Information Seeking and Use of Chinese Offshore
Students Studying in Australian University
Programs
A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for
the degree of Doctor of Philosophy
by
Xiao Li Gao
B. Arts; Dip. Mgt; M.AppSci. (Lib. & Info. Mgt)
School of Information Studies
Faculty of Education
Charles Sturt University
March 2014 Table of Contents ii
Table of Contents iii
Table of Contents
TABLE OF CONTENTS ...... III
LIST OF TABLES ...... IX
LIST OF FIGURES ...... XI
ACRONYMS ...... XI
CERTIFICATE OF AUTHORSHIP ...... XII
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ...... XIII
PROFESSIONAL EDITORIAL ASSISTANCE ...... XIV
ABSTRACT ...... XV
1 INTRODUCTION ...... 1
1.1 BACKGROUND ...... 1 1.2 DEFINITION AND SCOPE ...... 4 1.3 RESEARCH MOTIVATION ...... 8 1.4 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES ...... 10 1.5 OUTLINE OF THE THESIS ...... 12 1.6 CHAPTER SUMMARY ...... 13
2 LITERATURE REVIEW ...... 15
2.1 CHAPTER OVERVIEW ...... 15 2.2 RELATED STUDIES ON INFORMATION SEEKING AND LIBRARY USE OF INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS .... 16 2.3 RELATED STUDIES ON INFORMATION SEEKING AND LIBRARY USE OF DISTANCE STUDENTS ...... 17 2.4 RELATED STUDIES ON LIBRARY SERVICES TO OFFSHORE STUDENTS ...... 20 2.4.1 Library services for offshore students ...... 21 2.4.2 Student experience of library services provided by US, Canadian and European universities22 2.4.2.1 Library provision ...... 23 2.4.2.2 Language barriers ...... 24 2.4.2.3 Technological barriers ...... 24 2.4.2.4 User capability and ICT skills ...... 25 2.4.3 Student experiences of library services provided by Australian universities ...... 25 2.4.3.1 Library provision and connectivity ...... 26 2.4.3.2 Language barriers ...... 27 2.4.3.3 User awareness and information skills ...... 27 2.4.3.4 Absence of human support ...... 28 2.4.4 Section summary ...... 29 2.5 CONCEPTUAL MODELS IN INFORMATION BEHAVIOUR RESEARCH ...... 31 2.5.1 Key concepts in information behaviour research ...... 32 Table of Contents iv
2.5.2 Evolving conceptual models in information behaviour research ...... 33 2.6 WILSON’S GENERAL MODEL OF INFORMATION BEHAVIOUR ...... 35 2.6.1 Wilson’s models and research on information seeking in context...... 38 2.6.1.1 Niedzwiedzka’s model—a critical modification of Wilson’s model in a health organisational setting ...... 39 2.6.1.2 Urquhart and Rowley’s model—an adaptation of Wilson’s model in an educational setting ...... 40 2.6.1.3 Nujoud, Morris and Maynard’s model—an application of Wilson’s model in a developing country ...... 40 2.6.1.4 Ishimura and Barlett’s model—an addition to Wilson’s model in an international education setting ...... 41 2.6.2 General model of information behaviour—a guide for this study ...... 42 2.6.3 Section summary ...... 42 2.7 CRITIQUE AND RESEARCH QUESTIONS ...... 44 2.8 CHAPTER SUMMARY ...... 46
3 RESEARCH DESIGN ...... 48
3.1 CHAPTER OVERVIEW ...... 48 3.2 PHILOSOPHICAL UNDERPINNINGS FOR THIS RESEARCH ...... 49 3.3 METHODS IN INFORMATION BEHAVIOUR RESEARCH ...... 51 3.3.1 Quantitative research ...... 51 3.3.2 Qualitative research ...... 52 3.3.3 Mixed-methods research ...... 53 3.3.4 Rationale for using mixed-methods research ...... 54 3.4 A CASE-STUDY APPROACH ...... 56 3.4.1 Characteristics of a case-study approach ...... 56 3.4.2 Rationale for the use of case study in this research ...... 58 3.4.3 Rationale for using two sites in a case study ...... 59 3.5 IDENTIFYING AND ACCESSING THE RESEARCH SITE ...... 59 3.6 DESCRIPTION OF THE RESEARCH SITES ...... 61 3.7 DATA COLLECTION ...... 69 3.7.1 Questionnaire ...... 71 3.7.1.1 Questionnaire design ...... 71 3.7.1.2 Likert scale development ...... 72 3.7.1.3 Translation and verification of bilingual questionnaire ...... 74 3.7.1.4 Pre-testing questionnaire ...... 75 3.7.1.5 Administration of the questionnaire with informed consent ...... 75 3.7.2 Interviews ...... 76 3.7.2.1 Rationale for using semi-structured interviews ...... 77 3.7.2.2 Conducting interviews ...... 78 3.7.3 Observation ...... 79 Table of Contents v
3.7.4 Focus groups ...... 80 3.8 DATA ANALYSIS ...... 81 3.8.1 Quantitative data analysis ...... 82 3.8.2 Qualitative data analysis ...... 83 3.8.3 Within-site and cross-site analysis...... 86 3.9 RESEARCH RIGOUR ...... 88 3.9.1 Reliability and validity ...... 88 3.9.2 Credibility ...... 90 3.9.3 Dependability ...... 90 3.9.4 Confirmability ...... 91 3.9.5 Transferability ...... 92 3.10 ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS ...... 92 3.11 METHODOLOGICAL LIMITATIONS ...... 93 3.12 CHAPTER SUMMARY ...... 94
4 DATA ANALYSIS ...... 95
4.1 CHAPTER OVERVIEW ...... 95 4.2 A WITHIN-SITE ANALYSIS—HARBIN ...... 96 4.2.1 Quantitative data analyses—Harbin...... 96 4.2.1.1 Perception of libraries ...... 97 4.2.1.2 Internet access ...... 98 4.2.1.3 Preference and use of information sources ...... 99 4.2.1.4 Perception and use of library online information resources ...... 100 4.2.1.5 Barriers to the access and use of the Australian university library ...... 103 4.2.1.6 Perceived usefulness of various learning aids ...... 104 4.2.1.7 Cross tabulation analysis ...... 105 4.2.1.8 Summary of quantitative analysis results—Harbin ...... 106 4.2.2 Qualitative data analysis—Harbin ...... 109 4.2.2.1 Demographics ...... 110 4.2.2.2 Knowledge of information sources and user preferences ...... 111 4.2.2.3 Information skills ...... 113 4.2.2.4 Work role, role power and guanxi ...... 115 4.2.2.5 Western teaching methods ...... 117 4.2.2.6 Library provision ...... 119 4.2.2.7 Local information and technological environment ...... 121 4.2.2.8 Socio-cultural environment ...... 123 4.2.2.9 Summary of qualitative analysis results—Harbin ...... 124 4.2.3 Integrating quantitative and qualitative data analysis results—Harbin ...... 126 4.2.4 Summary of data analysis results—Harbin ...... 128 4.3 A WITHIN-SITE ANALYSIS—HANGZHOU ...... 130 Table of Contents vi
4.3.1 Quantitative data collection and analysis—Hangzhou ...... 130 4.3.1.1 Perception of libraries ...... 130 4.3.1.2 Internet access ...... 131 4.3.1.3 Preference and use of information sources...... 131 4.3.1.4 Perception and use of library online information resources ...... 133 4.3.1.5 Barriers to the access and use of the Australian university library ...... 135 4.3.1.6 Perceived usefulness of various learning aids ...... 137 4.3.1.7 Cross tabulations analysis ...... 138 4.3.1.8 Summary of quantitative analysis results—Hangzhou ...... 139 4.3.2 Qualitative data analyses—Hangzhou ...... 142 4.3.2.1 Demographics ...... 142 4.3.2.2 Knowledge of information sources and user preferences ...... 143 4.3.2.3 Information skills ...... 145 4.3.2.4 Work role, role power and guanxi...... 146 4.3.2.5 Western teaching methods ...... 147 4.3.2.6 Library provision ...... 148 4.3.2.7 Local information and technological environment...... 148 4.3.2.8 Socio-cultural environment ...... 149 4.3.2.9 Summary of qualitative data analysis at Hangzhou ...... 153 4.3.3 Integrating quantitative and qualitative data analysis results—Hangzhou ...... 153 4.3.4 Summary of data analysis results—Hangzhou ...... 155 4.4 CROSS-SITE ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS ...... 157 4.4.1 Answers to the research questions ...... 158 4.5 CHAPTER SUMMARY ...... 166
5 DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS ...... 168
5.1 CHAPTER OVERVIEW ...... 168 5.2 WILSON’S MODEL IN THE OFFSHORE CONTEXT IN CHINA ...... 168 5.3 CHARACTERISTICS OF THE STUDENTS’ INFORMATION-SEEKING BEHAVIOUR...... 172 5.4 FACTORS INFLUENCING STUDENTS’ INFORMATION SEEKING IN THE OFFSHORE CONTEXT ...... 174 5.4.1 Personal factors ...... 175 5.4.2 Role-related or interpersonal factors ...... 176 5.4.3 Environmental factors ...... 178 5.4.3.1 Western teaching methods ...... 179 5.4.3.2 Socio-cultural environment ...... 180 5.4.3.3 Local information environment ...... 182 5.4.4 Library provision ...... 182 5.5 ISSUES WITH THE AUSTRALIAN UNIVERSITY LIBRARY SERVICES TO OFFSHORE STUDENTS ...... 186 5.5.1 Lack of relevant information resources support...... 186 5.5.2 Lack of information skills training ...... 187 Table of Contents vii
5.5.3 Lack of effective guidelines for library services to offshore students ...... 189 5.6 DEVELOPING LIBRARY SERVICE INCORPORATING THE STUDENTS’ PERSPECTIVES ...... 190 5.6.1 Information skill training program ...... 192 5.6.2 Information skills ambassador program ...... 193 5.6.3 Relevant information resources support through partnership arrangement ...... 194 5.7 CHAPTER SUMMARY ...... 196
6 CONCLUSION ...... 197
6.1 CHAPTER OVERVIEW ...... 197 6.2 SYNOPSIS OF THIS RESEARCH ...... 197 6.3 OUTCOMES OF THIS RESEARCH ...... 198 6.4 CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THIS RESEARCH PROJECT ...... 199 6.4.1 Theoretical contribution ...... 200 6.4.2 Practical contribution ...... 201 6.4.2.1 Implications for the offshore students ...... 201 6.4.2.2 Implications for the offshore program developers ...... 202 6.4.2.3 Implications for the Australian university libraries ...... 202 6.4.2.4 Implications for policy makers ...... 203 6.4.3 Recommendations ...... 204 6.5 LIMITATIONS OF THIS RESEARCH PROJECT ...... 204 6.6 SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH ...... 206 6.7 CHAPTER SUMMARY ...... 208
REFERENCES ...... 210
APPENDICES ...... 226
APPENDIX 1 ETHICS APPROVAL ...... 226 APPENDIX 2 INFORMATION SHEET ...... 227 APPENDIX 3 CONSENT FORM ...... 228 APPENDIX 4 QUESTIONNAIRE ...... 229 APPENDIX 5 SEMI-STRUCTURED INTERVIEW TOPIC ...... 234 APPENDIX 6 FOCUS GROUP CONSENT FORM ...... 235 APPENDIX 7 DATA ANALYSIS RESULTS VERIFICATION ...... 236 Appendix 7.1 Extract of relevant comments from the focus group — Harbin ...... 237 Appendix 7.2 Extract of relevant comments from the focus group —– Hangzhou* ...... 239
APPENDIX 8 SEMI-STRUCTURED INTERVIEW TOPIC WITH AUSTRALIAN LECTURERS AND CHINESE CO-
TEACHERS ...... 241 Appendix 8.1 Profiles of Australian lecturers and Chinese co-teachers ...... 242 APPENDIX 9 VOICE SHEET FROM THEMATIC CODING ANALYSIS—HARBIN ...... 243 Appendix 9.1 Western teaching methods—Harbin ...... 243 Appendix 9.2 Library provision—Harbin ...... 244 Table of Contents viii
Appendix 9.3 Local information environment—Harbin ...... 245 Appendix 9.4 Socio-cultural environment—Harbin ...... 248 Appendix 9.5 Profiles of interview participants—Harbin ...... 250 Appendix 9.6 Knowledge of information sources and user preferences—Harbin...... 251 Appendix 9.7 Information skills—Harbin ...... 255 Appendix 9.8 Work roles and guanxi in information seeking—Harbin ...... 256 APPENDIX 10 VOICE SHEET FROM THEMATIC CODING ANALYSIS—HANGZHOU ...... 257 Appendix 10.1 Western teaching methods—Hangzhou ...... 257 Appendix 10.2 Library provisions—Hangzhou ...... 258 Appendix 10.3 Local information environment—Hangzhou ...... 259 Appendix 10.4 Socio-cultural environment—Hangzhou ...... 260 Appendix 10.5 Profiles of interview participants—Hangzhou ...... 262 Appendix 10.6 Knowledge of information sources and user preferences—Hangzhou ...... 263 Appendix 10.7 Information skills—Hangzhou ...... 265 Appendix 10.8 Work roles/role power and guanxi in information seeking—Hangzhou ...... 266 APPENDIX 11 FIELD NOTES AND PHOTOS TAKEN BY THE RESEARCHER DURING THE SITE VISITS ...... 267 Appendix 11.1 Local library facilities in participants’ locations at Harbin ...... 267 Appendix 11.2 Technological and professional environment of the participants ...... 268 Appendix 11.4 Focus group meeting at Harbin ...... 271 Appendix 11.5 Local library facilities in participants’ locations at Hangzhou ...... 272 Appendix 11.6 Focus group meeting at Hangzhou ...... 273 Appendix 11.7 Examples of documentations collected by the researcher during the site visits ...... 274 APPENDIX 12 EXAMPLE OF AN INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT ...... 275 APPENDIX 13 RELIABILITY OF QUESTIONNAIRE ...... 280 Appendix 13.1 Reliability of questionnaire assessed using Cronbach's alpha — Harbin ...... 280 Appendix 13.2 Reliability of questionnaire assessed using Cronbach's alpha — Hangzhou ...... 287 APPENDIX 14 CROSS TABULATION ANALYSIS RESULTS ...... 293 Appendix 14.1 Cross tabulation between gender and perception of library online resources and services — Harbin ...... 293 Appendix 14.2 Cross tabulation between gender and use of library online resources and services for various purposes — Harbin ...... 294 Appendix 14.3 Cross tabulation between gender and perception of library online resources and services — Hangzhou ...... 295 Appendix 14.4 Cross tabulation between gender and use of library online resources and services for various purposes — Hangzhou ...... 296 Table of Contents ix
List of Tables
TABLE 1.4 SELECTED DEFINITIONS OF OFFSHORE PROGRAMS AND RELATED TERMS ...... 5
TABLE 1.5 SELECTED DEFINITIONS OF OFFSHORE STUDENTS AND RELATED TERMS ...... 8
TABLE 2.1 A SUMMARY OF IDENTIFIED BARRIERS TO INFORMATION RESOURCES SUPPORT AND LIBRARY
SERVICES TO OFFSHORE STUDENTS ...... 30
TABLE 3.1 AN OVERVIEW OF THE TWO SITES ...... 68
TABLE 3.2 DATA COLLECTION TIMELINE ...... 69
TABLE 3.3 DATA ANALYSIS PROCEDURES ...... 87
TABLE 4.1 VARIATIONS OF SUPPORT TO DIFFERENT VIEWS ABOUT LIBRARY IN DESCENDING ORDER—
HARBIN ...... 98
TABLE 4.2 VENUE USAGE FREQUENCY FOR INTERNET ACCESS BY THE PARTICIPANTS IN DESCENDING
ORDER—HARBIN ...... 98
TABLE 4.3 FREQUENCY OF INFORMATION SOURCES USED BY PARTICIPANTS IN DESCENDING ORDER—
HARBIN ...... 99
TABLE 4.4 CONSIDERATIONS GIVEN BY THE PARTICIPANTS IN CHOOSING INFORMATION SOURCES IN
DESCENDING ORDER—HARBIN ...... 100
TABLE 4.5 USEFULNESS OF LIBRARY ONLINE RESOURCES AND SERVICES PERCEIVED BY PARTICIPANTS IN
DESCENDING ORDER—HARBIN ...... 100
TABLE 4.6 FREQUENCY OF USING LIBRARY ONLINE RESOURCES FOR VARIOUS PURPOSES IN DESCENDING
ORDER—HARBIN ...... 101
TABLE 4.7 FREQUENCY OF INFORMATION SOURCES USED FOR ACCESS TO ONLINE LIBRARY RESOURCES IN
DESCENDING ORDER—HARBIN ...... 101
TABLE 4.8 FREQUENCY OF ACCESS POINTS USED FOR ACCESSING AUSTRALIAN UNIVERSITY LIBRARY IN
DESCENDING ORDER—HARBIN...... 102
TABLE 4.9 FREQUENCY OF DIFFICULTIES EXPERIENCED BY PARTICIPANTS WHEN USING AUSTRALIAN
UNIVERSITY ONLINE RESOURCES AND SERVICES—HARBIN ...... 102
TABLE 4.10 BARRIERS TO THE USE OF AUSTRALIAN UNIVERSITY LIBRARY ONLINE INFORMATION
RESOURCES AND SERVICES IN DESCENDING ORDER—HARBIN ...... 103
TABLE 4.11 REASONS FOR A LACK OF USE OF AUSTRALIAN UNIVERSITY LIBRARY ONLINE RESOURCES
AND SERVICES IN DESCENDING ORDER—HARBIN ...... 104
TABLE 4.12 PERCEIVED USEFULNESS OF VARIOUS LEARNING AIDS IN DESCENDING ORDER—HARBIN .. 104
TABLE 4.13 PARTICIPANTS’ EXPECTATION FOR IMPROVING THE AUSTRALIAN UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
ONLINE RESOURCES AND SERVICES IN DESCENDING ORDER—HARBIN ...... 105
TABLE 4.14 INFORMATION SOURCES USED BY PARTICIPANTS FOR ASSIGNMENTS—HARBIN ...... 113
TABLE 4.15 FACTORS INFLUENCING THE STUDENTS’ INFORMATION-SEEKING BEHAVIOUR—HARBIN .... 125
TABLE 4.16 QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DATA ANALYSIS RESULTS—HARBIN ...... 129
TABLE 4.17 VARIATIONS OF SUPPORT TO DIFFERENT VIEWS ABOUT LIBRARIES IN DESCENDING ORDER—
HANGZHOU ...... 131
TABLE 4.18 VENUE USAGE FREQUENCY FOR INTERNET ACCESS BY THE PARTICIPANTS IN DESCENDING Table of Contents x
ORDER—HANGZHOU ...... 131
TABLE 4.19 FREQUENCY OF INFORMATION SOURCES USED BY THE PARTICIPANTS IN DESCENDING
ORDER—HANGZHOU ...... 132
TABLE 4.20 CONSIDERATIONS GIVEN BY THE PARTICIPANTS IN CHOOSING INFORMATION SOURCES IN
DESCENDING ORDER—HANGZHOU ...... 132
TABLE 4.21 USEFULNESS OF LIBRARY ONLINE RESOURCES AND SERVICES PERCEIVED BY PARTICIPANTS IN
DESCENDING ORDER—HANGZHOU ...... 133
TABLE 4.22 FREQUENCY OF USING LIBRARY ONLINE RESOURCES FOR VARIOUS PURPOSES IN DESCENDING
ORDER—HANGZHOU ...... 134
TABLE 4.23 FREQUENCY OF INFORMATION SOURCES USED FOR ACCESS TO ONLINE LIBRARY RESOURCES
IN DESCENDING ORDER—HANGZHOU ...... 134
TABLE 4.24 FREQUENCY OF ACCESS POINTS USED FOR USING AUSTRALIAN UNIVERSITY LIBRARY IN
DESCENDING ORDER—HANGZHOU ...... 135
TABLE 4.25 FREQUENCY OF DIFFICULTIES EXPERIENCED BY PARTICIPANTS WHEN USING AUSTRALIAN
UNIVERSITY ONLINE RESOURCES AND SERVICES IN DESCENDING ORDER—HANGZHOU ...... 135
TABLE 4.26 BARRIERS TO THE USE OF AUSTRALIAN UNIVERSITY LIBRARY ONLINE INFORMATION
RESOURCES AND SERVICES IN DESCENDING ORDER—HANGZHOU ...... 136
TABLE 4.27 REASONS FOR A LACK OF USE OF AUSTRALIAN UNIVERSITY LIBRARY IN DESCENDING
ORDER—HANGZHOU ...... 137
TABLE 4.28 PERCEIVED USEFULNESS OF VARIOUS LEARNING AIDS IN DESCENDING ORDER—HANGZHOU ...... 137
TABLE 4.29 PARTICIPANTS' EXPECTATIONS FOR IMPROVING THE AUSTRALIAN UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
ONLINE RESOURCES AND SERVICES IN DESCENDING ORDER—HANGZHOU ...... 138
TABLE 4.30 INFORMATION SOURCES USED BY THE PARTICIPANTS FOR ASSIGNMENTS—HANGZHOU ...... 145
TABLE 4.31 FACTORS INFLUENCING THE STUDENTS’ INFORMATION-SEEKING BEHAVIOUR—HANGZHOU ...... 152
TABLE 4.32 QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DATA ANALYSIS RESULTS—HANGZHOU ...... 156
TABLE 4.33 DIFFERENCES AND SIMILARITIES OF FINDINGS BETWEEN THE TWO SITES...... 158
TABLE 5.1 INFORMATION SOURCES USED BY THE STUDENTS FOR DIFFERENT INFORMATION NEEDS IN
THEIR STUDIES ...... 173
Table of Contents xi
List of Figures
FIGURE 1.1 THE VARIOUS FORMS AND FORMATS OF AUSTRALIAN OFFSHORE PROGRAMS ...... 6 FIGURE 2.1 A GENERAL MODEL OF INFORMATION-SEEKING BEHAVIOUR ...... 36 FIGURE 2.2 A GENERAL MODEL OF INFORMATION BEHAVIOUR ...... 37 FIGURE 3.1 HARBIN AND HANGZHOU IN CHINA ...... 61 FIGURE 3.2 LIBRARY DATABASES AT THE HOST UNIVERSITY LIBRARY, HARBIN ...... 62 FIGURE.3.3 GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION OF THE STUDENTS (BLUE ‘FLAGS’) IN HEILONGJIANG PROVINCE . 63 FIGURE 3.4 LIBRARY ONLINE RESOURCES IN THE PARTNER UNIVERSITY LIBRARY AT HANGZHOU ...... 65 FIGURE 3.5 GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION OF THE STUDENTS (BLUE ‘FLAGS’) AT HANGZHOU ...... 66
FIGURE 3.6 VERBAL DATA DIMENSIONS FROM UNSTRUCTURED TO STRUCTURED INTERVIEWS...... 76 FIGURE 4.1 DISTRIBUTION OF PARTICIPANTS BY GENDER AND AGE—HARBIN ...... 97
FIGURE 4.2 STUDENTS' VIEWS ABOUT LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SOURCES — HARBIN ...... 107
FIGURE 4.3 AN OVERVIEW OF STUDENTS' ACCESS AND USE OF INFORMATION SOURCES — HARBIN ...... 108
FIGURE 4.4 DISTRIBUTION OF PARTICIPANTS BY GENDER AND AGE—HANGZHOU ...... 130
FIGURE 4.5 STUDENTS' VIEWS ABOUT LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SOURCES — HANGZHOU...... 140
FIGURE 4.6 AN OVERVIEW OF THE STUDENTS' ACCESS AND USE OF INFORMATION SOURCES - HANGZHOU 141
FIGURE 5.1 THE CONTEXTUAL FACTORS – AN ADDITION TO THE INTERVENING VARIABLES IN WILSON AND
WALSH’S (1996) GENERAL MODEL ...... 171
FIGURE 5.2 INFORMATION SOURCES USED BY THE STUDENTS IN THEIR STUDIES ...... 174
FIGURE 5.3 THE STUDENTS’ FORMAL AND INFORMAL INFORMATION SEEKING STRATEGIES ...... 185
Acronyms xi
Acronyms
ALIA Australian Library and Information Association ASEP Australian Standard for Editing Practice AUQA Australian Universities Quality Agency AVCC Australian Vice-Chancellors’ Committee CAUL Council of Australian University Librarians DEST Department of Education, Science and Training GATE Global Alliance for Transnational Education HIB Human Information Behaviour ICT Information Communication Technology ISIC Information Seeking in Context ISP Information Search Process SPSS Statistical Package for the Social Sciences TNE Transnational education UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization UoW University of Wollongong VALA Victorian Association for Library Automation VOH Virtual Office Hours VPN Virtual Private Network WebCT Web Course Tools
Certificate of Authorship xii
Certificate of Authorship
I hereby declare that this submission is my own work and to the best of my knowledge and belief, understand that it contains no material previously published or written by another person, nor material which to a substantial extent has been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma at Charles Sturt University or any other educational institution, except where due acknowledgement is made in the thesis. Any contribution made to the research by colleagues with whom I have worked at Charles Sturt University or elsewhere during my candidature is fully acknowledged. I agree that this thesis be accessible for the purpose of study and research in accordance with normal conditions established by the Executive Director, Library Services, Charles Sturt University or nominee, for the care, loan and reproduction of thesis, subject to confidentiality provisions as approved by the University.
