxiety and improve their performance in information-seeking activities. This is particularly beneficial for students with high neuroticism levels.
Methods and Materials
This study used a descriptive-survey method. The statistical population comprised 2,826 graduate students (2,258 master’s and 568 doctoral students from 17 faculties at the University of Tabriz, excluding dependent units and the international campus, during the first semester of the 2022-2023 academic year. The students were enrolled in four fields: humanities, basic sciences, engineering, and agriculture. Using Cochran’s formula, the sample size was calculated to be 338 students selected through stratified random sampling. The study employed a localized version of John and Srivastava’s (1999) questionnaire for data collection. The questionnaire included two sections: six demographic items and 42 items rated on a five-point Likert scale to assess information-seeking behavior and five personality traits (Extraversion, Conscientiousness, Agreeableness, Openness to Experience, Neuroticism). Validity was ensured through expert review by five faculty members, and reliability was confirmed using Cronbach’s alpha, with coefficients ranging from 0.588 to 0.903. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (frequency, mean, standard deviation) and inferential statistics (multiple linear regression). Skewness and kurtosis coefficients that fell within ±2 confirmed the normal distribution of the data.
Results and Discussion
The findings of the present study showed that all five dimensions of personality traits (extroversion, conscientiousness, adaptability, acceptance of experience, and neuroticism with averages of 4.13, 3.94, 3.99, 4.11, and 2.69 respectively) have a significant effect on the information-seeking behavior of graduate students at Tabriz University; Specifically, Extraversion, Conscientiousness, Agreeableness, and Openness to Experience demonstrated positive effects, while Neuroticism exhibited a negative effect. Other results showed that among information-seeking behaviors, "referring to the Internet to obtain information" has the highest priority among students, with an average of 4.72. In the extraversion dimension, "being friendly in the process of acquiring information" is the most important, with an average of 4.34. In the dimension of conscientiousness, "observance of order in the process of obtaining information" has the highest average score, with an average score of 4.22. In the adaptability dimension, "tendency to cooperate with others during information searching" has the highest score with an average of 4.29. In the experience acceptance dimension, "having an active imagination in the information seeking process" has the highest rank with an average of 4.42. In the dimension of neuroticism, "being nervous in the process of finding information" is the highest average score (3.03). The results of multiple linear regression also showed that the independent variables, extroversion, conscientiousness, adaptability, acceptance of experience, and neuroticism are significant predictors of information-seeking behavior, which explain 25.6% of the changes related to the dependent variable. Among the 5 independent variables, the conscientiousness variable, with a beta coefficient of 0.220, made a greater contribution than the other variables.
Conclusion
The findings of this study confirmed the effect of five important personality traits on information-seeking behavior. It is expected that librarians and information specialists will consider the different aspects of personality traits in information-seeking behavior and pay attention to the fact that knowledge of these issues will help them to provide effective information services to students. According to the findings of the present study, it is recommended that the libraries of University of Tabriz establish information systems based on individual student differences to facilitate an optimal environment for information searching. In addition, organizing workshops on communication skills can help students perform more effectively in information-seeking activities. These skills can be beneficial for both extroverted and even neurotic students. It is also recommended that information system designers tailor their systems and services based on the needs and personality traits of students. Furthermore, it is recommended that librarians receive the necessary training to identify students’ individual characteristics and differences and provide information services tailored to their personality traits during interactions with users. Finally, offering psychological counseling and stress management support for students can help them reduce their anxiety and improve their performance in information-seeking activities. This is particularly beneficial for students with high neuroticism levels.
Farhad Fathi, Kourosh Fathi Vagargah, Esmaeil Jafari, Mojtaba Vahidi Asl,
Volume 11, Issue 3 (12-2024)
Volume 11, Issue 3 (12-2024)
Abstract
Businesses affected by digital transformations are facing new employee management and development needs. Employees in these companies not only need to acquire the right technical skills, but also have the mindset to help them cope with the new challenges of the digital workforce in the modern world. These changes and needs that are subsequently created in the development path lead to a digital transformation in the training of managers, as trainers and training professionals need to transition to new work forms to find, create and use digital tools to help future managers, companies and employees. The evolving literature of electronic human resource management expresses its challenges and potential. Stone et al. (2015) found that data-driven decision-making environments in the field of human interactions have a high ability to evaluate recruitment volunteers, improve staff levels, as well as provide digital tools for employee training and development. However, most studies in electronic Human Resource Management have concluded that more innovation is needed to improve the efficiency and performance of these digital tools.
In 2010, ifenthaler stated that in the not-too-distant future, when learners become active builders of their learning environments, setting individual goals and creating content structures for the knowledge and content they want to master, we may see the emergence of the true meaning of Constructivism (Ifenthaler, 2010) and that is now when eifenthaler mentioned it 12 years ago, and on this basis, the fundamental issue of research can be seen as the mismatch of the current situation.education and human resource development with new technologies. The digital age requires digital transformation in the most important context of humanity, the platform of teaching and learning. On the other hand, although the severity of the covid-19 pandemic has decreased and training has been resumed from the virtual platform, in the digital world and the volume of available data and the moment-to-moment updating of information, it is never possible to transfer them through face-to-face training. On the other hand, a person does not have the capacity to learn all the information and data available, so it is desirable that what he learns is based on his personal development, interests and expertise to make learning deeper and more effective. So this research seeks to address or adjust these issues to take a step towards improving the education and Human Resource Development situation in the country, and this will be achieved by designing a model of AI-based digital curriculum. To this end, the current research questions include:
1. What are the components of AI from the point of view of commentators?
2. What is the concept of digital curriculum from the point of view of commentators?
3. What are the coordinates of the AI-based digital curriculum model?
Methods and Materoal
Based on the purpose, the present research is applied, and in terms of data collection, it is a qualitative design. Among the various qualitative methods, the grounded theory method of the foundation was used with the constructivist approach of Charmaz. The current research community is all specialists in the field of curriculum, educational technology, educational technology and artificial intelligence, and the samples included 23 specialists. In order to collect information, semi-structured interview, observation and study of documents were used. In order to analyze the data in this research, the three-step method of Susanne Friese including noticing, collecting and thinking was done with the help of Atlas t.i software.
Resultss and Discussion
In 2010, ifenthaler stated that in the not-too-distant future, when learners become active builders of their learning environments, setting individual goals and creating content structures for the knowledge and content they want to master, we may see the emergence of the true meaning of Constructivism (Ifenthaler, 2010) and that is now when eifenthaler mentioned it 12 years ago, and on this basis, the fundamental issue of research can be seen as the mismatch of the current situation.education and human resource development with new technologies. The digital age requires digital transformation in the most important context of humanity, the platform of teaching and learning. On the other hand, although the severity of the covid-19 pandemic has decreased and training has been resumed from the virtual platform, in the digital world and the volume of available data and the moment-to-moment updating of information, it is never possible to transfer them through face-to-face training. On the other hand, a person does not have the capacity to learn all the information and data available, so it is desirable that what he learns is based on his personal development, interests and expertise to make learning deeper and more effective. So this research seeks to address or adjust these issues to take a step towards improving the education and Human Resource Development situation in the country, and this will be achieved by designing a model of AI-based digital curriculum. To this end, the current research questions include:
1. What are the components of AI from the point of view of commentators?
2. What is the concept of digital curriculum from the point of view of commentators?
3. What are the coordinates of the AI-based digital curriculum model?
Methods and Materoal
Based on the purpose, the present research is applied, and in terms of data collection, it is a qualitative design. Among the various qualitative methods, the grounded theory method of the foundation was used with the constructivist approach of Charmaz. The current research community is all specialists in the field of curriculum, educational technology, educational technology and artificial intelligence, and the samples included 23 specialists. In order to collect information, semi-structured interview, observation and study of documents were used. In order to analyze the data in this research, the three-step method of Susanne Friese including noticing, collecting and thinking was done with the help of Atlas t.i software.
Resultss and Discussion
- What are the components of AI from the point of view of commentators?
The components of artificial intelligence consisted of 5 Main and 19 sub-categories. These include charting systems (algorithm, phase logic, classification), learning systems (supervised learning ,unsupervised learning, hybrid knowledge - based systems, reinforcement learning, learning from incomplete data), semantic systems (self-learning, semantic similarity, natural language understanding, prediction), control of complex systems (dealing with nonlinear problems, expert system), neural network model (problem solving, optimization, flexibility, reasoning).
2. What is the concept of digital curriculum from the point of view of commentators?
The concept of digital curriculum has 6 Main and 33 sub-categories. These categories include digital curriculum objectives (increasing the capacity of program design by teachers, developing cognitive skills, meaningful learning experiences, participatory learning opportunities, educational dynamics, research-oriented, educational justice, self-learning), digital curriculum features (stable yet flexible, transforming learning into a lifelong process, balancing the learner and learning environment, using technology in the classroom, digital teaching culture, high compliance capacity), digital curriculum tools (educational games, digital laboratories, electronic libraries, simulators, environmental features of the digital curriculum (interactive, flexible, classroom Networking lessons, personalization of the learning environment), digital curriculum resources (Smart Textbooks,personalization of learning resources, web-based resources, open educational resources, textbooks), evaluation methods in the digital curriculum (online tests, video dialogue, video recorded by the learner, online critical texts, digital evaluation tools, quizzes).
3. What are the coordinates of the AI-based digital curriculum model?
phase curriculum model includes phase1 curriculum (learning based on specific pattern, classification and organization of content, linear learning, learning under external supervision, reinforcement learning and mutual understanding of language), phase2 curriculum (combined knowledge in learning, optimal building learning, learning from incomplete data, reasoning-based learning, predicting the learning process and facing learning problems) and phase3 curriculum (facing non-linear problems, deep learning, unsupervised learning, expertise in learning, semantic parallelism, self-directed learning and flexibility in learning).
Conclusion
Digital transformations have significantly changed teaching and learning practices. The present study examines the new needs of employee development and empowerment in the digital age, identifying the components of artificial intelligence and digital curriculum. The main objective of the present study is to define the components of artificial intelligence and then apply them in the form of digital curriculum elements. In other words, the digital curriculum in the workplace is defined by the components and functions of artificial intelligence.This model is designed based on the phase logic of artificial intelligence and can help to improve the design of the digital workplace curriculum. Based on the background studies, no research was found that could organize the digital workplace curriculum in this way, and therefore, the findings of the current research and the final output were completely unique.
2. What is the concept of digital curriculum from the point of view of commentators?
The concept of digital curriculum has 6 Main and 33 sub-categories. These categories include digital curriculum objectives (increasing the capacity of program design by teachers, developing cognitive skills, meaningful learning experiences, participatory learning opportunities, educational dynamics, research-oriented, educational justice, self-learning), digital curriculum features (stable yet flexible, transforming learning into a lifelong process, balancing the learner and learning environment, using technology in the classroom, digital teaching culture, high compliance capacity), digital curriculum tools (educational games, digital laboratories, electronic libraries, simulators, environmental features of the digital curriculum (interactive, flexible, classroom Networking lessons, personalization of the learning environment), digital curriculum resources (Smart Textbooks,personalization of learning resources, web-based resources, open educational resources, textbooks), evaluation methods in the digital curriculum (online tests, video dialogue, video recorded by the learner, online critical texts, digital evaluation tools, quizzes).
3. What are the coordinates of the AI-based digital curriculum model?
phase curriculum model includes phase1 curriculum (learning based on specific pattern, classification and organization of content, linear learning, learning under external supervision, reinforcement learning and mutual understanding of language), phase2 curriculum (combined knowledge in learning, optimal building learning, learning from incomplete data, reasoning-based learning, predicting the learning process and facing learning problems) and phase3 curriculum (facing non-linear problems, deep learning, unsupervised learning, expertise in learning, semantic parallelism, self-directed learning and flexibility in learning).
Conclusion
Digital transformations have significantly changed teaching and learning practices. The present study examines the new needs of employee development and empowerment in the digital age, identifying the components of artificial intelligence and digital curriculum. The main objective of the present study is to define the components of artificial intelligence and then apply them in the form of digital curriculum elements. In other words, the digital curriculum in the workplace is defined by the components and functions of artificial intelligence.This model is designed based on the phase logic of artificial intelligence and can help to improve the design of the digital workplace curriculum. Based on the background studies, no research was found that could organize the digital workplace curriculum in this way, and therefore, the findings of the current research and the final output were completely unique.
Mozhgan Oroji, Nadjla Hariri, Fahimeh Babalhavaeji,
Volume 11, Issue 3 (12-2024)
Volume 11, Issue 3 (12-2024)
Abstract
Introduction
Introduction There are many data collections in decision-making and every day a large number of these data are collected in research projects by humans or by devices and in this data, to better understand the issues related to data, we need to first understand the data and the literacy related to them. Data literacy is defined as information by reading, creating and communicating with data: that we can find data, make information about it, learn the tools to work with data, have less management of it. We can have, analyze and refine data, learn to share data and make simple decisions.
Research data management includes; production, access, tools, storage and reuse of research data with sufficient and easy-to-use help in virtual research infrastructures that form the main part of the monitoring cycle, which itself includes ideation. It is to create or receive, evaluate, select, ingest, preserve, store, access, reuse (Cox and Verban, 2014).
Studies on research data management are now common, while there is a global ease of research data, but it continues to be difficult to keep data easily accessible. Session, we know more than yesterday about the role of research data in the design and implementation of new research, but the trends and infrastructure to support researchers in research data management, need. (Varana, 2024).
Considering the research that has been conducted on research data management literacy, the aim of this study is to determine the components and indicators of management literacy. ) and to provide a suitable model for research data management literacy.
Methods and Materoal
The present study was conducted with a quantitative and survey method and aimed at evaluating and validating the tool built using the proposed research model. The statistical population of the National Institute of Higher Education Research and Planning was 112 academic centers affiliated with the Ministry of Science and the total number of faculty members of the humanities and social sciences of the country's public universities was 8,441. Due to the large volume of data, 360 people were selected using cluster sampling. Then, the questionnaire was completed and descriptive statistical methods (mean, deviation indices, frequency table) and inferential statistics (structural equation modeling and exploratory factor analysis) and SPSS and Smart Pls software were used to analyze the data.
Resultss and Discussion
The findings indicate that the six factors of stakeholders, services, policy, types of literacy, data cycle, and financial issues are critical together, explaining 60 percent of the total variance of changes. Also, the highest level of the level is related to the stakeholders factor with a mean of 4.09 and a standard deviation of 0.57, followed by the factors of services, policy, data life cycle, types of literacy, and financial issues, respectively. Using the Pearson correlation coefficient test, it was shown that all components of research data management literacy have a positive and significant correlation with the set at the 0.01 error level. The coefficients of the factor loadings of the subscales of research data management literacy also have a good understanding of the concept of their analysis and have a strong and significant correlation with their belief.
Conclusion
Research data management contributes to scientific integrity at different levels. When research data management literacy is sufficient, research data are accurate, complete, valid, and reliable. The risk of losing or damaging data, as well as the risk of unauthorized access, is minimized. In addition, research data can be shared with others with minimal effort and individuals can easily confirm the results.
The relationships between the components and indicators of research data management literacy from the perspective of faculty members in the humanities and social sciences of Iranian public universities show that higher than any of these components in improving the quality and efficiency of research, research data management literacy has a positive effect. The search for understanding the methods and infrastructures related to data management is a research for individuals to achieve better research results and valuable results. The results of this study show that different levels of research data management literacy among university professors know, and also need to have literacy skills in research data management that they do and create. Collecting, processing, validating, publishing, sharing, and archiving data are involved, and this is a characteristic of good research data management.
Introduction There are many data collections in decision-making and every day a large number of these data are collected in research projects by humans or by devices and in this data, to better understand the issues related to data, we need to first understand the data and the literacy related to them. Data literacy is defined as information by reading, creating and communicating with data: that we can find data, make information about it, learn the tools to work with data, have less management of it. We can have, analyze and refine data, learn to share data and make simple decisions.
Research data management includes; production, access, tools, storage and reuse of research data with sufficient and easy-to-use help in virtual research infrastructures that form the main part of the monitoring cycle, which itself includes ideation. It is to create or receive, evaluate, select, ingest, preserve, store, access, reuse (Cox and Verban, 2014).
Studies on research data management are now common, while there is a global ease of research data, but it continues to be difficult to keep data easily accessible. Session, we know more than yesterday about the role of research data in the design and implementation of new research, but the trends and infrastructure to support researchers in research data management, need. (Varana, 2024).
Considering the research that has been conducted on research data management literacy, the aim of this study is to determine the components and indicators of management literacy. ) and to provide a suitable model for research data management literacy.
Methods and Materoal
The present study was conducted with a quantitative and survey method and aimed at evaluating and validating the tool built using the proposed research model. The statistical population of the National Institute of Higher Education Research and Planning was 112 academic centers affiliated with the Ministry of Science and the total number of faculty members of the humanities and social sciences of the country's public universities was 8,441. Due to the large volume of data, 360 people were selected using cluster sampling. Then, the questionnaire was completed and descriptive statistical methods (mean, deviation indices, frequency table) and inferential statistics (structural equation modeling and exploratory factor analysis) and SPSS and Smart Pls software were used to analyze the data.
Resultss and Discussion
The findings indicate that the six factors of stakeholders, services, policy, types of literacy, data cycle, and financial issues are critical together, explaining 60 percent of the total variance of changes. Also, the highest level of the level is related to the stakeholders factor with a mean of 4.09 and a standard deviation of 0.57, followed by the factors of services, policy, data life cycle, types of literacy, and financial issues, respectively. Using the Pearson correlation coefficient test, it was shown that all components of research data management literacy have a positive and significant correlation with the set at the 0.01 error level. The coefficients of the factor loadings of the subscales of research data management literacy also have a good understanding of the concept of their analysis and have a strong and significant correlation with their belief.
Conclusion
Research data management contributes to scientific integrity at different levels. When research data management literacy is sufficient, research data are accurate, complete, valid, and reliable. The risk of losing or damaging data, as well as the risk of unauthorized access, is minimized. In addition, research data can be shared with others with minimal effort and individuals can easily confirm the results.
