Human Information Interaction

Background and Aim: This research aims to explore relation between health literacy and information literacy of post-graduate students in Ferdowsi university of Mashhad.

Method: This research is descriptive-correlational survey research. Population included post-graduate students of Ferdowsi university of Mashhad that 368 of them were selected via stratified sampling. Two Questionnaires were used for data collection. First one was Health Literacy for Iranian Adults (HELIA) that was a reliable and valid instrument for measuring health literacy in Iran and include the following constructs: ability to read, ability and skills to access, understand, and appraise health information, make decisions, and practice in order to maintain or improve health. The second one was designed by the researchers in order to measure information literacy skills including four dimensions: identifying information needs, locating, organizing, and evaluating information.

Results: Finding showed that 25% of students have inadequate health literacy, 38.31% of them have moderate literacy and others have normal high-quality health literacy. Also, their information literacy level is higher than average. Also the results show significant and positive correlation between information literacy and health literacy. Level of health literacy in female students is higher than males and level of this variable in Ph. D. Students is more than Master students. Findings showed that post graduate students search the internet and communicate with friends in order to acquire health information.

Conclusion: Since, Impact of Information literacy on information skills from the access to evaluation and use of information. So, Enhancement of information literacy skills in students could improve their health literacy. Accordingly, libraries can increase level of students’ health literacy by learning information literacy skills. Some libraries’ programs are noticed in order to enhance level of students’ health literacy and information literacy

Background and Aim: This study aims to explore the concept of information culture, and survey its status among the faculty members of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad.

Method: This research is applied research that conducted via survey research. Population included faculty members of Ferdowsi university of Mashhad that 250 of them were selected via random sampling. A questionnaire based on (Choo et al., 2008) model were used for data collection. This questionnaire including six dimensions: information integrity, information formality, information control, information transparency, information sharing, and proactive use of information. Before collecting data, validity and reliability of the questionnaire was confirmed.

Results: The results showed that, from the perspective of faculty members of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, information culture and its dimensions are not desirable at the university. Among the dimensions of information culture information sharing has highest average and information transparency has the lowest average. Also the results show information culture pattern of the Ferdowsi University of Mashhad is Relationship-Based Culture. The relationship between demographic variables and information culture also showed that there is a significant relationship between gender and field of study with some dimensions of information culture.

Conclusion: survey the information culture as an empowerment variable that influence information behaviors and programs in organizations is essential, Because of the important role of information in organizations. Moreover, information culture is a new subject that addressing the new research area for further research, especially in the field of knowledge and information science. 

Purpose: the aim was to identify users' search strategies and the rate of using search strategies on the web.

Method: It is a practical survey. The statistical population included all the postgraduate students in the first semester at Ferdowsi University of Mashhad. 95 students were selected by stratified random sampling method. To gather the data, log files were used.

Findings: 12 search strategies were identified which was divided into 5 general categories. Iterative evaluation strategy in another tab was a new form of evaluation strategy of results. Among all, starting search strategies were the most commonly used category which were repeated 397 times, and the search results evaluation strategies were ranked afterward, with 321 replications. The category of Simultaneous multiple resource access strategies, with 77 repetitions, were also the least used strategies, but in particular, the recurring exploration strategy, with 21 repetitions, was the least applicable strategy. Conducting correlation test between strategies showed that some of Pearson's correlation coefficients were significant. The strongest relationship was between the starting search strategies and the search result evaluation strategies with a 0.591 correlation coefficient.

Discussion: The results showed that the majority of students used traditional and simple strategies, such as the formulation of search terms strategy and the iterative result evaluation strategy, and they used more complex strategies in few cases. These results showed that the students need to be trained in using strategies.