Name Xiao Li GAO______
Signature ______
Date 12 March 2014______
Acknowledgements xiii
Acknowledgements
My sincere thanks go to Associate Professor Philip Hider, who has been my supervisor from the start of this research project. He believed in my topic and provided invaluable support and advice to my research.
My deepest thanks go to Dr Lisa Soon, my co-supervisor, who has been my main source of learning over the course of research. She guided me in every stage of the study, from its design, to the in-depth analysis and painful writing-up—each and every step of the arduous process.
My heartfelt thanks are also due to Dr Mary Anne Kennan, who came onto the scene as co-supervisor in my writing-up stage. She helped me sharpen the focus of the study, and encouraged me to restructure the writing.
I would also like to thank Dr John Mills and Dr Stuart Ferguson, who co-supervised me during the early stages of my study, when I was still struggling with the many preliminary questions.
Special thanks to my friends and colleagues, especially my former colleague, David Jasper, who patiently read my draft. Without their support, this project would not have been possible.
I would also like to thank the Australian university and the offshore program coordinators, who gave me permission to interview their students. I wish to express my greatest thanks to the participants in this study for their precious time and thoughts for interviews and discussions.
Professional Editorial Assistance xiv
Professional Editorial Assistance
Just prior to submitting this thesis, I had a professional editor, Gaye Wilson, review it. Her comments were limited to helping ensure my thesis was free of typographical errors, consistently employed the proper formatting and grammar, and that the references followed the APA-style requirements (Australian Standard for Editing Practice: ASEP Standard D—Language and Illustrations, ASEP Standard E— Completeness and Consistency). Any remaining errors are my own. Abstract xv
Abstract
The number of offshore students in Australian higher education is increasing rapidly, especially in the People’s Republic of China; however, studies of students’ information- seeking behaviour and the influence of local environments are limited. This research aims to understand the information-seeking behaviour of offshore students and the factors involved in their information seeking in an offshore context. This study investigates how Chinese offshore students search for information for their studies and seeks to identify barriers that students encounter in using Australian university library and local information resources in the People’s Republic of China.
This study adopts Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model of information behaviour as a useful guide for conducting investigations of the information-seeking behaviour of students in an offshore context. Mixed-methods case study research has been undertaken at two sites. The empirical data gathered are 82 completed responses to a questionnaire, and feedback from 29 semi-structured interviews that involved 24 representative students, three Australian offshore lecturers and two Chinese co-teachers. Site observations were taken to provide enriched contextual information for the study. Focus groups were conducted with two groups of interview participants to verify the collected data and preliminary findings from the data analysis.
This research shows that students in this study did not use the Australian university library resources, and that their use of local libraries was also limited. Instead, they used the Internet and other people to obtain information for their studies. The findings reveal that a special social relationship (‘guanxi’ in Chinese) and the socio-cultural environment are significant factors influencing the students’ information-seeking behaviour, but that there are multiple factors involved, including a lack of relevant library resources and library training for offshore students. Further, the students’ lack of knowledge of information sources, limited information skills and low level of English competency resulted in their non-use of the Australian university library and their limited use of local libraries. The findings suggest that there is an urgent need to provide pre-requisite library training for offshore students to improve their library knowledge. This would help facilitate the inclusion of library-held resources in information seeking, and develop student information skills to support their studies. Abstract xvi
This study highlights important issues with existing library services. It reveals the importance of incorporating the students’ perspectives into the development of adequate library services to offshore students.
This study has successfully used Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model of information behaviour—developed within a Western context—to investigate offshore students’ information seeking in an Eastern cultural setting such as the People’s Republic of China. The study provides an enhanced understanding of Chinese offshore students’ information-seeking behaviour and the impact of local environments. It offers a knowledge base for future efforts in improving library services to offshore students. This study will benefit all stakeholders: offshore students, librarians, lecturers, offshore program providers and the wider education community concerned with Australian offshore programs in other non-English speaking countries. To generalise the findings to different offshore contexts (e.g. Malaysia, Vietnam, India, etc.), more research is required. Chapter 1 Introduction 1
1 Introduction
This thesis reports an investigation of the information-seeking behaviour of Chinese offshore students and the factors involved in their information seeking for their studies in an offshore context. The research was conducted using a pragmatic mixed-methods case study method. This chapter introduces the thesis, provides the background to this research and explains the definitions and scope of the study. This is followed by discussion of the research motivation and its objectives. Finally, it presents an outline of this thesis.
1.1 Background
Australian universities have offered offshore programs since the mid-1980s (Adams, 1998). An offshore program is an expansion of international higher education across a national border. Such offshore programs, of which there are many models 1 (Lang, 2011), each include various forms of library services such as online access to Australian university library resources, or access to the local libraries of partner universities or an offshore campus library (Stella & Bhushan, 2011). Some offshore programs are delivered bilingually (Bowering, Leggett, Harvey, & Hui, 2007; Debowski, 2005; Dunn & Wallace, 2008). Offshore programs are an important component of the internationalisation strategies in Australian universities (Skidmore & Longbottom, 2011). Data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (2014) reveal that there are 598,485 offshore students in the offshore programs offered by British universities. In 2012, there were 82,468 offshore students in Australian higher education programs (Australian Educational International, 2014). Table 1.1 below presents the number of offshore students in the offshore programs.
Table 1.1 Number of Offshore Students in Offshore Programs Number Year
UK* 598,485 2012/2013
Australia HE** 82,468 2012 *Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (2014), Student introduction 2012/2013: Student population. https://www.hesa.ac.uk/content/view/3129/#off **Source: Australian Educational International (2014) Transnational education in the higher education sector, “Research Snapshot, March 2014. https://aei.gov.au/research/Research- Snapshots/Pages/default.aspx
1 The different offshore programs may include an offshore campus wholly owned by an Australian institution, articulated courses/programs offered in partnership with local providers, twinning programs, franchising of curricula and/or courseware, distance or online education programs and others. A detailed discussion is provided in Chapter 2. Chapter 1 Introduction 2
In offshore programs, the majority of the students are studying for Bachelor degrees (as indicated in Table 1.2). Management and Commerce is the most common broad field of study that most students pursue (as shown in Table 1.3).
Table 1.2 Offshore Students in Australian University Programs by Level of Study, 2012 Level of study Percentage of offshore students Bachelor 70.2% Master by Coursework 19.6% Advanced Diploma / Diploma 3% Doctorate 3% Graduate Diploma & Certificate 2% Master by Research 0.2% Other 2% Source: Australian Educational International (2014)
Table 1.3 Offshore Students in Australian University Programs by Top Broad Fields of Study, 2012 Fields of Study Percentage of offshore students Management and Commerce 57.2% Information Technology 7.7% Engineering and Related Technologies 7.5% Culture 7.2% Health 5.9% Source: Australian Educational International (2014)
A report by Australian Educational International (2012) shows that the number of offshore students, as a new library user group in Australian universities, has expanded rapidly over the past decade, especially in the People’s Republic of China (for the sake of simplicity, ‘China’ will be used after this point throughout the whole thesis). Like all students, offshore students require library access to conduct research for their learning and for meeting assessment requirements. The rapid increase in the numbers of offshore students has attracted growing attention to the provision of adequate essential library services to facilitate their learning (Council of Australian University Librarians, 2004, 2008, 2012).
A majority of the offshore students in Australian offshore programs are located in the Asia-Pacific region, in countries such as Singapore, China, Vietnam and Malaysia Chapter 1 Introduction 3
(Lang, 2011), and their cultural diversity makes the provision of library services for offshore students a challenging matter.
Six principal characteristics distinguish offshore students from other library user groups in Australian universities:
Offshore students study in Australian university programs in their own countries or in another country other than Australia; They are situated in educational, socio-cultural and information environments that are different from Australia; The majority of them are from non-English speaking backgrounds; They have different levels of library access in their own countries; They have varying levels of library provision; and They interact with their Australian university library from an entirely different cultural environment.
Offshore students are physically located within their own countries’ socio-cultural environments. However, once they become part of an offshore program, they experience Western teaching methods, foreign library systems and the use of online information resources for learning and information-seeking purposes. The complexity and unfamiliarity of these different environments have important impacts on offshore students’ information seeking.
Providing adequate library services to offshore students requires an understanding of the challenges faced by offshore students when accessing online information resources in their individual local environments in offshore contexts (Karasmanis, 2007; McSwiney & Parnell, 2003). However, an audit report of offshore programs has shown that there is a lack of systematic data collection about offshore programs (Australian University Quality Agency, 2004). This audit recommended that ‘a library needs to pay important attention to the information resource and support the needs of students studying off- shore’ (Australian University Quality Agency, 2004, p. 73).
As reported in Chapter 2 in more details, there have been some studies focusing on offshore students’ learning experiences in terms of quality of library support services (Hussin, 2007; McSwiney, 2001; Shah & Nair, 2011). However, there is a lack of Chapter 1 Introduction 4 research on offshore students’ information-seeking behaviour from their own perspectives. Therefore, this current research is important as it seeks to incorporate offshore students’ perspectives in the investigation of their information-seeking behaviour and the underlying factors involved in their information seeking in an offshore context. It is anticipated that the insight gained from this research will provide a better understanding of the information needs and information-seeking behaviour of offshore students. Such an enhanced understanding will help improve Australian university library services in support of offshore student learning.
1.2 Definition and scope
This study focuses on the information-seeking behaviour of offshore students in finding learning materials and supporting information for their assignments, with 'assignments' being defined as assessable works that contribute towards the course grade for the students as indicated in the subject outlines from the Australian university. This study falls within the field of human information behaviour research (also called information behaviour research). Wilson (2000, p. 49) defined information behaviour as ‘the totality of human behaviour in relation to sources and channels of information, including both active and passive information seeking, and information use’. In information behaviour research, information-seeking behaviour is described as ‘the purposive seeking for information as consequence of a need to satisfy some goal’ (Wilson, 2000, p. 49). Information seeking is a complex activity which encompasses a variety of behaviours, including face-to-face communication with others and access to information systems and resources (Wilson, 2000). Building on Wilson’s (2000) definition, I have adopted the following definition of information-seeking behaviour for this study: students’ information-seeking behaviour includes both formal and informal information-seeking activities for their studies in the offshore context. Formal information-seeking activities involve the use of traditional library resources, while informal information-seeking activities refer to the use of ‘non-library methods’ (Spink & Cole, 2006, p. 26), such as interpersonal communications and alternative information sources other than libraries, as discussed in more details in Chapter 2.
In the existing literature on offshore programs, many terms are used to describe the new form of international education which crosses national borders, such as ‘cross-border education’, ‘borderless education’, ‘transnational program’ and ‘transnational education’ (Stella & Bhushan, 2011). To demonstrate the variety, a list of selected Chapter 1 Introduction 5 definitions of offshore programs is presented in Table 1.4.
Table 1.1 Selected Definitions of Offshore Programs and Related Terms Source Terms Description Global Alliance for Transnational ‘Transnational education denotes any teaching or learning Transnational education activity in which the students are in a different country Education, 1997, (the host country) to that in which the institution (cited in Stella & providing the education is based (the home country). This Bhushan, 2011, p. 4) situation requires that national boundaries be crossed by information about the education, and by staff and/or educational materials.’ Pyvis & Chapman, Offshore programs ‘Offshore programs are programs offered by Australian 2004, p.26 universities to students located in other countries.’ United Nations Cross-border higher ‘Cross-border higher education includes higher education Educational, education that takes place in situations where the teacher, student, Scientific and program, institution/provider or course materials cross Cultural national jurisdictional borders. Cross-border higher Organization education may include higher education by public/private (UNESCO) 2005, p.7 and not-for-profit/for-profit providers. It encompasses a wide range of modalities, in a continuum from face-to- face (taking various forms such as students traveling abroad and campuses abroad) to distance learning (using a range of technologies and including e-learning).’ Australian Transnational ‘Australian transnational education and training, also Department of education known as offshore or cross-border education and training, Education Science refers to the delivery and/or assessment of and Training programs/courses by an accredited Australian provider in (DEST), 2005, p.6 a country other than Australia, where delivery includes a face-to-face component. The education and/or training activity may lead to an Australian qualification or may be a non-award course, but in either case an accredited/approved/recognised Australian provider is associated with the education/training activity.’ Baird, 2006, p.i Transnational higher Transnational higher education refers ‘broadly to higher education education that is provided by an institution in a source country to students studying in another, or host, country.’ British Council, 2011 Transnational ‘Transnational education (TNE) refers to education education provision from one country offered in another. TNE includes a wide variety of delivery modes, including: distance and e-learning; validation and franchising arrangements; twinning and other collaborative provision.’ Universities Offshore program ‘The program is conducted in accordance with a formal Australia, 2012, p.4 agreement between the Australian university and an overseas higher education institution or organisation (this may include an offshore campus of the Australian university); The program offered is taught partly or wholly offshore – Distance education programs are included only when there is a formal agreement with an overseas higher education institution/organisation to participate in some way in their delivery; The completed program results in a recognised higher education qualification; and the Australian university has developed the program and has a responsibility for overseeing the academic standards.’
In Table 1.4, the various definitions show the different scopes, forms and formats of offshore programs that have evolved over the years. For example, in 2005, the definition Chapter 1 Introduction 6 of Australian transnational education (DEST, 2005) had an emphasis on the face-to-face aspects of education. By 2012, Universities Australia included distance education in the definition of offshore programs.
The various forms and formats of Australian offshore programs are presented graphically in Figure 1.1.
Offshore programs
Face to face Twinning Franchise Distance Offshore programs programs programs education campus
Figure 1.1 The various forms and formats of Australian offshore programs
Face-to-face programs involve intensive teaching offshore, while in the twinning programs, students may complete part of the program offshore and the remainder in Australia. Franchise programs may include the franchising of the Australian curriculum or courseware to be delivered by offshore partners. In twinning programs and franchise programs, ‘study programmes, or parts of a course of study, or other educational services of the awarding institution are provided by another partner institution’ (Stella & Woodhouse, 2011, p. 5).
In collaboration with the partner institution, distance education can be provided in the form of virtual learning, e-learning or online study. An offshore campus is a fully or jointly owned Australian university campus in another country.2
In some offshore programs, the courses are delivered bilingually (Bowering, et al., 2007; Debowski, 2005), and there are challenges to the learning resources support for offshore students in the bilingual programs, as discussed in more details in Chapter 2.
Stella and Bhushan (2011) anticipate that the forms and formats of offshore programs will continue to evolve with the development of information communication technology. Regardless of the variations in their forms and formats, the definitions tend
2 A detailed description of different types of offshore programs can be found in (2008) Chapter 1 Introduction 7 to emphasise the delivery of international higher educational programs from one country in another country.
In this study, the interpretation of the key concept of offshore programs is from the Universities Australia’s (2012, p. 4) publication, which defines an ‘offshore program’ as a program which:
... is conducted in accordance with a formal agreement between the Australian university and an overseas higher education institution or organisation (this may include an offshore campus of the Australian university); ... is taught partly or wholly offshore - Distance education programs are included only when there is a formal agreement with an overseas higher education institution/organisation to participate in some way in their delivery; ... results in a recognised higher education qualification; and the Australian university has developed the program and has a responsibility for overseeing the academic standards.
Clearly, there are different types of offshore programs and they cannot all be covered in one study. This study will look at one type of Australian offshore program that includes a component of face-to-face teaching offshore (as shown in the yellow box in Figure 1.1).
In defining students in an offshore educational context, there are two important issues to consider: in the existing literature, researchers have used a range of terminologies to describe offshore education (see Table 1.1); and, offshore students have been described and understood in a variety of ways (British Columbia Minister of Education, 2013; University of Technology Sydney, 2013). Several definitions are presented in Table 1.5 below in order to describe the particular definition of offshore student used in this study.
As shown in Table 1.5 on next page, the term ‘offshore students’ (also called ‘transnational students’) generally refers to students who may study programs run by Australian universities in their own countries or at another country outside Australia (Australian Vice Chancellors Committee, 2005). Therefore, offshore students, in the broad sense, are those students in the offshore programs as shown in Figure 1.1.
Chapter 1 Introduction 8
Table 1.2 Selected Definitions of Offshore Students and Related Terms Source Terms Description Pyvis & Chapman, ‘International students who study in their home country with Offshore 2004, p. 25 an overseas university (who may, in the context of that students university, be described as ‘offshore’ students).’ Australian Vice- An offshore student refers to ‘a student who either studies Chancellors’ Offshore offshore in their home country or studies in another country Committee (AVCC) students where that country is not Australia.’ 2005, p. 3 Council of Australian ‘An offshore student is considered to be a student who is University Librarians enrolled in an Australian higher education course and who is Offshore (CAUL) 2008, p. 2 undertaking study offshore with the home institution’s staff or students with local staff employed by, or employed in consultation with, the home institution.’ Stella and Bhushan, Transnational ‘Transnational students’ are international students studying 2011, p. 6 students offshore. University of Transnational students are ‘students studying at a partner Transnational Technology, Sydney, institution outside Australia’. student 2013 British Columbia Offshore students refer to ‘students attending a school outside Minister of Education, Offshore of Canada offering inspected and certified British Columbia Canada, 2013 students educational programs, offered in English and taught by a British Columbia certified teacher.’
In contrast, in this study, the students are located in China and are enrolled in the Australian offshore programs that consist of intensive face-to-face instruction from the Australian university’s staff. The students are studying in one type of Australian offshore programs—face-to-face programs (as shown in the yellow box in Figure 1.1). Therefore, for the purposes of this study, the term ‘the students’ is used, in the narrow sense, to refer specifically to the students involved in this study.
1.3 Research motivation
In 2005, I had an opportunity to visit several Chinese universities that hosted Australian offshore programs in China, and that visit was reported at the Victorian Association for Library Automation (VALA) conference (Gao, 2006). During the visit, I met offshore program coordinators, university librarians and offshore students. I noticed the various arrangements of library services for offshore students in China. For example, students in a twinning program were not able to access Australian university libraries until the third year of their program (Gao, 2006). Further, not all students had access to the library services of the partner university in China. In one situation, a group of Master of Education offshore students did not have access to any facilities, support or teaching venues at the Chinese partner university. They received one-on-one instruction from the Australian lecturer in a room at the hotel where the lecturer stayed during the offshore teaching period. This particular group of students relied on the Australian university’s library for information support. However, the challenges were many, including several Chapter 1 Introduction 9 emails to request one book chapter. Students had to obtain the table of contents of the reference first before they could decide on the chapter they needed. In addition, they were only allowed a certain quota for document delivery services. To deal with this situation, each student requested a different chapter from the book and then shared it among the others. Another student simply borrowed all the materials from a previous graduate. Students had many stories and each had his/her own version. I was deeply concerned by the difficult situations offshore students faced in seeking information for their studies. I was wondering how widespread the situation was, but could not find many reports on offshore students’ information-seeking behaviour from the students’ perspectives; there were, however, some standardised library surveys from a librarian’s perspective.
The literature review in Chapter 2 shows that there are many reports and library surveys that discuss issues relating to the provision of library services to offshore students in offshore contexts (Chakraborty & Tunon, 2002; Gao, 2006; Kijanka, 1993; Lowry, 1991; McSwiney, 2001, 2002; McSwiney & Parnell, 2003; University of Wollongong Library, 2004; Waite, 1991; Weyers, 2000). The existing literature reveals the importance of various issues, including: the lack of culturally relevant library resources in international campuses (Lowry, 1991; Waite, 1991); technological incompatibilities between countries (Kijanka, 1993); licensing restrictions for remote access to electronic products (Weyers, 2000); and online access being hindered by telecommunication bottlenecks between continents and countries (Chakraborty & Tunon, 2002; Gao, 2006). A library survey of offshore students conducted by the University of Wollongong Library (2004) also showed similar issues that concentrated upon the lack of appropriate library resources, students’ poor information skills and a low awareness of electronic library resources. While the existing literature offers valuable insights into the challenges to library services operating in an offshore context, there is a lack of discussion about offshore students’ information-seeking behaviour and the impact of local environments in an offshore context.
The existing literature mainly explores students’ information-seeking behaviour through the librarian’s eyes or via library-instigated surveys, but not directly from the offshore students’ perspectives. The surveys only tell one side of the story: the offshore students’ voices are missing. It is unclear how offshore students look for information for their studies in their offshore context. Information-seeking behaviour needs to be interpreted Chapter 1 Introduction 10 from the user’s perspective (Kuhlthau, 1991), embracing not only that of the user’s cultural values and personal characteristics (Wilson, 1997), but also the user’s knowledge and skills (Hughes, 2009) in the process of interacting with library resources and information systems.
The existing literature highlights that it is important for students’ academic success that they are able to have access to the library, especially to the information resources held by the library, and that library use is an integral part of academic learning (Alharbi & Middleton, 2011; Palmer, 2012; Stone & Ramsden, 2013). The importance of library use in academic learning is closely related to students’ learning performance (Alharbi & Middleton, 2011; Stone & Ramsden, 2013). Palmer (2012) showed that students tend to value library resources more when they are required to utilise a library as part of their assessment tasks. However, an offshore educational setting is very different from other settings in which library provision is subject to an arrangement between the offshore program provider and the partner university. We do not know much of this new environment (Australian University Quality Agency, 2004), and we have limited knowledge about how offshore students use libraries from their perspectives in their particular offshore context. With the rapid increase of the number of offshore students in China (Australian Education International, 2012), there is a pressing need for a first- hand account of offshore students’ information-seeking behaviour. Being a native Chinese speaker, I was able to conduct interviews in Chinese. This research program, therefore, has provided a unique opportunity for offshore students’ voices to be heard. I was inspired to listen to the students’ stories in their own context in order to gain an in- depth understanding of students’ information-seeking behaviour; this gave an impetus to this study. This research will report students’ information-seeking behaviour interpreted from their own perspectives.
1.4 Research objectives
Understanding students’ information-seeking behaviour and their local environments is important to ensure adequate library support to their learning in Australian university offshore programs. This research seeks to provide a first-hand account of students’ information-seeking behaviour directly from students enrolled in an Australian offshore program in China, instead of through a third party such as a librarian. The specific research questions are: (1) how do offshore students in China seek information for their Chapter 1 Introduction 11 assignments? and (2) how do environments in China impact on the lack of access to, and use of, Australian and local libraries by the offshore students?
To understand students’ information-seeking behaviour better, one approach is to look at the students’ ‘context’, as suggested by Wilson (1981; Wilson & Walsh, 1996). Many scholars have developed models to explore human information-seeking behaviour in different contexts (Case, 2012; Wilson, 1999b) and these models embrace contextual factors such as user capabilities, disciplines, and the organisational and socio-cultural environments (Case, 2012; Courtright, 2007). Among them, Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model of information behaviour (hereinafter called ‘the general model’) is considered most relevant for this study, as it integrates several approaches to explain human information behaviour. Detailed discussion on the general model and its usefulness to this study is provided in Chapter 2.
In order to gain an in-depth understanding of students’ information-seeking behaviour as well as the context of information seeking, this research was conducted using a pragmatic mixed-methods case study approach—a combination of both quantitative and qualitative research methods. Such an approach fits well with Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model, as adopted for this research project. The use of mixed-methods research provides rich contextual data which enables a better understanding of how offshore students use information sources and the impact of local environments on their information-seeking behaviour. More details on the pragmatic mixed-method case study approach and its appropriateness for this study is given in Chapter 3.
In essence, this research reported in this thesis aims to provide an in-depth understanding of offshore students’ information-seeking behaviour, and to explain how different environments impact on the students’ information seeking and library use in China. This, in turn, will allow librarians and offshore program providers to have a better understanding of the information-seeking behaviours of offshore students in order to provide better library services. It will also contribute to the adaptation of Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model of information behaviour—developed in a Western cultural setting—to the study of offshore students’ information-seeking behaviour in an Eastern cultural setting. Chapter 1 Introduction 12
1.5 Outline of the thesis
This thesis consists of six chapters: Chapter 1 Introduction introduces this program of research, provides the research background and explains the research objectives. It presents definitions and the scope of this study and discusses the research motivation and objectives.