The relationships between the components and indicators of research data management literacy from the perspective of faculty members in the humanities and social sciences of Iranian public universities show that higher than any of these components in improving the quality and efficiency of research, research data management literacy has a positive effect. The search for understanding the methods and infrastructures related to data management is a research for individuals to achieve better research results and valuable results. The results of this study show that different levels of research data management literacy among university professors know, and also need to have literacy skills in research data management that they do and create. Collecting, processing, validating, publishing, sharing, and archiving data are involved, and this is a characteristic of good research data management.
Yazdan Shirmohammadi, Fatemeh Safa,
Volume 11, Issue 4 (1-2025)
Volume 11, Issue 4 (1-2025)
Abstract
Tourism is recognized as one of the most dynamic and rapidly growing economic sectors in recent decades, acting as a major driver of economic development, employment generation, and cultural exchange worldwide (Cristó & Sharpley, 2019). Within this broader industry, tourism start-ups play a central role in developing innovative products and services, enhancing destination attractiveness, and increasing stakeholder engagement. The performance of such start-ups, especially in urban tourism ecosystems such as Tehran, is increasingly dependent on their ability to leverage Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), foster knowledge integration, and innovate in both products and services. ICT has emerged as a key enabler of competitiveness in knowledge-intensive and service-oriented industries. It facilitates the acquisition and dissemination of knowledge across organizational boundaries, allowing firms to accelerate internal learning, adopt open innovation practices, and improve overall performance (Harif et al., 2022). Moreover, in the context of start-ups, where agility, adaptability, and resource constraints are often interwoven, strategic application of ICT becomes not just an operational necessity, but a performance catalyst.
Methods and Materoal
The present study employed a descriptive-correlational methodology based on structural equation modeling (SEM) using the SmartPLS 3 software. A total of 280 managers and employees from tourism start-ups based in Tehran were selected through convenience sampling. Standardized questionnaires were used to measure the constructs of interest, including ICT (Azam, 2015), open innovation (Hamed et al., 2018), knowledge integration, knowledge management (Iqbal et al., 2023), service innovation (Hu, 2009), marketing strategy (Koksal & Ozgul, 2007), and firm performance. Validity and reliability of the constructs were confirmed through Cronbach's alpha, composite reliability, Average Variance Extracted (AVE) and discriminant validity measures. Items with factor loadings below 0.4 were removed to ensure model parsimony. The GoF (Goodness-of-Fit) index was computed and interpreted based on Kline's (2010) thresholds to ensure robustness of the overall model.
Resultss and Discussion
The results reveal that ICT significantly influences three critical mediating variables: external knowledge integration (β = 0.60, t = 18.0), open innovation (β = 0.75, t = 26.55), and knowledge management (β = 0.512, t = 7.17). These findings support prior studies that conceptualize ICT not only as a data processing tool but also as a vehicle for organizational learning and innovation (Scuotto et al., 2017; Bhatt & Grover, 2005).Moreover, the integration of external knowledge has a direct and significant effect on knowledge management (β = 0.40, t = 8.59), underscoring the importance of external inputs in shaping internal learning systems and innovation capacity (Liao & Marsillac, 2015). In contrast, the direct relationship between open innovation and knowledge management was not statistically significant (t = 0.18), suggesting that open innovation may be more effective when coupled with internal absorptive capabilities or organizational culture conducive to knowledge utilization.Knowledge management, as a central construct in this model, demonstrated strong effects on both service innovation (β = 0.70, t = 24.96) and organizational performance (β = 0.389, t = 3.87). This aligns with the existing literature that highlights the strategic role of knowledge systems in enabling innovation and competitive advantage (Darroch, 2005; Harif et al., 2022). Furthermore, service innovation itself has a modest yet significant impact on performance (β = 0.17, t = 2.66), echoing previous studies that link new service development to firm-level outcomes (Aas & Pedersen, 2010; Cheng & Huizingh, 2014).Surprisingly, the direct effect of marketing strategy on performance was not significant (t = 1.62), which contradicts the results of some earlier studies (Kitsios & Kamariotou, 2016). However, a significant moderating effect of marketing strategy was found on the relationship between service innovation and performance (t = 3.10, β = 0.138), indicating that when strategically aligned with innovation initiatives, marketing strategies can enhance the impact of innovation efforts.The structural model exhibited strong explanatory power, with R² values of 0.658 for knowledge management, 0.494 for service innovation, and 0.429 for performance. The global GoF value of 0.638 exceeded the threshold for strong model fit (Kline, 2010), confirming the robustness of the conceptual framework.
Conclusion
This study offers multiple contributions to both academic theory and managerial practice. First, it empirically validates the critical role of ICT as a driver of performance in tourism start-ups, particularly through its impact on knowledge integration and innovation mechanisms. Second, it emphasizes the importance of effective knowledge management systems as a bridge between external knowledge inputs and internal innovation outcomes. Third, it suggests that while marketing strategy may not directly influence performance, it plays a valuable role as a moderator when combined with service innovation.The implications for practitioners are clear: tourism start-ups should invest in ICT infrastructure and training not merely for operational efficiency but as strategic assets for learning and innovation. Knowledge integration systems, such as customer databases, supplier collaboration platforms, and staff training modules, should be prioritized. In addition, marketing strategies should be designed to amplify the value created through service innovation.Given the limited geographic focus of the study, future research should replicate this model in other cities and cultural contexts. Mixed-method approaches incorporating qualitative insights could also enrich the findings. Moreover, examining the role of individual characteristics such as entrepreneurial orientation, digital literacy, or organizational culture may shed further light on the boundary conditions of these relationships.
Methods and Materoal
The present study employed a descriptive-correlational methodology based on structural equation modeling (SEM) using the SmartPLS 3 software. A total of 280 managers and employees from tourism start-ups based in Tehran were selected through convenience sampling. Standardized questionnaires were used to measure the constructs of interest, including ICT (Azam, 2015), open innovation (Hamed et al., 2018), knowledge integration, knowledge management (Iqbal et al., 2023), service innovation (Hu, 2009), marketing strategy (Koksal & Ozgul, 2007), and firm performance. Validity and reliability of the constructs were confirmed through Cronbach's alpha, composite reliability, Average Variance Extracted (AVE) and discriminant validity measures. Items with factor loadings below 0.4 were removed to ensure model parsimony. The GoF (Goodness-of-Fit) index was computed and interpreted based on Kline's (2010) thresholds to ensure robustness of the overall model.
Resultss and Discussion
The results reveal that ICT significantly influences three critical mediating variables: external knowledge integration (β = 0.60, t = 18.0), open innovation (β = 0.75, t = 26.55), and knowledge management (β = 0.512, t = 7.17). These findings support prior studies that conceptualize ICT not only as a data processing tool but also as a vehicle for organizational learning and innovation (Scuotto et al., 2017; Bhatt & Grover, 2005).Moreover, the integration of external knowledge has a direct and significant effect on knowledge management (β = 0.40, t = 8.59), underscoring the importance of external inputs in shaping internal learning systems and innovation capacity (Liao & Marsillac, 2015). In contrast, the direct relationship between open innovation and knowledge management was not statistically significant (t = 0.18), suggesting that open innovation may be more effective when coupled with internal absorptive capabilities or organizational culture conducive to knowledge utilization.Knowledge management, as a central construct in this model, demonstrated strong effects on both service innovation (β = 0.70, t = 24.96) and organizational performance (β = 0.389, t = 3.87). This aligns with the existing literature that highlights the strategic role of knowledge systems in enabling innovation and competitive advantage (Darroch, 2005; Harif et al., 2022). Furthermore, service innovation itself has a modest yet significant impact on performance (β = 0.17, t = 2.66), echoing previous studies that link new service development to firm-level outcomes (Aas & Pedersen, 2010; Cheng & Huizingh, 2014).Surprisingly, the direct effect of marketing strategy on performance was not significant (t = 1.62), which contradicts the results of some earlier studies (Kitsios & Kamariotou, 2016). However, a significant moderating effect of marketing strategy was found on the relationship between service innovation and performance (t = 3.10, β = 0.138), indicating that when strategically aligned with innovation initiatives, marketing strategies can enhance the impact of innovation efforts.The structural model exhibited strong explanatory power, with R² values of 0.658 for knowledge management, 0.494 for service innovation, and 0.429 for performance. The global GoF value of 0.638 exceeded the threshold for strong model fit (Kline, 2010), confirming the robustness of the conceptual framework.
Conclusion
This study offers multiple contributions to both academic theory and managerial practice. First, it empirically validates the critical role of ICT as a driver of performance in tourism start-ups, particularly through its impact on knowledge integration and innovation mechanisms. Second, it emphasizes the importance of effective knowledge management systems as a bridge between external knowledge inputs and internal innovation outcomes. Third, it suggests that while marketing strategy may not directly influence performance, it plays a valuable role as a moderator when combined with service innovation.The implications for practitioners are clear: tourism start-ups should invest in ICT infrastructure and training not merely for operational efficiency but as strategic assets for learning and innovation. Knowledge integration systems, such as customer databases, supplier collaboration platforms, and staff training modules, should be prioritized. In addition, marketing strategies should be designed to amplify the value created through service innovation.Given the limited geographic focus of the study, future research should replicate this model in other cities and cultural contexts. Mixed-method approaches incorporating qualitative insights could also enrich the findings. Moreover, examining the role of individual characteristics such as entrepreneurial orientation, digital literacy, or organizational culture may shed further light on the boundary conditions of these relationships.
Rahman Marefat, F Fatemeh Bazzi, Ghasem Azadi,
Volume 11, Issue 4 (1-2025)
Volume 11, Issue 4 (1-2025)
Abstract
Background and purpose: The user interface is an intermediary between humans and the computer environment, focusing on graphical elements and design criteria to ensure user satisfaction and meet user expectations. This research has reviewed Persian articles published in the field of user experience in symbols and visual signs in website and application graphics.
Method: This research was conducted based on the prism method, with the aim of a systematic review. Research studies that have focused on optimizing user experience while using websites and applications have been the main criteria for selection to be analyzed and reviewed in this descriptive-analytical research. After the initial search, the number of 86 articles published in Persian language databases and publications as well as conferences in this field were obtained, and after screening, 61 articles were selected for study and analysis. The articles were found by searching for the following keywords: website graphics, user experience, website design, graphical user interface, user interface design, visual elements, site visual symbols, user interaction with site, and user-centered design in the mentioned information databases and publications.
Findings: In general, 132 researchers worked in this field, of which 83 are men and 49 are women. The participation rate of men (63%) and women (37%) was measured. Three librarianship and information publications with the frequency of 9 articles, human and information interaction with 8 articles and national studies of librarianship and information organization with 7 articles were the most sources of article publishers in the field of user experience in icons and visual symbols in website and application graphics. Although it is customary to use all three quantitative, qualitative and combined approaches among researchers in the field of user experience in the symbols and visual signs in website and application graphics, but most of the researches conducted in this field have used survey methods and quantitative approach.
Conclusion: The thematic analysis of published sources in the subject area of user experience in symbols and visual signs in website and application graphics showed that the authors of this area have published works in this area in 26 thematic areas. Out of a total of 61 articles, the most published articles were 33 scientific research articles (54.1 percent) and the least type of conference articles were 10 articles (16.3 percent). The highest frequency of words in the 61 articles reviewed was related to the term "user interface" (with a frequency of 28 cases), "web" (with a frequency of 23 cases), "library" (with a frequency of 13 words), and "computer" (with a frequency of 12 repetitions) in the text. Among qualitative research studies, only action research, phenomenology, and interpretive methods have garnered the attention of researchers in this field. Additionally, some researchers have utilized mixed or combined methods. Review and promotional articles included a total of 18 articles (29.6 percent) out of a total of 61 articles. Overall, the findings of this research indicated that most of the studies reviewed utilized survey methods and a quantitative approach. The thematic analysis of published resources in the field of user experience concerning symbols and visual signs in website and application graphics revealed that authors in this area have addressed topics such as apps, applications, customer feelings and perceptions, graphical user interfaces, mobile games, databases, cognitive research, user experience, human-computer interaction, mobile phones, computers, eye trackers, interactive media, Persian script, graphical user interface design, website design, digital visual culture, media technology, usability of user interfaces, digital libraries, website quality, computer graphics, search engines, visual symbols and indicators, digital interactive art, interface environment vocabulary, and display features in their articles and works. Awareness of the identified domains reveals the research gaps within this field. Researchers in human-information interaction can focus on axes that previous researchers have paid less attention to. Furthermore, exploring this topic in international articles is an important area for study, and its results can be compared with the findings of the current research. Attention to graphical signs and symbols and identifying user needs helps the designer create websites and applications that meet user needs and expectations.
Method: This research was conducted based on the prism method, with the aim of a systematic review. Research studies that have focused on optimizing user experience while using websites and applications have been the main criteria for selection to be analyzed and reviewed in this descriptive-analytical research. After the initial search, the number of 86 articles published in Persian language databases and publications as well as conferences in this field were obtained, and after screening, 61 articles were selected for study and analysis. The articles were found by searching for the following keywords: website graphics, user experience, website design, graphical user interface, user interface design, visual elements, site visual symbols, user interaction with site, and user-centered design in the mentioned information databases and publications.
Findings: In general, 132 researchers worked in this field, of which 83 are men and 49 are women. The participation rate of men (63%) and women (37%) was measured. Three librarianship and information publications with the frequency of 9 articles, human and information interaction with 8 articles and national studies of librarianship and information organization with 7 articles were the most sources of article publishers in the field of user experience in icons and visual symbols in website and application graphics. Although it is customary to use all three quantitative, qualitative and combined approaches among researchers in the field of user experience in the symbols and visual signs in website and application graphics, but most of the researches conducted in this field have used survey methods and quantitative approach.
Conclusion: The thematic analysis of published sources in the subject area of user experience in symbols and visual signs in website and application graphics showed that the authors of this area have published works in this area in 26 thematic areas. Out of a total of 61 articles, the most published articles were 33 scientific research articles (54.1 percent) and the least type of conference articles were 10 articles (16.3 percent). The highest frequency of words in the 61 articles reviewed was related to the term "user interface" (with a frequency of 28 cases), "web" (with a frequency of 23 cases), "library" (with a frequency of 13 words), and "computer" (with a frequency of 12 repetitions) in the text. Among qualitative research studies, only action research, phenomenology, and interpretive methods have garnered the attention of researchers in this field. Additionally, some researchers have utilized mixed or combined methods. Review and promotional articles included a total of 18 articles (29.6 percent) out of a total of 61 articles. Overall, the findings of this research indicated that most of the studies reviewed utilized survey methods and a quantitative approach. The thematic analysis of published resources in the field of user experience concerning symbols and visual signs in website and application graphics revealed that authors in this area have addressed topics such as apps, applications, customer feelings and perceptions, graphical user interfaces, mobile games, databases, cognitive research, user experience, human-computer interaction, mobile phones, computers, eye trackers, interactive media, Persian script, graphical user interface design, website design, digital visual culture, media technology, usability of user interfaces, digital libraries, website quality, computer graphics, search engines, visual symbols and indicators, digital interactive art, interface environment vocabulary, and display features in their articles and works. Awareness of the identified domains reveals the research gaps within this field. Researchers in human-information interaction can focus on axes that previous researchers have paid less attention to. Furthermore, exploring this topic in international articles is an important area for study, and its results can be compared with the findings of the current research. Attention to graphical signs and symbols and identifying user needs helps the designer create websites and applications that meet user needs and expectations.
Sorush Fathi, Zahra Dadgarfard, Parvin Dadandish, Zahra Zare,
Volume 11, Issue 4 (1-2025)
Volume 11, Issue 4 (1-2025)
Abstract
Introduction
The present study aims to qualitatively examine the lived experience of economically empowered female heads of households in order to extract a local pattern or model from their lived process that other female heads of households can also benefit from.
Methods and Materoal
Snowball sampling method was used to conduct the interviews. The interviews were conducted in person by the researcher until saturation point was reached. Therefore, the researcher interviewed 13 economically capable female heads of households until theoretical saturation.
Resultss and Discussion
Overall, 157 open codes, 42 axial codes, 15 selected codes, and one axial category were extracted from the interviews. The results showed that the causal category of financial need, lack of basic needs, and family disorder had a significant impact. The existence of support organizations and charities, laws protecting female heads of households, and receiving facilities from support organizations are among the intervening categories. Also, heavy family obligations and lack of social and family support were identified as underlying factors. In the meantime, there are strategies for female heads of households, including taking advantage of support services and facilities from government organizations and charities, receiving economic and social skills training, and using facilities, programs, and services. This has led to effects and consequences, including increased income and employment, improved social and economic status, and reduced family and social tensions. The central issue is the need for economic empowerment. Women heads of economically empowered households initially lacked sufficient economic experience and skills, or even the necessary preparation, to become heads. Economic empowerment has reduced deprivation and social exclusion and has enabled them to integrate into society and social groups
Conclusion
The results of the present study, which examined the lived experience of economically empowered female heads of households, showed that female heads of households initially had circumstances in which they had lost their husbands or had separated from their husbands, and most of them were not in a good financial situation.
They have also experienced family tensions, infidelity and violence from their spouse, poor financial conditions, and overwhelming obligations and responsibilities.
In addition, during the absence of a spouse or separation from a spouse, the responsibility for children and providing for the family's livelihood needs, as well as the conditions of society and their sense of need, played an important role in achieving economic empowerment. Therefore, family disorganization, financial need, and failure to meet basic needs were considered as causal factors.
The presence of support organizations can be considered an effective element in this regard. The optimal use of services has played an effective role in improving their conditions, and it can be said that these women used services and employment in a way that was appropriate and purposeful. This shows that intervening factors, including the existence of support organizations and charities, laws supporting female heads of households, receiving facilities from the support organization, and personality traits in line with empowerment (desire for social and economic independence) were also influential. Overall, it can be concluded that these women did not have sufficient experience and skills from the beginning, and were not even prepared to become caregivers. However, as they became economically empowered, their deprivation and social exclusion decreased, and their integration into society and social groups expanded. Their capacity to improve their personal and social status will also increase. Therefore, a process was undertaken to transform a woman who was a head of household in need of support into an economically empowered woman.
