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The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between internet filtering, emotions and information-seeking behaviour.

In total, 15 postgraduate students at an Iranian university participated in the study which involved a questionnaire, search tasks with think aloud narratives, and interviews.

Internet content filtering results in some changes in the information-seeking behaviour of users. Users who face website blocking use a variety of methods to bypass filtering, mostly by using anti-filter software. Filtering encourages users to use channels such as social networking services to share resources and it increases the use of library material by some of the users. Users who face filtering during their search are more likely to visit more pages of results and click on more hits in the results, unlike users who do not experience filtering who rarely go past the first page. Blocking users’ access to content stimulates their curiosity and they become more determined to access the content. In terms of the affective aspect, filtering causes several negative emotions (e.g. anger, disgust, sadness and anxiety) and the main reason for these emotions is not the inability to access information but the feeling of being controlled and not having freedom.

The study was limited to a small number of postgraduate students in social sciences and not generalisable to all user groups. The implication is that in countries where filtering is used, libraries can play an important role in serving users and reducing users negative emotions, especially if libraries can take advantage of technologies such as social media for their services.

This is first study to address the effects of internet filtering on information-seeking behaviour and emotions. The study shows that internet filtering causes negative emotions and results in some changes in information-seeking behaviour.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the effects of a large e-book touch-wall, on which the visualized interface provides information in a fun, hedonic-oriented fashion on readers of different ages browsing in a public library. The authors examined how emotions exert influence on the information-seeking behaviors of readers.

The authors investigated the emotions and responsive eye movements of 38 readers in various age groups when operating the touch-wall interface of New Taipei City Library. They were monitored using an eye-tracker and a camera that videotaped their spontaneous facial expressions. A facial affect scoring technique was used to measure emotions and statistical analysis was used to explore the relationships among the scope of eye movements, emotions and information-seeking behavior of readers of different ages.

Results revealed that participants experienced an array of emotions, such as contemplative, doubtful or peaceful. The older the participant was, the smaller the scope of eye movements was. Scope was also affected by emotions (both positive and negative).

These results serve as useful reference for exploration into human – information interaction, perceived ease of use, affected searching and the formulation of knowledge structures in visualized interfaces.

Primary teachers play a vital role in fostering pupils' successful futures. Therefore, gaining knowledge of primary teacher students' learning processes, including the achievement of information-seeking skills, is crucial. The aim of this paper is to understand better the interplay between cognitive appraisals and emotions in the constructivist process of learning and achieving information-seeking skills.

In-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with six Swedish primary teacher students. The analysis of qualitative data was deductive and theory-driven, guided by Kuhlthau's information search process model, Scherer's semantic space of emotions and Pekrun's control-value theory of achievement emotions.

Anger/frustration, enjoyment and boredom were identified as activity emotions and anxiety, hopelessness and hope as prospective outcome emotions. The retrospective outcome emotions found were pride, joy, gratitude, surprise and relief. The appraisals eliciting the achievement emotions were the control appraisals uncertainty/certainty (activity and prospective outcome) and oneself/other (retrospective), and value appraisals negative/positive intrinsic motivation (activity) and failure/success (prospective and retrospective). The interplay between appraisals and emotions was complex and dynamic. The processes were individually unique, non-linear and iterative, and the appraisals did not always elicit emotions.

The study has theoretical and methodological implications for information behaviour research in its application of appraisal theories and the Geneva affect label coder. In addition, it has practical implications for academic librarians teaching information-seeking skills.

Although uncertainty has been identified as a key crisis characteristic and a multi-faceted construct essential to effective crisis management research and practice, only a few studies examined publics' perceived uncertainty with a focus on crisis severity uncertainty, leaving crisis responsibility uncertainty uninvestigated in organizational crisis settings.

To close this research gap empirically, this study employed data from an online survey of a total of 817 US adults to examine how participants' crisis responsibility uncertainty and their attribution-based crisis emotions might impact their crisis responses such as further crisis information seeking.