Chapter 2 Literature Review explores the existing research literature relevant to this study. It brings together relevant literature in relation to offshore student information seeking and library use, and then outlines an essential understanding of various key concepts and models in information behaviour research. Through a review of the existing literature, the knowledge gap is identified from which specific research questions are developed.
Chapter 3 Research Design discusses the selection and adoption of the pragmatic mixed-methods case study design used in this study. It justifies the use of the case study approach and both quantitative and qualitative methods to fully understand the students’ information-seeking behaviour. It also explains the strategies taken in analysing quantitative and qualitative data in the within-site and cross-site data analysis in a single case study to answer the research questions posed. The issues of research reliability and the credibility of this study are also addressed.
Chapter 4 Data Collection and Analysis reports how data collection and data analysis were carried out based on the research design set out in Chapter 3. This chapter presents various types of data analysis results derived from the data collected at the two administrated sites. As a result of using both quantitative and qualitative research methods in this study, within-site and cross-site analysis results and findings are used to demonstrate research rigour. The findings provide answers to the specific research questions posed. To help readers understand the data collected and analysed in this research, appendices are provided.
Chapter 5 Discussion of Findings discusses the findings in relation to the existing literature relevant to this study. The Findings indicate that many of the key factors in Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model are also present in this specific Eastern cultural context in China. Importantly, they reveal that, apart from language, Chapter 1 Introduction 13 information skills, cultural and technological factors commonly identified in the existing literature, there are unique factors such as Western teaching methods, role power and guanxi that had significant influence on the students’ information seeking in this study. The Discussion provides an enhanced understanding of the complexity of the offshore environments and the influence of multiple factors on the students’ information seeking. It highlights the important issues with the existing library services to the students and the underlining national guidelines (Council of Australian University Librarians, 2004, 2007, 2008, 2012). The Discussion stresses the importance of incorporating the students’ perspectives in the development of adequate library services to offshore students. An integrated library service program is proposed, based on the findings of this study.
Chapter 6 Conclusion summarises the research outcomes of this study. It explains the contributions of this study to the understanding of Chinese offshore students’ information-seeking behaviour and the influence of the local contexts in China. It also demonstrates the contribution of this study to the body of knowledge, applying Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model of information behaviour to the study of offshore students’ information-seeking behaviour research in an Eastern cultural context. The implications of the study are also discussed and limitations identified. The chapter concludes with recommendations for useful future research building on the findings, and embracing other types of offshore programs.
1.6 Chapter summary
This thesis reports the investigation of the information-seeking behaviour of Chinese offshore students and factors involved in their information seeking in China. The introduction provides the reader with an overview of this program of research and introduces the research background explaining the problems facing offshore students in their use of library resources in an offshore context. Additionally, the introduction highlights the fact that there is a significant lack of research on offshore students’ information-seeking behaviour using students’ voices (i.e. students’ own perspectives). The aim of this research is to address these issues and gaps. In addition, to facilitate reading, this chapter provides the reader with a useful thesis outline.
The next chapter reviews related research in order to identify knowledge gaps and define the research problems. It clarifies what the research questions are and why they Chapter 1 Introduction 14 arise in the research context. It also identifies appropriate approaches and concepts to guide this research.
Chapter 2 Literature Review 15
2 Literature Review
2.1 Chapter overview
In introducing this research project, Chapter 1 explained the research aim as: to investigate Chinese offshore students’ information-seeking behaviour and library use in an offshore context. With that aim in mind, this chapter examines existing literature relevant to information seeking by offshore students and demonstrates that studies on information seeking by offshore students are limited. Therefore the literature review needs to consider other related studies on information seeking by international students and distance students, as well as studies on library services for offshore students. Furthermore, this review also seeks to identify appropriate frameworks to guide research on the students’ information-seeking behaviour in this research context.
There are many studies on the information-seeking behaviour and library use of international students (Hughes, 2013; Jiao & Onwuegbuzie, 1999; Liao, Finn, & Lu, 2007; Mehra & Bilal, 2007a; Safahieh & Singh, 2006) and distance students (Byrne & Bates, 2009; Cavanagh, 2001; Cavanagh & Tucker, 1997; Ismail, 2010; Liu & Yang, 2004; Maddison, 2013; McDonald, 2002; Selwyn, 2011; Thorsteinsdottir, 2005) in academic libraries, but there are a few that focus specifically on information seeking of offshore students in their own countries, such as China (Gao, 2006; Karasmanis, 2007). The studies of international and distance students may be relevant to this study because offshore students, located in their own countries, pursue international education at a significant distance from the country of the university offshore program provider. This review draws on the existing literature on information seeking and library use by international and distance students to identify issues that may be relevant to offshore students’ information seeking. It also reviews existing literature related to library services for offshore students to provide a background to library provision in an offshore context and to identify major issues related to library use by offshore students.
Having established some background for this study, the review then presents an introduction to the conceptual models of information-seeking behaviour research in order to provide some theoretical underpinnings to this study. Among them, Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model of information behaviour is considered the most appropriate, for reasons that will emerge as this review progresses. Chapter 2 Literature Review 16
This chapter is structured as follows: Section 2.2 explores existing studies on international students’ information seeking and library use in Western universities. It highlights issues that may be relevant to offshore students, such as cultural, language and information skills issues. Section 2.3 discusses studies on information seeking and library use by distance students, including issues such as physical and technological barriers that hinder library access and use. Section 2.4 examines existing library services for offshore students and identifies the challenges presented to offshore students in using library services in an offshore context. Section 2.5 discusses models used to conceptualise human information-seeking behaviour, and shows how scholars of information behaviour research use various contextual factors to explain information- seeking behaviour in different contexts. Section 2.6 discusses Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model of information behaviour and its key concepts. It reveals how the concepts in the general model have been tested and adapted by other scholars in their studies and proposes the general model as an overarching and appropriate conceptual framework for this research. Section 2.7 identifies research gaps in existing research, and then proposes specific research questions identified from the literature review. Section 2.8 is a chapter summary.
2.2 Related studies on information seeking and library use of international students
There are many studies (Hughes, 2013; Jiao & Onwuegbuzie, 1999; Liao, et al., 2007; Mehra & Bilal, 2007a; Safahieh & Singh, 2006) on the information-seeking behaviour and library use of international students in Western countries. The studies of international students’ information-seeking behaviour in their studies may be useful for this research because they identify issues that may be relevant to offshore students, such as culture, language, and adjustment to new library systems.
Key studies on the information-seeking behaviour and library use of international students by Allen (1993), Liu and Redfern, (1997), Jiao and Onwuegbuzie (1999), Song (2004), Ye (2005), Mehra and Bilal (2007a), Hughes (2009), Shaffer, Vardaman and Miller (2010), Foley (2011), Chen & Brown (2012), and Ishimura and Bartlett (2013) have identified common issues, such as culture, language, information skills and technological barriers facing international students when using academic libraries for their studies. Some of these issues include unfamiliarity with foreign library systems Chapter 2 Literature Review 17
(Curry & Copeman, 2005; Hughes, 2010; Jiao & Onwuegbuzie, 1999; Mehra & Bilal, 2007a), limited information skills (Allen, 1993; Hughes, 2013), language proficiency and unfamiliarity with library jargon (Foley, 2011; M. Liu & Redfern, 1997), and social ties that influence the way international students access information and develop their information skills (Chang et al., 2012; Ishimura & Bartlett, 2013).
Liu and Redfern (1997) noted that international students are more successful in using the library as their English proficiency improves with the length of their stay in the United States. Liao, Finn and Lu (2007) also showed that culture, language and technical barriers to international students’ access to libraries decreased over time. However, Song (2004) pointed out that international students’ library knowledge and English language may improve over the years, and their library use is largely tied with the concept of a library as a place for study and a place for faster Internet access. Mehra and Bilal (2007b) showed that international students often use the Internet for a wide range of information needs.
More recently, Hughes (2013) highlighted the issue of information literacy imbalance between international students’ more-developed information skills and less-developed critical information use. Ishimura and Barlett (2013) argued that international students’ information behaviour is not just influenced by cultural and language differences, but also by factors such as assignment characteristics, help from others, personalisation and time management skills. All these issues may be relevant to this study; however, there are some specific issues related to offshore students because they are located in the socio-cultural environment of their own countries, are not in an English-speaking society, and have no physical access to academic libraries in the Western countries. The question is how offshore students access and use a Western library system remotely from a different social, cultural and information environment in their own countries. Therefore, it is useful to review related studies about distance students’ information seeking as well.
2.3 Related studies on information seeking and library use of distance students
Literature on information seeking and library use by distance students may be useful to this research because the current model of library services for offshore students has been developed based on existing distance library services (Ziguras & McBurnie, 2011). Chapter 2 Literature Review 18
The existing studies (Mee, 2013; Slade & Kascus, 2000; Weyers, 2000) consider issues that may be relevant to offshore students, such as distance and technological barriers to the access and use of library online resources and services by students from remote locations. Many studies (Cavanagh, 2001; Cavanagh & Tucker, 1997; Ismail, 2010; Liu & Yang, 2004; Maddison, 2013; McDonald, 2002; Selwyn, 2011; Thorsteinsdottir, 2005) identify a range of issues of relevance to distance students’ information seeking. These issues include digital technology (Selwyn, 2011), computer and information skills (Maddison, 2013), and learning support (McDonald, 2002; Weyers, 2000).
In distance education, time and distance create physical barriers that hinder students’ use of their institutions’ library services (Liu & Yang, 2004). To overcome the barriers of distance and isolation, many university libraries in Australia, the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada use information technology as the solution in order to provide distance students with an equivalent service to that of on-campus students (Black, 2001; Van Dyk, 1996). However, the increased use of library technology creates information skills and technological barriers to the off-campus access and use of academic libraries by distance students from home. Chowdhury (2004) reported a study on the access to library online resources by a group of masters students in Information and Library Studies course at the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow. Among other things, the study showed that off-campus searching and the downloading of information from the digital library were very time consuming due to low bandwidth connections from home computers (Chowdhury2004, p. 61). Chowdhury (2004) pointed out that the use of ICT and the Internet might have improved access to library information resources, but that finding relevant information was still difficult for users due to complicated search interfaces to different databases. Chowdhury (2004) suggested that better library search interface design and more rigorous user training are needed in order to improve access to, and the use of, library online resources.
Black (2001) examined the application of technology at the University of Northern British Columbia, Canada to overcome spatial barriers experienced by distance students. That study found that remote access to a database via Virtual Private Network (VPN) may facilitate remote users’ access to library resources, but the downside is the set of technological difficulties for many distance students who have varying levels of confidence, experience and familiarity with computer technology (Black, 2001, p. 53). That study suggested that providing distance students access to library resources does Chapter 2 Literature Review 19 not automatically translate into usage of those resources due to various issues. Issues such as information skills, knowledge of computer technology and technological barriers become paramount for many distance students (Black, 2001, p. 53).
Cavanagh (2001) also noted that despite the availability of e-resources, off-campus students still used document delivery widely for book and journal articles. Reasons included system barriers such as different access methods with databases frustrating students and their lack of technological skills to set up their computers properly for remote access (Cavanagh, 2001). Many distance students who had returned to formal education after long absences felt intimated by the new technology (Block, 2007). Thorsteinsdottir’s (2005) study showed that distance students may not know how to access or use the systems effectively due to their lack of technological skills in handling computers to connect to databases, retrieve information and send email (p. 207).
The lack of access to face-to-face user training also contributes to the limited exposure to library information systems and information skills of many distance students (Liu and Yang, 2004). The growing volume of information available and accessible electronically increases the need for well-developed information and communication technology (ICT) skills and other information skills as part of the learning process (Maddison, 2013). Information skills identified as necessary for distance students include ICT skills, awareness of electronic information services and how to use them, and information gathering and evaluating procedures (Selwyn, 2011). Against this backdrop, university libraries use technologies to provide information skills instruction to distance students (Maddison, 2013). However, many of these programs emphasise using state-of-the-art technologies such as webinar and video conferencing to provide library instruction and information skills training to their distance students (Maddison, 2013). These efforts, using technology to break down physical barriers and facilitate library services to remote users, can also create information barriers for many distance students who cannot access these instruction and training opportunities due to their lack of computer skills. These issues are also relevant to offshore students because of their lack of prior library experiences and the different information and communication environments in their own countries.
In addition, there are specific issues related to offshore students’ access and use of the Western library system across national boundaries because a digital divide exists Chapter 2 Literature Review 20 between developed and developing countries (Ryan & King, 2001). The digital divide is often defined by ‘the degree of access to ICT and the Internet’ (Chowdhury, 2004, p. 4). In developing countries such as India, China and countries in the South Asian region, libraries have been still struggling hard in the last decade to provide basic library services due to ICT constraints (Jagannathan, 2006; McSwiney, 2002). Their social, cultural, economic and political systems continue to manipulate the development of the information environment and hinder information access and use.
A survey of existing literature by Obeidat and Genoni (2010) further indicated that the digital divide was not just related to access to ICT; other factors such as ‘language barriers, literacy barriers, availability of digital content’ also contributed to the digital divide (p.385). For example, a comparative study by Obeidat and Genoni (2010) revealed that a digital divide still existed between developing and developed countries, such as Jordan and Australia. Their study showed that more digital content was available in English than in Arabic. In Jordan, the university library was more ‘successful in meeting users’ needs from their print collection than the electronic collection’ (Obeidat & Genoni, 2010, p. 394).
Differences in information environments, libraries and educational systems between developed and developing countries present an even more difficult task for the providers of library services to offshore students located in different countries around the world (Selwyn, 2011). The question is how the different information environments impact on the offshore students’ information seeking and on their remote access to the Australian university libraries from their individual locations in their own countries. The following Section 2.4 discusses related studies on library services to offshore students.
2.4 Related studies on library services to offshore students
There are several studies on library service provision to offshore students, but very limited studies on offshore students’ information-seeking behaviour and the impact of local environments on that behaviour from their own perspectives. For example, a report by Karasmanis (2007) on library services to offshore students in Australian offshore programs in Asia is considered most pertinent to this study. Karasmanis (2007) discussed the challenges the library faced in delivering services to offshore students who relied on the Australian university library and did not have access to a local library of a partner university in China. However, the report was based on library user statistics Chapter 2 Literature Review 21 and there was a lack of information from offshore students’ perspectives. Therefore I am referencing other related studies on library services to offshore students in various types of offshore programs in order to identify issues that may be relevant to this study, such as the offshore educational environment, library provision and information resources support.
In the sections that follow, I will discuss library services for offshore students, and the reports of students’ experiences of library services in other countries, followed by student experiences of Australian library services.
2.4.1 Library services for offshore students
As discussed in Chapter 1, there are many models of offshore programs, accompanied by different forms of library services used for supporting offshore teaching and learning (Council of Australian University Librarians, 2008). Through these offshore programs, the number of offshore students in Australian higher education continues to grow: from 63,827 in 2005 to 80,458 in 2011 (Australian Education International, 2009, 2012).
In Australia, the majority of offshore programs are located in the Asia-Pacific region, most commonly in Singapore, China, Hong Kong and Malaysia (Lang, 2011). Among these countries, offshore programs in China have experienced the fastest growth. Being physically offshore, offshore students study and work with library resources selected, supplied, and organised within a Western cultural tradition from another country. This presents challenges to Australian universities in providing library services to meet the diverse information needs of offshore students in other countries and challenges also to offshore students in using services developed remotely from them.
To guide the provision of Australian university library services to offshore students, the Council of Australian University Librarians (CAUL) developed ‘Principles for Library Services to Offshore Students’ (Council of Australian University Librarians, 2004, 2007, 2008, 2012). These principles contain a set of guidelines that recommend a range of library services, including ‘a dedicated service web page’ and ‘24/7 library online resources and services’ for offshore students (Council of Australian University Librarians, 2008, p. 3).
Chapter 2 Literature Review 22
While university libraries make an effort to ensure that information to support teaching and learning is available and accessible offshore, there is a lack of knowledge about offshore students’ information needs and their approach to information seeking for their studies (Shah, Roth, & Nair, 2010). Other related studies explore offshore students’ learning experiences in terms of the quality of offshore programs (Miliszewska & Sztendur, 2011; Shah, 2011; Shah & Nair, 2011). The literature discusses student experiences of the internationalisation of course programs (Chapman & Pyvis, 2006; Dashwood, Lawrence, Brown, & Burton, 2008). The existing studies address issues such as course content (Dunn & Wallace, 2008; Fitch & Desai, 2012; Hoare, 2011), teaching methods (Bambacas & Sanderson, 2011; McBurnie & Ziguras, 2007), and culturally relevant learning resources support (McSwiney, 2001; Stella & Bhushan, 2011) in offshore contexts.
Although there is a lack of research focusing on offshore student information-seeking behaviour from their own perspectives, there are a few related reports that address the challenges inherent in providing library services internationally (Chakraborty & Tunon, 2002; Kijanka, 1993; Lowry, 1991; Waite, 1991), and a number of relevant Australian studies about library services to offshore students (Ali, Ho, & Yunus, 2006; Badger & Roberts, 2005; Gao, 2006; Hussin, 2007; Karasmanis, 2007; McSwiney, 2001, 2002; McSwiney & Parnell, 2003; Shah & Nair, 2011; Stella & Bhushan, 2011; University of Wollongong Library, 2004; Willis, 2010; Ziguras, 2001). These challenges are discussed in Sub-sections 2.4.2.1 to 2.4.2.4 and 2.4.3.1 to 2.4.3.4 below.
2.4.2 Student experience of library services provided by US, Canadian and European universities
Waite (1991) reported that library services supported the pioneering development of American university off-campus programs at some international sites in Europe and that several offshore information delivery models were used. These models included branch libraries with onsite book collections, journals and newspapers shipped from home libraries every week and access to a CD-ROM disk with full-text products offering electronic services from a local area network (Waite, 1991) .
Lowry (1991) also reported collaborations with local libraries to facilitate students’ access to local resources. In a Sacred Heart University (Connecticut, United States) program run in Luxembourg, contractual agreements were developed, making use of Chapter 2 Literature Review 23 libraries that were components of local corporations and government agencies to provide access by students to ProQuest full-text databases on CD-ROM (Kijanka, 1993). The library at Nova Southeastern University (Florida, United States) provided web-based document delivery, access to online resources, and building of local research resources for students located all over the world (Chakraborty & Tunon, 2002). However, despite all these efforts, many challenges were faced by early library services, including the provision of appropriate library resources in terms of culturally relevant contents, language, some technological barriers, user capability and ICT skills. Each of these is discussed below.
2.4.2.1 Library provision
Lowry (1991) reported several problems in library support, including a lack of appropriate library material, and differing legal standards as well as copyright constraints for offshore information delivery. Lowry (1991) stated that ‘one instructional goal is to make the course of study relevant to the particular national and regional context of the students’, but the library collections are predominantly American materials that are not oriented to ‘unique national and regional health and environment problems’ (p. 42). The issue of lack of appropriate library resources could still be an issue in 2013. Lowry commented on the lack of appropriate library resources to support offshore programs, and pointed out that the cause of these problems was a lack of consideration of the library resources needs of students as the programs were developed. As an alternative solution, collaboration took place with local libraries providing local access.
However, Chakraborty and Tunon (2002) expressed concern about a lack of appropriate library resources in local libraries, especially in developing countries, making the use of local library resources a less-than-ideal model for supporting the academic programs offered in those countries. A similar situation was reported in a paper by Kijanka (1993): one of the major issues confronting library services was the absence of accessible academic libraries in Luxembourg because ‘the host institute is at secondary and technical school level’ (Kijanka, 1993, p. 119). A more recent UNESCO- commissioned report indicated that library facilities were not available for offshore programs that are in places far away from cities in Chile (Martin, 2007). Chapter 2 Literature Review 24
2.4.2.2 Language barriers
Lowry (1991) reported on the language barrier problem that confronted early offshore information services in non-English speaking countries. He suggested that classroom instruction not only needed interpreters; many students actually wanted textbooks and material in their preferred languages. For example, the American university library collection policy preferred English language materials. Hence, students in this study (Lowry, 1991) had relatively limited access to library materials for their assignments and research in their preferred language—Spanish in the case of Colombia and French in Haiti. It would be useful to investigate whether this is still the case in the era of online access to resources.
2.4.2.3 Technological barriers
Waite (1991) discussed the experiences of Loyola University Chicago (Illinois, United States) in its provision of library services to a branch library in Europe. The key issue was a lack of local technical support. The university had to send information technology (IT) staff over to set up IT, maintain the network and train local staff to use any new software. Other issues included incompatible technology between the two continents. Online access to the Chicago libraries was not present at that time, but may now provide a partial or potential solution.
Kijanka (1993) reported on the difficulty of modifying equipment to work with American Proquest full-text databases on CD-ROM because of the incompatibility of European technology in Luxembourg with the CD-ROMs in the United States. Again this may be less of an issue in 2013.
Chakraborty and Tunon (2002) highlighted the issue of connectivity as a major hurdle for library services to students in ten countries in Latin America and Europe. Students’ access to online resources was handicapped at that time by the quality of the Internet services in their countries as well as a telecommunication systems bottleneck between continents and countries. Wang and Tremblay (2009a) reported library online services to students at Long Island University’s international sites, such as India, China, Costa Rica and South Africa. The report revealed issues with network speed and computer specifications affecting teaching and learning at the international sites. This may still be an issue in 2013. Chapter 2 Literature Review 25
2.4.2.4 User capability and ICT skills
According to Chakraborty and Tunon (2002), offshore students had mixed feelings about online document delivery. Some students liked web delivery because of its improved timeliness; others preferred mail delivery due to issues such as the costs of printing, lack of Internet access, lack of access to computing facilities, or low technology skills. These issues could still exist years later in 2013.
2.4.3 Student experiences of library services provided by Australian universities
In Australia, the Council for Australian University Librarians (CAUL) advocated equitable library resources and services for offshore students (Council of Australian University Librarians, 2008). A more recent report from the Australian Universities Quality Agency (AUQA) showed that the quality of library services was revealed in the survey of offshore students as one of the top ten factors in relation to offshore students’ satisfaction with offshore programs (Shah & Nair, 2011). Researchers cited below remarked that Australian universities libraries were making an effort to provide: local library services at the offshore campus (Ali, et al., 2006; University of Wollongong Library, 2004); library access through partnership arrangements with local libraries (McSwiney, 2001); information skills training for offshore students in different locations (Di Matteo, 2004); and fully delivered Western university library resources and services online or through various means such as DVD and WebCT 3 (Karasmanis, 2007).
However, the increasing use of online information technology continued to present new challenges for providing library services from Australia. Common issues included appropriate library resources, connectivity (Ali, et al., 2006; Hussin, 2007; Karasmanis, 2007), language (Ali, et al., 2006; Badger & Roberts, 2005), user awareness, information skills (McSwiney & Parnell, 2003; University of Wollongong Library, 2004), and absence of human support (Ali, et al., 2006; Karasmanis, 2007). These issues are discussed below.
3 WebCT is an online learning system that consists of a set of course tools designed to delivery course materials over the Internet (Brown, 2002). Chapter 2 Literature Review 26
2.4.3.1 Library provision and connectivity
A lack of appropriate library resources, such as material in the local language and culturally relevant library content, is a critical issue in academic resources support to offshore students (Hoare, 2011; McSwiney, 2001; Stella & Bhushan, 2011). McSwiney’s (2001) study revealed that copyright and licensing issues prevented some information resources accessible through the university libraries in Australia from being made available to Monash University staff and student members offshore. Materials that can be digitised and provided to offshore students are constrained by copyright agreement requirements. It is reported that Monash University has to ensure that the materials provided have appropriate content in compliance with local laws and in alignment with local cultural values. Debowski (2005) reported the challenges in finding suitable teaching texts in Chinese language for a bilingual Master of Business Administration offshore program in China. Debowski (2005) showed that there was a lack of up-to-date teaching texts and materials translated into Chinese (p. 268). This may still be an issue in 2013.
A library survey at the University of Wollongong revealed that offshore students preferred to use textbook and print material (University of Wollongong Library, 2004). However, book loans to offshore locations are often not made available (Council of Australian University Librarians, 2008; Ho, 2004) and local library access may not be part of an offshore partnership agreement (Stella & Bhushan, 2011).