The present study aims to qualitatively examine the lived experience of economically empowered female heads of households in order to extract a local pattern or model from their lived process that other female heads of households can also benefit from.
Methods and Materoal
Snowball sampling method was used to conduct the interviews. The interviews were conducted in person by the researcher until saturation point was reached. Therefore, the researcher interviewed 13 economically capable female heads of households until theoretical saturation.
Resultss and Discussion
Overall, 157 open codes, 42 axial codes, 15 selected codes, and one axial category were extracted from the interviews. The results showed that the causal category of financial need, lack of basic needs, and family disorder had a significant impact. The existence of support organizations and charities, laws protecting female heads of households, and receiving facilities from support organizations are among the intervening categories. Also, heavy family obligations and lack of social and family support were identified as underlying factors. In the meantime, there are strategies for female heads of households, including taking advantage of support services and facilities from government organizations and charities, receiving economic and social skills training, and using facilities, programs, and services. This has led to effects and consequences, including increased income and employment, improved social and economic status, and reduced family and social tensions. The central issue is the need for economic empowerment. Women heads of economically empowered households initially lacked sufficient economic experience and skills, or even the necessary preparation, to become heads. Economic empowerment has reduced deprivation and social exclusion and has enabled them to integrate into society and social groups
Conclusion
The results of the present study, which examined the lived experience of economically empowered female heads of households, showed that female heads of households initially had circumstances in which they had lost their husbands or had separated from their husbands, and most of them were not in a good financial situation.
They have also experienced family tensions, infidelity and violence from their spouse, poor financial conditions, and overwhelming obligations and responsibilities.
In addition, during the absence of a spouse or separation from a spouse, the responsibility for children and providing for the family's livelihood needs, as well as the conditions of society and their sense of need, played an important role in achieving economic empowerment. Therefore, family disorganization, financial need, and failure to meet basic needs were considered as causal factors.
The presence of support organizations can be considered an effective element in this regard. The optimal use of services has played an effective role in improving their conditions, and it can be said that these women used services and employment in a way that was appropriate and purposeful. This shows that intervening factors, including the existence of support organizations and charities, laws supporting female heads of households, receiving facilities from the support organization, and personality traits in line with empowerment (desire for social and economic independence) were also influential. Overall, it can be concluded that these women did not have sufficient experience and skills from the beginning, and were not even prepared to become caregivers. However, as they became economically empowered, their deprivation and social exclusion decreased, and their integration into society and social groups expanded. Their capacity to improve their personal and social status will also increase. Therefore, a process was undertaken to transform a woman who was a head of household in need of support into an economically empowered woman.
Ms Elham Askarian Kakh, Ms Somaye Sadat Akhshik, Mr Abdolhossein Farajpahlou, Mr Reza Rajabali Beglou,
Volume 11, Issue 4 (1-2025)
Volume 11, Issue 4 (1-2025)
Abstract
Information poverty has a wide-ranging negative impact on people’s health and socio-economic well-being. Over the past twenty years, researchers have used Chatman’s information poverty theory as a guide to understanding information behaviors in diverse contexts and situations, and it continues to be useful in advancing our understanding of the social dynamics and cultural contexts of information behaviors.
Information poverty is a condition in which individuals and groups in a particular context lack the skills, abilities, and tools necessary to access information appropriately, or to transform and use it optimally. The marginalization of information through institutional and contextual processes such as economic and racial inequalities, as well as information overload, negatively affects an individual’s information behavior. Marginalized groups find limited resources to meet their information needs, have limited economic and social capital, are suspicious of outside information, and engage in self-protective behaviors to reduce marginalization. Chatman (1996) proposed the information poverty theory. According to him, people who do not believe that external information can help them are inclined to engage in self-protective behaviors such as deception and secrecy, which ultimately make them unable to obtain richer information. The theory he proposed makes the following six propositions:
1. The information poor perceive themselves to be devoid of any sources that might help them.;
2. Information poverty is partially associated with class distinction;
3. Information poverty is determined by self-protective behaviors which are used in response to social norms;
4. Both secrecy and deception are self-protecting mechanisms due to a sense of mistrust regarding the interest or ability of others to provide useful information;
5. A decision to risk exposure about our true feelings is often not taken due to a perception that negative consequences outweigh benefits;
6. New knowledge will be selectively introduced into the information world of poor people. A condition that influences this process is the relevance of that information in response to everyday problems and concerns.
The components associated with Chatman's information poverty theory are: Secrecy, deception, risk-taking, and situational relevance. Risk-taking refers to a person’s perception of the value of a particular type of information and the perception of the risk involved in seeking or sharing this information. Secrecy is the intentional protection of oneself from revealing information. In contrast, deception involves the intentional presentation of a false reality, as the person shares meaningless information, and the information received is irrelevant. Situational relevance refers to the fact that, to be useful, information sources must be meaningful to the individual and accepted by others in the group. Lack of knowledge about issues leads people to resort to rumors and superstitions, to feel helpless, and to avoid actively seeking information. One area that has been particularly affected by information poverty has been the field of medicine, especially infectious diseases. The experience of illness is a phenomenon that evokes suffering, intense emotions, and a desire to talk to others. The desire to talk to others is shaped by the perception that other people who do not suffer from the disease are unable to understand the world of patients, so relevant information should only be obtained from insiders who share their experiences. One of the social concerns about pandemics is fatalism. Some attribute the information poverty during the COVID-19 outbreak to the spread of fake news through social media, and believe that fake news, conspiracy theories, poverty and hunger, a shortage of doctors for patients, and social ignorance have created challenges in combating the pandemic. A combination of fear, social stigma, criminalization, and narrow-minded laws prevent marginalized individuals and social groups from volunteering for information when they need health and medical care. Stigma has always been a social challenge in social studies of health. Social stigma caused by infectious diseases causes psychosocial stress and other social barriers. Stigma can hinder health information-seeking behaviors and delay diagnosis and treatment; and can also lead to poverty and ignorance through social marginalization, resistance to health institutions, and mistrust of information and information sources. One of the main challenges for health policymakers is to develop effective measures to reduce stigma associated with illness, which requires further research. Since Chatman's theory has been used for many years to assess information poverty, it is expected to be useful for investigating the subject of the present study.
The problem is that in such circumstances, when the level of trust between individuals (patients and non-patients) and medical staff decreases, the role of people such as healthcare workers as a bridge between specialists and non-specialists can be necessary. Healthcare workers also play the role of transferring information between these two groups. Therefore, measuring the level of information poverty of healthcare workers in relation to epidemic diseases is so important. On the other hand, if the factors affecting the information poverty of different groups of individuals, including medical staff, in the field of infectious diseases are identified, the results can also be extended to possible epidemic conditions in the future and help in appropriate interventions at different stages of managing and controlling public health emergencies as quickly as possible. Identifying the challenges and problems of information behavior of healthcare workers who face epidemic diseases and appropriate and timely planning for their management can lead to the design of effective strategies for the prevention, treatment, and recovery of affected communities.
The aim of the study was to show how the small world of Tehran healthcare workers fits into Chatman's information poverty theory. The main question of this research was to investigate their information poverty situation based on the components of Chatman's information poverty theory.
The sub-questions were as follows:
1. What is the situation of the secrecy component in healthcare workers?
2. What is the situation of the deception component in healthcare workers?
3. What is the situation of the risk-taking component in healthcare workers?
4. What is the situation of the situational relevance component in healthcare workers?
5. What is the grouping of healthcare workers based on the components of Chatman's information poverty theory?
Methods and Materoal
The method of this survey study included the identification and analysis of the key components of information poverty of healthcare workers who were working in health homes in Tehran during the Covid-19 pandemic. Because due to their direct contact with the community, they had valuable information about their health situation and health needs, and the information poverty of healthcare workers in this field could be extended to the community.
Data collection was conducted using a researcher-made questionnaire based on Chatman's information poverty theory. The reliability of the questionnaire was assessed using Cronbach's alpha formula, and the content validity ratio was used to examine the validity of the questionnaire.
A stratified random sampling method was used and 125 questionnaires were collected. In order to ensure better diversity and representation, the population was divided into subgroups, and the categories were identified based on the supervising universities, and a sample was selected from each category to ensure the necessary statistical sample size.
Results and Discussion
The findings related to the main components showed that deception had the highest mean with a value of 3.85. This indicates a conscious effort to present a false social reality. After that, the mean of secrecy, protecting oneself from revealing information, is in second place with a value of 3.728. The mean of situational relevance is also in third place with a value of 3.687. This index indicates that the healthcare workers selectively received information about their daily lives. In addition, the mean of risk-taking (3.615) also indicates the healthcare workers' fear of the consequences of seeking information in complex health conditions.The findings related to the secrecy show that the highest mean (3.924) belonged to the component of "Coping with a lack of information processing skills". This was followed by “mistrust”, “privacy protection”, “adherence to one’s own in-group culture”, “welcoming cyberspace to exchange information”, “hiding one’s position, feeling or opinion”, “establishing and maintaining superiority over unwell individuals”, “lack of information and information assets”, and “avoiding negative consequences” and finally, “adherence to a unique personal attitude”.Findings related to the risk-taking showed that “usefulness and value of information” had the highest mean of 3.752. After that, "privacy protection" with an average of 3.74, "adherence to one's own in-group culture" with an average of 3.645, "welcoming cyberspace for information exchange" with an average of 3.642, "emotional and cognitive effort to choose between true and false information" with an average of 3.64, "mistrust" with an average of 3.58, "avoidance of possible negative consequences".
The situation of the situational relevance shows that the "usefulness and value of information" component with an average of 3.726 has the highest score. This was followed by “using insider information” with an average of 3.725, “adherence to one’s own in-group culture” with an average of 3.688, “lack of information and information assets” with an average of 3.616, and the “mistrust” with the lowest average.
Analysis of the situation of the deception showed that the “risk avoidance” had the highest average (3.988). This was followed by “mistrust” with an average of 3.884, “lack of information and information assets” with an average of 3.876, “maintaining privacy” with an average of 3.876, and “failing to present the true reality, situation, or feeling” with an average of 3.828, respectively. Finally, the lowest average (3.796) was related to the “establishing and maintaining superiority over unwell individuals” component.
The findings related to the grouping of healthcare workers showed that the deception component had the highest number of observations and the situational relevance component was in second place after the deception. Also, the number of observations of secrecy was higher compared to risk-taking.
Conclusion
The results indicate the complex behaviors of healthcare workers in interacting with information and information sources, and "deception" was prominent as the main strategy among these components, while situational relevance, risk-taking, and secrecy acted as complementary behaviors.
The most effective factor on healthcare workers' secrecy was coping with the lack of information processing skills. This is while mistrust of information sources and information also played a prominent role in the process of not presenting facts, feelings, and thoughts of healthcare workers. While the most important factor on risk-taking was ignoring information that did not match their conditions, because they were afraid of its consequences and possible risks. The second factor affecting risk-taking was due to the preservation of information and personal and group privacy. Also the most effective factor on "situational relevance" was that they assessed the usefulness and value of information from the perspective of their own needs and limited information. Another factor was that the healthcare workers prioritized the use of inside information because they considered it relevant to their position. Finally the most influential factor in the deception of the healthcare workers was that they reduced the risks of seeking information. Another factor was that they did not trust the information and the sources from which it was disseminated.
The grouping of healthcare workers showed that the largest number of them was in the deceptive group. A smaller number of them also assessed the relevance and usefulness of the information to their current situation and were placed in the second group. The third group, with a smaller number, belongs to the secretive group, while the number of risk-averse individuals was lower compared to secretive healthcare workers. There are signs in the findings that place people in two groups at the same time. This phenomenon can be caused by psychological and social complexities and the effects of various factors on information poverty. On the other hand, all four components can be involved in an individual's information-seeking behavior at the same time. It is also possible for one component to have an effect on the other. For example, the concept of secrecy is closely related to risk-taking. This highlights the depth of information poverty and the complexity of human behavior, which can be influenced by multiple factors, including social and cultural contexts. It also allows us to understand that individuals do not simply fit into a particular pattern and may act differently in different situations. Overall, these findings emphasize the need to develop training programs and create safe spaces for information exchange so that healthcare workers can more confidently access and utilize new information.
The analyses lead us to conclude that in order to reduce information poverty, we need to strengthen educational infrastructure, improve access to information, and create a culture of transparency and trust. Finally, the findings provide new insights into the constraints experienced by healthcare workers in health homes, and provide evidence of systematic marginalization and classification of access to and use of information, indicating that protective, secretive, and deceptive measures were employed by healthcare workers not only to cope with living in a small world, but also to circumvent socio-cultural boundaries. The results provide further insight into the role of health professionals and policymakers in supporting the information needs of healthcare workers and guiding their information behaviors.
Keywords: Information Poverty, Chatman's theory, Primary healthcare worker.
Information poverty is a condition in which individuals and groups in a particular context lack the skills, abilities, and tools necessary to access information appropriately, or to transform and use it optimally. The marginalization of information through institutional and contextual processes such as economic and racial inequalities, as well as information overload, negatively affects an individual’s information behavior. Marginalized groups find limited resources to meet their information needs, have limited economic and social capital, are suspicious of outside information, and engage in self-protective behaviors to reduce marginalization. Chatman (1996) proposed the information poverty theory. According to him, people who do not believe that external information can help them are inclined to engage in self-protective behaviors such as deception and secrecy, which ultimately make them unable to obtain richer information. The theory he proposed makes the following six propositions:
1. The information poor perceive themselves to be devoid of any sources that might help them.;
2. Information poverty is partially associated with class distinction;
3. Information poverty is determined by self-protective behaviors which are used in response to social norms;
4. Both secrecy and deception are self-protecting mechanisms due to a sense of mistrust regarding the interest or ability of others to provide useful information;
5. A decision to risk exposure about our true feelings is often not taken due to a perception that negative consequences outweigh benefits;
6. New knowledge will be selectively introduced into the information world of poor people. A condition that influences this process is the relevance of that information in response to everyday problems and concerns.
The components associated with Chatman's information poverty theory are: Secrecy, deception, risk-taking, and situational relevance. Risk-taking refers to a person’s perception of the value of a particular type of information and the perception of the risk involved in seeking or sharing this information. Secrecy is the intentional protection of oneself from revealing information. In contrast, deception involves the intentional presentation of a false reality, as the person shares meaningless information, and the information received is irrelevant. Situational relevance refers to the fact that, to be useful, information sources must be meaningful to the individual and accepted by others in the group. Lack of knowledge about issues leads people to resort to rumors and superstitions, to feel helpless, and to avoid actively seeking information. One area that has been particularly affected by information poverty has been the field of medicine, especially infectious diseases. The experience of illness is a phenomenon that evokes suffering, intense emotions, and a desire to talk to others. The desire to talk to others is shaped by the perception that other people who do not suffer from the disease are unable to understand the world of patients, so relevant information should only be obtained from insiders who share their experiences. One of the social concerns about pandemics is fatalism. Some attribute the information poverty during the COVID-19 outbreak to the spread of fake news through social media, and believe that fake news, conspiracy theories, poverty and hunger, a shortage of doctors for patients, and social ignorance have created challenges in combating the pandemic. A combination of fear, social stigma, criminalization, and narrow-minded laws prevent marginalized individuals and social groups from volunteering for information when they need health and medical care. Stigma has always been a social challenge in social studies of health. Social stigma caused by infectious diseases causes psychosocial stress and other social barriers. Stigma can hinder health information-seeking behaviors and delay diagnosis and treatment; and can also lead to poverty and ignorance through social marginalization, resistance to health institutions, and mistrust of information and information sources. One of the main challenges for health policymakers is to develop effective measures to reduce stigma associated with illness, which requires further research. Since Chatman's theory has been used for many years to assess information poverty, it is expected to be useful for investigating the subject of the present study.
The problem is that in such circumstances, when the level of trust between individuals (patients and non-patients) and medical staff decreases, the role of people such as healthcare workers as a bridge between specialists and non-specialists can be necessary. Healthcare workers also play the role of transferring information between these two groups. Therefore, measuring the level of information poverty of healthcare workers in relation to epidemic diseases is so important. On the other hand, if the factors affecting the information poverty of different groups of individuals, including medical staff, in the field of infectious diseases are identified, the results can also be extended to possible epidemic conditions in the future and help in appropriate interventions at different stages of managing and controlling public health emergencies as quickly as possible. Identifying the challenges and problems of information behavior of healthcare workers who face epidemic diseases and appropriate and timely planning for their management can lead to the design of effective strategies for the prevention, treatment, and recovery of affected communities.
The aim of the study was to show how the small world of Tehran healthcare workers fits into Chatman's information poverty theory. The main question of this research was to investigate their information poverty situation based on the components of Chatman's information poverty theory.
The sub-questions were as follows:
1. What is the situation of the secrecy component in healthcare workers?
2. What is the situation of the deception component in healthcare workers?
3. What is the situation of the risk-taking component in healthcare workers?
4. What is the situation of the situational relevance component in healthcare workers?
5. What is the grouping of healthcare workers based on the components of Chatman's information poverty theory?
Methods and Materoal
The method of this survey study included the identification and analysis of the key components of information poverty of healthcare workers who were working in health homes in Tehran during the Covid-19 pandemic. Because due to their direct contact with the community, they had valuable information about their health situation and health needs, and the information poverty of healthcare workers in this field could be extended to the community.
Data collection was conducted using a researcher-made questionnaire based on Chatman's information poverty theory. The reliability of the questionnaire was assessed using Cronbach's alpha formula, and the content validity ratio was used to examine the validity of the questionnaire.
A stratified random sampling method was used and 125 questionnaires were collected. In order to ensure better diversity and representation, the population was divided into subgroups, and the categories were identified based on the supervising universities, and a sample was selected from each category to ensure the necessary statistical sample size.
