Literature Review

Agger, M. (June 13, 2008). Lazy eyes: How we read online. Slate.

Agger discusses how we read online materials as opposed to print resources. He claims the way we seek out and consume information in the digital realm greatly differs in that we are more likely to read less of more given just how much content is available at our fingertips.

Bailey T. (2004). Electronic book usage at a master’s level I university: A longitudinal study. The Journal of Academic Librarianship. 32(1): 52-59.

From 2000-2004 the Auburn University Montgomery Library measured the usage of electronic resources. There was an increase across the board in almost every subject matter, while print usage decreased. Bailey reports these findings while also noting what the implications are for the roles of libraries in the digital age, as long as their subsequent collection development policies.

Liu, A., Aamodt, S., Wolf, M., Gelernter, D., and G. Mark. Does the Brain Like E-books? (October 14, 2009) The New York Times.

The New York Times solicited and compiled the opinions of multiple scholars and experts on their views of the future e-books and reading behaviors. English professor Alan Liu states that digital media behaves differently than traditional book because of it inherently lacks a “containing structure” and as a result we consume it differently, often faced with distraction, yet with the greater possibility of content discovery. Meanwhile Sandra Aamodt, editor-in-chief of Nature Neuroscience, claims that while people have grown more accustomed to reading in electronic mediums, the usefulness for serious reading is ultimately dependent on the strength and persistence to focus on the content and not get sidetracked by distractions. Professor Maryanne Wolff claims that no one really knows the long-term developemental effects of immersive reading in the digital medium. David Gelernter however believes that technology with evolve in a natural, more organic way, integrating chips into books. Professor Gloria Mark discusses the duality of hypertext and how they can provide additional information to a text, but can also serve as a distraction.

Nicholas, D., Huntington P., Jamali, H., and A. Watkinson. (2006). The information seeking behaviour of the users of digital scholarly journals. Information Processing and Management 42 (2006): 1345-1365.

Deep log analysis (DLA) was utilized to study the research habits of three million scholar and their information seeking behaviour when using the digital library journals EmeraldInsight and Blackwell Synergy. The number of items visited and the number of visits were two of the main metrics used to analyze their usage. 91% of users used the “simple search” to field their query while only 9% used the expanded search option. Users are also more likely to “bounce” and spend shorter amounts of time on a multitude of pages as part of the search and browsing process.

Nielson, J. (July 2, 2010). iPad and Kindle Reading Speeds. Alertbox

This study of reading speeds of linear text found that people are reading on electronic tablets at faster speeds than in the past. However it is still not up to the speeds of reading print. The study reports that The iPad measured at 6.2% lower reading speed than the printed book, whereas the Kindle measured at 10.7% slower than print and then speculates on the reasons for these findings via information behavior theory.

Rowlands, I., Nicholas, D., Williams, P., Huntington H., and M. Fieldhouse. (2008)The google generation: the information behaviour of the researcher of the future. New Information Perspectives 60(4): 290-310.

According to Rowlands et al. the google generation refers to the group of people born after 1993. This paper sought to determine their information behavior habits and compare and contrast them with earlier generations. They are thought to be digital natives, having grown up with greater availabilty and more advanced computer technology. They are often more comfortable using search engines than actual libraries services in terms of seeking out information Having been shaped by greater digital choice, there is a greater demand for instant gratification and 24/7 access and the ability to “power browse” through information. However the information literacy of young people has not improved with access to digital technology, which implies libraries are more relevant than ever in terms of helping people determine accuracy, relevance and authority of sources.