With advances in information technology, library services are increasingly delivered on an online platform to facilitate information access 24 hours a day around the world. The online model is based on an assumption that offshore students have ready access to the technology. However, actually using modern technology for these purposes may be beyond the ability of offshore students (Castle & Kelly, 2004). McSwiney (2002, pp. 30-31) stated that ‘insufficient bandwidth’ and ‘a lack of technological support combined with limited student computer literacy’ can present challenges to the online delivery of library services. Hoare (2006, p. 198) also reported that technological difficulty such as a ‘slow modem’ affected students’ use of online journals in an Australian offshore program in Singapore. In addition, complicated authentication processes often impacted on whether students could use library online resources (Karasmanis, 2007). Chapter 2 Literature Review 27
Recent Australian research reports (Wilkins & Balakrishnan, 2013; Ly, 2013) further highlighted the importance of library resources support in offshore student learning. Wilkins and Balakrishnan (2013) reported a quantitative study of student satisfaction in transnational higher education at offshore branch campuses, including the University of Wollongong in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The researchers conducted a quantitative survey with 247 undergraduate and postgraduate offshore students at a branch campus. The study found that offshore students’ satisfaction is closely related to the quality and availability of learning resources, such as library resources, course materials and computer technology (Wilkins & Balakrishnan, 2013, p. 8).
Ly (2013) reported via a case study on the quality of Australian offshore Master of Business Administration programs in Vietnam. The researcher conducted interviews and focus groups with key stakeholders such as program managers, students and academic staff. The findings suggest that the quality of offshore programs required the support of learning resources equipped with rich databases, and relevant and updated textbooks via the library (Ly, 2013, p. 86).
2.4.3.2 Language barriers
Pyvis and Chapman (2004) indicated that many offshore students in non-English speaking countries such as China, Singapore, Malaysia and India, have very low levels of English competence, which affected their use of libraries in Western countries. Badger and Roberts (2005) reported that library users who spelled poorly in their keyword searches affected their search results; this discouraged offshore students from using online information resources. Ali et al. (2006) noted that offshore students had to devote additional time and energy to understanding English language information and resources as many materials provided were difficult for their levels of English language competence.
2.4.3.3 User awareness and information skills
While many library services were available to offshore students, library survey results showed that offshore students were often not aware of the services offered by the Australian universities’ libraries (McSwiney & Parnell, 2003; University of Wollongong Library, 2004). It is reported that offshore students had a ‘low participation rate’ at information literacy workshops (University of Wollongong Library, 2004, p. 15). This may have been due to students’ lack of understanding of the value of information-seeking and library services to their progress in academic learning. Hockey Chapter 2 Literature Review 28 and McSwiney (2005) also reported a lack of understanding of the role of libraries in Australian learning and limited information skills in using library online information resources among offshore students from a twinning offshore program in Malaysia. Studies on information skills of offshore students highlighted similar issues (Badger & Roberts, 2005; Di Matteo, 2004; Ferguson & Ferguson, 2005; Kong, Hunter, & Lin, 2007; Lahur, 2004; Mcintyre, 2009). The issues include students’ lack of awareness of Australian library services, limited knowledge of library online resources and online information skills, and a lack of understanding of the concept of plagiarism.
2.4.3.4 Absence of human support
Ali et al. (2006) and Karasmanis (2007) brought to our attention offshore students’ desire for local library access and timely personal assistance. According to Karasmanis (2007), the absence of a ‘human face’ for real-life face-to-face interaction in the offshore context was a challenge. She reported difficulties in using email to answer queries from offshore students on issues related to online access. Ali et al. (2006) also emphasised the importance of human support, particularly with regard to specialist language support and technical support. Both of these types of support were reported as critical and most needed by offshore students (Ali, et al., 2006).
A recent report by Michael (2012) shows that efforts are being made by the Victoria University (Melbourne, Australia) to address the issues of a lack of face-to-face contact with offshore students through the use of virtual office hours (VOH). Through the VOH, offshore students were able to use the software Elluminate Live! to communicate with Australian course coordinators. A similar effort, reported by Woodley, Curran and Szabo (2012), highlighted the use of the online conference tool “Elluminate Live!” in a pilot program conducted by Victoria University to allow student peers in Melbourne to provide English learning support to offshore students in their Australian offshore programs in China. Both onshore and offshore students used the collaborative functions available in “Elluminate Live!” to have real-time conversations and to share information with each other across the continents. These studies (Michael, 2012; Woodley, et al., 2012) indicated that information technology like “Elluminate Live!” can be useful for Australian university libraries in providing human support and user training to the offshore students in real time. Chapter 2 Literature Review 29
2.4.4 Section summary
Studies that explore offshore students’ learning experiences in terms of the quality of offshore programs and library services have shed some light on important issues relevant to this study, such as a lack of relevant information resources and students’ limited library awareness and information skills. The lack of relevant information resources for offshore students highlights the challenges facing university libraries in providing services to meet the diverse information needs of offshore students in different countries. A university library may need to support offshore students in different types of offshore programs (e.g., face-to-face, distance, and twinning programs) located in different countries. For example, the reviewed literature covers offshore students in an offshore campus wholly owned by a foreign institution (Badger & Roberts, 2005; University of Wollongong Library, 2004; Waite, 1991), in an offshore program hosted by a partner institution offshore (Lowry, 1991; McSwiney & Parnell, 2003), in one that includes a component of face-to-face instruction (Karasmanis, 2007), and in other offshore programs (Hussin, 2007; Shah, et al., 2010) offered by accredited institutions. Irrespective of the different modes of delivery of library services to offshore students in a wide range of offshore programs, the reviewed literature covers many of the issues relevant to this study, such as the offshore educational environment, socio-cultural and language differences, and technological constraints in the offshore educational setting, as shown in Table 2.1 on next page.
Existing studies reveal that an offshore educational environment is very different to the other settings, since library provision is subject to the agreement of the offshore program. Lowry’s (1991) study described the case of offshore students in a partner institution similar to the situation in this study, but the library services were not available online at that time. Offshore students may not have a campus library they can go to (Gao, 2006; Karasmanis, 2007), they may have limited access to library material in their preferred language (Lowry, 1991), and time zone differences can make the communication between the Australian university library and offshore students difficult (Karasmanis, 2007).
Chapter 2 Literature Review 30
Table 2.1 A Summary of Identified Barriers to Information Resources Support and Library Services to Offshore Students
Research Type of Absence Lack of Library Limited Limited Limited methodology offshore of relevant Technology Study Year provision English library information program human information barriers ** skills awareness skills * support resources On Lowry 1991 n/s 3 √ √ campus On Waite 1991 n/s 4 √ campus On Kijanka 1993 n/s 2 √ √ campus Various McSwiney 2001 Case study 2 √ √ √ √ types Various Ziguras 2001 Case study 3 √ √ types Chakraborty Various 2002 n/s 3 √ √ √ & Tunon types Quantitative Cox, Logan Twinning 2002 and 2 √ √ & Cobbin program qualitative McSwiney Various 2003 Qualitative 1 √ √ √ √ √ & Parnell types Castle & Twinning 2004 Case study 3 √ √ Kelly program UoW Various 2004 Quantitative 3 √ √ √ √ Library types Badger & On 2005 n/s 3 √ √ √ √ √ Roberts campus Hockey & Twinning 2005 n/s 3 √ √ McSwiney program On Ali, et al. 2006 Quantitative n/s √ √ √ campus Various Hussin 2007 Quantitative n/s √ √ √ types Face-to- Karasmanis 2007 Quantitative 1 √ √ √ √ √ √ face Dashwood, Various 2008 Genealogy n/s √ √ et al. types Shah, Roth Various 2010 Quantitative n/s √ √ & Nair types Quantitative Various Willis 2010 and n/s √ √ types qualitative Shah & Various 2011 Quantitative n/s √ √ Nair types Stella & Various 2011 n/s n/s √ √ Bhushan types Note: *Library client surveys or audit reports often cover various types of offshore programs (offshore campus or distance or online). Therefore, various types = the reports covering various types of offshore programs. **1 = access to university library of offshore program provider; 2 = local library access; 3 = university and local library access; 4 = branch libraries with onsite collection supported by university library of offshore program provider; n/s = not specified
As shown in Table 2.1, it is clear that, over the past decade, the lack of culturally relevant information resources support has remained an issue affecting offshore students’ academic learning (Hoare, 2011; Lowry, 1991). Online library access is further complicated by international boundaries. Infrastructure difficulties, such as restricted bandwidth and technological bottlenecks between continents, can hinder information flow between the countries. These difficulties restrict information delivery to offshore students. What is offered may not be accessible when it comes to crossing international boundaries. The technological divides between the high-tech and low-tech Chapter 2 Literature Review 31 countries even recently (Shah & Nair, 2011; Stella & Bhushan, 2011) still hinder students’ access to library resources and services. The lack of awareness of library services and information skills among offshore students impacts on student library use and information seeking.
In the reviewed literature, some related studies used either quantitative, qualitative or case study methods to investigate issues in learning support, library services to offshore students and quality of offshore education (as shown in Table 2.1). This topic ‘Information Seeking and Use of Chinese Offshore Students Studying in Australian University Programs” is new within a specific context. There is very limited research done in the same topic to the best of my understanding. As such to select the most appropriate research method, I examine the related research methods in the fields. Detailed discussion on methodologies will follow in Chapter 3 – the methodology chapter.
In essence, the existing literature focusing on the quality of offshore programs and students’ learning experiences only covers a small component of library support to offshore students. The studies reported focused mainly on student use or non-use of library services and survey-reported barriers. There is a lack of research on how offshore students look for information for their studies, addressed from their own perspectives. Further, there is a lack of understanding of offshore students’ perception of libraries and the influence of the local environments on their information seeking and library use in their own countries. Again, not much attention is given to the broader socio-cultural, educational and local environments in the real world in which offshore students are situated and in which they work.
This lack of context calls for research to be conducted using a framework or model that enables considerations of context to examine how offshore students seek information for their assignments and how their particular information environments impact on their access to information and their use of Australian university and local libraries.
2.5 Conceptual models in information behaviour research
It is proposed that the field of study commonly called human information behaviour (HIB) (often referred to just as information behaviour) provides an appropriate lens for this research. The HIB field covers research aimed at discovering ‘… how people need, Chapter 2 Literature Review 32 seek, manage, give and use information in different contexts’ (Fisher, Erdelez, & McKechnie, 2005, p. xix). This broad category encompasses research on information seeking, information needs, information use and information skills (Case, 2012). Accordingly, this section discusses appropriate frameworks for this research from the HIB area of information seeking as the current study has a focus on the students’ information-seeking behaviour in an offshore context.
In order to help position the concepts and models used in information behaviour research that are relevant to this research, the following Section 2.5.1 begins with some key concepts identified in the area, and this is followed by a discussion of the approaches and underlying conceptual frameworks used in this field.
2.5.1 Key concepts in information behaviour research
In information behaviour research, information can be viewed as ‘meaning constructed by people’ (Dervin, 1983), or as ‘a reduction of uncertainty’ (Kuhlthau, 2008; Wilson, 1999a). In its most basic form, information is defined as ‘any difference that makes a difference’ which denotes a change of structure of mind (Case, 2012, p. 40).
The key concept ‘information behaviour’ describes ‘the totality of human behaviour in relation to sources and channels of information, including both active and passive information seeking, and information use’ (Wilson, 2000, p. 49). Information behaviour is a process of defining information need, seeking, searching, accessing and using information. This definition applies for the purpose of this study.
The term ‘information need’ is viewed as ‘a recognition that a person’s knowledge is inadequate to satisfy a goal that the person has’ (Case, 2012, p. 5). Dervin (1983, p. 3) suggested that people have a need to ‘make sense’ of the world and a perceived ‘gap’ in the information required to make sense of a situation gives rise to an information need. In this information context, there are different types of needs, such as cognitive, affective or physical needs (Wilson, 1997). For this present study, the students’ information needs refer to both their cognitive needs for academic learning needs and also to their problem-solving needs at work.
Wilson (2000, p. 49) described information-seeking behaviour as ‘the purposive seeking for information as consequence of a need to satisfy some goal’. In a similar vein, Case Chapter 2 Literature Review 33
(2012) stated that information seeking is a ‘conscious effort to acquire information in response to a need or gap in a person’s knowledge’ (p. 5). Information seeking is a dynamic process. People may seek information internally from personal knowledge or externally from formal documentary sources and/or informally from other people because library information may not be suitable or appropriate to some problems in everyday life (Wilson, 1981).
In this study, the concept of information seeking spans both formal and informal information-seeking activities. Informal information seeking is also termed ‘non-library methods’ (Spink & Cole, 2006, p. 26). In formal information seeking, students may use traditional library information-seeking methods and draw on library resources such as books, journals and electronic databases. For informal information seeking, students may use non-library information-seeking methods, such as verbal communication, their personal collection and non-library information sources to discover and obtain information.
‘Information use’ (Wilson, 1997, p. 569) and ‘information use behaviour’ (Wilson, 2000, p. 50) are used interchangeably. Wilson (2000, p. 50) defined ‘information use behaviour’ as ‘consisting of the physical and mental acts involved in incorporating the information found in the person’s existing knowledge base.’ Different ways of using information reflect different views of information, as ‘an objective, as a construct and as a transformative force’ (Limberg, 2005, p. 282). For the purpose of this study, information use can take the form of interpersonal communication that leads to new insights in using relevant sources for learning, for example in presenting work in an assignment.
2.5.2 Evolving conceptual models in information behaviour research
Over the decades, many researchers have attempted to develop models to explore information-seeking behaviour (Case, 2012). Scholars (Case, 2012; Dervin & Nilan, 1986; Menzel, 1966; Wilson, 1997) have reviewed the field from various perspectives, providing an overview of the conceptual frameworks used. The first literature review, by Menzel (1966), showed that earlier HIB research focused on observable variables such as the use of collections and library catalogues and examined user satisfaction from the system design perspective. Chapter 2 Literature Review 34
In the 1980s, Dervin and Nilan (1986) examined the conceptual framework of information behaviour with a systematic analysis of the definitions, approaches and assumptions adopted by scholars in studying information needs. They found that most of the approaches to information behaviour research were system-oriented. Previous research was limited to examining behaviour primarily from the perspective of user– system interactions. In this context, Dervin and Nilan (1986, p. 12) pointed to the need to ‘measure or assess actual user situations’ and advocated a more user-centred approach in information behaviour research.
A recent review on information behaviour research provided by Case (2012) showed that user-centred approaches are now widely adopted and that many models of information-seeking behaviour have emerged with various orientations in a wide variety of situations and contexts. The models centre upon the information seekers, such as ‘person in situation’ (Dervin, 1983), person’s cognitive state (Kuhlthau, 1993), or the professional context of the information seeker (Leckie, Pettigrew and Sylvain (1996) to explain information-seeking behaviour in different contexts (Case, 2012; Courtright, 2007).
Dervin’s (1983) sense-making approach is an early model that adopts the user-centred approaches from information behaviour research. The model was characterised by using a three-part model focusing on situation—gap—use. According to Dervin, ‘situations’ are the time–space contexts in which sense is constructed, ‘gaps’ are the questions that the user has in mind, and ‘use’ focuses on how the information user constructs meaning from the information (Dervin, 1983, p. 9). Dervin’s (1983) sense-making approach proposed that information is meaning constructed by people in interacting with information systems. Such an approach is viewed as significant for this study as it seeks to explore the interaction between the students, the library systems and the impact of these systems on their information-seeking behaviour.
Kuhlthau’s (1991) cognitive approach reflected another user-centred approach that focused on a person’s cognitive states and affective feelings at different stages of the search process. In the context of academic information seeking, Kuhlthau (1991) drew on theories from educational psychology to explore imposed information seeking for an assignment task. Based on some longitudinal studies of school students on task-imposed Chapter 2 Literature Review 35 information-seeking behaviour in a learning environment, Kuhlthau developed what she called an information search process (ISP) model (Kuhlthau, 2005). Her longitudinal studies identified that ‘time, interest, information available, user knowledge level and perception of self-efficacy’ contribute to the user information-seeking experience (Kuhlthau, 2005, p. 232). For this study, Kuhlthau’s cognitive approach highlights the importance of considering personal and environmental factors when investigating students’ information-seeking behaviour within their social and environmental contexts.
Another user-centred approach can be found in the work of Leckie, Pettigrew and Sylvain (1996). Leckie, et al. (1996) developed a model grounded in their work on information seeking by professionals. Their model contained major components such as work roles, associated tasks, awareness of information sources, sources of information and outcomes. It explained that information seeking is affected by ‘awareness of information sources’ (a personal factor) and the ‘sources of information’ (an environmental factor) at the same time (Leckie, et al., 1996). This unique insight is important for this study as it draws attention to the impact of the multiple contextual factors influencing people’s information seeking.
All three approaches and models discussed above provide important insights into explaining information behaviour in different contexts: information seeking in everyday life, in education and in organisations. While each of these approaches and models is valuable, they only focus on very specific contexts. Given (2002) emphasised that it is important not to separate the everyday from other life situations in studies of an individual’s information-seeking behaviour because information seeking can be affected by diverse information needs from both everyday and academic contexts. Researchers need to consider multiple approaches that can be used to explore various contexts that may affect people’s information-seeking behaviour. In this regard, Wilson (1999b) showed that his general model of information behaviour (Wilson & Walsh, 1996) and its key concepts can accommodate many of the approaches in HIB research. The following section discusses the general model and its usefulness to this study.
2.6 Wilson’s general model of information behaviour
Wilson (1981, 1999b; Wilson & Walsh, 1996) conducted HIB research, developing concepts and models of information behaviour useful in conceptualising human information behaviour in different contexts. Grounded in empirical research on the Chapter 2 Literature Review 36 information-seeking behaviour of social workers in their organisations, Wilson (1981) developed a general model of information-seeking behaviour. A simplified version of the model reproduced in Wilson’s (1997) paper is presented in Figure 2.1.4
Figure 2.1 A general model of information-seeking behaviour
Source: Wilson (1997, p. 552). Reproduced with the written consent of Elsevier Science Ltd [Copyright 1997].
Figure 2.1 shows that the contexts of information need include the personal state (physiological, cognitive and affective), as well as the social role and environmental aspects of information seekers. Wilson (1981) explained that the contexts that give rise to information needs could become barriers to information seeking. The barriers are presented as personal, role-related and environmental barriers. In different contexts, paths and processes of information seeking may be different (Wilson, 1981). To understand the factors related to information needs and information-seeking behaviour, Wilson (1981, p. 10) stressed the need to consider the influence of important environments such as ‘work, socio-cultural, politico-economic and physical environments’.
4 Wilson (1997) simplifies his 1981 model of ‘information needs and seeking’ and incorporates the information activities from Ellis (1989) to form ‘a general model information-seeking behaviour’. Chapter 2 Literature Review 37
Drawing on works on information behaviour in a variety of disciplines, Wilson and Walsh (1996) 5 further developed Wilson’s (1981) models into a general model of information behaviour (see Figure 2.2).
Figure 2.2 A general model of information behaviour
Source: Wilson (1997, p. 569). Reproduced with the written consent of Elsevier Science Ltd [Copyright 1997].
Wilson (2005, p. 35) explained that the ‘person-in-context’ in the general model encompasses three categories of contexts (personal, social and environmental), which are included in his 1981 model. In addition, Wilson redefined the ‘barriers’ in his 1981 model to ‘intervening variables’ (Wilson, 1999b, p. 256) to acknowledge that various factors, such as the ‘environmental factor’, could inhibit or facilitate information seeking (Wilson, 1999b, p. 259). Instead of the three categories of barriers (personal, role-related and environmental) in his 1981 model, the ‘intervening variables’ included psychological, demographic, role-related/interpersonal, and environmental and source
5 Note: Wilson and Walsh’s 1996 paper is a commission report. The general model of information behaviour is also explained and published later in two papers in the research journals: (Wilson, 1997, 1999a) The general model is widely cited as Wilson’s (1997) model, as the journals are more accessible to the general public. Chapter 2 Literature Review 38 characteristics (Wilson & Walsh, 1996, p. 24). The ‘intervening variables’ bring together insights drawn from psychology, sociology and organisational communication. The model also highlighted the important role of the context in shaping an understanding of information needs and seeking. Another important aspect of Wilson’s general model is its attempt to incorporate theories from a range of disciplines, such as the risk/award theory (used in business research fields such as finance and marketing) and Bandura’s ‘self-efficacy theory’ (from the field of psychology) to explain human information behaviour (Wilson & Walsh, 1996, p. 24). Thus, Wilson’s general model is enriched with concepts and theories from a variety of fields and can be applied in a range of contexts.
In essence, the general model captures many of the contexts in other models. For example, Wilson (1999b) explained that the ‘person-in-context’ in the general model is closely associated with the contextual situation emphasised in Dervin’s (1983) sense- making model. Similarly, the personal psychological factors emphasised in the general model embrace Kuhlthau’s (1991) cognitive approach, taking into account cognitive states and affective feelings in people’s information seeking (Wilson, 1999a).
Wilson (2008) reiterated that the general model is cited as a conceptual framework by many scholars in the field. In the following Sub-section 2.6.1, it further examines how the key concepts from Wilson’s models have been adopted, tested, adapted and advanced by other scholars in HIB research in various contexts. Their experiences in applying key concepts of Wilson’s model as a conceptual framework are potential relevant for this study.
2.6.1 Wilson’s models and research on information seeking in context
Inspired by the contextual approach in information behaviour research, there has been a proliferation of research on information seeking in context. This is reflected in a series of biennial information seeking in context conferences (ISIC), in which scholars continue to contribute to the concepts and ideas in this area (Vakkari, 2008).
In information-seeking behaviour research, a number of researchers consider ‘context’ as ‘background’, ‘setting’ or ‘situation’ (Courtright, 2007). The term ‘context’ has a variety of meanings. Talja, Keso and Pietilanen (1999), in their meta-theoretical view, Chapter 2 Literature Review 39 defined context as ‘the site where a phenomenon is constituted as a research object’ (p. 751). In practice, the operational definition of context is about how factors such as socio-economic conditions, work roles, tasks, problem situations, communities and organisations with their structures and cultures affect information seeking (Talja, et al., 1999). Fourie (2006, p. 28) provided a long list of factors (also called variables or barriers) that had been identified in many HIB studies. Courtright (2007) also highlighted many important contextual factors identified by researchers. Courtright’s contextual factors overlap to some extent with Fourie’s and include resources in libraries, cultural influences, social factors, information technologies, problem situations, work roles and work tasks (Courtright, 2007, pp. 282-285). Despite the identification of many contextual factors, the various factors presented within the general model (Wilson & Walsh, 1996) provide the opportunity to include them all.
More importantly, the key concepts within Wilson’s (1981, 1997, 1999b; Wilson & Walsh, 1996) models have been continuously expanded and advanced by many scholars who have critically examined and adapted his models in their studies. As this study recognises the importance of contextual factors such as personal, socio-cultural and information environments in China, some of these studies will be examined more closely. I choose to review these studies in particular representing different settings such as organisational, educational, and developing countries that are similar to the situations in this study. The review aims to understand the variations in the influences of contextual factors on information seeking in different settings. These studies include Niedzwiedzka (2003), Urquhart and Rowley (2007), Nujoud, Morris and Maynard (2012), and Ishimura and Barlett (2013). Each of these is briefly described below.
2.6.1.1 Niedzwiedzka’s model—a critical modification of Wilson’s model in a health organisational setting
Niedzwiedzka (2003) applies Wilson’s 1996 general model of information behaviour in a study of the information behaviour of managers in a health care system in Poland. The study, using postal survey, focus group, semi-structured interviews and documents, found that managers often used other people as a source in information seeking. Based on the findings of the empirical study, Niedzwiedzka proposed several modifications to Wilson’s model to include two information-seeking strategies—personal and intermediaries’ information seeking. He considered the intervening variables (e.g. psychological, demographic, role-related/interpersonal, environmental and sources Chapter 2 Literature Review 40 characteristics) in the general model as part of the context that influences information seeking. Niedzwiedzka (2003) pointed out the limitations of the general model in positioning the ‘person-in-context’ in relation to ‘the context of information needs’. He stressed that the ‘context’ is also related to other stages of the information-seeking process. The implication for this present study is that it is important to understand that contextual factors could impact on every aspect of the students’ information seeking.
2.6.1.2 Urquhart and Rowley’s model—an adaptation of Wilson’s model in an educational setting
Urquhart and Rowley (2007) identified many of the factors that influence student information seeking in an educational setting. These scholars developed a model that focused on the macro and micro factors that affect students’ information seeking. The macro factors identified were information learning technology infrastructure, organisational knowledge and culture, policies and funding, availability of, and restrictions to access, and information resource design. Micro factors included discipline and curriculum, academics’ information behaviour, pedagogy, support and training, search strategy and information skills. The macro factors are related to the environmental factors and source characteristics, and the micro factors align with personal factors in Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model. For example, Urquhart and Rowley’s (2007) model recognised that teaching methods and teachers both influence student information seeking. As these concepts are relevant, this present study similarly considers the educational environment that may influence the students’ information seeking in an offshore context.