Results and Discussion
The findings related to the main components showed that deception had the highest mean with a value of 3.85. This indicates a conscious effort to present a false social reality. After that, the mean of secrecy, protecting oneself from revealing information, is in second place with a value of 3.728. The mean of situational relevance is also in third place with a value of 3.687. This index indicates that the healthcare workers selectively received information about their daily lives. In addition, the mean of risk-taking (3.615) also indicates the healthcare workers' fear of the consequences of seeking information in complex health conditions.The findings related to the secrecy show that the highest mean (3.924) belonged to the component of "Coping with a lack of information processing skills". This was followed by “mistrust”, “privacy protection”, “adherence to one’s own in-group culture”, “welcoming cyberspace to exchange information”, “hiding one’s position, feeling or opinion”, “establishing and maintaining superiority over unwell individuals”, “lack of information and information assets”, and “avoiding negative consequences” and finally, “adherence to a unique personal attitude”.Findings related to the risk-taking showed that “usefulness and value of information” had the highest mean of 3.752. After that, "privacy protection" with an average of 3.74, "adherence to one's own in-group culture" with an average of 3.645, "welcoming cyberspace for information exchange" with an average of 3.642, "emotional and cognitive effort to choose between true and false information" with an average of 3.64, "mistrust" with an average of 3.58, "avoidance of possible negative consequences".
The situation of the situational relevance shows that the "usefulness and value of information" component with an average of 3.726 has the highest score. This was followed by “using insider information” with an average of 3.725, “adherence to one’s own in-group culture” with an average of 3.688, “lack of information and information assets” with an average of 3.616, and the “mistrust” with the lowest average.
Analysis of the situation of the deception showed that the “risk avoidance” had the highest average (3.988). This was followed by “mistrust” with an average of 3.884, “lack of information and information assets” with an average of 3.876, “maintaining privacy” with an average of 3.876, and “failing to present the true reality, situation, or feeling” with an average of 3.828, respectively. Finally, the lowest average (3.796) was related to the “establishing and maintaining superiority over unwell individuals” component.
The findings related to the grouping of healthcare workers showed that the deception component had the highest number of observations and the situational relevance component was in second place after the deception. Also, the number of observations of secrecy was higher compared to risk-taking.
Conclusion
The results indicate the complex behaviors of healthcare workers in interacting with information and information sources, and "deception" was prominent as the main strategy among these components, while situational relevance, risk-taking, and secrecy acted as complementary behaviors.
The most effective factor on healthcare workers' secrecy was coping with the lack of information processing skills. This is while mistrust of information sources and information also played a prominent role in the process of not presenting facts, feelings, and thoughts of healthcare workers. While the most important factor on risk-taking was ignoring information that did not match their conditions, because they were afraid of its consequences and possible risks. The second factor affecting risk-taking was due to the preservation of information and personal and group privacy. Also the most effective factor on "situational relevance" was that they assessed the usefulness and value of information from the perspective of their own needs and limited information. Another factor was that the healthcare workers prioritized the use of inside information because they considered it relevant to their position. Finally the most influential factor in the deception of the healthcare workers was that they reduced the risks of seeking information. Another factor was that they did not trust the information and the sources from which it was disseminated.
The grouping of healthcare workers showed that the largest number of them was in the deceptive group. A smaller number of them also assessed the relevance and usefulness of the information to their current situation and were placed in the second group. The third group, with a smaller number, belongs to the secretive group, while the number of risk-averse individuals was lower compared to secretive healthcare workers. There are signs in the findings that place people in two groups at the same time. This phenomenon can be caused by psychological and social complexities and the effects of various factors on information poverty. On the other hand, all four components can be involved in an individual's information-seeking behavior at the same time. It is also possible for one component to have an effect on the other. For example, the concept of secrecy is closely related to risk-taking. This highlights the depth of information poverty and the complexity of human behavior, which can be influenced by multiple factors, including social and cultural contexts. It also allows us to understand that individuals do not simply fit into a particular pattern and may act differently in different situations. Overall, these findings emphasize the need to develop training programs and create safe spaces for information exchange so that healthcare workers can more confidently access and utilize new information.
The analyses lead us to conclude that in order to reduce information poverty, we need to strengthen educational infrastructure, improve access to information, and create a culture of transparency and trust. Finally, the findings provide new insights into the constraints experienced by healthcare workers in health homes, and provide evidence of systematic marginalization and classification of access to and use of information, indicating that protective, secretive, and deceptive measures were employed by healthcare workers not only to cope with living in a small world, but also to circumvent socio-cultural boundaries. The results provide further insight into the role of health professionals and policymakers in supporting the information needs of healthcare workers and guiding their information behaviors.
Keywords: Information Poverty, Chatman's theory, Primary healthcare worker.
Kimiya Taghizadeh Milani, Masoumeh Karbala Aghaei Kamran, Amir Ghaebi,
Volume 11, Issue 4 (1-2025)
Volume 11, Issue 4 (1-2025)
Abstract
The rapid proliferation of digital data in the research landscape has underscored the critical need for sustainable data curation strategies, especially regarding the long-term preservation of valuable datasets. Research data repositories, as key infrastructures for data stewardship, face mounting challenges in determining which datasets should be preserved for future reuse, validation, and scientific advancement. Given the constraints of storage, funding, and technical resources, not all data generated by research activities can or should be preserved indefinitely. Consequently, defining rigorous, transparent, and contextually appropriate evaluation and selection criteria has emerged as a vital concern within the broader scope of research data management (RDM) and digital curation.
This study aims to identify and categorize the key criteria used to evaluate and select research data for long-term preservation in repositories. By conducting a systematic review of existing literature and practices, it seeks to offer a conceptual framework that supports repository managers, librarians, archivists, and data stewards in making informed and consistent decisions about what data to retain. The research further addresses the implications of these criteria on policy development, data sharing, and FAIR data principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable). Ultimately, the study contributes to improving data lifecycle management strategies and ensuring that preserved data retains its scientific, legal, ethical, and cultural value.
Methods and Material
This research adopted a qualitative content analysis approach based on a systematic literature review. The primary goal was to identify, classify, and synthesize the evaluation and selection criteria applied by data repositories in preserving research data. The review focused on peer-reviewed journal articles, white papers, policy documents, and institutional guidelines published between 2000 and 2024. Major databases such as Scopus, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar were searched using combinations of keywords including "research data preservation," "data selection criteria," "data curation," and "digital repositories."
Inclusion criteria for the literature involved the presence of explicit or implicit discussion on the assessment or selection of research data for long-term storage, including frameworks, models, or institutional case studies. A total of 67 relevant documents were identified and analyzed. Through iterative coding and constant comparison, the evaluation criteria were distilled into several thematic clusters, such as scientific value, legal and ethical considerations, technical characteristics, economic feasibility, data usability, and policy alignment.
Resultss and Discussion
The findings of this study, based on a systematic review of the literature and a meta-synthesis of previous studies, identify a comprehensive set of criteria and components for evaluating and selecting research data for retention in data repositories. These criteria are categorized into eight main components: data preparation, data quality, physical conditions and technical features, metadata management and features, ethical principles of data, document-related criteria, compliance with FAIR principles, and repository policies and issues.
In the “Data Preparation” component, indicators such as data cleaning, data scale, presence of missing data, and evaluation of survey biases are highlighted. This component emphasizes the necessity of eliminating errors and inconsistencies, assessing the scale of data, and addressing missing values. It also stresses the importance of identifying and evaluating biases in survey data, such as sampling errors, non-response, and other confounding factors.
The “Data Quality” component includes indicators such as accuracy, reliability, completeness, validity, documentation of limitations, and timeliness of data. Accuracy and correctness of information must be carefully assessed, and data reliability should be evaluated based on how the data was produced and analyzed. Completeness refers to the presence of all necessary elements in the dataset, and validity relates to the soundness of data collection tools and the extent to which findings reflect reality. Acknowledging study limitations helps clarify weaknesses, and up-to-date data are valued for their relevance in terms of collection time.
The remaining components and their indicators are as follows:
This study aims to identify and categorize the key criteria used to evaluate and select research data for long-term preservation in repositories. By conducting a systematic review of existing literature and practices, it seeks to offer a conceptual framework that supports repository managers, librarians, archivists, and data stewards in making informed and consistent decisions about what data to retain. The research further addresses the implications of these criteria on policy development, data sharing, and FAIR data principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable). Ultimately, the study contributes to improving data lifecycle management strategies and ensuring that preserved data retains its scientific, legal, ethical, and cultural value.
Methods and Material
This research adopted a qualitative content analysis approach based on a systematic literature review. The primary goal was to identify, classify, and synthesize the evaluation and selection criteria applied by data repositories in preserving research data. The review focused on peer-reviewed journal articles, white papers, policy documents, and institutional guidelines published between 2000 and 2024. Major databases such as Scopus, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar were searched using combinations of keywords including "research data preservation," "data selection criteria," "data curation," and "digital repositories."
Inclusion criteria for the literature involved the presence of explicit or implicit discussion on the assessment or selection of research data for long-term storage, including frameworks, models, or institutional case studies. A total of 67 relevant documents were identified and analyzed. Through iterative coding and constant comparison, the evaluation criteria were distilled into several thematic clusters, such as scientific value, legal and ethical considerations, technical characteristics, economic feasibility, data usability, and policy alignment.
Resultss and Discussion
The findings of this study, based on a systematic review of the literature and a meta-synthesis of previous studies, identify a comprehensive set of criteria and components for evaluating and selecting research data for retention in data repositories. These criteria are categorized into eight main components: data preparation, data quality, physical conditions and technical features, metadata management and features, ethical principles of data, document-related criteria, compliance with FAIR principles, and repository policies and issues.
In the “Data Preparation” component, indicators such as data cleaning, data scale, presence of missing data, and evaluation of survey biases are highlighted. This component emphasizes the necessity of eliminating errors and inconsistencies, assessing the scale of data, and addressing missing values. It also stresses the importance of identifying and evaluating biases in survey data, such as sampling errors, non-response, and other confounding factors.
The “Data Quality” component includes indicators such as accuracy, reliability, completeness, validity, documentation of limitations, and timeliness of data. Accuracy and correctness of information must be carefully assessed, and data reliability should be evaluated based on how the data was produced and analyzed. Completeness refers to the presence of all necessary elements in the dataset, and validity relates to the soundness of data collection tools and the extent to which findings reflect reality. Acknowledging study limitations helps clarify weaknesses, and up-to-date data are valued for their relevance in terms of collection time.
The remaining components and their indicators are as follows:
- Physical Conditions and Technical Features of Data: Includes data formats, future readability, required software for access, and compatibility with technical standards.
- Metadata Management and Features: Covers the presence of sufficient metadata, use of standardized structures for data description, supplementary documentation, and necessary information for data reuse.
- Ethical Principles of Data: Encompasses protection of participants' privacy, anonymization or encryption of sensitive information, obtaining informed consent, and respect for intellectual property rights.
- Document-Related Criteria: Includes the association of data with specific research projects, traceability of data to published scholarly articles, and documentation of data collection methods.
- Compliance with FAIR Principles: Covers Findability, Accessibility, Interoperability, and Reusability of the data.
- Repository Policies and Issues: Involves adherence to legal requirements and repository policies, access licenses, data sharing conditions, and security considerations for data storage.
These eight components and their corresponding indicators provide a comprehensive and evidence-based framework for evaluating and selecting suitable research data for long-term retention in data repositories.
Discussion and Conclusion
The discussion and conclusion of this paper emphasize the importance of various components in the evaluation and selection of research data for storage in data repositories. In the data preparation phase, accuracy in data cleaning and screening, particularly in quantitative research, is crucial. Challenges such as missing data and potential biases, such as sampling errors, can complicate analyses and reduce the quality of the data. Therefore, adherence to precise standards in cleaning and verifying data is essential.
In evaluating data quality, accuracy and precision of information, reliability, and completeness of the data are key criteria. Data that is properly collected and analyzed can facilitate more effective research and reuse of data. Especially in both qualitative and quantitative data, the use of standardized formats and compatibility with various systems are significant technical issues that impact storage quality.
Metadata documentation also plays a critical role in data evaluation. Metadata provides essential information about the data, enhancing transparency, collaboration, and trust. Furthermore, adhering to ethical principles, such as obtaining informed consent from participants and ensuring their privacy during the use of data, is crucial. These actions help maintain public trust and prevent misuse of data.
The paper also emphasizes the importance of alignment with the FAIR principles (Findability, Accessibility, Interoperability, and Reusability) in data evaluation. Adherence to these principles ensures that data will be more effective and accessible for future use. Additionally, policies related to data repositories must consider user needs and technical limitations, preserving high-value research data for future use.
The conclusion reveals that the evaluation and selection of research data for storage should be conducted with care and adherence to standardized criteria to improve the quality and effectiveness of data utilization in future research. Furthermore, practical recommendations such as developing data evaluation guidelines, training data specialists, and implementing technological tools to enhance the data evaluation and storage processes are proposed.
Discussion and Conclusion
The discussion and conclusion of this paper emphasize the importance of various components in the evaluation and selection of research data for storage in data repositories. In the data preparation phase, accuracy in data cleaning and screening, particularly in quantitative research, is crucial. Challenges such as missing data and potential biases, such as sampling errors, can complicate analyses and reduce the quality of the data. Therefore, adherence to precise standards in cleaning and verifying data is essential.
In evaluating data quality, accuracy and precision of information, reliability, and completeness of the data are key criteria. Data that is properly collected and analyzed can facilitate more effective research and reuse of data. Especially in both qualitative and quantitative data, the use of standardized formats and compatibility with various systems are significant technical issues that impact storage quality.
Metadata documentation also plays a critical role in data evaluation. Metadata provides essential information about the data, enhancing transparency, collaboration, and trust. Furthermore, adhering to ethical principles, such as obtaining informed consent from participants and ensuring their privacy during the use of data, is crucial. These actions help maintain public trust and prevent misuse of data.
The paper also emphasizes the importance of alignment with the FAIR principles (Findability, Accessibility, Interoperability, and Reusability) in data evaluation. Adherence to these principles ensures that data will be more effective and accessible for future use. Additionally, policies related to data repositories must consider user needs and technical limitations, preserving high-value research data for future use.
The conclusion reveals that the evaluation and selection of research data for storage should be conducted with care and adherence to standardized criteria to improve the quality and effectiveness of data utilization in future research. Furthermore, practical recommendations such as developing data evaluation guidelines, training data specialists, and implementing technological tools to enhance the data evaluation and storage processes are proposed.
Masoud Bakhtiari, Saeed Ghaffari,
Volume 11, Issue 4 (1-2025)
Volume 11, Issue 4 (1-2025)
Abstract
Advances in information technology and media evolution have impacted many different areas under the influence of related technologies. Social media and information centers have transformed the face of libraries and information providers, especially creating new opportunities for librarians and university libraries (Kamani, 2015). Given the development of social media in the necessity of librarians in information centers and libraries, awareness of librarians' views on media literacy in the category of social media literacy seems to be an interesting topic that can be effective in providing the desired solutions for the promotion and goal of social media literacy. This study seeks to investigate the relationship between media literacy and the use of cyberspace and the acceptance of media news among librarians. The use of cyberspace and the acceptance of media news are issues that are of greater importance among librarians today; therefore, the present study attempts to answer the question of whether there is a relationship between media literacy and the use of cyberspace and the acceptance of media news among librarians in public libraries in Qom province?
Accordingly, the research hypotheses are stated as follows:
Main hypotheses:
1- There is a significant relationship between media literacy and its dimensions (cognitive, emotional, aesthetic, and moral) and the use of cyberspace among librarians in public libraries in Qom province.
2- There is a significant relationship between media literacy and its dimensions (cognitive, emotional, aesthetic and ethical) and media news acceptance among librarians of public libraries in Qom province.
Sub-hypotheses:
1- Media literacy, the amount of use of cyberspace and the acceptance of media news differ based on the age of librarians.
2- Media literacy, the amount of use of cyberspace and the acceptance of media news differ based on the field of study of librarians.
3- Media literacy, the amount of use of cyberspace and the acceptance of media news differ based on the type of social media of librarians.
The second section discusses the background of the research. The third section explains the research method. The fourth section presents and discusses the research findings. Finally, the fifth section discusses conclusions and suggestions.
Methods and Materoal
The type of research method in this study is applied in terms of purpose and descriptive-correlational in terms of method, it is a survey type that was implemented by field method. The statistical population of the study is all librarians of public libraries in Qom province, whose number is 112 people, and the sample size is 80 people selected by available sampling method. This study used the library method to develop the theoretical foundations of the research and the following tools were used to collect field information. Demographic information: This information includes age, field of study, and type of media, which was measured through a questionnaire.
Questionnaire on the use of cyberspace: A researcher-made questionnaire was used to measure the use of cyberspace. This questionnaire has 20 questions and its aim is to assess the extent to which individuals use cyberspace (social networks and the Internet). The response range is a five-point Likert scale (1=very little to 5=very much). To obtain the overall score of the questionnaire, the scores for each question were added together. This score will range from 20 to 100. To interpret the overall score obtained, it is done as follows. 20 to 40 is low use of cyberspace 41 to 60 is moderate use of cyberspace 61 to 80 is high use of cyberspace 81 to 100 is very high use of cyberspace.
Media News Acceptance Questionnaire: The questionnaire by Lee and Suh (2015) was used to measure media news acceptance. This questionnaire was translated, validated, and used for the first time by the researcher. This questionnaire has 5 items and is designed based on a five-point Likert scale (from completely disagree to completely agree). The response range is from 1 to 5, with a score of 1 indicating low credibility and a score of 5 indicating high credibility. Also, all items have direct (positive) scoring.
Resultss and Discussion
First main hypothesis: There is a significant relationship between media literacy and its dimensions (cognitive, emotional, aesthetic and ethical) and the level of use of cyberspace among librarians in public libraries in Qom province.
The results of the first main hypothesis show that there is no significant relationship between media literacy and its dimensions and the level of use of cyberspace, therefore the first hypothesis of the research is rejected. The results of this hypothesis are consistent with the results of the research of Ghanetati et al. (2018) and inconsistent with the results of the research of Bolboli and Tarbiati (2014), Miri and Bani Hashem (2019) and Asadi (2020).
Second main hypothesis: There is a significant relationship between media literacy and its dimensions (cognitive, emotional, aesthetic, and ethical) and the acceptance of media news among librarians in public libraries in Qom province.