First, findings show that participants' crisis responsibility uncertainty was negatively associated with their attribution-independent (AI) crisis emotions (i.e. anxiety, fear, apprehension and sympathy) and external-attribution-dependent (EAD) crisis emotions (i.e. disgust, contempt, anger and sadness), but positively associated with internal-attribution-dependent (IAD) crisis emotions (i.e. guilt, embarrassment and shame). Second, crisis responsibility uncertainty and AI crisis emotions were positive predictors for participants' further crisis information seeking. Third, AI crisis emotions and IAD crisis emotions were parallel mediators for the relationship between participants' crisis responsibility uncertainty and their further crisis information seeking.

Organizations need to pay attention to the perceived uncertainty about crisis responsibility and attribution-based crisis emotions since they can impact the decision of seeking crisis information during an ongoing organizational crisis.

This study improves uncertainty management in organizational crisis communication research and practice, connecting crisis responsibility uncertainty, attribution-based crisis emotions and publics' crisis information seeking.

The purpose of this paper is to specify the role of emotions played in information seeking and sharing taking place in online discussion forum. To this end, an explorative study was made that focussed on consumer awareness.

The study is based on the analysis of a sample of 30 discussion threads containing altogether 1,630 messages available in Canadian Content – a major online platform. The expression of emotions was examined by using the categories of the interaction process analysis (IPA) model. Two research questions were addressed: first, what kind of emotions are expressed in the four functional areas of the IPA model when discussing online about consumer awareness? and second, what is the role of positive and negative emotions in information seeking and sharing about the above topic? The data were analyzed by means of descriptive statistics and qualitative content analysis.

Of the emotional expressions, 42 percent were positive and 58 percent negative. The most frequent emotions were amusement, contempt, worry, irritation and pleasure. The frequencies of positive and emotional expressions varied in the context of 12 IPA categories. Positive emotions predominated when participants showed solidarity or agreed, while negative emotions were particularly prevalent when indicating antagonism. The repertoire of positive and negative emotions was broadest while providing opinions or sharing information with others. In contrast, emotions were expressed rarely in the context of information seeking.

The study is explorative in nature and the findings are based on the examination of an online discussion group focussed on the issues of consumer awareness.

The study contributes to the study of affective factors in computer-mediated interaction by empirically specifying the repertoire of positive and negative emotions expressed in online discussion.

This study investigates the effect of protection motivation theory (PMT) constructs on Arab women's feelings while seeking information during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The study has adopted a mixed-method approach using semi-structured interviews and a questionnaire to explore PMT constructs' impact on women's feelings while seeking information on COVID-19. Several tests, such as standard deviation, mean, skewness, kurtosis and persons, were used to check the reliability of data and inter-relationships between constructs.

The study results show a significant positive correlation between PMT constructs (perceived vulnerability, perceived severity, response efficacy, self-efficacy and response cost) with the feelings of Arab women during information seeking on COVID-19. However, the relationship between threat appraisal and feelings during information seeking was more substantial than coping appraisal and feelings during information seeking. The researchers hope that this study creates a baseline of cross-cultural studies on PMT constructs' effect on women's feelings while seeking health information.

The current study was conducted on female participants only. While the study intended to examine Arab women's feelings during information seeking with PMT's application, the results may be affected by other factors that were not considered in the current study. Furthermore, the questionnaire was distributed in three Arab countries, which means that the results cannot be generalized in other geographical contexts. Therefore, similar studies need to be conducted in larger geographical areas as cultural factors may produce different results.

This study explores women's feelings while seeking COVID-19 information using the PMT constructs. As far as we know, this study is the first study to investigate Arab women's feelings while seeking health information during pandemics. PMT utilization is considered a new approach to discover and measure informational needs and feelings associated with it during pandemics.

A study examined reading strategies in relation to information-seeking stages, tasks and reading media in an academic setting. Understanding reading practices and needs in the context of information-seeking can refine our understanding of user choices and preferences for information sources (e.g. textbooks, articles, multimedia content) and media (e.g. print and digital tools used for reading). It can also help to examine the changes in reading practices brought about by digital devices and content.

The data were collected via an online questionnaire from a sample of graduate students over the course of two months. The data were analysed using descriptive statistics.