2.6.1.3 Nujoud, Morris and Maynard’s model—an application of Wilson’s model in a developing country
Nujoud, Morris and Maynard (2012) used Wilson’s (1999b) model and others to guide their research of information-seeking behaviour by graduate students at Kuwait University. In their study, using surveys and interviews, cultural factors such as language and student expectations were shown to be significant influencing factors. Based on their findings, the researchers extended Wilson’s model to include cultural factors in a new model. The study by Nujoud et al. (2012) has important implications for this study. It highlights the importance of adapting the concepts of Wilson’s (1981, 1997, 1999b; Wilson & Walsh, 1996) models, developed within a Western cultural setting, in the light of Eastern culture in this and other studies. Chapter 2 Literature Review 41
2.6.1.4 Ishimura and Barlett’s model—an addition to Wilson’s model in an international education setting
A recent study by Ishimura and Barlett (2013) used Wilson’s 1997 model as a framework to investigate factors influencing international students’ information-seeking behaviour in assignment research for university courses in North America. Their study, using qualitative methods, revealed that cultural and language differences are not the only factors influencing international students’ information seeking as claimed in previous literature. It showed four major factors influencing international students’ information behaviour: assignment characteristics, help from others, personalisation and time management skills. The findings from Ishimura and Barlett’s (2013) study provided additions to the list of intervening factors in Wilson’s (1997) general model of information behaviour. Ishimura and Barlett’s (2013) study suggests that it is important for studies to look beyond the common factors and investigate the various factors in the offshore contexts through multiple lenses, as this study did.
So far, the review of selected studies has outlined the efforts made by many scholars in applying and adapting the contextual factors within the general model in their studies. Three common characteristics are revealed through the selected studies discussed. First, the existing studies tend to focus on a specific factor such as work roles, tasks or psychological aspects of the seeker in relation to information seeking in a specific single setting: organisational, educational, disciplinary or group-based. Second, while these scholars have modified or extended some of the factors within the general model, they have tended to follow the sequential or structured order in modelling the influence of contextual factors on human information behaviour. Third, while it is recognised that multiple contextual factors may influence human information behaviour simultaneously, scholars struggle to demonstrate the interrelationships between these factors and their compounding effects on human information behaviour. Courtright (2005) also noted that the ‘person-in-context’ models focused on how the contextual factors affected information behaviour, but lacked attention to the ‘complexity, variability and mutual interactions of contextual factors’ that influence information seeking (p. 288).
Despite the critiques of Wilson’s general model from the papers reviewed above (Ishimura & Bartlett, 2013; Niedzwiedzka, 2003; Nujoud, et al., 2012; Urquhart & Rowley, 2007), these studies support the use of Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general Chapter 2 Literature Review 42 model as a fundamental framework to build upon to guide human information behaviour research in different settings. The general model has a potential relevance to this study.
2.6.2 General model of information behaviour—a guide for this study
Wilson’s (1981, 1997, 1999b; Wilson & Walsh, 1996) research provided strong evidence that contextual factors (personal, role-related/interpersonal and environmental) influence information seeking. Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model is considered as highly appropriate to this current research as it provides useful guides to explain both the human information-seeking behaviour as well as the context of the information seeking. Many of the factors used in Wilson’s (1981, 1997, 1999b; Wilson & Walsh, 1996) models about information seekers are also relevant for this study, which focuses on offshore students at two Australian offshore programs in China in an offshore context.
In Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model, the context of information seeker is represented by a set of ‘intervening variables’: psychological, demographic, role- related/interpersonal, environmental and source characteristics. In Wilson’s models, the terms ‘variable’ and ‘factor’ are used interchangeably. In the existing literature, the term ‘contextual factors’ has been widely used by other scholars who adopted the key concepts of Wilson’s models to frame their research in similar ways (Courtright, 2007). Through the use of the model, Wilson and Walsh (1996) emphasised the need to consider personal, socio-cultural, interpersonal and environmental factors in interpreting human information-seeking behaviour.
In this study, I use what Wilson and Walsh (1996) call ‘intervening variables’ and investigate them as contextual factors that influence the students’ information seeking for their studies at two Australian offshore programs in China. Using the general model and its key concepts as guides will bring together the concepts of psychological, sociological, educational and communication theory to explore, analyse, understand and explain human information-seeking behaviour in the context of this research. It will help understand offshore student’s information seeking by taking into account various factors in the offshore context.
2.6.3 Section summary
In summary, this review highlights the fact that key concepts within the general model Chapter 2 Literature Review 43 are the results of empirical studies and the further theoretical development of Wilson’s earlier models in organisational settings (Wilson, 1981). Wilson also contributed to a theoretical understanding of the general model by integrating concepts and theories from others’ work in information behaviour research over time (Wilson, 1999b, 2000, 2005, 2008, 2009).
The review of existing literature has provided considerable evidence that many of the contextual factors in the general models (Wilson & Walsh, 1996) are present in information-seeking behaviour studies in different settings. The review of the key concepts within Wilson’s models and their application to information-seeking behaviour in different contexts by many scholars has provided important benefits to this study. Existing studies show that the contextual factors presented within Wilson’s models provide underlying concepts and guides to help identify the important factors influencing information seeking in different contexts (Niedzwiedzka, 2003; Nujoud, et al., 2012; Urquhart & Rowley, 2007).
Existing studies (Ishimura & Bartlett, 2013; Niedzwiedzka, 2003; Nujoud, et al., 2012; Urquhart & Rowley, 2007) also reveal that different characteristics of contextual factors and the nature of the influence may vary in different contexts. In an organisational setting, work roles, role-related tasks, interpersonal communications and the work environment are highlighted as important factors influencing information seeking (Leckie, et al., 1996; Niedzwiedzka, 2003). In organisational information practices, people draw on organisational information, work experience and other people’s knowledge through social networking (Niedzwiedzka, 2003). The organisational information practices reflect the social nature of information seeking at work. In an educational setting, learning tasks, library information sources and student information skills are emphasised as critical factors influencing students’ information seeking (Ishimura & Bartlett, 2013; Urquhart & Rowley, 2007). Variations in the contextual factors influencing information seeking are attributed to the different environments in educational and workplace settings. By the same token, this review identifies some limitations, such as the limited attention to the effect of multiple factors on information seeking, and the lack of use of the general model to study offshore students’ information seeking in an offshore context.
Chapter 2 Literature Review 44
First, in applying Wilson’s (1981, 1997, 1999b; Wilson & Walsh, 1996) concepts and models in different contexts, many scholars tend to focus on one specific context such as work roles, tasks, the group or the setting. Second, although it is recognised that multiple factors may affect information seeking simultaneously, the existing models are limited in showing the interrelationships between the contextual factors and the compounding effects on human information-seeking activities (Courtright, 2007, p. 285). More effort is needed to understand the multi-dimensional nature of human information-seeking behaviour in the current information environment. Third, the concepts in the general model have been widely tested, adapted and applied by scholars in various settings such as organisational and educational information seeking. Nonetheless, no research has adapted the general model and its key concepts to the study of offshore students’ information-seeking in an offshore context.
This study seeks to fill these gaps by adopting Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model as a guide in this research context. Specifically, this study uses the contextual factors (personal, role-related/interpersonal and environmental) outlined in the general model as a lens through which to examine the potential factors influencing students’ information seeking in their individual environments. The intervening variables are selected to guide the analysis phase in this research. In particular, this research program draws on the ‘intervening variables’ from the general model to conceptualise and investigate the impact of various contextual factors on offshore student information seeking in an offshore environment.
2.7 Critique and research questions
The review of related studies shows that existing research has identified some issues with students’ information seeking in academic library services in international and distance educational settings in the US, the UK and Australia. Related studies of library services for offshore students have also provided some insights into existing issues that may impact on offshore student library use. Although the existing literature offers useful knowledge about contextual factors that may affect human information seeking in a range of contexts, several limitations are identified from the literature review.
First, the review identifies some related studies about library services for offshore students. However, many of these studies are survey studies from a librarian’s perspective. There is a lack of first-hand accounts of offshore student information- Chapter 2 Literature Review 45 seeking behaviour collected directly from offshore students (i.e., from the students’ own perspectives). Providing adequate library services to offshore students requires an understanding of the challenges faced by them when accessing online information resources and services in their own countries. It points to a need for this study to investigate how Chinese offshore students carry out information seeking from their individual local environments.
Second, Wilson (1981, 1999b; Wilson & Walsh, 1996) emphasised the importance of understanding information-seeking behaviour by taking into account the information seekers in their personal, interpersonal, socio-cultural and environmental contexts. Existing studies about library services demonstrate an assessment of local contexts, but neglect the context of the library resources needs of offshore students in the library services. The existing research reports how librarians see the need for the library resources of offshore students in the library services. There is a lack of understanding of offshore students’ perceptions of libraries, their cultural values and the social beliefs underlying their information-seeking behaviour and their choice of information sources. Therefore, there is a need for a study such as this one to include the students’ voices through in-depth interviews with the students in their locations.
Third, the existing reports and case studies about library services for offshore students are often based on anecdotal accounts, rather than systematic research. There is a lack of in-depth understanding of the local environments and their compounding effects on offshore students’ information seeking and library use. Therefore, there is a need for this study to adopt a systematic, in-depth, research based approach to investigate offshore students’ information-seeking behaviour and the factors involved in their information seeking in the offshore context.
Based on the research limitations identified above, the principal research questions and the sub-questions identified are: (1) How do offshore students in China seek information for their assignments? 1.1 How do they find and obtain what they need for their assignments? 1.2 What types of information sources and resources are perceived to be important to them, and why? (2) How do environments in China impact on the lack of access to, and use of, Australian and local libraries by the offshore students? Chapter 2 Literature Review 46
2.1 What are the main barriers to the general use of the Australian and local libraries by the students? 2.2 How do these barriers affect the way the students access and use the Australian and local libraries?
2.8 Chapter summary
The literature review has shown that there are many studies of information seeking and library use of international and distance students in academic libraries. However, little is known about offshore students’ information-seeking behaviour in their particular offshore context. Nevertheless, some related research on information seeking of international and distances students, and library services for offshore students reveals issues relevant to this study. These issues include low English competency, lack of library awareness, limited information skills, an absence of human support, lack of culturally relevant information resources support and technological constraints, all of which can hinder students’ information seeking in various contexts. However, the existing literature does not address specific issues related to offshore students’ information seeking in an offshore context. There is a lack of discussion of the impact of different social, cultural and information environments on offshore students’ information seeking and library use in their own countries. There is lack of research on offshore students’ information-seeking behaviour directly from their own perspective, a situation which the research reported in this study seeks to redress.
To gain a theoretical understanding for this research, the review examines the models and concepts used in information behaviour research to provide an understanding of various factors affecting information seeking in different contexts. The review of Wilson’s (1981; Wilson & Walsh, 1996) general model highlights the key factors (personal, role-related/interpersonal and environmental) in relation to human information seeking in context. The literature review also explores other scholarly work on various contextual factors influencing human information-seeking behaviour in different contexts. These factors include work roles, role-related tasks, interpersonal communications, organisational environment, social networks at work, information provision, learning tasks, library resources and information skills. However, there has been limited research using Wilson’s model to understand and interpret offshore students’ information-seeking behaviour in offshore contexts, particularly in China. In this study, I aim to consider all the contextual factors as suggested in Wilson and Chapter 2 Literature Review 47
Walsh’s (1996) general model to investigate Chinese offshore students’ information seeking and library use in this study.
This chapter has identified the knowledge gap and research questions. The next chapter discusses methodological considerations for an appropriate choice of research methods that address the research questions. Chapter 3 Research design 48
3 Research Design
3.1 Chapter overview
The literature review in Chapter 2 revealed the dearth of offshore students’ information behaviour research. It also proposed certain research questions and presented a conceptual framework for this study. Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model is to be used as a guide to understand the underlying factors related to the students’ information- seeking behaviour. In this study, Wilson’s general model partly informs the research design (Miles & Huberman, 1994), as it helps define realistic goals, develop relevant research questions and select appropriate methods to explore the students’ information- seeking behaviour in the Australian offshore programs in China.
As the literature review shows, there are many different types of offshore programs, and it would be nearly impossible to investigate both offshore face-to-face and distance cohorts. This study, therefore, only focuses on the students in one type of Australian offshore programs—those with a face-to-face component. In this study, an ‘offshore student’ refers to a student who is enrolled in an Australian university program, and is undertaking study and receiving face-to-face instruction in their own country (China, in this case). This study involves a complex offshore context where relationships between the students’ information seeking and the local environments are to be investigated.
This chapter outlines the philosophical approach and methodological considerations taken into account in the collection and analysis of data relevant to exploring the students’ information-seeking behaviour in an offshore context. It shows the different approaches and their underpinning ontological and epistemological considerations in information-seeking behaviour research. It explains why this research project adopts a pragmatic mixed-methods case study approach to help explore the students’ information-seeking behaviour, and how local environments impact on their information-seeking behaviour.
The structure of this chapter is as follows. Section 3.2 explains the selection of a pragmatic approach in this study. It describes different philosophical approaches and their underlying ontological and epistemological positions in research, then discusses the middle position of pragmatism that enables the use of multiple methods to answer Chapter 3 Research design 49 the research questions. Section 3.3 discusses the use of mixed methods as an appropriate approach to conduct this research. Section 3.4 justifies the use of the case study method as a valuable research strategy in this study. Section 3.5 discusses the criteria used for sample selection and explains the strategies used for accessing the research sites. Section 3.6 provides detailed description of the two sites. Section 3.7 lays out the procedures used in the data collection using techniques such as a questionnaire, a semi- structured interview, observation, documentation, and a focus group. Section 3.8 explains the steps taken in analysing quantitative and qualitative data in the within-site and cross-site data analysis. In Section 3.9, research rigour in the inquiry process is addressed. Section 3.10 discusses ethical considerations, and Section 3.11 reviews the methodological limitations of this study. Section 3.12 is a summary.
3.2 Philosophical underpinnings for this research
Lester (2005) suggested that clarifying a researcher’s philosophical stance is important, as the philosophical stance informs the researcher’s world view and assumptions about the nature of reality and knowledge. Their world view and assumptions influence the choice of a particular research paradigm or approach researchers use to guide their way of defining and solving problems in their research. The research approach in turn shapes the research design in terms of research strategies, data collection and analysis, and affects the research outcome of a study. The choice of the research approach depends on the discipline(s) in which the research is located, the world views of the researchers, the purpose and the contexts of the research and the questions addressed (Punch, 2009). Across disciplines, there are different beliefs about reality (ontology) and how knowledge is generated (epistemology) and the various world views form ‘a basic set of beliefs’ (paradigm) that guide disciplined research (Guba, 1990, p. 17). In this section, I examine three paradigms: positivism, interpretivism and pragmatism.
Positivism refers to ‘a philosophy of science that rejects metaphysical speculation in favour of systematic observation using the human senses’ (Blaikie, 2004, p. 837). Positivism is of the view that reality exists independently of the human mind. Robson (2002, p. 99) explains that reality, in a positivist’s world view, ‘consists of properties of things, categorised as variables (e.g. age, genders, etc.) that can be measured and compared’. From the positivists’ perspectives, reality can be described and explained by scientific methods using precise measures and strict procedures. Positivism is characterised by the principles of replication, verification and generalisation. The Chapter 3 Research design 50 fundamental assumption of positivism is that all propositions—in order for them to be meaningful—must be reducible to ‘objective knowledge’ (Robson, 2002, p. 20). In the view of positivist researchers, the purpose of science is to find and develop universal laws. In search of universal generalisations, positivists believe in the importance of replicating existing studies. Based on repeated experiments, the findings of science can then be inferred or generalised to other contexts.
In contrast, interpretivist researchers believe that reality is socially constructed (Neuman, 2004). According to Hurworth (2005), interpretivism is about ‘contextualized meaning involving a belief that reality is socially constructed, filled with multiple meanings and interpretations, and that emotions are involved’ (p. 210). Reality is subjective, as people view the world differently based on their own culture, values and beliefs. Therefore, multiple perspectives of reality exist. People’s perception of reality may change in response to their interactions with the social world (Neuman, 2004). Interpretivists emphasise the importance of interpreting reality based on the culture, context and experiences of the individuals (Willis, 2007). Interpreting reality requires the researchers to see, experience and provide a rich description of the phenomenon in its natural environment and seek an interpretive understanding of human experience (Johnson & Onwuegbuzie, 2004).
A third approach—pragmatism—is itself a school of philosophy theorising meaning, knowledge and truth, especially associated with Charles Sanders Peirce, William James and John Dewey (Blackburn, 2005). For pragmatist researchers, the acquisition of knowledge is a process of inquiry (Biesta & Burbules, 2003). According to Biesta and Burbules (2003), Dewey believed that experience is the interaction between the human being and the environment.
James (1981, p. 9) emphasised that philosophical inquiry needed to be rooted in concrete experience and its consequences. In practice, pragmatists accept ‘singular and multiple realities that are open to empirical research’ (Feilzer, 2010, p. 7). Pragmatism does not tie in with any methods (Leech, 2010). The principle of pragmatism is that it allows a researcher to adopt a pragmatic approach using the combination or mixture of methods and procedures that ‘works best for answering research questions’ from different perspectives (Johnson & Onwuegbuzie, 2004, p. 16).
Chapter 3 Research design 51
Of these paradigms I investigated, the one that is particularly relevant to this study is pragmatism. The choice of a pragmatic approach for this study is based on the understanding of pragmatism as a useful lens to understand the students’ information- seeking behaviour as I intended to conduct the investigation in their own environment and from their multiple perspectives (Feilzer, 2010). Founded on Dewey’s philosophical work and using a pragmatic approach, this study seeks to explore and understand the students’ information-seeking behaviour in their individual environments. From hereon, the term ‘pragmatic’ is used to mean, in a broad sense, pragmatic considerations in using the most appropriate methods based on the purpose of research, the research questions and situation at hand in the real-world research (Bryman, 2008a; Duram, 2010). In order to choose the appropriate methods to answer the research questions, it is important to know the characteristics of different methods of research, such as quantitative, qualitative and mixed-methods (Johnson & Onwuegbuzie, 2004). The following section 3.3 discusses some of the major methods used in information behaviour research.
3.3 Methods in information behaviour research
This study belongs to the field of information behaviour research, a field that draws on the work of multiple disciplines: education, sociology, computing, mass communication and psychology (Wilson & Walsh, 1996). This topic ‘Information Seeking and Use of Chinese Offshore Students Studying in Australian University Programs’ is new within a specific context. There is very limited research done in the same topic to the best of my understanding. As such to select the most appropriate research methods, I examine the related research methods in the field. There are multiple research methods are used in the field, including the traditional quantitative and qualitative methods (Williamson, 2002), as well as the emerging mixed-methods approach (Alise & Teddlie, 2010; Johnson & Onwuegbuzie, 2004). This section discusses the use of the traditional quantitative and qualitative approaches in information behaviour research, and then describes the emerging mixed-methods approach and explains why the latter has been chosen to help explore the students’ information seeking and use in this study.
3.3.1 Quantitative research
Quantitative research refers to ‘approaches to empirical inquiry that collect, analyse, and display data in numerical rather than narrative form’ (Donmoyer, 2008, p. 714). Chapter 3 Research design 52
Quantitative research is an objective approach to inquiry using standard quantitative methods to explain the relationships between variables with the aim of developing universal knowledge. In practice, quantitative research focuses on testing theories and hypotheses based on the analysis of numerical data gathered from experiments or standardised instruments (Pickard, 2007). Quantitative studies are used, for example, to quantify or measure a concept, to discover the frequency of behaviour, or to compare attitudes. The strength of quantitative research is generalisability when based on research using a large carefully selected samples and its ability to demonstrate general characteristics of the phenomenon under investigation (Johnson & Onwuegbuzie, 2004). The use of standardised questionnaires or experiments makes it less time-consuming to collect and analyse numerical data. However, quantitative research only shows a static view of human behaviour in social life (Bryman, 2008a). It reveals the overall attitude of the participant at a particular point in time, but gives little information about contextual factors that have effects on participants (Haynes, 2004).
3.3.2 Qualitative research
Qualitative research is often exploratory in nature often using an interpretive approach to understand human experiences from the participants’ perspectives (Silverman, 2010). The purpose of qualitative research is to gain in-depth understanding about how people perceive the world around them. Qualitative research is useful for generating a theory or model grounded in data gathered from interview, observation and other qualitative techniques (Huberman & Miles, 2002). The use of methods such as personal interviews and unobtrusive observations offers researchers an opportunity to hear the voices of the participants and to obtain individual accounts of experience and context from the participants’ perspectives (Creswell, 2007). However, as Johnson and Onwuegbuzie (2004) point out it can be very time-consuming to collect and analyse narrative data. In qualitative research, researchers need to recognise and guard against their own bias, and be reflective about their work. Qualitative research results and findings may be unique to the individuals in the study and may not be able to be generalised to other people.
Understandably, quantitative and qualitative research methods are polarised in their approaches towards disciplinary inquiries. Each has its own strengths and weaknesses in providing information to answer research questions from different perspectives. Silverman (2010) suggested that researchers need to choose methods that are appropriate to the research topic and need to think laterally to combine methods. Chapter 3 Research design 53
3.3.3 Mixed-methods research
An alternative to pure qualitative or quantitative research is a mixed-methods approach, using both quantitative and qualitative methods in a single study (Tashakkori & Teddlie, 2010). Mixed-methods research is ‘the type of research in which a researcher or team of researchers combines elements of qualitative and quantitative research approaches (e.g., use of qualitative and quantitative viewpoints, data collection, analysis and inference techniques) for the broad purposes of breadth and depth of understanding and corroboration’ (Johnson, Onwuegbuzie, & Turner, 2007, p. 123). The use of mixed- methods research allows researchers to employ multiple methods as an approach to solve problems in real-world research (Creswell, 2009).
The use of both quantitative and qualitative methods in the one study has been a research practice in ethnography, case studies and action research (Creswell & Plano Clark, 2011). The flexibility of mixed-methods research has been embraced in library and information studies (Becker, Crandall, & Fisher, 2009; Bishop et al., 2000; R. Fidel, 2008; Haynes, 2004; Kwon, 2008; Rowley & Urquhart, 2007; Solomon, 1997; Williamson, 2008).
Becker et al. (2009) investigated the impact of public access to the Internet and computers in public libraries by conducting telephone and web surveys of computer users at 636 public libraries, as well as interviews and observations within case studies. Their study found that mixed-methods research provides rich contextual data which enables a better understanding of how clients use the computers and the Internet in public libraries and the consequent impact on their lives.
Rowley and Urquhart (2007) reported on a longitudinal monitoring and evaluation study of student information behaviour in relation to electronic information services. That study highlights the benefit of using multiple methods such as questionnaires, interviews and focus groups to uncover the social and cultural aspects of information behaviour. Using mixed-methods research, Solomon (1997) explored the cognitive aspects of information behaviour by using interviews, content analysis and observations.
As an emerging method, mixed-methods research is not without its critics and challenges. The critics of mixed methods address the concepts, nomenclatures, and Chapter 3 Research design 54 philosophical foundation and research designs (Bryman, 2008b; Creswell & Plano Clark, 2011). For example, there is a lack of consensus among mixed-methods researchers on how mixed-methods research should be conducted (Leech, 2010). Creswell (2011) recognised the limitations of sequential and concurrent mixed-methods research designs (Creswell & Plano Clark, 2007; Leech & Onwuegbuzie, 2009; Onwuegbuzie & Collins, 2007) as they do not reflect many of the actual practices. Another approach proposed by Maxwell and Loomi (2003) is an interactive approach that considers the purpose of study, the questions, the conceptual framework and the methods and the validity issues in a research project. Their approach focuses on context, the process and the particular combination of qualitative and quantitative methods that may contribute to a research project. In this study, I adopted Maxwell and Loomi’s interactive approach, as it offers a holistic way of thinking about mixed-methods research.
In summary, quantitative and qualitative approaches have complementary strengths that can contribute to an enhanced understanding and diversity of views in a research project (Bryman, 2008a). Existing studies show that the application of a mixed-methods approach in information behaviour research is gaining ground despite many critics. Based on these understandings, I adopted mixed-methods research using a pragmatic approach as an appropriate framework to guide this study. Detailed explanations for the rationale of choosing mixed-methods in this study follow.
3.3.4 Rationale for using mixed-methods research
Teddlie and Tashakkori (2009) suggested that ‘the use of quantitative and qualitative methods is a choice, largely driven by the situation and the research questions…’ (p. 140). In this study, the reasons for choosing mixed methods are based on considerations of the purpose of the research, the specific research questions to be addressed, the offshore settings, ethical considerations, and the need for a better understanding of the students’ information-seeking behaviour.