The results of the second main hypothesis show that there is a negative and significant relationship between media literacy and media news acceptance (r= -0.300, p= 0.000). There is also a negative and significant relationship between all components of media literacy and media news acceptance. For example, the negative relationship between cognitive literacy and media news acceptance (r= -0.335, p= 0.000). While confirming the second main hypothesis of the study, it can be concluded that media news acceptance among librarians is related to their level of media literacy, which is completely consistent with the results of the research of Taghipour et al. (1400), Anthony (2009). Sub-hypothesis 1: Media literacy, the level of use of cyberspace and the acceptance of media news differ based on the age of librarians
To examine this hypothesis, one-way ANOVA analysis of variance test was used, the results of which are reported in the tables below.
According to the ANOVA test, given that the significance level of the test error for all three variables is greater than 0.05, therefore, the lack of difference in the means is confirmed and the difference in the means of the research variables among the three groups is not statistically significant (P > 0.05). Therefore, while rejecting the hypothesis, it can be said that media literacy, the amount of use of cyberspace, and the acceptance of media news do not differ based on the age of librarians. The findings of the present study regarding the lack of relationship between age and media literacy are consistent with the results of the study by Salemi et al. (1400). Esmaili et al. (1398) also showed that among the demographic variables, only age is related to the variable of
ability to detect fake news, which results of the present study are somewhat inconsistent with this study.
Second Sub-Hypothesis: Media literacy, the amount of use of cyberspace, and the acceptance of media news differ based on the field of study of librarians.
One-way analysis of variance test was used to examine this hypothesis.
According to the results of the second sub-hypothesis, given that the significance level of the test error for the amount of use of cyberspace is greater than 0.05, therefore, the lack of difference in the mean is confirmed and the difference in the mean of the use of cyberspace between the three groups is not statistically significant (P<0.05). On the other hand, the significance level of the test error for media literacy and acceptance of media news is less than 0.05, therefore, the difference in the mean in these two variables is confirmed and the difference in the mean of media literacy and acceptance of media news between the two groups of subjects is statistically significant (P<0.05). The results of this hypothesis are in agreement with the results of the study by Esmaili et al. (2019) on the relationship between the field of study and the variable of information literacy in a way. is not linear.
Third Sub-Hypothesis: Media literacy, the amount of use of cyberspace and the acceptance of media news differ based on the type of social media of librarians.
To examine this hypothesis, a one-way analysis of variance test was used.
According to the results of the third sub-hypothesis, given that the significance level of the test error for media literacy is greater than 0.05, therefore, the lack of difference in the mean is confirmed and the difference in the mean of media literacy based on the type of social media of the subjects is not statistically significant (P > 0.05). On the other hand, the significance level of the test error for the amount of use of cyberspace and the acceptance of media news is less than 0.05, therefore, the difference in the mean in these two variables is confirmed and the difference The average amount of use of cyberspace and acceptance of media news by the type of social media used by the subjects is statistically significant (P<0.05). A pairwise comparison of the types of social media used by the subjects in terms of the amount of use of cyberspace and acceptance of media news shows that the difference in the average amount of use of cyberspace on Instagram and others is greater and positive (0.798). Given the significance of the difference, it can be concluded that subjects who prioritize Instagram use have the highest and subjects who use other media (Twitter and Facebook) have the lowest amount of use of cyberspace. According to the table above, the difference in the average acceptance of media news on Instagram and WhatsApp is greater and negative (-0.367), and given the significance of the difference, it can be concluded that subjects who prioritize Instagram use have the lowest and subjects who use WhatsApp have the highest acceptance of media news. The results of this hypothesis are completely consistent with the results of Anthony's (2009) research.
Conclusion:
The turning of users to the Internet due to the lack of sufficient time to visit libraries was one of the reasons for the creation of digital libraries. Digital libraries have facilitated and accelerated users' access to the required information by providing various facilities; but what achieves this goal is a suitable architecture and design in creating a digital library. If the needs of users, the type of society and other factors are taken into account in the design of digital libraries, it can be said that the library will come closer to the intended goals. Considering that in the design of digital libraries, the discussion of the user interface is very important in order to eliminate human factors, digital
libraries must consider the characteristics related to the user interface in their design. Due to the importance of this discussion, the user interfaces of various digital libraries need to be evaluated continuously. The present study also aimed to investigate this issue by evaluating the user interface on the English web pages of selected national digital libraries based on the criteria available in the texts and sources. Conducting the study required criteria through which the evaluation could be conducted. After reviewing the relevant research backgrounds in the field of digital libraries and user interface, it was observed that despite the studies conducted in the field of user interface, these studies had not been conducted completely and comprehensively, and different researchers had each examined only one or a limited number of criteria in the field of different information systems. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between media literacy and the use of cyberspace and the acceptance of media news among librarians of public libraries in Qom province, and the research hypotheses were tested. A review of domestic and foreign empirical records shows that researchers have addressed aspects of media literacy among different media in accordance with their subject of study, and what has been their focus in most of these studies is the study of media literacy as a dependent variable that is influenced by other factors, and in that all the records have discussed media literacy, they are similar to the present study; however, the present study is distinct from the research record in that it has examined the relationship between media literacy and its dimensions with the use of cyberspace and acceptance of media news among librarians of public libraries in Qom province. In fact, the variables of media literacy and its dimensions, use of cyberspace and acceptance of news from cyberspace are measured together for the first time, so in this respect it has a new nature that will lead to its theoretical expansion and development; In addition to theoretical benefits, it offers solutions to prevent the spread of cyberspace harms among librarians through interventions on these two structures (the Internet and social networks). In summary, it can be said that in order to escape the trap of cyberspace rumors, social media users must equip themselves with media literacy tools to become members of pages and channels and obtain news and information through channels whose main goal is, first, to disseminate news correctly, and second, to disseminate news that is religiously, legally, and morally correct, thus recognizing the truth from Nazareth. Therefore, in today's virtual world, only those who are equipped with the weapon of media literacy can avoid falling prey to the rumor-spreading of news agencies that seek to mentally deceive members of the global community.
The results of one-way analysis of variance of the first sub-hypothesis showed that media literacy, the amount of use of cyberspace, and the acceptance of media news do not differ based on the age of librarians. Therefore, while rejecting the hypothesis, it can be concluded that increasing or decreasing age is not related to media literacy, the amount of use of cyberspace, and the acceptance of media news by librarians. The findings of the present study regarding the lack of relationship between age and media literacy are consistent with the results of the study by Salemi et al. (1400). However, this study found that age has no relationship with media literacy, the amount of use of cyberspace, and the acceptance of media news. Perhaps the most important possible reason for this is the close age gap between librarians, which does not expect much change in media literacy, the amount of use of cyberspace, and the acceptance of media news.
The results of the one-way analysis of variance of the second sub-hypothesis showed that the amount of use of cyberspace does not differ based on the field of study (librarianship and non-librarianship) of librarians, but there is a significant difference between the two groups based on media literacy and acceptance of media news. Based on the results, media literacy among librarians in the library field is higher than in other fields, and acceptance of media news among librarians in the library field is lower than in other fields, which is somewhat inconsistent with the results of the study by Esmaili et al. (2019) based on the relationship between the field of study and the variable of information literacy. However, no consistency or inconsistency was found in the variable of acceptance of media news.
The results of the one-way analysis of variance of the third sub-hypothesis showed that media literacy does not differ based on the type of social media used by librarians, but there is a significant difference based on the amount of use of cyberspace and acceptance of media news. According to the results, the amount of use of cyberspace is higher among librarians who use Instagram more and lower among librarians whose media priority is Twitter and Facebook. Also, the acceptance of media news is lower among librarians who use Instagram more and higher among librarians whose media priority is WhatsApp. Based on these findings, it can be said that the Instagram platform has the highest media consumption among librarians and librarians also accept WhatsApp media news more than other media. Although there is no similar finding in this regard, it can be said that many Iranian users have turned to Instagram after the restrictions imposed on Telegram, and this platform has seen increasing growth among Iranian users after Telegram was filtered. According to published reports, about 49 percent of Iranians are members of Instagram, and it is one of the most popular platforms for businesses; as 90 percent of Instagram users follow at least one business page. The report also believes that 60 percent of Instagram users have announced that they have become familiar with new products on this network. Instagram also plays a role in the world. The results of this hypothesis are completely consistent with the results of Anthony's (2009) research.
Accordingly, the research hypotheses are stated as follows:
Main hypotheses:
1- There is a significant relationship between media literacy and its dimensions (cognitive, emotional, aesthetic, and moral) and the use of cyberspace among librarians in public libraries in Qom province.
2- There is a significant relationship between media literacy and its dimensions (cognitive, emotional, aesthetic and ethical) and media news acceptance among librarians of public libraries in Qom province.
Sub-hypotheses:
1- Media literacy, the amount of use of cyberspace and the acceptance of media news differ based on the age of librarians.
2- Media literacy, the amount of use of cyberspace and the acceptance of media news differ based on the field of study of librarians.
3- Media literacy, the amount of use of cyberspace and the acceptance of media news differ based on the type of social media of librarians.
The second section discusses the background of the research. The third section explains the research method. The fourth section presents and discusses the research findings. Finally, the fifth section discusses conclusions and suggestions.
Methods and Materoal
The type of research method in this study is applied in terms of purpose and descriptive-correlational in terms of method, it is a survey type that was implemented by field method. The statistical population of the study is all librarians of public libraries in Qom province, whose number is 112 people, and the sample size is 80 people selected by available sampling method. This study used the library method to develop the theoretical foundations of the research and the following tools were used to collect field information. Demographic information: This information includes age, field of study, and type of media, which was measured through a questionnaire.
Questionnaire on the use of cyberspace: A researcher-made questionnaire was used to measure the use of cyberspace. This questionnaire has 20 questions and its aim is to assess the extent to which individuals use cyberspace (social networks and the Internet). The response range is a five-point Likert scale (1=very little to 5=very much). To obtain the overall score of the questionnaire, the scores for each question were added together. This score will range from 20 to 100. To interpret the overall score obtained, it is done as follows. 20 to 40 is low use of cyberspace 41 to 60 is moderate use of cyberspace 61 to 80 is high use of cyberspace 81 to 100 is very high use of cyberspace.
Media News Acceptance Questionnaire: The questionnaire by Lee and Suh (2015) was used to measure media news acceptance. This questionnaire was translated, validated, and used for the first time by the researcher. This questionnaire has 5 items and is designed based on a five-point Likert scale (from completely disagree to completely agree). The response range is from 1 to 5, with a score of 1 indicating low credibility and a score of 5 indicating high credibility. Also, all items have direct (positive) scoring.
Resultss and Discussion
First main hypothesis: There is a significant relationship between media literacy and its dimensions (cognitive, emotional, aesthetic and ethical) and the level of use of cyberspace among librarians in public libraries in Qom province.
The results of the first main hypothesis show that there is no significant relationship between media literacy and its dimensions and the level of use of cyberspace, therefore the first hypothesis of the research is rejected. The results of this hypothesis are consistent with the results of the research of Ghanetati et al. (2018) and inconsistent with the results of the research of Bolboli and Tarbiati (2014), Miri and Bani Hashem (2019) and Asadi (2020).
Second main hypothesis: There is a significant relationship between media literacy and its dimensions (cognitive, emotional, aesthetic, and ethical) and the acceptance of media news among librarians in public libraries in Qom province.
The results of the second main hypothesis show that there is a negative and significant relationship between media literacy and media news acceptance (r= -0.300, p= 0.000). There is also a negative and significant relationship between all components of media literacy and media news acceptance. For example, the negative relationship between cognitive literacy and media news acceptance (r= -0.335, p= 0.000). While confirming the second main hypothesis of the study, it can be concluded that media news acceptance among librarians is related to their level of media literacy, which is completely consistent with the results of the research of Taghipour et al. (1400), Anthony (2009). Sub-hypothesis 1: Media literacy, the level of use of cyberspace and the acceptance of media news differ based on the age of librarians
To examine this hypothesis, one-way ANOVA analysis of variance test was used, the results of which are reported in the tables below.
According to the ANOVA test, given that the significance level of the test error for all three variables is greater than 0.05, therefore, the lack of difference in the means is confirmed and the difference in the means of the research variables among the three groups is not statistically significant (P > 0.05). Therefore, while rejecting the hypothesis, it can be said that media literacy, the amount of use of cyberspace, and the acceptance of media news do not differ based on the age of librarians. The findings of the present study regarding the lack of relationship between age and media literacy are consistent with the results of the study by Salemi et al. (1400). Esmaili et al. (1398) also showed that among the demographic variables, only age is related to the variable of
ability to detect fake news, which results of the present study are somewhat inconsistent with this study.
Second Sub-Hypothesis: Media literacy, the amount of use of cyberspace, and the acceptance of media news differ based on the field of study of librarians.
One-way analysis of variance test was used to examine this hypothesis.
According to the results of the second sub-hypothesis, given that the significance level of the test error for the amount of use of cyberspace is greater than 0.05, therefore, the lack of difference in the mean is confirmed and the difference in the mean of the use of cyberspace between the three groups is not statistically significant (P<0.05). On the other hand, the significance level of the test error for media literacy and acceptance of media news is less than 0.05, therefore, the difference in the mean in these two variables is confirmed and the difference in the mean of media literacy and acceptance of media news between the two groups of subjects is statistically significant (P<0.05). The results of this hypothesis are in agreement with the results of the study by Esmaili et al. (2019) on the relationship between the field of study and the variable of information literacy in a way. is not linear.
Third Sub-Hypothesis: Media literacy, the amount of use of cyberspace and the acceptance of media news differ based on the type of social media of librarians.
To examine this hypothesis, a one-way analysis of variance test was used.
According to the results of the third sub-hypothesis, given that the significance level of the test error for media literacy is greater than 0.05, therefore, the lack of difference in the mean is confirmed and the difference in the mean of media literacy based on the type of social media of the subjects is not statistically significant (P > 0.05). On the other hand, the significance level of the test error for the amount of use of cyberspace and the acceptance of media news is less than 0.05, therefore, the difference in the mean in these two variables is confirmed and the difference The average amount of use of cyberspace and acceptance of media news by the type of social media used by the subjects is statistically significant (P<0.05). A pairwise comparison of the types of social media used by the subjects in terms of the amount of use of cyberspace and acceptance of media news shows that the difference in the average amount of use of cyberspace on Instagram and others is greater and positive (0.798). Given the significance of the difference, it can be concluded that subjects who prioritize Instagram use have the highest and subjects who use other media (Twitter and Facebook) have the lowest amount of use of cyberspace. According to the table above, the difference in the average acceptance of media news on Instagram and WhatsApp is greater and negative (-0.367), and given the significance of the difference, it can be concluded that subjects who prioritize Instagram use have the lowest and subjects who use WhatsApp have the highest acceptance of media news. The results of this hypothesis are completely consistent with the results of Anthony's (2009) research.
Conclusion:
The turning of users to the Internet due to the lack of sufficient time to visit libraries was one of the reasons for the creation of digital libraries. Digital libraries have facilitated and accelerated users' access to the required information by providing various facilities; but what achieves this goal is a suitable architecture and design in creating a digital library. If the needs of users, the type of society and other factors are taken into account in the design of digital libraries, it can be said that the library will come closer to the intended goals. Considering that in the design of digital libraries, the discussion of the user interface is very important in order to eliminate human factors, digital
libraries must consider the characteristics related to the user interface in their design. Due to the importance of this discussion, the user interfaces of various digital libraries need to be evaluated continuously. The present study also aimed to investigate this issue by evaluating the user interface on the English web pages of selected national digital libraries based on the criteria available in the texts and sources. Conducting the study required criteria through which the evaluation could be conducted. After reviewing the relevant research backgrounds in the field of digital libraries and user interface, it was observed that despite the studies conducted in the field of user interface, these studies had not been conducted completely and comprehensively, and different researchers had each examined only one or a limited number of criteria in the field of different information systems. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between media literacy and the use of cyberspace and the acceptance of media news among librarians of public libraries in Qom province, and the research hypotheses were tested. A review of domestic and foreign empirical records shows that researchers have addressed aspects of media literacy among different media in accordance with their subject of study, and what has been their focus in most of these studies is the study of media literacy as a dependent variable that is influenced by other factors, and in that all the records have discussed media literacy, they are similar to the present study; however, the present study is distinct from the research record in that it has examined the relationship between media literacy and its dimensions with the use of cyberspace and acceptance of media news among librarians of public libraries in Qom province. In fact, the variables of media literacy and its dimensions, use of cyberspace and acceptance of news from cyberspace are measured together for the first time, so in this respect it has a new nature that will lead to its theoretical expansion and development; In addition to theoretical benefits, it offers solutions to prevent the spread of cyberspace harms among librarians through interventions on these two structures (the Internet and social networks). In summary, it can be said that in order to escape the trap of cyberspace rumors, social media users must equip themselves with media literacy tools to become members of pages and channels and obtain news and information through channels whose main goal is, first, to disseminate news correctly, and second, to disseminate news that is religiously, legally, and morally correct, thus recognizing the truth from Nazareth. Therefore, in today's virtual world, only those who are equipped with the weapon of media literacy can avoid falling prey to the rumor-spreading of news agencies that seek to mentally deceive members of the global community.
The results of one-way analysis of variance of the first sub-hypothesis showed that media literacy, the amount of use of cyberspace, and the acceptance of media news do not differ based on the age of librarians. Therefore, while rejecting the hypothesis, it can be concluded that increasing or decreasing age is not related to media literacy, the amount of use of cyberspace, and the acceptance of media news by librarians. The findings of the present study regarding the lack of relationship between age and media literacy are consistent with the results of the study by Salemi et al. (1400). However, this study found that age has no relationship with media literacy, the amount of use of cyberspace, and the acceptance of media news. Perhaps the most important possible reason for this is the close age gap between librarians, which does not expect much change in media literacy, the amount of use of cyberspace, and the acceptance of media news.
The results of the one-way analysis of variance of the second sub-hypothesis showed that the amount of use of cyberspace does not differ based on the field of study (librarianship and non-librarianship) of librarians, but there is a significant difference between the two groups based on media literacy and acceptance of media news. Based on the results, media literacy among librarians in the library field is higher than in other fields, and acceptance of media news among librarians in the library field is lower than in other fields, which is somewhat inconsistent with the results of the study by Esmaili et al. (2019) based on the relationship between the field of study and the variable of information literacy. However, no consistency or inconsistency was found in the variable of acceptance of media news.
