The Turn analyzes the research of information seeking and retrieval
(IS&R) and proposes a new direction of integrating research in these two
areas: the fields should turn off their separate and narrow paths and
construct a new avenue of research. An essential direction for this
avenue is context as given in the subtitle Integration of Information
Seeking and Retrieval in Context. Other essential themes in the book
include:
IS&R research models, frameworks and theories; search and works tasks
and situations in context; interaction between humans and machines;
information acquisition, relevance and information use; research design
and methodology based on a structured set of explicit variables - all
set into the holistic cognitive approach. The present monograph invites
the reader into a construction project - there is much research to do
for a contextual understanding of IS&R.
The Turn represents a wide-ranging perspective of IS&R by providing a
novel unique research framework, covering both individual and social
aspects of information behavior, including the generation, searching,
retrieval and use of information. Regarding traditional laboratory
information retrieval research, the monograph proposes the extension of
research toward actors, search and work tasks, IR interaction and
utility of information. Regarding traditional information seeking
research, it proposes the extension toward information access technology
and work task contexts.
The Turn is the first synthesis of research in the broad area of IS&R
ranging from systems oriented laboratory IR research to social science
oriented information seeking studies.