First, this study seeks to investigate: (1) the way the students search for an information source; (2) the information sources they perceive as important; (3) how they access and use information sources for their assignments in the offshore context; and (4) how local environments impact on the students’ access to and use of Australian and local libraries.
Chapter 3 Research design 55
To address the research questions, quantitative data are useful to provide a general overview of information-seeking behaviour, such as frequencies and types of information resources used by the students for their assignments. Although a quantitative survey can yield a general overview of information-seeking behaviour, it does not hear the words of the participants, and thus only presents part of the story. For this study, qualitative interviews allow me to listen to the students’ stories in context and to gain insights into how and why different situations affect their choices of information sources. The students’ voice from the semi-structured interviews was given the most weight.
Second, Wilson’s general model suggests the need to interpret students’ information- seeking behaviour by taking into account complex personal, socio-cultural and environmental factors in the offshore context. Such multifaceted constituents and the relationships between students and their environments cannot be understood completely using either purely qualitative or purely quantitative techniques. For example, a quantitative survey can provide a general overview of students’ library use or non-use, but this would not be able to capture essential information about cultural differences in the interpretation of the library and its impact on the students’ library use. To solve this research problem, I used both qualitative and quantitative methods to help answer questions that could not be answered by either approach alone (Creswell, 2007). The use of multiple methods provides comprehensive, rather than limited evidence that may have been gained through one research method alone (Creswell, 2007).
Third, Bryman (2008a) suggested that pragmatic considerations, such as the feasibility of gaining access to sample populations, are needed in research. The reason for using mixed-methods research comes from operational and ethical considerations for access to the ‘hard-to-reach’ Chinese offshore students in widely separated geographic areas in China. In this study, the quantitative survey provides a means to invite survey participants to voluntarily participate in a qualitative interview.
This study adopts a pragmatic approach that supports the use of multiple methods in empirical research. I think that the use of a mixed-methods research approach enables a close examination of the students’ situations that impact on their information-seeking activities from multiple perspectives. In particular, it uses both quantitative and qualitative methods to explore the students’ information-seeking behaviour in an Chapter 3 Research design 56 offshore context. This helps unveil the interrelationships between the students’ information-seeking behaviour and their local environments.
In this study, research strategies consist of a case study using a combination of data sources such as a quantitative questionnaire, semi-structured interviews, observation and focus groups. As the initial inspiration of this study is to listen to the students’ stories in context, there is an emphasis on the qualitative study, the major source of information being from semi-structured interviews. The detailed research strategies are discussed later in this chapter.
3.4 A case-study approach
Yin (1994) described case study as a research strategy that involves an empirical investigation of a particular contemporary phenomenon within its real-life context, especially when the boundaries between that phenomenon and its context are not clearly evident. This study aims to understand the experience of information seeking from the students’ perspectives in order to provide better library services to support their learning in Australian offshore programs. It requires an in-depth understanding of students’ perceptions, knowledge and individual environments related to their information seeking for their studies. For an in-depth insight of the situation and local environments, I considered that it was important to use a research strategy that takes account of the context and the real-life situations of the students in their offshore settings. A case-study approach would be most appropriate for this study for reasons that I explain in detail below, after a discussion on the characteristics of the case-study approach.
3.4.1 Characteristics of a case-study approach
Yin (2009, p. 18) suggested that case study inquiry ‘… suits situations in which there will be many more variables of interest than data points’. The purpose of using a case study is to obtain a comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon under investigation (Merriam, 1998). In order to obtain a holistic picture, a case study emphasises the need for multiple sources of evidence to identify and explore as many variables as possible, and follows new leads that emerge during the investigation process.
Case studies have several important characteristics. First, a case study has a strong focus on context, paying attention to the conditions, environment and situations that surround Chapter 3 Research design 57 an event, an individual or an organisation (Hancock & Algozzine, 2006). Through the rich description of contextual information of the case, it offers a better specification of the original case and the development of contextual generalisations (Mjoset, 2009, p. 48). For example, Fidel’s (1984) case study demonstrated the benefits of using observation and interview methods in a case study to develop a comprehensive model describing patterns of searching behaviour in the online environment. Haglund and Olsson (2008), using observation and interview methods in a multiple case study, explored the information needs of young researchers. Their study showed that the researchers considered library use too complicated and relied on Google for immediate access to electronic information.
Second, case studies are recognised as a valuable strategy for examining the complexity of variables and paying close attention to the process and sequence of events over time in an investigation (Yin, 2009). Zach (2006) advocated the use of a case study approach in information-seeking behaviour research, as it can provide a much richer and more vivid picture of the phenomena under study than other methods. The case study researcher is interested in how things are operating and interrelated in the real world. Through a case study, researchers are able to explore the multiple dimensions of a phenomenon under study and identify the factors involved and the development of a situation in real-life situations. For example, Fidel, Pejtersen, Cleal and Bruce (2004), through interview observation, identified how multiple factors such as specific tasks, work procedures, and flow of information through personal networks, impacted on collaborative information retrieval in an organisational setting.
Third, case studies are a well-established research strategy that uses a number of data- gathering techniques, such as interviews, observation, focus groups and questionnaires (Robson, 2002). Being grounded in deep and varied sources of information, case study research can offer an enriched description of the phenomenon under investigation (Hancock & Algozzine, 2006). For example, Hyldegård (2006) used questionnaires, diary entries and interviews in a case study to explore the collaborative information behaviour of two groups of students in a group-based education setting. That study showed that collaborative information seeking in a group-based problem-solving project is a dynamic process, and found that, among others, cultural and contextual factors have significant influences on students’ engagement in the collaborative information-seeking process. Therefore, the use of a case study as a research strategy can help provide in- Chapter 3 Research design 58 depth understanding of the students’ situations and environments in this study.
In essence, the characteristics of the case study approach support the purpose of this study and the rationale for the use of a case study approach is discussed below.
3.4.2 Rationale for the use of case study in this research
In this study, case study research is an effective and valuable methodology for four reasons: First, with its contextual approach, the case study fits well with Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model, which emphasises the need to take account of an individual’s context in information-seeking behaviour research.
Second, the offshore setting (China, in this case), in which the students are situated, is a complex one, and a research strategy that allows an investigation to include as many variables as possible is essential to gain a comprehensive understanding of the local environments and their influence on students’ information seeking in the real-life situation. Through the use of case study, I can study the students’ information-seeking behaviour in its context and to understand the relationships between their information seeking and local environments.
Third, case study as a field research strategy provides the opportunity for the researchers to go to research sites, interact with the participants, look at their local environments and listen to their views in context. Through the interaction with the participants, their perception, thought, beliefs and approach towards information seeking will be unveiled. Through the site visits, I would be able to see the actual operation of the local libraries and understand the process that students take to gain access to information from a wide range of information sources. Through the case study, I would be able to gain deeper insight into processes and challenges associated with the students’ information seeking in their real-life situation.
Fourth, case study research supports the use of multiple sources of evidence (Yin, 2009). In a case study, researchers can use questionnaires, semi-structured interviews, observations, documents and focus groups in data collection. Through the use of these case study techniques, this study pragmatically explores a large variety of factors associated with Chinese offshore students’ information-seeking activities. It provides a holistic picture and an in-depth insight into the impact of local environments on the Chapter 3 Research design 59 students’ information-seeking process in China. Further, the research design, the study’s purpose, its conceptual framework, and the investigative methods used are responsive to one another, as suggested by Maxwell and Loomi (2003). A detailed discussion of these techniques is provided later in this chapter.
3.4.3 Rationale for using two sites in a case study
Case study often involves the study of a single setting or small number of individuals or sites (Eisenhardt, 1989). Within a case, there are sites, groups, places and persons that a researcher may observe (R.E. Stake, 2000). This is a single case study that involves investigations of information-seeking behaviour of offshore students, in one type of offshore program (i.e., face-to-face), at one Australian university, with data collected from two sites in China. In this study, I envisage that the choice of the two sites offers the best opportunity to show some general characteristics of the information-seeking behaviour of the students, as well as providing very specific information-seeking behaviour pertinent to the unique information environments at each site.
There are several pragmatic considerations in using two sites in this study. First, this study is interested in rich data and information rather than lots of information from lots of people that may not be rich. Second, the time and financial resources available for a PhD project limited the study to two sites. Third, the use of two sites allows me to have a backup in case one site does not work out or fails to provide the data needed for this study. Fourth, the use of two sites instead of one would provide more persuasive data to gain a better understanding of the students’ information-seeking behaviour in the different settings (Robert E. Stake, 2005). Therefore, I decided to use two sites as a means to examine how different contexts and situations affect the students’ information- seeking behaviour and library use at two sites.
3.5 Identifying and accessing the research site
Hancock and Algozzine (2006, p. 15) stressed that time and context are both very important in case study research in which the phenomenon is being studied in its natural context, bounded by space and time. This study was seeking to understand offshore students’ information-seeking behaviour and the ideal time was when students had had some experience in searching for information for their assignments—the second year of the offshore program. In broad terms, the context is that of face-to-face Australian offshore programs in China where the socio-cultural and information environments are Chapter 3 Research design 60 complex. I needed to identify a research site with purpose—the site must be relevant to the study and provide good opportunity to learn about complexity and offshore contexts (Robert E. Stake, 2005).
Tashakkori and Teddlie (1998, p. 76) defined ‘purposive sampling’ as the selection of individuals/groups on specific questions/purposes of the research in lieu of random sampling, and on the basis of information available about these individuals/groups. The techniques that I used helped ensure that the site met the definition of the students and fulfilled the purpose of this study. Several considerations were used in site selection.
To avoid the influence of possibly confounding additional factors such as differences in university culture, all the participants were associated with one Australian university and all participants conformed to the definition of the students in this study. The participants all fulfilled these criteria. They: were enrolled in an Australian university; had legitimate access to an Australian university library’s online resources and services; were located in their own country; and received face-to-face education from Australian lecturers.
To seek access to the target population and to identify participants, I employed a marketing and networking approach (Patton, 2002): I announced the project at relevant venues, such as professional committee meetings and the 2006 VALA conference to invite relevant parties to participate in the project; Based on the list of Australian universities offering offshore programs,6 I emailed the international students’ departments to invite their offshore students to participate in this research project; I also called and/or sent invitation letters to offshore program lecturers, offshore program coordinators and librarians in Australian universities for access to their offshore students.
After various efforts, little response was received and those who did respond also politely declined the invitation, citing various reasons. Among the responses, I sensed
6 Data source: Department of Education, Science and Training, 2006. Chapter 3 Research design 61 that there were concerns that the research might have an adverse impact on the joint ventures.7 Many Australian offshore programs are operated using different forms and formats, with the support of different library provisions (Gao, 2006). Given this complexity, it was not easy to obtain an accessible sampling frame for the Australian offshore program student population. However, through the various means described above, I was able to gain support from an offshore program leader for access to two groups of offshore students who met the criteria. At the time of this research, this Australian university only had these two offshore programs and it was very difficult to find other ones. Although there were many other Australian offshore programs in China, I was unable to gain access to any other programs. Thus, I took advantage of this offer of support and choose the two groups of offshore students from one Australian university, as that gave me permission to have access to the students.
3.6 Description of the research sites
In this study, the case study involved two groups of students at two different cities, Harbin (Heilongjiang province) and Hangzhou (Zhejiang Province) in two quite different regions, the far north and the south-east of China respectively (see Figure 3.1). A detailed description of the two sites follows.
Figure 3.1 Harbin and Hangzhou in China
7 For all the Australia Offshore Programs in China, each must have a legitimate Chinese educational institution as partner registered with the Chinese Education Department. Chapter 3 Research design 62
Harbin, China At Harbin, this was the first time that this reputable Chinese partner university hosted the Australian Master of Education (M. Ed.) offshore program. Harbin is the capital city of the Heilongjiang province in the far north of China. This region is an economically less-developed area than the coastal cities, such as Hangzhou. Internet penetration rate in Heilongjiang is below 23.9% (China Internet Network Information Center, 2010, p. 15). With China’s economic boom, the Harbin government has invested in partnership programs with international educational institutions, aiming to improve the knowledge and skills of higher education teachers to support the changes from a labour-intensive economy to a knowledge-intensive one (Gu, 2010). Accompanying this educational development, many Chinese university libraries are in the process of developing online electronic resources.
The library at the partner university had the major Chinese academic journal databases and thesis databases as well as a few English journal ones, such as Springer LINK (see Figure 3.2). The library online resources were only accessible through the intranet as most of the Chinese university students lived in dormitories within the university campus. However, since the students were directly enrolled with the Australian university; they did not have legitimate access to the library of the Chinese partner university.
Figure 3.2 Library databases at the host university library, Harbin
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At Harbin, 55 students enrolled in the Australian university offshore program and 46 of these students became involved in this research project. The students were located in different cities, counties or rural areas (see Figure 3.3). To illustrate the size of the area involved, it took more than three hours for me to travel by bus from Harbin to Shuangcheng City to conduct interviews and visit the local libraries.
Figure.3.3 Geographic distribution of the students (blue ‘flags’) in Heilongjiang Province
All the students worked full-time. A majority of the students at Harbin worked as university teachers or lecturers (one was an associate professor); some also had management roles and worked as head of a school in academic, vocational or educational institutes. There was also a high school teacher. Apart from a few recent university graduates, a majority of the students had returned to formal education after they had left school in the early 1980s. For many of the students, it was their first experience of Western education. Most of the students had limited English, but they had received intensive English language training before the start of the Australian offshore program.
In the Master of Education program, the students received face-to-face instruction from Australian lecturers. They attended two sessions of ten-day intensive training each year and the course was complemented by online study. Classroom instruction was provided bilingually and supported by a spontaneous English/Chinese interpreter who had a doctoral degree in education from an Australian university. Chapter 3 Research design 64
All course materials and required readings were in both Chinese and English. The materials were available both in print and online via WebCT, a course management tool that was also used in the offshore program to facilitate teaching and learning. Students were required to participate in online forums via WebCT. There were also four Chinese co-teachers from the Harbin partner university who provided support to the Australian lecturers and the students. The co-teachers worked as a cultural bridge between the Australian lecturers and the students during and after the class.
As part of the offshore program requirements, all the students had either broadband or dial-up Internet access from work and/or at home. They all had legitimate access to the Australian university library online resources and services, but none received any library induction from the Australian university library. They had, however, participated in a two-hour training session on using a Chinese journal database near the end of the M. Ed. program.
In the master’s program, study guides from the Australian university specified that students were expected to learn independently using a range of resources. According to the study guides, the master’s program was designed to draw on students’ work experience and to deepen their knowledge through critical and reflective learning. Students were encouraged to use what they learned to evaluate their own educational practices. They had the opportunity to define their assignment topic and were given the option of submitting assignments in either English or Chinese. Students received a non- standard testamur stating that the course was delivered in ‘English and Chinese’8 at the completion of their studies if they completed the assignments in Chinese.
At the time of this research study, the students at Harbin were in the second year of the M. Ed. Course and were doing their final assignment for that program. They were required to conduct a literature review in order to develop a research proposal related to current issues in educational practices. For this, they had to identify updated information relating to the topic and write their literature review using information from books, journals and databases. For the assignment, they were required to provide adequate bibliographic documentation and references to supporting literature.
8 This is a direct quote from the Course Guide of the Australian university. Chapter 3 Research design 65
Hangzhou, China At Hangzhou, an Australian offshore program—Master of Educational Leadership (M. Ed. Leadership)—was hosted at a well-known university. Hangzhou is located in Zhejiang province in the south-east of China. It is adjacent to Shanghai, China’s most economically developed area, a region where the Internet penetration rate is 47.9% (China Internet Network Information Center, 2010, p. 15). At the Hangzhou partner university, the library had the major Chinese databases as well as English journal databases such as Web of Science, EBSCO, JSTOR, Science Direct, SAGE, ProQuest Digital Dissertations, Scopus and Springer. However, only teachers and student members of the partner university could use the library. The students were directly enrolled with the Australian university and, as a result, did not have legitimate access to the partner university online library resources and service in Hangzhou. Therefore, these resources had little implications for the information-seeking behaviour of the students. Figure 3.4 is a screen print of databases available in the partner university library.
Figure 3.4 Library online resources in the partner university library at Hangzhou Chapter 3 Research design 66
At Hangzhou, 58 students enrolled in the Australian offshore program and 48 of these students became involved in this research; they came from ten cities in Zhejiang province, some distance away from Hangzhou city (see Figure 3.5). It took more than four hours for me to travel by bus from Hangzhou to Ningbo to conduct interviews and visit the local libraries.
Figure 3.5 Geographic distribution of the students (blue ‘flags’) at Hangzhou
All the students worked full-time. A majority of the students were in senior management positions in academic institutes or government educational departments: school principals, university administrators, government officials and CEOs. Some of the students who worked in government agencies did not have a library at work. Most students had limited English skills, but they had received intensive English training before the start of the offshore program.
In the Master of Educational Leadership program, the students received face-to-face instruction from Australian lecturers. Each year, there were two separate intensive face- to-face teaching sessions, each running for ten days. Classroom instruction was in both English and Chinese with support from a spontaneous English/Chinese interpreter, who had an Australia PhD qualification in education. At the partner university, there was a Chinese co-teacher who mainly provided photocopying and administrative support. All course materials were available bilingually, but in print only. The students received a password for access to the Australian university online library resources, but there was no library user training for them. Chapter 3 Research design 67
Similar to the offshore program at Harbin, study guides from the Australian university specified that students were expected to learn independently, using a range of resources. According to the study guides at Hangzhou, the master’s program was designed to draw on students’ work experience and to deepen their knowledge through critical and reflective learning. Students were encouraged to use what they learned to evaluate their own educational practices. They were given the opportunity to define their assignment topic and could submit assignments in either English or Chinese. Each student received a non-standard testamur stating that the course was delivered in ‘English and Chinese’9 at the completion of their studies if they completed the assignments in Chinese. In contrast to the offshore program at Harbin, WebCT was not used to support teaching and learning.
At the time of this study, the students at Hangzhou were in the second year of the Australian offshore program. They had already had some experience of searching information for their assignments. For example, an assignment in one subject required the students to find three to five articles from books, journals and databases, then critically review them and present a review paper of 2000–3000 words, with references presented in Harvard or APA style.
In summary, the two groups of students were highly comparable in respect of their group size (55 and 58 students enrolled in each program respectively); their subject fields (education); and course levels (master’s program). However, there were some distinct differences between the two groups, in their work roles (teachers and leaders); professional environments (academic institutions and government agencies); local information environments (Internet and local library access); and information skills training (presence and absence of training opportunity). The two groups provided an opportunity for this study to compare the information-seeking behaviour of the students in different settings. The two sites allow for the identification of new factors and can show whether other factors exist, as specified in Wilson’s model. They also provide an opportunity to identify any competing explanations and strengthen confidence in the research findings.
9 This is a direct quote from the Course Guide of the Australian university. Chapter 3 Research design 68
At both sites, the students were expected to learn independently through information seeking and wide reading. Library use and information seeking is an integral part of academic learning and research for the students at both sites. I anticipated the selection of the two sites was most suitable for this study given the nature of the two master’s programs chosen. An overview of the two sites is presented in Table 3.1.
Table 3.1 An Overview of the Two Sites Profiles Harbin Hangzhou Location of partner Harbin, China Hangzhou, China university A teacher education institute A teacher education institute covering covering education, arts, Profile of partner education, humanities, social sciences, humanities & social sciences and university natural sciences and medical sciences. natural science. It has two It has five campuses. campuses. Economically less-developed Economic environment Economically developed region region Information Internet penetration rate is below Internet penetration rate is above 45% infrastructure 25% Print collection and major Chinese journal databases and some English Print collection and major Chinese Library at partner journal databases (Web of Science, journal databases and English university EBSCO, JSTOR, SAGE, Science Springer LINK database Direct, ProQuest Digital Dissertations, Scopus and Springer databases) Australian offshore Master of Education Master of Educational Leadership program* Standard two semesters full-time or Standard two semesters full-time or Course duration equivalent. Maximum eight equivalent. Maximum six semesters. semesters. Six academic units, with four credit Six academic units with four credit Course requirements points each, total 24 credit points points each, total 24 credit points required required Two blocks of ten-day intensive Two blocks of ten-day intensive face- face-to-face teaching, supported by to-face teaching, complemented by online learning and WebCT; Course delivery online learning; classroom instruction classroom instruction and course and course materials in both Chinese materials in both Chinese and and English. WebCT was not used. English Assessment Exam, assignment, research paper Exam, assignment, research paper Second year of the Australian Second year of the Australian master Year level master program program Number of the students enrolled in the offshore 55 58 program Work roles Majority university teachers Majority educational leaders Australian university library online Australian university library online Library provision resources and services and local resources and services, but limited libraries access to libraries locally Library induction Nil Nil Information skills Two hours’ training on searching Nil training Chinese journal database Note: *Information about the offshore programs is extracted from the collected documentations, including Study Guide, Unit Outline and Reading Brick from the Australian university in this study (as shown in Appendix 11.7).
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The geographic distances involved and distinct environment differences contributed to the diversity of students. These helped to illuminate the impact of different environments on the students’ information-seeking behaviour. To cover the distances and collection of data from each site, detailed planning and considerations were needed as discussed in Section 3.7 below.
3.7 Data collection
This study was designed to provide a better understanding of the students’ information- seeking behaviour from multiple sources of quantitative and qualitative information from two sites. At each site, the data collection was conducted independently in order to obtain information from several independent sources: a questionnaire (Appendix 4), semi-structured interviews (Appendix 5 and Appendix 8), observations (Appendix 11) and focus groups (Appendix 6 and 7). The independent data collection was designed to allow for comparison of information obtained from different groups and different sources of information in order to identify how different contexts and situations contributed to the information-seeking behaviour of the students.
Because it was quite difficult to access the students in China, interview participants were recruited through students’ responses to an invitation in the questionnaire. The focus group participants were recruited through interview participants’ responses to an email invitation. The data collection timeline was arranged to fit in with their intensive training schedules, as shown in Table 3.2.
Table 3.2 Data Collection Timeline October Sites February 2007 April 2007 December 2009 January 2010 2007 Questionnaire Interviews Focus group survey; with the meeting with Harbin, Interview with students and representatives of China Australian Chinese co- interview lecturers teachers participants Focus group Interviews meeting with Hangzhou, Questionnaire with the representatives China survey students of interview participants
As noted that the data is collected in 2007, the information environment may change over the years. The collected data needs to be interpreted in the context of this study. It is important to note one of these two Australian university programs completed in 2012 and the other one continues to operate without much change. Chapter 3 Research design 70
In this study, the data analysis took longer time than expected due to a combination of reasons. First, as a part time student, I had to carry out all the tasks myself, including survey data entry, interview transcription and translation, and verification of interview transcription with the participants. Second, the slow responses from the interview participants delayed the data analysis process. It also took time to organise focus group meetings as the interview participants had already graduated from the programs and they were located in various cities in China (as shown in Figures 3.3 and 3.5). During this data analysis process, I maintained close communication with the participants as I needed to obtain their feedback on interview transcripts. Therefore, participants were actively engaged in the discussion of the preliminary data analysis results when the focus groups were conducted two years after the data collection.
For data collection, I followed Yin’s (2003) guidance on the best approach by an investigator in field research: asking good questions; listening with understanding; being flexible in taking up new leads in the inquiry process, having an in-depth understanding of research issues; and minimising bias. In order to ask good questions, I followed the process and procedures in questionnaire design, pilot testing the questionnaire before its launch.
In this research, the questionnaire was used to provide a general overview of the students’ information-seeking behaviour in terms of preferences of information sources, library use, perception of libraries and barriers to library use.
Semi-structured interviews were used to capture the students’ voices and their experience in the information-seeking process. Through this method of data collection, I sought to understand why students engaged in information seeking in certain ways.
In addition, observation provided rich information to contextualise the information- seeking strategies that the students used. This information helped improve my understanding and interpretation of students’ information-seeking behaviour in the context of local environments.
Finally, a focus group session was conducted with representatives of interview participants in each site. This method of data collection was used to seek verification of Chapter 3 Research design 71 collected data and preliminary findings from the data analysis. This also helped ensure the accurate interpretation of collected data from the multiple sources of information.
Details of data collection techniques used in this study are discussed below.
3.7.1 Questionnaire
A questionnaire is a formulated series of questions by which information is sought from a selected group, usually for statistical analysis (Trumble, Stevenson, & Brown, 2002). Covey (2002, p. 7) suggested that this is an effective way to gather information about participants’ previous or current behaviours and attitudes. Accordingly, the questionnaire was used to obtain an overview of information-seeking behaviour (e.g. preferences of information sources, frequency of library visits, types of information resources used) and general characteristics of the students (e.g. age, gender and whether the participant was a library user or a non-user).