The results of the one-way analysis of variance of the third sub-hypothesis showed that media literacy does not differ based on the type of social media used by librarians, but there is a significant difference based on the amount of use of cyberspace and acceptance of media news. According to the results, the amount of use of cyberspace is higher among librarians who use Instagram more and lower among librarians whose media priority is Twitter and Facebook. Also, the acceptance of media news is lower among librarians who use Instagram more and higher among librarians whose media priority is WhatsApp. Based on these findings, it can be said that the Instagram platform has the highest media consumption among librarians and librarians also accept WhatsApp media news more than other media. Although there is no similar finding in this regard, it can be said that many Iranian users have turned to Instagram after the restrictions imposed on Telegram, and this platform has seen increasing growth among Iranian users after Telegram was filtered. According to published reports, about 49 percent of Iranians are members of Instagram, and it is one of the most popular platforms for businesses; as 90 percent of Instagram users follow at least one business page. The report also believes that 60 percent of Instagram users have announced that they have become familiar with new products on this network. Instagram also plays a role in the world. The results of this hypothesis are completely consistent with the results of Anthony's (2009) research.
Dr Mahdieh Mirzabeigi, Ms Reihaneh Bahri,
Volume 12, Issue 1 (5-2025)
Volume 12, Issue 1 (5-2025)
Abstract
Introduction
Given the important impact of information literacy in today's societies and in line with the efficiency of individuals, especially students, information literacy can be predicted and planned for its management through indicators. Therefore, the present study aims to examine the relationships between the variables of cognitive flexibility and openness to experience with the level of information literacy by examining students of Shiraz University, a university that enjoys a distinguished scientific position in the country and the results of this study may contribute to its scientific growth through further understanding of the factors affecting the information literacy of its students, and to test the extent of the impact of the two variables in predicting the level of information literacy of the said society, if a relationship exists.
Methods and Materoal
This research is descriptive in terms of data collection and quantitative in terms of data nature. The statistical population also includes students of Shiraz University in the academic year 1400-1401, about 17,000 people, and the sample size was calculated as 375 people using the Cochran formula. The members of the research sample were selected using convenience sampling. Data collection was carried out through a questionnaire. To measure the level of information literacy, the research questionnaires of Seng et al. (2020), Pinto et al. (2020), and Lee et al. (2020) were used, based on the classification of the Information Literacy Framework for Higher Education (2016). To measure face and content validity, the questionnaire was sent to seven information science and knowledge experts, and the final version was obtained based on their opinions. The reliability of the research tool was obtained using Cronbach's alpha coefficient of 0.937. To measure cognitive flexibility, the cognitive flexibility questionnaire developed by Dennis & Vander Wal (2010) was used, whose validity was measured by these researchers, and its convergent validity with the cognitive flexibility scale of Martin and Robin (1995) was 0.75. The reliability of this questionnaire was also obtained using Cronbach's alpha, which was 0.787. To measure openness to experience, the Big Five Personality Factors questionnaire by Goldberg (1999) was used, whose validity was proven in the Khormai study (2006) using factor analysis. The reliability of this questionnaire was obtained using Cronbach's alpha, which was 0.788. Pearson correlation tests, linear regression, and stepwise regression were also used to analyze the data.
Resultss and Discussion
in order to examine the power of each variable in predicting the level of information literacy, the correlation between the variables was first calculated through the Pearson correlation test, and the results showed that cognitive flexibility, openness to experience, and information literacy have a positive and significant relationship with each other.
Then, a simple linear regression test was used to examine the role of cognitive flexibility in predicting the level of information literacy of the subjects, and the cognitive flexibility variable was entered as a predictor variable and information literacy as a criterion variable in the regression equation. The findings showed that the regression model of the predictive power of the cognitive flexibility variable on information literacy (F(1/278)=(43/682 p=0/000) with a coefficient of determination R2=/136 is significant. For each unit increase in cognitive flexibility, the information literacy score increases by 58/567 units. In other words, according to the calculated standard regression coefficient, cognitive flexibility explains 36/8 percent of the variance in information literacy (Table 2). Then, a simple linear regression test was used to examine the role of openness to experience in predicting the level of information literacy of the subjects, and the openness to experience variable as a predictor variable and information literacy as a criterion variable was entered into the regression equation and the findings showed that the regression model of the predictive power of the variable of openness to experience on information literacy is significant F(1/ 298) = (97/167 p = 0/000) with a coefficient of determination R2 = /246. For each unit increase in openness to experience, the information literacy score increases by 112/313 units. In other words, according to the calculated standard regression coefficient, openness to experience explains 49/6 percent of the variance in information literacy (Table 3). Finally, the stepwise regression test was used to predict the level of information literacy of users based on the variables of cognitive flexibility and openness to experience. The results of the stepwise regression test showed that among the predictor variables in the first step, the component of openness to experience was able to be the strongest The variable was significantly able to predict the level of information literacy of the subjects (p= /000). This variable alone was able to explain about 50/9 percent of the variance in the level of information literacy. In the second step, the variable of openness to experience explained about 43/1 percent of the variance in the level of information literacy, and cognitive flexibility was able to enter the model and explained 19/5 percent of the variance in the level of information literacy (p= /000). Accordingly, in total, the two variables of openness to experience and cognitive flexibility were able to explain 62/6 percent of the variance in information literacy (Table 4).
Conclusion
The results of this study can be an effort to improve the existing knowledge about information literacy and identify more factors that influence it. Also, the results of this study can help universities, with the help of information literacy experts, design curricula and training workshops to strengthen these components and improve the level of information literacy and to develop students who have higher information literacy and are prepared for future life and careers. Students, also aware of the important role of openness to experience and cognitive flexibility, can overcome the potential problems associated with their lack of information literacy by improving their level of openness to experience and cognitive flexibility by participating in workshops related to these components and also by increasing their information literacy skills by participating in workshops and information literacy training courses.
Given the important impact of information literacy in today's societies and in line with the efficiency of individuals, especially students, information literacy can be predicted and planned for its management through indicators. Therefore, the present study aims to examine the relationships between the variables of cognitive flexibility and openness to experience with the level of information literacy by examining students of Shiraz University, a university that enjoys a distinguished scientific position in the country and the results of this study may contribute to its scientific growth through further understanding of the factors affecting the information literacy of its students, and to test the extent of the impact of the two variables in predicting the level of information literacy of the said society, if a relationship exists.
Methods and Materoal
This research is descriptive in terms of data collection and quantitative in terms of data nature. The statistical population also includes students of Shiraz University in the academic year 1400-1401, about 17,000 people, and the sample size was calculated as 375 people using the Cochran formula. The members of the research sample were selected using convenience sampling. Data collection was carried out through a questionnaire. To measure the level of information literacy, the research questionnaires of Seng et al. (2020), Pinto et al. (2020), and Lee et al. (2020) were used, based on the classification of the Information Literacy Framework for Higher Education (2016). To measure face and content validity, the questionnaire was sent to seven information science and knowledge experts, and the final version was obtained based on their opinions. The reliability of the research tool was obtained using Cronbach's alpha coefficient of 0.937. To measure cognitive flexibility, the cognitive flexibility questionnaire developed by Dennis & Vander Wal (2010) was used, whose validity was measured by these researchers, and its convergent validity with the cognitive flexibility scale of Martin and Robin (1995) was 0.75. The reliability of this questionnaire was also obtained using Cronbach's alpha, which was 0.787. To measure openness to experience, the Big Five Personality Factors questionnaire by Goldberg (1999) was used, whose validity was proven in the Khormai study (2006) using factor analysis. The reliability of this questionnaire was obtained using Cronbach's alpha, which was 0.788. Pearson correlation tests, linear regression, and stepwise regression were also used to analyze the data.
Resultss and Discussion
in order to examine the power of each variable in predicting the level of information literacy, the correlation between the variables was first calculated through the Pearson correlation test, and the results showed that cognitive flexibility, openness to experience, and information literacy have a positive and significant relationship with each other.
Then, a simple linear regression test was used to examine the role of cognitive flexibility in predicting the level of information literacy of the subjects, and the cognitive flexibility variable was entered as a predictor variable and information literacy as a criterion variable in the regression equation. The findings showed that the regression model of the predictive power of the cognitive flexibility variable on information literacy (F(1/278)=(43/682 p=0/000) with a coefficient of determination R2=/136 is significant. For each unit increase in cognitive flexibility, the information literacy score increases by 58/567 units. In other words, according to the calculated standard regression coefficient, cognitive flexibility explains 36/8 percent of the variance in information literacy (Table 2). Then, a simple linear regression test was used to examine the role of openness to experience in predicting the level of information literacy of the subjects, and the openness to experience variable as a predictor variable and information literacy as a criterion variable was entered into the regression equation and the findings showed that the regression model of the predictive power of the variable of openness to experience on information literacy is significant F(1/ 298) = (97/167 p = 0/000) with a coefficient of determination R2 = /246. For each unit increase in openness to experience, the information literacy score increases by 112/313 units. In other words, according to the calculated standard regression coefficient, openness to experience explains 49/6 percent of the variance in information literacy (Table 3). Finally, the stepwise regression test was used to predict the level of information literacy of users based on the variables of cognitive flexibility and openness to experience. The results of the stepwise regression test showed that among the predictor variables in the first step, the component of openness to experience was able to be the strongest The variable was significantly able to predict the level of information literacy of the subjects (p= /000). This variable alone was able to explain about 50/9 percent of the variance in the level of information literacy. In the second step, the variable of openness to experience explained about 43/1 percent of the variance in the level of information literacy, and cognitive flexibility was able to enter the model and explained 19/5 percent of the variance in the level of information literacy (p= /000). Accordingly, in total, the two variables of openness to experience and cognitive flexibility were able to explain 62/6 percent of the variance in information literacy (Table 4).
Conclusion
The results of this study can be an effort to improve the existing knowledge about information literacy and identify more factors that influence it. Also, the results of this study can help universities, with the help of information literacy experts, design curricula and training workshops to strengthen these components and improve the level of information literacy and to develop students who have higher information literacy and are prepared for future life and careers. Students, also aware of the important role of openness to experience and cognitive flexibility, can overcome the potential problems associated with their lack of information literacy by improving their level of openness to experience and cognitive flexibility by participating in workshops related to these components and also by increasing their information literacy skills by participating in workshops and information literacy training courses.
Soheila Shirezhian, Seyed Mehdi Mirmehdi,
Volume 12, Issue 1 (5-2025)
Volume 12, Issue 1 (5-2025)
Abstract
Introduction
In recent years, advancements in technology, particularly in artificial intelligence, have significantly transformed how customers interact with businesses. One of the most prominent manifestations of this transformation is the emergence of chatbots as intelligent digital agents in marketing and customer service. Chatbots are AI-powered programs capable of responding to user inquiries through text or voice interactions, playing a crucial role in enhancing the efficiency of customer-organization communication. These tools enable companies to provide 24/7 services, reduce response times, increase customer loyalty, and save human resources. Unlike human agents, chatbots are unaffected by factors such as fatigue or holidays, ensuring constant availability. However, traditional customer service channels like email, websites, or phone calls remain popular among some customers.
In the retail sector, chatbots facilitate effective customer-brand interactions by offering convenience, flexibility, and easy access. They streamline the online shopping process by providing quick responses and guiding users, creating a seamless and satisfying experience while addressing the impersonal nature of e-commerce. Recent advancements in natural language processing have enabled chatbots to perform complex tasks, such as analyzing customer preferences and delivering personalized responses. These capabilities, combined with the widespread use of messaging platforms, have driven the growth of the chatbot industry. Nevertheless, concerns like data security and privacy pose significant barriers to widespread adoption, requiring careful consideration from system designers. This study, grounded in the Technology Acceptance Model, examines factors such as trust, personal innovativeness, ease of use, social influence, and hedonic motivation to understand the reasons behind users’ acceptance or rejection of chatbots.
Methods and Materoal
This study adopts a quantitative approach with an applied objective, utilizing a descriptive-survey design. The target population consists of Iranian users with experience using AI-based chatbots in online customer service platforms, such as websites, apps, or messaging services. Inclusion criteria required participants to have used at least one service-oriented chatbot and to be familiar with digital tools. Exclusion criteria included incomplete questionnaires, lack of actual chatbot experience, or use of chatbots for non-customer-service purposes (e.g., entertainment or language learning). To enhance accuracy and minimize bias, the influence of the chatbot’s application domain (e.g., retail, banking, education, or healthcare) was analyzed using variance analysis and control of contextual variables.
Data were collected through three primary methods: documentary studies, electronic resources, and field research. The data collection tool was a questionnaire based on a 5-point Likert scale (ranging from “strongly disagree” to “strongly agree”), measuring variables such as trust, hedonic motivation, social influence, personal innovativeness, perceived usefulness, ease of use, attitude, and intention to use. The questionnaire was designed based on standardized scales from prior research, and its content validity was confirmed by experts.
Resultss and Discussion
The findings indicate that trust, personal innovativeness, and ease of use significantly influence the perceived usefulness of chatbots. Trust enhances perceived usefulness by providing accurate and prompt responses. Personal innovativeness strengthens this perception by aligning chatbots with users’ needs, while ease of use, by simplifying interactions, positively affects both perceived usefulness and users’ attitudes. Both perceived usefulness and positive attitudes directly increase the intention to use chatbots. However, social influence and hedonic motivation did not show a significant impact on perceived usefulness, possibly due to customers’ preference for traditional channels or the functional focus of chatbots over entertainment.
Conclusion
This study reveals that trust, personal innovativeness, and ease of use are critical drivers of chatbot adoption. Trust, fostered through reliable and swift responses, enhances the perception of chatbots’ usefulness. Personal innovativeness aligns chatbot functionalities with users’ creative needs, further boosting this perception. Ease of use simplifies interactions, fostering positive attitudes and increasing the intention to use chatbots. The lack of significant impact from social influence may stem from customers’ preference for traditional channels like email or phone calls. Similarly, hedonic motivation’s limited effect could be attributed to the service-oriented nature of chatbots, which prioritizes efficiency over enjoyment.
Chatbots, by automating routine tasks, offering predictive analytics, and enhancing customer experiences, serve as innovative tools in digital services. However, challenges such as data security and privacy concerns remain barriers to broader adoption. Designing user-friendly and trustworthy chatbots can enhance their acceptance and improve the digital customer experience. This study recommends further research on non-users and environmental factors that may hinder the impact of social influence and hedonic motivation to better understand adoption barriers.
In recent years, advancements in technology, particularly in artificial intelligence, have significantly transformed how customers interact with businesses. One of the most prominent manifestations of this transformation is the emergence of chatbots as intelligent digital agents in marketing and customer service. Chatbots are AI-powered programs capable of responding to user inquiries through text or voice interactions, playing a crucial role in enhancing the efficiency of customer-organization communication. These tools enable companies to provide 24/7 services, reduce response times, increase customer loyalty, and save human resources. Unlike human agents, chatbots are unaffected by factors such as fatigue or holidays, ensuring constant availability. However, traditional customer service channels like email, websites, or phone calls remain popular among some customers.
In the retail sector, chatbots facilitate effective customer-brand interactions by offering convenience, flexibility, and easy access. They streamline the online shopping process by providing quick responses and guiding users, creating a seamless and satisfying experience while addressing the impersonal nature of e-commerce. Recent advancements in natural language processing have enabled chatbots to perform complex tasks, such as analyzing customer preferences and delivering personalized responses. These capabilities, combined with the widespread use of messaging platforms, have driven the growth of the chatbot industry. Nevertheless, concerns like data security and privacy pose significant barriers to widespread adoption, requiring careful consideration from system designers. This study, grounded in the Technology Acceptance Model, examines factors such as trust, personal innovativeness, ease of use, social influence, and hedonic motivation to understand the reasons behind users’ acceptance or rejection of chatbots.
Methods and Materoal
This study adopts a quantitative approach with an applied objective, utilizing a descriptive-survey design. The target population consists of Iranian users with experience using AI-based chatbots in online customer service platforms, such as websites, apps, or messaging services. Inclusion criteria required participants to have used at least one service-oriented chatbot and to be familiar with digital tools. Exclusion criteria included incomplete questionnaires, lack of actual chatbot experience, or use of chatbots for non-customer-service purposes (e.g., entertainment or language learning). To enhance accuracy and minimize bias, the influence of the chatbot’s application domain (e.g., retail, banking, education, or healthcare) was analyzed using variance analysis and control of contextual variables.
Data were collected through three primary methods: documentary studies, electronic resources, and field research. The data collection tool was a questionnaire based on a 5-point Likert scale (ranging from “strongly disagree” to “strongly agree”), measuring variables such as trust, hedonic motivation, social influence, personal innovativeness, perceived usefulness, ease of use, attitude, and intention to use. The questionnaire was designed based on standardized scales from prior research, and its content validity was confirmed by experts.
Resultss and Discussion
The findings indicate that trust, personal innovativeness, and ease of use significantly influence the perceived usefulness of chatbots. Trust enhances perceived usefulness by providing accurate and prompt responses. Personal innovativeness strengthens this perception by aligning chatbots with users’ needs, while ease of use, by simplifying interactions, positively affects both perceived usefulness and users’ attitudes. Both perceived usefulness and positive attitudes directly increase the intention to use chatbots. However, social influence and hedonic motivation did not show a significant impact on perceived usefulness, possibly due to customers’ preference for traditional channels or the functional focus of chatbots over entertainment.
Conclusion
This study reveals that trust, personal innovativeness, and ease of use are critical drivers of chatbot adoption. Trust, fostered through reliable and swift responses, enhances the perception of chatbots’ usefulness. Personal innovativeness aligns chatbot functionalities with users’ creative needs, further boosting this perception. Ease of use simplifies interactions, fostering positive attitudes and increasing the intention to use chatbots. The lack of significant impact from social influence may stem from customers’ preference for traditional channels like email or phone calls. Similarly, hedonic motivation’s limited effect could be attributed to the service-oriented nature of chatbots, which prioritizes efficiency over enjoyment.