The authors found that all information-seeking stages and all academic tasks were characterised by a combination of “deep” and “surface” reading and a use of both print and electronic resources. Contrary to previous studies that linked digital media to “surface” reading (e.g. skimming, searching for keywords), the participants reported a high number of “deep” reading tactics (e.g. annotating, connecting text to prior knowledge) while using digital resources.

The study relied on a convenience sample of library and information science students, so some findings can be attributed to the sample’s demographics and academic demands. The findings imply that at all stages of information-seeking for all academic tasks, graduate students were engaged in both deep and surface reading using both print and electronic resources.

The findings show that students read print and digital texts, suggesting that it might be premature for academic libraries to part with their print collections. Understanding relationships between academic task, information-seeking and reading can aid students in choosing the right reading resources for their academic tasks, educators in assigning appropriate materials for course projects, libraries in providing appropriate resources to their readers and information retrieval system designers in offering useful features for different reading needs and styles.

The findings indicate a shift in academic work culture and reliance on digital texts for deep and surface reading.

The study produced preliminary support for the development of a unified information-seeking and reading model.

This study aims to explore the mechanisms of extended information seeking, which is the combination of extended information technologies (IT) use behavior and information-seeking behavior. The purpose is to identify the factors that shape extended information seeking from the perspectives of psychological empowerment and attachment.

A research model was developed based on prior theory and literature. Survey data were collected, and the partial least squares (PLS) structural equation modeling was used to verify the research model.

Psychological empowerment is a well-constructed second-order construct, having a larger positive effect on extended information seeking. Digital libraries attachment has a positive effect on extended information seeking.

Accessing digital libraries does not mean using digital libraries effectively. Managers of digital libraries should design various specific information activities to help users enhance psychological empowerment. They should provide more available and responsive services for users to enhance digital libraries attachment.

Drawing on the adaptive structuration theory, this study examines extended information seeking by combining extended use of digital libraries and information seeking, presenting a new lens for digital library and information seeking research.

To reveal the emotions and information needs expressed by Chinese parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in an online forum, and their relationship.

The 10,062 data were from “Yi Lin”, China’s largest online forum for ASD. Open coding identified parents’ emotions and information needs, and a chi-squared test explored the correlation.

First, parents’ emotions were categorized into four themes: emotions about coping with their child’s care, emotions about the parents’ own behavior, emotions about social support with other parents and emotions about anticipating the future. Parents’ overall emotions were negative (72.47%), while the tendency of emotions varied among the four themes. Second, five information needs topics were expressed: intervention and training of ASD, parenting experiences, schooling issues, social interaction and support and future development. Different information needs topics contained different themes of emotions. Third, the tendency of emotions and expression of information needs were significantly correlated. Negative emotions had a statistically significant correlation in expression of information needs.

This study reveals the relationship between the emotions and information needs expressed by parents of children with ASD. The ASD forum could develop emotional support modules and functions for parents and facilitate emotional communication between parents.

The purpose of this paper is to identify sexual health information needs and the cognitive and affective factors correlated with the best answer chosen by social Q&A users.

The study collected questions and answers regarding sexual health information on a social Q&A site, and analyzed the questions and a paired sample composed of best and non-best answers (n=480).

The main information needs of consumers are human development, sexual behavior, and sexual health. Best answers are more likely to include both cognitive (higher level of readability, risky information, social norms) and affective factors (empathy, positive/negative feelings, and optimistic information) than non-best answers.

The study illuminates the roles of social Q&A as a unique platform to discuss sensitive health topics due to the fact that consumers use such social media sites as critical complementary health information sources.

If health information providers develop information with the factors that the study suggests, not only will it be more adopted by consumers, but it will also ameliorate the quality concerns about online health information.

Previous studies only investigated the most prevalent factors, rather than the most effective ones, which have a greater influence on best answer selection. This study compares the best answers and the non-best answers to overcome the limitations of the previous studies. Above all, the study applied the persuasion concepts to address the cognitive and affective perspectives to the answer evaluations of social Q&A.