Steps taken in developing the questionnaire followed the suggestions given by Pickard (2007, p. 184) and included the following: Development of a list of questions for the participants based on a literature review and the project’s research questions; Design of closed questions and scaling of items; Translation of the questionnaire into Chinese; Verification of the bilingual questionnaire with an official translation agency in China; A pre-test of the bilingual questionnaire; Revision of the questionnaire; Administration of the questionnaire onsite.
3.7.1.1 Questionnaire design
In this research project, multiple questions were used to ensure adequate coverage of different variables, such as types of library resources and services (Robson, 2002). The questionnaire also included the option ‘other’ to provide respondents with opportunities to include response options not considered by the researcher (Williamson, 2002).
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Robson (2002) pointed out that a good questionnaire should provide a valid answer of the research questions and should be easy for participants to understand and answer. In this research project, the questionnaire was designed to explore and understand the patterns of the students’ information-seeking behaviour. Drawing on knowledge from prior research, the questionnaire was developed to address the specific research questions and the issues identified from the literature review. The questions were structured in a way that would provide for a better understanding of information-seeking behaviour by the students.
3.7.1.2 Likert scale development
The Likert scale is a widely used questionnaire format developed by Rensis Likert (Fabrigar & Wood, 2007). It often comprises of a set of statements and a respondent is asked to give a rating about each statement in a scale (Spector, 1992, cited in Gliem and Gliem, 2003, p. 83). The Likert scale is one of the scales used to measure people's attitudes and how they feel and think about something. An attitude is a mental state involving cognitive, perceptual and emotional elements (Krishnaswamy & Kamath, 1995). Using a Likert rating scale questions respondents’ perceptions, for example regarding their perceptions on a proposal from favourable to unfavourable with no 'right' answer. The rating scale is therefore different from a multiple-choice question which is often used to test ability (Gliem & Gliem, 2003).
Other rating scales include the Thurstone scale, the use of ‘semantic differential’ approach, the Bogardus social distance approach and the Guttman scale (Neuman, 2011, p. 226). The Thurstone scale uses equal intervals (e.g. 1 to 10) on a rating system to measure an individual's agreement with a statement, but the scale is often time- consuming and costly to operate (Neuman, 2011, p. 231). The semantic differential approach uses polar adjectives such as "weak or strong," "slow or fast," and "bad or good", offering few or no alternatives for measuring people's feelings and a broad variety of attitude objects. The Likert scale is considered as a reliable and easy to use scale for capturing a wide range and diversity of attitudes, opinions and the descriptions of people's environments (Gliem & Gliem, 2003). Many questionnaire texts indicate that a ‘Likert scale’ is widely used to gauge subjective phenomena such as attitudes and beliefs, as it enables participants to indicate their level of agreement with a given statement (Pickard, 2007, p. 188; Robson, 2002, p. 293).
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In this study, to investigate the students’ information-seeking behaviour, it was necessary to understand the students’ knowledge of, and perceptions and opinions about, different types of information resources and services. I used a Likert scale questionnaire with multi-item measures to help measure constructs such as the students' perception of libraries (4 items), opinions about other information sources (8 items), and satisfaction with Australian university library online resources and services (10 items). The Likert scale questionnaire was used to capture the potential diversity of perception and opinions in order to provide a guide to the students' overall attitudes towards the access and use of libraries and other information sources for their assignments (see Appendix 4).
In a Likert scale questionnaire, respondents are often given a range of possible responses to a specific statement, such as "strongly agree," "agree," "neutral," "disagree," or "strongly disagree." (Oppenheim 1992; Neuman, 2011). The type and size of scale vary (Jamieson, 2008). For example, a Likert scale can be labelled in a numerical format, ranging from 1 to 99 points. It can also be verbally labelled with various textual options (e.g. "Excellent," "Good," "Average," "Fair," and "Poor"). Studies (Krosnick & Fabrigar, 1997; Jamieson, 2008) indicate that researchers generally find a response scale with between five and seven points the most useful.
In this study, the questionnaire was designed using the most common five-point Likert scale: ‘strongly agree, agree, neutral, disagree, and strongly disagree’ to assess students’ degrees of agreement to given statements. A five-point scale rather than a shorter or longer scale was used for a number of reasons. First, a shorter scale, such as dichotomous type of scale (e.g. "agree," or "disagree."); or a trichotomous type of scale (e.g. "agree," "disagree," and "don't know") would not allow the students to express their possible broad range of attitudes and opinions about the access and use of Australian university library online resources and services. Second, while a longer scale, such as a seven-point scale (e.g. "extremely important," "very important," "important," "neutral," "not important,” “not very important,” and “not extremely important") would have offered the students more choices, it would have taken longer and would have needed a more cognitive effort for the students to differentiate the more subtle differences between the scale points and to complete the survey. Krosnick (1991) cautions that longer scales can encourage respondents to choose extreme values thus potentially creating response bias and impacting upon the quality of the data. Third, I Chapter 3 Research design 74 considered the use of a five-point scale, recommended as an optimal length by Jamieson (2008), would help ensure the potential advantages such as allowing the students to express a manageable range of attitudes and increase their engagement in the survey without sacrifice in the quality of the data.
The use of a midpoint, such as "undecided" or "neutral" in a Likert scale questionnaire has been criticised for its potential to introduce a response bias, as the respondents may simply choose "neutral" to comply with a researcher's request to complete a survey (Krosnick, 1991; Dolnicar, 2013). In this study, however, it was crucial that the questionnaire gave a 'neutral' option to allow the students to genuinely reflect their state of mind as the students may not have any opinion (or, neither agree nor disagree) about the Australian university library online resources and services if they did not, or had not, used them, or they had no knowledge of them at all. This ‘midpoint’ option was necessary to help reduce the number of uninformed or guessing responses and to enhance the quality of the data. Without the 'neutral' option, the students could have been forced to opt for either a positive or a negative agreement, which could compromise the quality of the data.
Further, to explore the students’ opinions about various information sources, the questionnaire provided the choices ‘very important, important, neutral, less important, and not important’. Thus, Likert scales are a suitable form of data collection for the purpose of this study. However, where necessary, the survey form also considered questions that did not use a Likert scale. For example, the questionnaire allowed participants to ‘opt out’ (Iarossi, 2006, p. 61) and gave a ‘not applicable’ option if the participants lacked the required information. The questionnaire also provided the option "other" to allow the students to explain and give further information.
3.7.1.3 Translation and verification of bilingual questionnaire
Researchers (Halai, 2007; Li, McCardle, Clark, Kinsella, & Berch, 2001; Smith, Chen, & Liu, 2008; Temple, 2006) have discussed many challenges facing cross-language research. These include the cultural and technical difficulties inherent in developing bilingual survey instruments (Li, et al., 2001). This research project required account to be taken of language and cultural considerations, as the questionnaire was prepared in both English and Chinese, the primary aim being that the students were able to understand the questions and felt comfortable answering them. Chapter 3 Research design 75
In developing a questionnaire, Ivie and Czujko (2007, p. 79) warn that poor decisions about question wording, answer choices, and format could make a questionnaire difficult for participants to answer and the results difficult to interpret. To ensure accuracy of the concepts and library terms equivalent in Chinese, the questionnaire was checked by the Translation Department of Shanghai Library, an official translation agency in China.
3.7.1.4 Pre-testing questionnaire
Williamson (2002) emphasised the importance of pre-testing a questionnaire to identify any ambiguities in wording and concepts used in the questions. The questionnaire for this research was pre-tested with a group of offshore students from a site (Jiaotong University) in Shanghai, China that was not a part of the substantive study. In the pre- testing in December, 2006, the Deputy Director of the Jiaotong University Library helped distribute the questionnaire in hard copies to 30 master degree offshore students in the same class on the same day. The participants were anonymous and 21 completed surveys were returned. In the pre-testing, no reliability test was applied on the questionnaire as the quantitative data were meant to be used as descriptive statistics. The purpose of the test was to ensure the clarity and simplicity of the wordings and that the respondents could understand and complete the questionnaire in a short time. The questionnaire pre-test showed that the participants generally understood the questions and that the information being sought was available. The Shanghai participants were able to complete the questionnaire within 20 minutes. The questionnaire pre-test did, however, reveal that the term ‘interlibrary loan’ was not meaningful to offshore students as this library service was not available to them. The questionnaire was subsequently amended before it was launched with the students in Harbin and Hangzhou.
3.7.1.5 Administration of the questionnaire with informed consent
For this study, it was difficult to access the two groups of students: one located in the south, and the other in the north of China. My first contact with the participants was via their Australian lecturers, as no prior contact was possible or desirable due to ethical considerations. Before distributing the questionnaire, the background to and purpose of the research was provided to the students. All of them received an information sheet (Appendix 2) and participated voluntarily in the research project.
Depending on the purpose and content of a survey, there are many ways to administer it: Chapter 3 Research design 76 online, email, postal and self-administrated. Robson (2002) suggested that each of these might serve different purposes and reach a different population. For this research program, because it could have been difficult to access the students by mail or even by electronic means, I decided to administer the survey in class at the two chosen sites. The questionnaire was distributed and collected from the participants on the same day in the same class. This also had the advantage of ensuring a high response rate.
3.7.2 Interviews
Patton (2002) stated that the purpose of interviewing is to allow a researcher to enter into the other person’s perspective. The format of an interview might be structured, semi-structured or unstructured. The structured interview, with a fixed sequence of questions, is similar to a questionnaire survey (Williamson, 2002). In this type of interview, a researcher asks the participants the same questions using an interview schedule—a formal instrument that specifies the precise wording and ordering of all the questions to be asked of each participant (Pickard, 2007). Semi-structured interviews have predetermined questions, but the order and wording can be modified based upon the interviewer’s perception of what seems most appropriate (Robson, 2002). An unstructured interview has been best described as informal and in-depth but conversational in which general rather than specific questions are posed (Patton, 2002). The differences between structured and unstructured interviews are illustrated by Gillham (2000, p. 60), as shown in Figure 3.6.
Figure 3.6 Verbal data dimensions from unstructured to structured interviews
Source: Gillham (2000, p. 60) © Bill Gillham, 2000, 'Case Study Research Methods', Continuum, used by permission of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc. Gillham explained that a structured interview is similar to using structured questionnaires in an interview; semi-structured interviews use both open and closed questions; while an unstructured interview is like natural conversation that explores information in all necessary dimensions (Gillham, 2000, p. 60). Chapter 3 Research design 77
3.7.2.1 Rationale for using semi-structured interviews
For this study, the structured interviews with pre-defined questions may have restricted what the participants could freely explain about their information-seeking experience, and if these approaches were used, it may have been very difficult to fully explore and understand the students’ information-seeking behaviour. On the other hand, unstructured interviews would have allowed the participants to describe their experiences in their own way and give them total flexibility to provide answers based on their level of knowledge and the individual environments. This could have made the comparison between groups difficult and would not have been suitable for this study. In semi-structured interviews, the researchers set the agenda of questions, but the wording and the order of the questions may be modified to take up the new leads in the interview process (Kvale & Flick, 2007). In the meantime, participants are allowed to deviate, gather their thoughts and give their answers on their own terms.
The benefits of semi-structured interviews in information-seeking behaviour research are outlined in a study conducted by Dagli (2004). That study explored the cultural and information needs of multilingual graduate students in web-based learning contexts. Dagli (2004, p. 61) showed that semi-structured interviews help ‘guide the focus of participants’ responses toward culture and its impacts on information needs in web- based learning contexts’.
Ayres (2008, p. 811) suggested that semi-structured interviews are especially useful in research questions where the concepts and relationships among them are relatively well understood. For the purposes of this research, semi-structured interviews were a useful way to understand the socio-cultural contexts, information environment, user perceptions, knowledge and information behaviour of participants. Through the use of semi-structure interview technique, I would be able to question further whenever answers were unclear, or doubtful, or needed more clarification. I would be able to modify and adjust questions as appropriate in response to different situations, as no two cases are identical (Hancock & Algozzine, 2006, p. 57). This approach therefore permitted deeper exploration of cognitive thinking, user perceptions and other factors inherent in the students’ information-seeking behaviour. Chapter 3 Research design 78
3.7.2.2 Conducting interviews
For this study, I developed a written interview guide in advance, based on the research questions and the general model of information behaviour (Wilson & Walsh, 1996). The interview guide included a list of topics to be covered (Appendix 5). Through the use of a topic-guide, I would be able to carefully decide how best to use the given time the interviewee can make available. I checked and confirmed the interview times and venues with all the interviewees before I arranged the travel schedules. The interviews were conducted at places agreed to by the participants, including their offices, faculty boardroom, classroom, library, computer room, local university library and in university on-campus hotel accommodation.
As I needed to travel to China to conduct interviews with the students in different locations, I had to plan and allow for any unexpected delays or withdrawals. To allow the participants to make informed decisions, I emailed the prospective interviewees a copy of an information sheet about this study (Appendix 2), a consent form (Appendix 3) and a topic list (Appendix 5). Students were free to withdraw at any time if they were not comfortable with the interview. However, I was careful not to give too much detail of the purpose of the research that might have induced participant bias. Because I am originally from China and shared the same educational and cultural background with the participants, rapport and trust were developed through emails, conversation and social activities after the class. Many participants were happy for me to visit their workplaces to conduct interviews where this was feasible.
I explained the purpose of the interview and asked for permission for each participant to tape-record the interview. Each participant then signed the consent form before the interview began. The interviews were recorded as fully as possible by using two recording devices (MP 4 and Sony Tape Recorder), and were conducted in Chinese so that the participants could speak in their native language and provide as much data as they wished, to give a better appreciation of their experience.
Although the semi-structured interview had a topic guide, I was flexible and made changes to the order and wording of the questions based on the participants’ responses, then probed to maintain a degree of relevance to the topic. As the interview went deeper, participants talked more freely about information searching for their self- Chapter 3 Research design 79 defined assignment topics and the conversation became more unstructured, as they were telling stories in their own ways. For example, participants explained their pragmatic reasons for choosing a work-related assignment topic as they had information from a current project at work and they were keen to see how the Western practices they learned could be applied to the Chinese educational practices in their own schools. During the interview process, I maintained constant attention to the content and modified questions in response to new information leads and the students’ situations.
The interview length varied between 20 minutes and 90 minutes. One interview lasted only 20 minutes because the participant had to leave after receiving an urgent call. Some interviews went longer than expected as some participants also showed me how they accessed and searched library online information from their office desks. I also interviewed three Australian lecturers and two Chinese co-teachers to obtain a deeper understanding of the educational environment of the students (Appendix 8). The information from the semi-structured interviews with Australian lecturers and Chinese co-teachers allowed the researcher to obtain background information about the operation of the offshore programs, such as the role of the Chinese co-teachers and the teaching activities and teaching techniques used by the Australian lecturers. Information gathered from the interviews was incorporated in the discussion.
In this study, the use of semi-structured interviews provided not just answers for the questions, but also the contexts for the answers. It offered a level of consistency to allow comparison of the answers of different groups of individuals to the same questions. It also helped maximise the opportunity to obtain relevant information within a limited timeframe. However, despite much careful preparation and planning, there were still occasions when an interview was cut short when the participants needed to respond to urgent issues at work or to change interview times at short notice.
3.7.3 Observation
Observation was used as a part of the data collection process in this research. Bryman (2008a) stated that data collection is not just about people, but also includes contexts and environments, and that observation can uncover the ways different elements of a social system (values, beliefs, behaviour and so on) interconnect. He further suggested the usefulness of recording, in as much detail as possible, the behaviour of participants with the aim of developing a narrative account of that behaviour. Onsite observations Chapter 3 Research design 80 provide rich detail and in-depth insight into situations and the local environments that cannot be uncovered in the standardised questionnaire survey.
In this study, observations made during the site visits allowed me to enter, experience, and share the perceived worlds of the participants situated in their particular professional, socio-cultural and information environments. The observational process provided rich information of different local environments about levels of library access, Internet access, students’ actions and reactions to the information skills and library training in the local setting. In this study, observations and field notes were used to describe the classroom activities and the setting in which the students conducted information searches. A classroom observation offered me an opportunity to observe how the students learned to use the library journal databases in their local library setting. During the classroom observation, I sat at the side of the class observing the classroom interaction between the teachers and students. I made notes about the students’ interest, their engagement in the information skills training session and the questions they asked.
Observations at interview sites helped develop an understanding of different professional environments, the computing facilities and Internet technologies available to the students in their individual locations. Field notes were taken during some escorted library visits. All these observations gave a deeper understanding of the local information environment and provided some critical contextual data, essential for the interpretation of students’ library and/or non-library use behaviour.
3.7.4 Focus groups
A focus group is a data collection technique that allows the researchers to gather information from a small group six to twelve people in a group discussion setting (Neuman, 2004, p. 319). Focus group discussion provides an opportunity for participants to voice their views freely. In this research, it is important to understand cultural differences to avoid substantive misinterpretation. A researcher might not interpret a participant’s answers to the questions correctly. Therefore, in this study, focus groups were used to validate data and to seek confirmation that the findings are congruent with the views of the participants (Appendix 7) resulting from the earlier use of other data collection methods, such as the questionnaire and individual interviews (Johnson & Turner, 2003). Chapter 3 Research design 81
To achieve interpretive rigour, the data analysis results and preliminary data analysis results were discussed and verified by 11 participants involved in previous interviews at two focus group meetings. In planning these meetings, I emailed the interview participants and explained the purpose of the focus groups and sought their support and participation in the discussion. Thirteen participants agreed to participate, but only 11 participants could attend and two did not attend due to unexpected work commitments.
At Harbin, focus group meetings were conducted in one participant’s faculty meeting room on 7 December 2009 (Appendix 11.4), and at Hangzhou in one participant’s office on 11 January 2010 (Appendix 11.6) respectively. Before the focus group meeting started, all the participants signed the focus group consent form (Appendix 6). At the focus group meeting, the participants discussed the preliminary findings from the data analysis. Both focus group meetings were tape recorded with the participants’ consent. At Harbin, six participants attended the focus group meeting, which lasted for two hours. At Hangzhou, the focus group meeting was attended by five participants and lasted for one and a half hours.
The feedback from the focus groups confirmed the preliminary findings from the data analysis. For example, the participants in Hangzhou confirmed that none of them had used the Australian university library online resources and services. They thought that the Australian university libraries should provide user training to the students. The participants in Harbin stated that it was pity that ‘they could not use the library at the partner universities in China.’ The extract of relevant comments from the focus group meetings is presented in Appendix 7.1 for the Harbin group and Appendix 7.2 for the Hangzhou group. Focus group feedback helped to confirm results.
3.8 Data analysis
In this study, the case is singular, but it has two sites and each site may have its own contexts (Robert E. Stake, 2005). The study of a case is about knowing the ‘site’ – the context, the settings, the situations and the individuals to gain a better understanding of the case as a whole (Miles & Huberman, 1994, p.27). In this study, the data analysis seeks to examine how different situations and environments affect the Student’s information seeking and library use at two sites. Data gathered from the two sites are analysed by using the within and cross-site analysis techniques as suggested by Miles Chapter 3 Research design 82 and Huberman (1994). Through the within and cross-site analysis, potential themes and relationships between factors begin to emerge (Eisenhardt, 1989, p. 541). The existing literature (Ash et al., 2003; Samuelson, 2013) indicated that using within and cross-site analysis techniques in a single case study could provide fruitful results and in-depth understanding of the phenomenon under investigations. I envisage that using within and cross-site analysis to explore the unique contexts, stories and issues in individual sites will lead to a better understanding of the students’ information-seeking behaviour and related factors as a whole.
In this case study, data analysis follows several stages. First, at each site, the quantitative and qualitative data were analysed separately. Second, the general overview of students’ information-seeking behaviour and the contextual account from the students’ perspectives were developed and examined. Third, within-site analysis was performed to identify any similarities and differences between the results of quantitative and qualitative strands at each site. Finally, patterns and influencing factors for the students’ information-seeking behaviour at two sites were cross-examined through pattern-matching analysis, comparing patterns of information-seeking behaviour and their causes for both locations. This approach followed the logic of pattern-matching analysis in a case study suggested by Yin (2009). The following Sub-sections 3.8.1 to 3.8.3 discuss the data analysis techniques used in this study.
3.8.1 Quantitative data analysis
For this study, quantitative data analysis followed standard statistical procedures: data coding, then frequency analysis. Data coding is a procedure used to transform raw data into a standardised format for data analysis purposes (Pickard, 2007), and for quantitative data, coding involves assigning numerical values to categories or choices (Robson, 2002). Frequency analysis is a basic statistical analysis tool used to calculate and present the data as a frequency distribution; frequency analysis here shows the number of responses to each of the questions in the questionnaire, and for library use and preferences of information resources.
Following the frequency analyses, the quantitative data were further analysed using cross tabulation techniques. Cross tabulation, also known as a two-way table, is a statistical tool that is used to analyse and understand how two different variables are related to each other (Moore, 2007. p. 160). In this study, the purpose of conducting Chapter 3 Research design 83 cross tabulation analysis was to understand any differences between the gender and/or age groups and other survey items. For the purpose of analysis, in the analysis of scaled items certain categories with small frequencies (less than five) were collapsed to increase expected counts (Babbie et al. 2013). For example, five-point scale items were collapsed into three categories only (e.g. combining Strongly Agree with Agree; combining Strongly Disagree and Disagree; and retaining the Neutral response).
The strength of association (written as r) between the survey items was analysed using the 2-tailed Cramer's V test. Cramer’s V is a way of calculating the strength of association between a number of variables consisting of both nominal and ordinal data, as suggested by Bryman and Cramer (1996, p. 192). Cramer's V varies from 0 to 1. The threshold for statistical significance (p-value) was set at p<0.05, as suggested by Babbie, et al. (2013, p. 280). Cross tabulation is summarised and presented in the tables in Appendices 14.1-14.4.
In this research, descriptive analysis of survey data involved the use of the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software to establish the patterns of information-seeking behaviour. SPSS, a computer software package for organising, analysing, displaying and summarising statistical data, is a widely used set of programs for statistical analysis in the social sciences (Robson, 2002) and includes many features such as data coding, recoding, data transformation and combining categories in descriptive analysis. In this study, SPSS was used to provide an overview of the information-seeking behaviour of the students by using descriptive statistical analysis and the graphical display of frequency distributions. The SPSS package is convenient for a series of instruments in facilitating data coding, data analysis and graphical presentation in the data analysis process (Wagner, 2007).
3.8.2 Qualitative data analysis
Qualitative data analysis is a reasoning process in which a researcher starts from the specific and concrete, then works towards the general and abstract (Pickard, 2007; Robson, 2002). To understand the students’ information-seeking behaviour and possible influences of offshore environments, Wilson’s general model of information behaviour provided a useful guide for analysis. In the general model, Wilson (1997) explained that the contexts that give rise to information needs can also be barriers to information seeking. These barriers are presented in terms of ‘intervening variables’: psychological, Chapter 3 Research design 84 demographic, role-related, interpersonal, and environmental (i.e. socio-cultural) and source characteristics (see Figure 2.2). In this study, the ‘intervening variables’ in the general model provide some guides to the process of data analysis about factors influencing the students’ information seeking.
In the data analysis, the process involved reading and reviewing the transcripts and identifying the key concepts, then data coding, pattern coding, memoing, generalising, and linking generalisations to the existing body of knowledge (Miles & Huberman, 1994). In qualitative analysis, data coding involved identifying recurrent words and key concepts by attaching tags and labels to groups of words, phrases, sentences, or whole paragraphs (Miles & Huberman, 1994; Pickard, 2007). In the qualitative data analysis process, memoing entails recording comments and reflections from the researchers; this helps to capture insight, ideas and intuitions at all stages of the analysis (Robson, 2002, p. 478). Memoing allows the researchers to move from concrete, empirical data to a more general and conceptual level.
In this study, data from the interviews were coded based upon the intervening variables of Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model and issues identified from the literature review. The categories in this initial list include:
Environmental factors—information environment, library provision, local library systems, information communication technology and socio-cultural environment;
Personal factors—demographics, perceptions, user preferences, cultural values, knowledge of information sources, information skill;
Role-related or interpersonal factors—work roles, interpersonal (e.g. peer interaction);
Use of information sources—library, people, the Internet, course materials, prints, other institutions; and
Barriers to Australian and local library access and use—language, time, Internet speed, library skills, alternative information resources.