Chatbots, by automating routine tasks, offering predictive analytics, and enhancing customer experiences, serve as innovative tools in digital services. However, challenges such as data security and privacy concerns remain barriers to broader adoption. Designing user-friendly and trustworthy chatbots can enhance their acceptance and improve the digital customer experience. This study recommends further research on non-users and environmental factors that may hinder the impact of social influence and hedonic motivation to better understand adoption barriers.
Ali Saatchi, , ,
Volume 12, Issue 1 (5-2025)
Volume 12, Issue 1 (5-2025)
Abstract
Introduction
The quantitative and qualitative increase in digital libraries is a phenomenon that has emerged in response to the growing need of society to access information. Therefore, digital libraries are facing a major challenge of copyright. This issue can prevent them from providing effective and needed services to the user community.
Methods and Materoal
The present study, while examining the factors affecting copyright in digital libraries, has presented a model in the field of copyright in digital libraries.The present study was qualitative in terms of its applied purpose and type of data collection and was conducted using the meta-synthesis method. Also, the data and information collection tool was scientific research articles published in reputable Persian and English journals in the last 12 years. From 342 articles extracted during the meta-synthesis stages, 58 articles were selected using the Persian keywords "copyright", "intellectual property", "digital libraries" and the English keywords "Copyright, intellectual property, digital libraries" in the databases Normags, Magiran, SID, Science Direct, Emerald, Springer EBSCO, SEVIER, Wiley. Due to the qualitative nature of the data (text), open coding was used to analyze the data. In this coding method, codes are extracted from the text of the article (first-order coding), and then these extracted codes are recoded to form concepts (second-order coding), and finally, concepts are recoded to form categories (text-code-concept-category). In this study, first a code was considered for all the factors extracted from previous studies and then, considering the meaning of each code, they were categorized into a similar concept. Two coders were used to control the extracted codes and categories, and the index in question in this field is the "Kappa" index.
Resultss and Discussion
: Based on the proposed research model, policy-making, the nature of content, the development of technologies, support for users, support for creators, content producers, culture-building, and the nature of use are the most important factors influencing the application of copyright laws to make information accessible to users of digital libraries. Policymaking: In general, policymakers, governments, and national officials play a key role in the policymaking and enforcement of copyright regulations. Copyright laws are usually developed by high-level national authorities and legislators, and digital library managers and operators do not have much involvement in the development of laws, and this can be one of the challenges of legislating copyright in digital libraries. Nature of content: Unlike traditional libraries, digital libraries use different sources to provide information services. These sources do not have the same content and range from software programs to traditional books. Type of use: In terms of type of use, the purpose of the user, the type of library, the status of digitization, and electronic lending are effective components. The provisions of the laws indicate that digital libraries are only able to provide digitized works in the form of digital lending. Protection of authors' rights: Digital libraries can create the possibility of reproducing copyrighted works for themselves by developing legal contracts with publishers and authors. In this case, creating clear legal procedures helps to protect the rights of authors. Protecting the rights of users: The main goal of copyright law is to protect the material and moral rights of creators and to ensure that society has access to the information it needs. With the advancement of information technology, legal challenges in the field of copyright are inevitable, and overcoming copyright infringements through file sharing requires finding preventive solutions and using technology, such as metadata standards, to create a balance between the rights of copyright holders and the use of scientific innovations. Content producers: Digital libraries use the method of digitization (Reproduction) to temporarily reproduce first-class works and make them available to users through electronic lending. It is necessary to pay attention to the credibility of the systems and databases and the laws of the countries providing this content in digital libraries. Culture building: In this dimension, three components have been identified: public awareness, transparency of laws, awareness of managers, and determination of civil responsibilities. Transparency of laws is related to cases where copyright laws have been ambiguously worded and have caused misunderstandings by users and managers of digital libraries. Friedman test was used to rank the factors. The test results showed that in this test, the highest mean value is 12.84, thus the factor "Development of technologies" has the highest degree of importance and the first rank. Also, the factors "Nature of use" and "Support for creators" are ranked as the second and third most important. On the other hand, the factors "Nature of content", "Content producers" and "Support for users" have the lowest degree of importance, respectively.
Conclusion
This research shows that copyright laws in digital libraries are very different from traditional libraries. According to the research results, digital libraries need to take a deeper look at copyright laws in order to provide services to their users, with the aim of respecting the rights of producers and users of information resources.
The quantitative and qualitative increase in digital libraries is a phenomenon that has emerged in response to the growing need of society to access information. Therefore, digital libraries are facing a major challenge of copyright. This issue can prevent them from providing effective and needed services to the user community.
Methods and Materoal
The present study, while examining the factors affecting copyright in digital libraries, has presented a model in the field of copyright in digital libraries.The present study was qualitative in terms of its applied purpose and type of data collection and was conducted using the meta-synthesis method. Also, the data and information collection tool was scientific research articles published in reputable Persian and English journals in the last 12 years. From 342 articles extracted during the meta-synthesis stages, 58 articles were selected using the Persian keywords "copyright", "intellectual property", "digital libraries" and the English keywords "Copyright, intellectual property, digital libraries" in the databases Normags, Magiran, SID, Science Direct, Emerald, Springer EBSCO, SEVIER, Wiley. Due to the qualitative nature of the data (text), open coding was used to analyze the data. In this coding method, codes are extracted from the text of the article (first-order coding), and then these extracted codes are recoded to form concepts (second-order coding), and finally, concepts are recoded to form categories (text-code-concept-category). In this study, first a code was considered for all the factors extracted from previous studies and then, considering the meaning of each code, they were categorized into a similar concept. Two coders were used to control the extracted codes and categories, and the index in question in this field is the "Kappa" index.
Resultss and Discussion
: Based on the proposed research model, policy-making, the nature of content, the development of technologies, support for users, support for creators, content producers, culture-building, and the nature of use are the most important factors influencing the application of copyright laws to make information accessible to users of digital libraries. Policymaking: In general, policymakers, governments, and national officials play a key role in the policymaking and enforcement of copyright regulations. Copyright laws are usually developed by high-level national authorities and legislators, and digital library managers and operators do not have much involvement in the development of laws, and this can be one of the challenges of legislating copyright in digital libraries. Nature of content: Unlike traditional libraries, digital libraries use different sources to provide information services. These sources do not have the same content and range from software programs to traditional books. Type of use: In terms of type of use, the purpose of the user, the type of library, the status of digitization, and electronic lending are effective components. The provisions of the laws indicate that digital libraries are only able to provide digitized works in the form of digital lending. Protection of authors' rights: Digital libraries can create the possibility of reproducing copyrighted works for themselves by developing legal contracts with publishers and authors. In this case, creating clear legal procedures helps to protect the rights of authors. Protecting the rights of users: The main goal of copyright law is to protect the material and moral rights of creators and to ensure that society has access to the information it needs. With the advancement of information technology, legal challenges in the field of copyright are inevitable, and overcoming copyright infringements through file sharing requires finding preventive solutions and using technology, such as metadata standards, to create a balance between the rights of copyright holders and the use of scientific innovations. Content producers: Digital libraries use the method of digitization (Reproduction) to temporarily reproduce first-class works and make them available to users through electronic lending. It is necessary to pay attention to the credibility of the systems and databases and the laws of the countries providing this content in digital libraries. Culture building: In this dimension, three components have been identified: public awareness, transparency of laws, awareness of managers, and determination of civil responsibilities. Transparency of laws is related to cases where copyright laws have been ambiguously worded and have caused misunderstandings by users and managers of digital libraries. Friedman test was used to rank the factors. The test results showed that in this test, the highest mean value is 12.84, thus the factor "Development of technologies" has the highest degree of importance and the first rank. Also, the factors "Nature of use" and "Support for creators" are ranked as the second and third most important. On the other hand, the factors "Nature of content", "Content producers" and "Support for users" have the lowest degree of importance, respectively.
Conclusion
This research shows that copyright laws in digital libraries are very different from traditional libraries. According to the research results, digital libraries need to take a deeper look at copyright laws in order to provide services to their users, with the aim of respecting the rights of producers and users of information resources.
Rahman Marefat, Mahmood Sangari,
Volume 12, Issue 1 (5-2025)
Volume 12, Issue 1 (5-2025)
Abstract
Background and purpose: The present study was conducted with the aim of identifying methods of validating methods of resources among sports science students of Birjand University. In numerous classes involving students from various disciplines, a recurring challenge reported by students was their unfamiliarity with source validation methods. Students, consistently indicated a lack of knowledge on how to assess the credibility of sources. When provided with examples of valid and invalid sources, many students struggled to properly evaluate them. Some students even expressed the belief that source validation was unnecessary, emphasizing merely the importance of using sources rather than verifying their validity. The researchers focused on a specific group—sports science students at Birjand University—to investigate how these students evaluate the sources they need and what challenges they encounter in the process.
Studies suggest that students often lack the skills to assess the credibility of articles found in databases or general websites like Wikipedia and online encyclopedias (Marefat, 1401; Azarang, 1399). For printed sources, students typically consider the author's credibility, organizational affiliation, and the publisher’s reputation as indicators of source reliability (Moradi, 1384). Marefat identified ten main categories related to evaluating sources, including institutional credibility, author credibility, content accuracy, observational reliability, referential validation, publication date, information distortion, credibility doubts, recognition of source credibility, and citation rate, particularly from psychology students’ perspectives (Marefat, 1396).
Research by Keshavarz, Vasfi, and Sha'bani (1393) examined the credibility of internet health information and how personality traits like conscientiousness influence evaluation methods among health-medical professionals. They found that many struggle to assess quality, relying mainly on impartiality, timeliness, and author credibility. Similarly, Roozbahani and Riahi-nia (1395) highlighted that faculty members prioritize content accuracy, data reliability, logical consistency, and relevance in determining source credibility. Kader’s study (Kader, 2013) on nurses identified a six-stage process for evaluating online health information, depending on skills, time, and website quality. Liu and Huang’s research (2005) among Chinese students revealed that current students often base their judgments on author name, affiliation, and website reputation, whereas graduates focus more on the information’s accuracy and quality.
Despite many evaluation efforts, challenges remain: first, understanding how users process unobservable information is difficult; second, differing information needs lead to varied processing approaches; and third, establishing a universal criterion for correct information processing is often impossible outside controlled environments. These issues highlight the complexity of assessing information credibility and the ongoing need for effective evaluation strategies (Liu, 2000).The main questions of the present study are:
1. What are the challenges faced by sports science students at Birjand University in evaluating their required resources?
2. How do sports science students at Birjand University evaluate their required resources?
Method:The statistical population of the present study consisted of 67 sports science students at Birjand University at the time of the research. Given the effort to collect maximum data, all 67 individuals were considered part of the research population, and no sampling was performed. Semi-structured interviews were used for data collection. In total, twenty master's students in sports science were interviewed. The interview process continued until saturation was reached, after interviewing sixteen students. From the sixteenth to the twentieth interview, the data obtained were repetitive, and based on this, the researchers decided to stop data collection. The initial codes were placed under sub-categories and main categories. In the present study, member checking was used to determine the research's credibility. In the present study, the constructivist approach in grounded theory, as proposed by Charmaz (2014), was adopted as the basis for the work, therefore, there is no need to present a paradigmatic model. Data analysis was also performed using MAXQDA 2020 software.
Findings: Among the 67 members of the research population, a total of 20 sports science students from Birjand University were interviewed. A totoal of 50% of the interviewees were women (10 people), and 10 (50%) were men. Categorizes and presents the concepts and codes extracted from the interviews related to the research questions. In the axial coding of the data, a total of 6 main challenges related to the validation methods of resources of sports students present in the interviews were found, such as lack of familiarity with investigating research violations, lack of familiarity with plagiarism, lack of familiarity with plagiarism software, etc. Also, 15 core codes related to the second research question, how to accredit sports students, were obtained.
Conclusion: Interviews with the research population revealed that students in the research population face certain challenges in validating sources. They highlighted "unfamiliarity with examining research misconduct, unfamiliarity with plagiarism, unfamiliarity with plagiarism software, unfamiliarity with citation styles and citation management software, disregard for the author's academic rank, and unfamiliarity with the credibility of open-access articles" in their conversations with researchers.
These points were derived from the overall final concepts identified during the interviews, which included "unfamiliarity with how to examine research misconduct, unfamiliarity with examining research misconduct, unfamiliarity with examining plagiarism, unfamiliarity with plagiarism software, unfamiliarity with citation styles, unfamiliarity with EndNote, disregard for the author's academic rank, and unfamiliarity with the credibility of open-access articles." The findings of the present study emphasize the need for serious attention from all students, including sports science students and other students, to the issue of information credibility and quality, and the necessity of sufficient and continuous training and skills in this area. Skill training in determining the quality and credibility of sources, based on specific and strong criteria, in the form of training courses, workshops, laboratories, projects, and research, are among the immediate actions in this field.
Especially, It is suggested that to better understand the problems and provide better solutions, other qualitative and mixed methods such as foresight and videography with highly standardized checklists be conducted in more extensive and broader research to achieve more generalizable and broader results. It seems that training in source validation methods is needed for the sports science students participating in the research, and their training can reduce the challenges of source validation among students and improve their source validation methods. It is suggested that the data from this research be measured as a quantitative study among students of Birjand University and other various universities across the country.
Studies suggest that students often lack the skills to assess the credibility of articles found in databases or general websites like Wikipedia and online encyclopedias (Marefat, 1401; Azarang, 1399). For printed sources, students typically consider the author's credibility, organizational affiliation, and the publisher’s reputation as indicators of source reliability (Moradi, 1384). Marefat identified ten main categories related to evaluating sources, including institutional credibility, author credibility, content accuracy, observational reliability, referential validation, publication date, information distortion, credibility doubts, recognition of source credibility, and citation rate, particularly from psychology students’ perspectives (Marefat, 1396).
Research by Keshavarz, Vasfi, and Sha'bani (1393) examined the credibility of internet health information and how personality traits like conscientiousness influence evaluation methods among health-medical professionals. They found that many struggle to assess quality, relying mainly on impartiality, timeliness, and author credibility. Similarly, Roozbahani and Riahi-nia (1395) highlighted that faculty members prioritize content accuracy, data reliability, logical consistency, and relevance in determining source credibility. Kader’s study (Kader, 2013) on nurses identified a six-stage process for evaluating online health information, depending on skills, time, and website quality. Liu and Huang’s research (2005) among Chinese students revealed that current students often base their judgments on author name, affiliation, and website reputation, whereas graduates focus more on the information’s accuracy and quality.
Despite many evaluation efforts, challenges remain: first, understanding how users process unobservable information is difficult; second, differing information needs lead to varied processing approaches; and third, establishing a universal criterion for correct information processing is often impossible outside controlled environments. These issues highlight the complexity of assessing information credibility and the ongoing need for effective evaluation strategies (Liu, 2000).The main questions of the present study are:
1. What are the challenges faced by sports science students at Birjand University in evaluating their required resources?
2. How do sports science students at Birjand University evaluate their required resources?
Method:The statistical population of the present study consisted of 67 sports science students at Birjand University at the time of the research. Given the effort to collect maximum data, all 67 individuals were considered part of the research population, and no sampling was performed. Semi-structured interviews were used for data collection. In total, twenty master's students in sports science were interviewed. The interview process continued until saturation was reached, after interviewing sixteen students. From the sixteenth to the twentieth interview, the data obtained were repetitive, and based on this, the researchers decided to stop data collection. The initial codes were placed under sub-categories and main categories. In the present study, member checking was used to determine the research's credibility. In the present study, the constructivist approach in grounded theory, as proposed by Charmaz (2014), was adopted as the basis for the work, therefore, there is no need to present a paradigmatic model. Data analysis was also performed using MAXQDA 2020 software.
Findings: Among the 67 members of the research population, a total of 20 sports science students from Birjand University were interviewed. A totoal of 50% of the interviewees were women (10 people), and 10 (50%) were men. Categorizes and presents the concepts and codes extracted from the interviews related to the research questions. In the axial coding of the data, a total of 6 main challenges related to the validation methods of resources of sports students present in the interviews were found, such as lack of familiarity with investigating research violations, lack of familiarity with plagiarism, lack of familiarity with plagiarism software, etc. Also, 15 core codes related to the second research question, how to accredit sports students, were obtained.
Conclusion: Interviews with the research population revealed that students in the research population face certain challenges in validating sources. They highlighted "unfamiliarity with examining research misconduct, unfamiliarity with plagiarism, unfamiliarity with plagiarism software, unfamiliarity with citation styles and citation management software, disregard for the author's academic rank, and unfamiliarity with the credibility of open-access articles" in their conversations with researchers.
These points were derived from the overall final concepts identified during the interviews, which included "unfamiliarity with how to examine research misconduct, unfamiliarity with examining research misconduct, unfamiliarity with examining plagiarism, unfamiliarity with plagiarism software, unfamiliarity with citation styles, unfamiliarity with EndNote, disregard for the author's academic rank, and unfamiliarity with the credibility of open-access articles." The findings of the present study emphasize the need for serious attention from all students, including sports science students and other students, to the issue of information credibility and quality, and the necessity of sufficient and continuous training and skills in this area. Skill training in determining the quality and credibility of sources, based on specific and strong criteria, in the form of training courses, workshops, laboratories, projects, and research, are among the immediate actions in this field.
Especially, It is suggested that to better understand the problems and provide better solutions, other qualitative and mixed methods such as foresight and videography with highly standardized checklists be conducted in more extensive and broader research to achieve more generalizable and broader results. It seems that training in source validation methods is needed for the sports science students participating in the research, and their training can reduce the challenges of source validation among students and improve their source validation methods. It is suggested that the data from this research be measured as a quantitative study among students of Birjand University and other various universities across the country.
Yaghoub Norouzi, , ,
Volume 12, Issue 2 (9-2025)
Volume 12, Issue 2 (9-2025)
Abstract
Introduction
In the digital publishing environment, the websites of international scientific publishers function as critical interfaces between content providers—such as researchers, academics, and students—and their intended audiences. The effectiveness of these platforms is closely linked to the quality of their user interface (UI), which directly affects usability, accessibility, and the overall user experience. Within the framework of the Business-to-Consumer (B2C) model, particularly in subscription-based and digitally delivered content, UI design plays a pivotal role in facilitating efficient content discovery, streamlining access, and enabling personalized services. Employing the B2C model as an analytical lens allows for a systematic evaluation of the design elements that influence user engagement, retention, and trust. This study evaluates the user interfaces of the top 100 international scientific publishing websites, identifies recurring design strengths and shortcomings, and provides evidence-based recommendations to enhance user experience and align design practices with innovative B2C principles.
Methods and Materoal
This study employed an applied, descriptive–analytical survey design aimed at assessing the user interface (UI) of the top 100 international scientific publishing websites, drawing upon the Innovative B2C Business Model framework. The approach integrated systematic observation and content analysis to examine functional, structural, and experiential aspects of these platforms.
The primary research instrument was a researcher-developed checklist, conceptualized in accordance with the Innovative B2C Model for e-commerce and grounded in Nielsen’s (1993) heuristic principles of usability.
The checklist construction followed a multi-step process:
1.Item Generation – An extensive literature review was conducted to identify UI and UX indicators relevant to scientific publishing and digital commerce. This included studies on usability, digital publishing business models, and user engagement frameworks.
2.Content Validation – A panel of four academic experts in information science and interface evaluation reviewed the initial checklist draft for relevance, clarity, and comprehensiveness. Their feedback led to item refinement, deletion of redundancies, and the inclusion of additional critical elements.
3.Final Structure – The validated checklist encompassed three core dimensions:
Website Visual Appeal – 9 components evaluating aesthetic quality, clarity, and visual consistency.
Content Structure Enhancement – 17 components assessing navigability, resource organization, and accessibility.
Trust and Loyalty – 26 components covering credibility signals, personalization, and retention-oriented features.
Operational definitions were provided for each component to ensure scoring consistency across evaluators.
The study population comprised 100 international publishers listed in the authoritative meta-analysis by Nishikawa-Pacher (2022), recognized for its comprehensive coverage of global scientific publishing entities. A census sampling approach was adopted, meaning all publishers in the list were included in the evaluation.
Two independent evaluators—both experienced university librarians with over a decade of professional practice and scholarly work in UI/UX evaluation—conducted systematic assessments.
Prior to full-scale data collection, a pilot test was performed on a subset of 10 randomly selected publisher websites to ensure clarity of checklist items and to standardize scoring criteria.
Each website was evaluated on both desktop and mobile versions to capture platform-specific design variations. Compliance with each checklist component was scored as follows:
Yes (2) – Fully meets the criterion.
Partial (1) – Partially meets the criterion, with noticeable limitations.
No (0) – Does not meet the criterion.
Evaluator discrepancies were resolved through consensus discussions, ensuring inter-rater reliability.
Data were coded numerically and processed using SPSS and Microsoft Excel. The analysis included:
Descriptive statistics (frequencies, percentages, means, standard deviations, and variances) to summarize compliance patterns.
One-Sample T-Test to assess whether the mean compliance scores for each dimension significantly exceeded a predefined acceptable threshold.
Friedman Test to rank dimensions according to overall compliance levels.
Duncan’s Multiple Range Test for post-hoc pairwise comparisons to detect significant differences among dimensions.
Findings were visualized using bar charts and comparative graphs, enabling clear identification of strengths, weaknesses, and priority areas for improvement in UI design based on the Innovative B2C framework.
Through this rigorous methodology, the study ensured validity, reliability, and practical applicability of results for digital publishing stakeholders aiming to optimize user interface performance and enhance user trust, engagement, and retention.
Resultss and Discussion
Based on the findings, the ease of font readability component was identified as the most prominent, with 91% of the evaluated websites meeting this criterion. Furthermore, 83% of the evaluated websites lacked non-text audio symbols, and 53% lacked non-text video symbols—making these the weakest elements within the visual attractiveness index. This deficiency in incorporating non-text symbols (audio and video) into the user interface may significantly undermine the digital business performance of international publishers.
In the context of the structure strengthening index (content), the components of having the necessary function and the possibility of returning to the first page on each page were recognized as the most important with a compliance rate of 95% and the component of active and valid links with a compliance rate of 94%, so compliance with it plays an important role in creating trust and social credibility of publishers. 69% of the statistical community did not have a sales agency or bookstore portal. The sales portal allows the collection of user purchase, interest, visit and behavior data, which is very key for marketing, content production and business decisions. Without it, the publisher is deprived of this data.
Among the trust and loyalty indicators, the contact us component and the same site design in different browsers were recognized as the most important with 98% compliance, and the ability to write a review for each book was recognized as the least important with 75% of the statistical population not doing so.
Brill, Dovepress and IOS Press with an average compliance of 1.89; Oxford University Press and Bentham with an average compliance of 1.80; De Gruyter, Medcrave and Penn University Press State with an average compliance of 1.89 were recognized as the top publishers in the three areas of visual appeal, structural reinforcement (content), and continuity (customer loyalty and trust), respectively.
A significant difference was observed between the statistical population rankings in compliance with the components of these three indicators. By confirming the first hypothesis of the study, it was concluded that the score obtained from the websites under study in the user interface evaluation is significantly lower than the maximum score, i.e. the full evaluation score. By confirming the second hypothesis of the study, it was found that the average total score obtained from the evaluations in the three areas of visual appeal, structural reinforcement (content), and continuity (customer loyalty and trust) are not the same.
Conclusion
The assessment revealed that none of the top 100 international scientific publication websites fully met the needs of disabled or handicapped audiences, which is a fundamental flaw in the accessibility index of user interface design. To address this weakness, it is recommended that the websites studied comply with WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines). Multimedia content is one of the important SEO factors. Its lack of use by the community may reduce visibility in search results. Today's users, especially the younger generations, are accustomed to multimedia content. The lack of audio and visual elements, including videos and podcasts, and the lack of diversity in the type of content presentation may cause this range of audiences to be lost. It is recommended to present book introductions, interviews with authors, or database usage guides in the form of several-minute videos. The use of simple animations, audio and video icons, and responsive designs can increase the sense of modernity and attractiveness on publishers' sites.
In the digital publishing environment, the websites of international scientific publishers function as critical interfaces between content providers—such as researchers, academics, and students—and their intended audiences. The effectiveness of these platforms is closely linked to the quality of their user interface (UI), which directly affects usability, accessibility, and the overall user experience. Within the framework of the Business-to-Consumer (B2C) model, particularly in subscription-based and digitally delivered content, UI design plays a pivotal role in facilitating efficient content discovery, streamlining access, and enabling personalized services. Employing the B2C model as an analytical lens allows for a systematic evaluation of the design elements that influence user engagement, retention, and trust. This study evaluates the user interfaces of the top 100 international scientific publishing websites, identifies recurring design strengths and shortcomings, and provides evidence-based recommendations to enhance user experience and align design practices with innovative B2C principles.
Methods and Materoal
This study employed an applied, descriptive–analytical survey design aimed at assessing the user interface (UI) of the top 100 international scientific publishing websites, drawing upon the Innovative B2C Business Model framework. The approach integrated systematic observation and content analysis to examine functional, structural, and experiential aspects of these platforms.
The primary research instrument was a researcher-developed checklist, conceptualized in accordance with the Innovative B2C Model for e-commerce and grounded in Nielsen’s (1993) heuristic principles of usability.
The checklist construction followed a multi-step process:
1.Item Generation – An extensive literature review was conducted to identify UI and UX indicators relevant to scientific publishing and digital commerce. This included studies on usability, digital publishing business models, and user engagement frameworks.
2.Content Validation – A panel of four academic experts in information science and interface evaluation reviewed the initial checklist draft for relevance, clarity, and comprehensiveness. Their feedback led to item refinement, deletion of redundancies, and the inclusion of additional critical elements.
3.Final Structure – The validated checklist encompassed three core dimensions:
Website Visual Appeal – 9 components evaluating aesthetic quality, clarity, and visual consistency.
Content Structure Enhancement – 17 components assessing navigability, resource organization, and accessibility.
Trust and Loyalty – 26 components covering credibility signals, personalization, and retention-oriented features.
Operational definitions were provided for each component to ensure scoring consistency across evaluators.
The study population comprised 100 international publishers listed in the authoritative meta-analysis by Nishikawa-Pacher (2022), recognized for its comprehensive coverage of global scientific publishing entities. A census sampling approach was adopted, meaning all publishers in the list were included in the evaluation.
Two independent evaluators—both experienced university librarians with over a decade of professional practice and scholarly work in UI/UX evaluation—conducted systematic assessments.
Prior to full-scale data collection, a pilot test was performed on a subset of 10 randomly selected publisher websites to ensure clarity of checklist items and to standardize scoring criteria.
Each website was evaluated on both desktop and mobile versions to capture platform-specific design variations. Compliance with each checklist component was scored as follows:
Yes (2) – Fully meets the criterion.
Partial (1) – Partially meets the criterion, with noticeable limitations.
No (0) – Does not meet the criterion.
Evaluator discrepancies were resolved through consensus discussions, ensuring inter-rater reliability.
Data were coded numerically and processed using SPSS and Microsoft Excel. The analysis included:
Descriptive statistics (frequencies, percentages, means, standard deviations, and variances) to summarize compliance patterns.
One-Sample T-Test to assess whether the mean compliance scores for each dimension significantly exceeded a predefined acceptable threshold.
Friedman Test to rank dimensions according to overall compliance levels.
Duncan’s Multiple Range Test for post-hoc pairwise comparisons to detect significant differences among dimensions.
Findings were visualized using bar charts and comparative graphs, enabling clear identification of strengths, weaknesses, and priority areas for improvement in UI design based on the Innovative B2C framework.
Through this rigorous methodology, the study ensured validity, reliability, and practical applicability of results for digital publishing stakeholders aiming to optimize user interface performance and enhance user trust, engagement, and retention.
Resultss and Discussion
Based on the findings, the ease of font readability component was identified as the most prominent, with 91% of the evaluated websites meeting this criterion. Furthermore, 83% of the evaluated websites lacked non-text audio symbols, and 53% lacked non-text video symbols—making these the weakest elements within the visual attractiveness index. This deficiency in incorporating non-text symbols (audio and video) into the user interface may significantly undermine the digital business performance of international publishers.
In the context of the structure strengthening index (content), the components of having the necessary function and the possibility of returning to the first page on each page were recognized as the most important with a compliance rate of 95% and the component of active and valid links with a compliance rate of 94%, so compliance with it plays an important role in creating trust and social credibility of publishers. 69% of the statistical community did not have a sales agency or bookstore portal. The sales portal allows the collection of user purchase, interest, visit and behavior data, which is very key for marketing, content production and business decisions. Without it, the publisher is deprived of this data.
Among the trust and loyalty indicators, the contact us component and the same site design in different browsers were recognized as the most important with 98% compliance, and the ability to write a review for each book was recognized as the least important with 75% of the statistical population not doing so.
Brill, Dovepress and IOS Press with an average compliance of 1.89; Oxford University Press and Bentham with an average compliance of 1.80; De Gruyter, Medcrave and Penn University Press State with an average compliance of 1.89 were recognized as the top publishers in the three areas of visual appeal, structural reinforcement (content), and continuity (customer loyalty and trust), respectively.
A significant difference was observed between the statistical population rankings in compliance with the components of these three indicators. By confirming the first hypothesis of the study, it was concluded that the score obtained from the websites under study in the user interface evaluation is significantly lower than the maximum score, i.e. the full evaluation score. By confirming the second hypothesis of the study, it was found that the average total score obtained from the evaluations in the three areas of visual appeal, structural reinforcement (content), and continuity (customer loyalty and trust) are not the same.
Conclusion
The assessment revealed that none of the top 100 international scientific publication websites fully met the needs of disabled or handicapped audiences, which is a fundamental flaw in the accessibility index of user interface design. To address this weakness, it is recommended that the websites studied comply with WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines). Multimedia content is one of the important SEO factors. Its lack of use by the community may reduce visibility in search results. Today's users, especially the younger generations, are accustomed to multimedia content. The lack of audio and visual elements, including videos and podcasts, and the lack of diversity in the type of content presentation may cause this range of audiences to be lost. It is recommended to present book introductions, interviews with authors, or database usage guides in the form of several-minute videos. The use of simple animations, audio and video icons, and responsive designs can increase the sense of modernity and attractiveness on publishers' sites.
Dr Seifallah Andayesh, Dr Zahra Kianrad,
Volume 12, Issue 2 (9-2025)
Volume 12, Issue 2 (9-2025)
Abstract
Introduction: This study aims to examine the effect of artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities on organizational creativity, with a particular focus on the mediating role of knowledge sharing among librarians working in university libraries affiliated with medical sciences universities located in Tehran.
Research Method: The research employed a descriptive-survey design and is applied in terms of purpose. The statistical population included all librarians employed in the libraries of medical sciences universities in Tehran. Given the limited population size, a census method was used for data collection, resulting in 214 completed questionnaires. Valid and standardized instruments were utilized to measure the study variables. The level of AI utilization was assessed using a 22-item questionnaire adapted from Chen et al. (2022), covering five dimensions: AI management, AI-based decision-making, AI infrastructure, AI readiness, and AI-related skills. Organizational creativity was measured using a 15-item scale developed by Liao and Wu (2013). Knowledge sharing was evaluated using a 12-item questionnaire by Damaj et al. (2016). All instruments were based on a five-point Likert scale. Instrument validity was confirmed through convergent and discriminant validity analyses, and reliability was verified via Cronbach's alpha coefficients.
Findings: The results indicated a significant and positive relationship between AI capabilities and organizational creativity. AI also had a significant and positive effect on knowledge sharing. Moreover, knowledge sharing was positively and significantly associated with organizational creativity.
Discussion and Conclusion: The analyses revealed that knowledge sharing serves as a full mediator, playing a crucial role in linking AI capabilities to organizational creativity.
Originality: This research contributes to the literature on AI in the field of library and information science by highlighting the role of emerging technologies in fostering organizational creativity and addressing gaps in understanding the dynamics between AI and innovation within academic libraries
Reza Naserijahromi, Mehdi Mohammadi, Marzieh Abdolvahabi, Solmaz Khademi, Majid Kowsari, Sedigheh Shadi,
Volume 12, Issue 2 (9-2025)
Volume 12, Issue 2 (9-2025)
Abstract
Objective: This research was a synthesis research approach to the concept of critical information literacy.
Methodology: This research was a qualitative method using a five-stage interpretive-critical approach. The statistical population of this research focused on primary sources close to the field of the present study. The criterion for selecting the studies under study was alignment and coherence with the purpose, title, and variables of the present study. In this regard, the search for sources was carried out according to the research question and based on the knowledge gained from reviewing the theoretical background. The keywords entered in scientific search engines and databases such as Web of Science, Google Scholar, Science Direct, Elsevier, Scopus were: synthesis research approach, media literacy, critical literacy, critical information literacy, and information news. After the collected data reached a saturation point and the need to select studies was no longer needed, the review and interpretation process began. The findings obtained from the analysis and synthesis of research reports related to critical information literacy were categorized into three main themes: "Scientometrics of Information Literacy", "Correlation of Information Literacy and Critical Thinking", and "Media Information Literacy".
Conclusion: In fact, a necessary knowledge, awareness, and skills with a standard framework of information and critical literacy can independently provide a suitable infrastructure and foundation for the interaction of information literacy and critical literacy, which will create a balance and interaction between the capacities and abilities of curiosity, creativity, and judgment in individuals.
Mis Shahla Bouazzar, Dr Alireza Ghorbani, Dr Nazmohammad Ounagh,
Volume 12, Issue 2 (9-2025)
Volume 12, Issue 2 (9-2025)
Abstract
Aims: This study investigates the relationship between the use of virtual social networks and both cultural capital and social capital among high school students in Ahvaz, Iran. Method: A descriptive-survey research method was employed, with the statistical population consisting of all high school students in Ahvaz. Using Cochran’s formula, a sample of 320 participants was selected through multi-stage random cluster sampling. Data were collected using Bourdieu’s social capital and cultural capital questionnaires, along with Lee’s (2005) virtual networks usage scale. The data were analyzed using SPSS software. Finding: The findings revealed a significant positive correlation between the components of usefulness, compatibility, social influence, and perceived enjoyment and the variables of social capital and cultural capital. Specifically, virtual social networks enhance individuals' social and cultural capital by improving adaptability, reinforcing social influence on behavior, increasing perceived enjoyment, and maximizing the perceived utility of these platforms. Furthermore, the results indicated that both virtual social network usage and cultural capital can predict the level of social capital among high school students in Ahvaz. Conclusion: Leveraging the potential of social networks can effectively increase students' cultural and social capital.
Mohammad Hossein Marzban, Rahman Sharifzadeh, ,
Volume 12, Issue 2 (9-2025)
Volume 12, Issue 2 (9-2025)
Abstract
As information becomes one of the most important resources for companies and cyber threats get more advanced, there has been a big increase in spending on security tools. But research shows that over 90% of big security problems come from mistakes made by human. This shows that it's really important to focus on "information security culture" along with technical tools. Most traditional ideas about security culture, like those from Schein and Hofstede, are centered around human and don't take into account the role of non-human elements. This gap in understanding means we need better ways, like Actor-Network Theory, to look at how all different factors work together. This study was done to fill that gap and look at what influences security culture in a major financial organization. The research used a qualitative method and included interviews with 25 managers, experts, and users at the Central Bank of Iran, as well as field observations and document analysis. The results showed that security culture comes from the interaction of three main human groups: senior managers who make big decisions, employees who carry out daily tasks, and technical teams that turn policies into real actions. Also, five types of non-human elements were found: policies like ISO 27001, technologies such as SIEM and MFA, physical infrastructure, documents, and organizational processes. A key finding was the role of hybrid actors, like authentication systems, which mix humans and technology and affect how people behave. Compared to simple models, this study shows that building a better security culture needs a network approach that considers all the different factors. Recommendations include making security tools easier to use, training managers, and embedding security into everyday work. This approach can help financial and governance organizations that face similar challenges.
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