As the data coding progressed, the concepts were augmented to include new concepts (i.e. guanxi,10 Western teaching methods and Chinese way of information seeking)
10 Guanxi is a special social connection, a social construct and a symbol of social value in Chinese culture. Guanxi, as a form of social capital, is an important personal asset that people can use to find help and information (Fan, 2002). Chapter 3 Research design 85 emerging from the interview data. The final list of factors was the result of a combination of ‘reflection’, ‘practical consolidation’ and ‘reconstruction of individual pattern’ of students’ information seeking (Biesta & Burbules, 2003)
The Chinese language interviews were fully transcribed, printed out and coded manually. The full text of the Chinese language interviews was then translated into English. The full transcriptions of the English language interviews were entered into NVivo 8, a qualitative data analysis software program that can be used to manage, retrieve and link interview data in a research project (Bazeley, 2007). The codes developed manually during the analysis of the Chinese transcripts were also translated into English and used to inform the NVIVO analysis identifying relationships between various themes arising from the interviews and other data. In order to provide evidence from the data to support the findings, I created ‘voice sheets’, as suggested by Williamson and Roberts (2010, p. 284). The voice sheets contained retrieved quotations which illustrated each theme with participants’ quotations or ‘voices’ and were used in the findings and discussion to provide authenticity and credibility. Examples of the voice sheets are shown in Appendices 9 and 10.
Merriam (1998) emphasised that ‘thick description’ is very important in case studies as it conveys a complete, literal description of the incident or entity being investigated. Merriam (1998, p. 211) explained that ‘thick description’ aims to provide a rich enough description for readers to be able to determine how closely their situation matches the research situation, and hence, whether findings can be transferred. Thick description allows readers to gain an holistic picture of the situation in the case study and thereby extends the reader’s experience (Merriam, 1998). In the analysis, I used observational field notes, documentation and photos from site visits to provide thick descriptions of local contexts.
In this study, matrix displays were used to link data and show the complex interrelationships of variables, as suggested by Miles and Huberman (1994). In qualitative analysis, I used a conceptual matrix to display all the related comments from the participants to ensure that the analysis was grounded in the experiences in the students’ real worlds.
Data collected during the field research included observation field notes (Appendix 5) Chapter 3 Research design 86 and photographs (Appendix 11). The information from these sources was incorporated into the data analysis to provide enhanced understanding of the information from the questionnaire and the semi-structured interview.
Finally, participants in the focus-group meetings helped to verify the collected data. The focus group discussion is used to better understand information and validate findings resulting from the earlier use of other data collection methods (Johnson & Turner, 2003). The tape recordings of the focus group meetings were transcribed, printed out and coded manually. The full text of the Chinese language focus group discussions were then translated into English. The full transcriptions of the English language focus group discussion were entered into Nvivo 8. The feedback from the focus-group meetings verified the collected data and confirmed the preliminary findings from the data analysis.
3.8.3 Within-site and cross-site analysis
Within-case analysis is the in-depth exploration and detailed description of a single case standalone entity (Eisenhardt, 1989; Paterson, 2010). It permits the researchers to gain familiarity with each site and the unique patterns that emerge in the process of data analysis. In this study, within-site analysis allows for a detailed exploration of individual differences and connections between factors in the students’ information- seeking processes in a given situation. As it is a pragmatic mixed-methods case study, the quantitative and qualitative data are analysed one after another at each site. The analysis provides unique insights from different types of data sources such as questionnaire evidence, interviews and observation data. For within-site analysis, findings from the independent analysis of the questionnaire and interview data were initially cross-examined to provide a coherent description from each site.
Mason (2002) suggests that the purpose of cross-checking results across sources or methods is to obtain a more complete account of the phenomena under investigation and their contextual information across participants. To conduct the comparison of information from quantitative and qualitative data analysis in the mixed-methods research, I used Miles and Huberman’s (1994) ‘conceptual matrix’ as a guide to develop a concept map. A ‘conceptual matrix’ involving the crossing of two or more main dimensions or variables was used to show how they interact (Miles & Huberman, 1994, p.239). Creswell and Plano Clarke (2010) also illustrate a useful matrix table for the Chapter 3 Research design 87 comparison of information from quantitative and qualitative data analysis in mixed- methods research. Using these guides allowed results from different methodological perspectives to be verified and to enable the identification of interrelationships between the students’ information-seeking behaviour and their personal, interpersonal, socio- cultural and information environments. The concept map links the quantitative and qualitative data analysis results in relation to the research questions.
Following the within-site analyses at each site, cross-site analysis was performed to examine similarities and differences across the two sites. Integrated results from both sites were cross-examined through pattern matching, comparing the students’ information-seeking behaviour and the underlying factors that emerged from data from both groups of students at the two sites. This comparison was made in response to the main research questions and sub-questions, aiming to examine whether the patterns and factors involved in the students’ information seeking identified from the within-site analysis extended across both sites. Comparison was made based on the same grounds with patterns of various influencing factors identified from both Harbin and Hangzhou. This was conducted by following the logic of pattern-matching analysis in a case study as suggested by Yin (2009). The rich and contextual information revealed through the within- and cross-site analyses helped develop a fuller picture of students’ information- seeking behaviour in their offshore contexts. Analysis and comparison procedures are shown in Table 3.3.
Table 3.3 Data Analysis Procedures Data analysis Quantitative data analysis with Qualitative data analysis with the aid of process SPSS NVivo Transcribing interview data, memo Separate Data coding; descriptive analysis writing, manual coding, thematic analysis, quantitative and thick description qualitative analyses Data display: frequency chart, Data display: table, diagram, matrix at each site contingency table display Cross-examine statistical results in quantitative analysis with themes identified in the qualitative analysis for within-site analysis Within-site analysis Data interpretation is made through the comparison and discussion of quantitative and qualitative data results from each site Pattern matching conducted through cross-site analysis of patterns Cross-site analysis revealed from the two groups of students Source: Adapted from Creswell and Plano Clarke (2007)
The data analysis process and procedures discussed above show strategies used for integrating quantitative and qualitative data analysis results to provide a holistic view of the information-seeking behaviour of the students and the local environments. Chapter 3 Research design 88
3.9 Research rigour
Research rigour is concerned with the quality of the inquiry process that results in valid, credible and trustworthy findings (Saumure & Given, 2008). Many approaches and mechanisms are available to ensure readers’ confidence and to ensure research rigour in the research process. In quantitative research, research quality is most commonly measured by the criteria of validity, reliability and generalisability, whereas qualitative research considers credibility, dependability, confirmability and transferability as the criteria of trustworthiness (Bryman, 2008a). Although the criteria for ensuring research rigour differs between quantitative and qualitative research, Giddings & Grant (2009) suggested that, in a mixed-methods study, both quantitative and qualitative rigour strategies work together to provide confidence in the overall integrity of a research project. Giddings and Grant (2009) further pointed out that "when qualitative and quantitative methods are mixed within a study, validation strategies differ depending on which paradigm the study is positioned within" (p. 120).
This study is mostly qualitative and seeks to understand the students’ information- seeking behaviour and the uniqueness of the offshore contexts from the students’ perspectives. The students’ voices from the semi-structured interviews were given the most weight (as explained in Sub-section 3.3.4) and steps were undertaken to ensure that the establishment of credibility, dependability, conformability and transferability was built into the inquiry process, from research design to reporting. At the same time, rigorous procedures were also followed to ensure reliability and validity in the quantitative research. Techniques included member checking, pre-testing of the questionnaire, an independent auditing of the interview translation transcripts and establishment of an audit trail, as recommended by Morse et al. (2002), Roberts, et al. (2006), Tobin and Begley (2004), Williamson (2002) and Yin (2009). The following Sub-sections 3.9.1 to 3.9.5 discuss how these strategies were adopted for this research project.
3.9.1 Reliability and validity
In quantitative research, "reliability refers to a measure's dependability; validity refers to its truthfulness or the fit between a construct and data" (Neuman, 2011, p.237). Reliability and validity are related to each other as a measure with no reliability at all cannot be valid (Krosnick and Fabrigar, 1997, p.143). Validity of a research program is Chapter 3 Research design 89 concerned with measurement validity, meaning that the instruments (e.g. questionnaire) consistently and reliably measure what is intended (Oppenheim, 1992). Reliability of measures is an important source of evidence when establishing the validity of inferences based on scores from measures (Heath and Martin, 1997). The reliability of a questionnaire can be assessed by its internal consistency reliability through statistical procedures like Cronbach's alpha, "the average value of the reliability coefficients one would obtain for all possible combination of items when split into two half-tests" (Gliem & Gliem, 2003, p.84). Other measures include face validity and content validity. Face validity addresses whether the survey instrument, on the face of it, could possibly capture the respondent's own conceptions; and content validity is about whether the questionnaire items can be trusted to be representative of the content they were intended to measure (Giddings & Grant, 2009). These can be assessed by a known expert in the field and established empirically by pre-testing the questionnaire.
In this study, several techniques have been used to ensure the development of a reliable survey instrument and to validate the result of the quantitative data. To strengthen the study’s rigour in eliciting good data from the participants, the questionnaire was developed in both in English and Chinese, and this was checked by an official translation agency in the Shanghai Library and pre-tested for its clarity and simplicity by a group of offshore students from a site in Shanghai, China that was not a part of the substantive study.
To ensure accuracy in data entry, I entered the quantitative survey data into the SPSS program and the data entry was checked by a Master of Accounting student at Monash University. At the beginning of the project, the quantitative data code book and spreadsheets were produced and presented to the research supervisors to check and verify missing data issues. The internal consistency of the questionnaire was assessed using Cronbach’s alpha. The alpha values for majority of the items ranged from 0.71 to 0.98 (as shown in Appendix 13), indicating modest to high reliability as suggested by George and Mallery (2007).
During the quantitative data analysis process, the results of the statistical analysis were presented to the supervisors. Extreme outliers and the statistical significance of various variables were checked and discussed. The preliminary data analysis results were also validated through member checking, as suggested by Williamson (2002). In addition, Chapter 3 Research design 90 the use of both quantitative and qualitative methods of data collection in a single study provides a way to ensure rigour in this research, as explained further in the following sub-sections 3.9.2 to 3.9.5.
3.9.2 Credibility
Credibility is ensured by ‘the methodological procedures and sources used to establish a high level of harmony between the participants’ expressions and the researcher’s interpretation of them’ (Jensen, 2008b, p. 139). To establish trust and confidence in the findings of a particular inquiry, Saumure and Given (2008, p. 796) suggested that ‘member checks can add to the credibility of qualitative research because they indicate that researchers have confirmed their findings with the individuals from whom they have collected the data’. In this study, to ensure accurate representation of the interview data, the Chinese transcripts were sent back to the participants of the semi-structured interviews for member checks. Focus groups were conducted with the interview participants at each site to verify the collected data and preliminary findings from the data analysis. The English translation of the Chinese transcript was also audited by an independent English/Chinese translator certified by the Australian National Association of Translators and Interpreters.
In addition, I used a lot of quotes from the interviews to provide credible links between what the participants said and the themes that emerged in the data analysis process (Jensen, 2008b). The use of quotations honours the participants’ voices and provides a measure of credibility to this research project.
Another measure involves using multiple sources of information to provide a more credible account of the phenomenon under investigation and contextual information across participants (Mason, 2002). In this research, multiple sources of evidence were used from the questionnaire, semi-structured interviews, observations, field notes and photographs to ensure credibility.
3.9.3 Dependability
Dependability is concerned with ensuring that there is detailed documentation of the procedures and research instruments to allow others to be able to collect data in similar conditions (Given & Saumure, 2008). It requires the researchers to clearly demonstrate Chapter 3 Research design 91 and articulate how the research methodology and implementation procedures were used to minimise bias and maximise accuracy. In this study, to strengthen the rigour in eliciting good data from the participants, the questionnaire was developed in both English and Chinese. To ensure accuracy of the concepts and that library terms were truly equivalent in both English and Chinese, the Chinese translation of the questionnaire was checked by the Translation Department of Shanghai Library, an official Chinese translation agency. To eliminate any ambiguity in wording and unclear meanings in the questions, the questionnaire was pre-tested by a group of offshore students from a different site in Shanghai, China: this showed that no major changes were necessary, and this established the dependability of the research instrument in this study.
3.9.4 Confirmability
Confirmability refers to the extent to which the data interpretation and results of the study align with the purpose of the research, and that they are free of researcher bias (Jensen, 2008a). A researcher should not allow personal values or theoretical preferences to influence the research and the findings derived from it (Bryman, 2008a). In this study, confirmability was addressed through an audit trail, as suggested by Jensen (2008a).
As part of the interview research process, the entire Chinese interview transcripts were translated into English and the English translation was checked by an English/Chinese translator who is certified by the National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters Ltd in Australia.
During data analysis, the interview data were coded manually and managed by using the program NVivo 8 and all data codes were audited by an independent NVivo Consultant. The audits were conducted in three stages. In each audit, all the bilingual data and analysis in Nvivo 8 was presented to the consultant at a four-hour face-to-face meeting. The first audit was conducted at the initial coding stage, in which the meaning of all the codes was discussed and verified. The second audit was conducted at the themes development stage, and the conceptual themes that arose from the interview data were discussed and verified. The third audit took place when the data links in matrix analysis were checked and verified.
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All the collected data and preliminary findings were discussed and verified through focus groups at both sites. Focus group meetings allowed me to explain the constructs and provided the interactive opportunity with the participants. Feedback from the focus group meetings helped achieve interpretive rigour in this study.
In the research process, I strictly kept all field notes, emails, SMS messages, photos, tape recordings, videos from focus group meetings, interview consent forms, data verification forms, findings verifications forms and collected data. All the collected data and data analysis were checked and discussed with the research supervisors. The preliminary data analysis results were presented for feedback in faculty research workshops.
3.9.5 Transferability
Transferability refers to the extent to which the research results can be transferred to other contexts (Jensen, 2008c). It is a process whereby the reader of research may make connections between the elements of a study and their own experience. The readers assess for themselves how the specifics of the research situation might be transferable to their own situation. Therefore, I need to provide a full picture of the context surrounding the research to allow the reader to determine if the result is transferable to their context. In this study, thick description was used to provide detailed information about the two sites, the profiles of the interview participants and the research design. This information will help readers to determine the transferability of the study (Jensen, 2008c).
While the research procedures and guides were rigorously followed, I remained flexible and continued to review literature when new information did not fit with the existing conceptual models. This ensured that all the emerging factors were investigated and explored carefully in order to develop a complete picture of students’ information- seeking behaviour and the impact of the local context.
3.10 Ethical considerations
Patton (2002) pointed out that the use of surveys and interviews in research is very personal and interviewees may have concerns about the consequences of the interview reports in different socio-cultural contexts. Because the research survey and interviews were conducted in the cross-cultural context of a joint-venture offshore program, special care was taken to consider cultural sensitivities, ethical issues and sampling techniques. Chapter 3 Research design 93
The survey and interview schedule were carefully planned before an ethical application was submitted to the Charles Sturt University Ethics in Human Research Committee. This application was granted with approval protocol number 2006/285 (Appendix 1). Ethical principles such as informed consent and confidentiality were also closely followed in the entire research. The completed research is reported truthfully.
3.11 Methodological limitations
In this study, the case study involved the students in their second year of master’s programs at two sites in China. The findings from these sites might not represent the views of all offshore students, but I strived to provide detailed descriptions of the two sites so that readers could relate them to their own experience.
Yin (2009) emphasised the desirability of an iterative approach at all stages of data collection and analysis to allow issues emerging from the study to be further explored and to develop a deeper understanding of the phenomenon under study. In this study, however, some inherent features such as the geographical distance between the two research sites, time constraints and the limited availability of participants prevented iterative data collection. There were no follow-up interviews, apart from follow-up discussion through emails and telephone calls. Looking to the future, a longitudinal study would allow for any changes in student information-seeking behaviour throughout the offshore programs to be investigated.
Another limitation of this quantitative survey is that it only provided an overview of students’ information-seeking behaviour. The cross tabulation analysis between the survey items revealed only that differences across male and female groups in their responses to the usefulness of library online resources and services (Question 5) and the purpose of using library online resources and services (Question 6) appeared to be statistically significant. This may be due to the small sample size used in this study, which led to many expected cell counts being less than 5 even after collapsing the five- point Likert scale data into three categories only (e.g. combining Strongly Agree with Agree and combining Strongly Disagree and Disagree, and Neutral responses). In future, a larger sample size may help support the cross tabulation analysis to detect any significant association between the survey items.
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3.12 Chapter summary
This chapter explains the philosophical stance that I adopted in the design of this research. Drawing upon knowledge from existing methods in information-seeking behaviour research, the benefits of using a pragmatic mixed-methods case study research approach for this study are discussed. The chapter argues that a pragmatic mixed-methods case study approach is warranted in order to effectively answer research questions about how and why the students search for information in the way they do. It describes how a case-study design and the use of mixed methods help enhance the understanding of students’ information-seeking behaviour and the impact of local environments in this study.
The chapter shows how I profoundly thought of the research questions before selecting the research methodology in the careful design of pragmatic mixed-methods case study research. Grounded in the principles of pragmatic mixed-methods case study research, this chapter explains methodological research procedures involved to set up and prepare for the data collection and analysis. This research reaps the benefits of both qualitative and quantitative research. This chapter discusses the various important considerations in establishing research rigour in the inquiry process.
After the discussion of the plan and methods used in the data collection and analysis, the next chapter discusses the actual data analysis. Chapter 4 Data analysis 95
4 Data Analysis
4.1 Chapter overview
As explained in Chapter 3, this is a pragmatic mixed-methods case study. This research program aimed to gain an in-depth understanding of information-seeking behaviour of the students and the influence of their offshore environment on how they searched for information for their assignments. For the purposes of this research program, both quantitative and qualitative data were collected. Quantitative data provide an overview of students’ information-seeking behaviour; the qualitative data provide contextual information about their information seeking. Qualitative interview data help to explain the nature, situation and reasons of the students’ use or non-use of the libraries in their offshore context. Together, the quantitative and qualitative data produce a comprehensive understanding of students’ information-seeking behaviour by taking into account the environmental contexts (Creswell & Plano Clark, 2010).
Following the methodological procedures outlined in Chapter 3, the questionnaire was administered at two sites, Harbin and Hangzhou. The questionnaire also provided an opportunity to further invite the participants to participate in in-depth interviews. These interviews were aimed at providing a richer contextual understanding of students’ information-seeking behaviour for their assignments in China.
This chapter describes the personal, interpersonal and environmental factors that influence students’ information-seeking behaviour, using a pragmatic mixed-methods case study. The study shows that the students engaged in both formal and informal information seeking for their assignments. Apart from using the traditional library resources such as books and journals, students largely relied on the Internet and other people as information sources. This chapter shows the complexity of the students’ information-seeking process and reveals the interrelationships between various factors and their compounding effects on offshore student information seeking.
This chapter also presents within-site and cross-site data analysis results from Harbin and Hangzhou. The within-site analysis for each site starts by reporting the quantitative data analysis results based on a quantitative survey, then outlines the qualitative data elicited from the interviews. The cross-site analysis of information from the data Chapter 4 Data analysis 96 analysis results from the two sites provides an enhanced understanding of the students’ information-seeking behaviour and the factors that influenced their information seeking.
The structure of this chapter is as follows. Sections 4.2 and 4.3 present the within-site data analysis results from Harbin and Hangzhou respectively, and these analyses aim to reveal personal differences and individual environments in relation to students’ information-seeking behaviour. Section 4.4 reports on the cross-site analysis of similar and significantly different data analysis results revealed from the two sites. It shows how the various environmental, personal and role-related or interpersonal factors impacted on the way the students searched for information for their studies. Section 4.5 presents answers to research questions. Section 4.6 is a summary of the chapter.
4.2 A Within-Site Analysis—Harbin
In the following data analysis, the quantitative data analysis of the questionnaire is given, followed by a qualitative data analysis of the semi-structured interviews. For the quantitative analysis, frequency charts are used to present an overview of the students’ information seeking. In the qualitative data analysis, thick description is used and photos and field notes from observation are included to produce contextually grounded findings.
4.2.1 Quantitative data analyses—Harbin
The questionnaire survey with the M.Ed. students in Harbin was conducted with the assistance and coordination of the Australian lecturers and Chinese co-lecturers at the end of a class at the host university, Harbin, China. The survey’s aims were to gain an overview of the students’ information-seeking behaviour as well as potential factors that influence their access to and use of various information resources and services. The questionnaire focused on the students’ perceptions of libraries, their knowledge of library online resources and services, the frequency of information access and use, their experience of library use and their user expectations. Details of the data analysis are presented below. The quantitative data analysis outputs produced by SPSS are provided in tables as they are presented and described in the discussion that follows. Note that in data presentations, percentages are rounded up to one decimal place. These data, presented in descending order, are ranked based on the total number of participants who indicated positive values (e.g. “strongly agree” or “agree”; “very useful” or “useful”) which is a more interesting comparison and the breakdown into strongly or not is of Chapter 4 Data analysis 97 lesser interest, as suggested by Robbins and Heiberger (2012, pp. 1060-1061).
On the day of the survey, 46 students attended the class and 41 completed surveys were returned. Of the participants, 25 (61.0%) are male and 13 participants (31.7%) are female. Three participants (7.3%) did not indicate their gender. Twenty-three participants (56.1%) are from the 26–35 age group, followed by nine (22.0%) in the 36– 45 age group and seven (17.1%) who were over 45. Two participants (4.9%) did not reveal their age (see Figure 4.1).
26-35 Gender Male Age 36-45 Female Over 45 Missing 7.3% 4.9% Missing
17.1%
31.7%
56.1% 61.0% 22.0%
Figure 4.1 Distribution of participants by gender and age—Harbin
4.2.1.1 Perception of libraries
In this analysis, I first looked at the students’ perceptions of libraries. In general, participants held positive views about libraries. The view of a library as a gateway of information gained the most support, with 36.6% and 51.2% of the participants who strongly agreed or agreed respectively. This is followed by 39.0% who strongly agreed and 31.7% who agreed that the library is an essential part of their studies. The library was considered a place for asking questions by 24.4% (strongly agree) and 43.9% (agree) of the participants respectively. Only 24.4% strongly agreed and 31.7% agreed that a library is a source of ideas (see Table 4.1).
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Table 4.1 Variations of Support to Different Views about Library in Descending Order—Harbin Perception Strongly agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly disagree
# % # % # % # % # % A gateway to information 15 36.6 21 51.2 5 12.2 0 0 0 0 An essential part of your 16 39.0 13 31.7 9 22.0 2 4.9 1 2.4 study A place for asking questions 10 24.4 18 43.9 10 24.4 0 0 3 7.3 A source of ideas 10 24.4 13 31.7 14 34.1 3 7.3 1 2.4 Other Seven participants (17.5%) made comments in the field ‘Other’. Note: # = number of responses; % = percent
With their answer of ‘other’, seven participants (17.5%) gave more details by saying that the library system was not completely automated, which made information search difficult and led to a lower usage rate; library was a source for online information; library’s role was diminishing due to the rapid development of electronic information and electronic books; library information infrastructure and facilities were rather inadequate in Harbin; library was a source of theoretical knowledge; library was a place for leisure reading; and that going to a library was a way to relax after work.
4.2.1.2 Internet access
For their studies, a majority of the participants (97.6%) had access to the Internet at work, while 85.3% of the participants also accessed the Internet at home. Survey results showed that 75.6% of the participants never used an Internet café, 70.7% never used a public library and 39.0% never used university libraries for Internet access (see Table 4.2). It appeared that local university libraries, public libraries and Internet cafés were used less as venues for Internet access.
Table 4.2 Venue Usage Frequency for Internet Access by the Participants in Descending Order— Harbin Venue Daily Weekly 1–3 t/m <10 t/s Never use # % # % # % # % # % At work 26 63.4 11 26.8 0 0 3 7.3 1 2.4 At home 14 34.1 18 43.9 0 0 3 7.3 6 14.6 University library 2 4.9 3 7.3 9 22.0 11 26.8 16 39.0 Public library 2 4.9 2 4.9 2 4.9 6 14.6 29 70.7 Internet café 0 0 0 0 3 7.3 7 17.1 31 75.6 Other Two participants (4.9%) made comments in the field ‘Other’. Note: 1–3 t/m = 1–3 times per month; <10 t/s = less than 10 times per semester; # = number of responses; % = percent Chapter 4 Data analysis 99
Other comments indicated that it was not convenient to use the Internet in the library. One participant even stated that he only went to the library for self-study during his school years and did not go to a library to search for information after joining the workforce.
4.2.1.3 Preference and use of information sources
The participants showed their preferences with regard to the use of information sources. The most popular information source was the Internet, which 95.0% of the participants used, followed by ‘library at work’, for which 75.0% of participants opted. Next was the ‘lecturer’, selected by 70.7% of participants. This result was close to ‘peers’ used by 67.5% of participants. The ‘local university libraries’ were used by 63.4% of participants (see Table 4.3). Table 4.3 displays the high percentage of participants who never used their Australian university library (61.0%), public library (62.5%) and other overseas university library (87.5%).
Table 4.3 Frequency of Information Sources Used by Participants in Descending Order—Harbin Information source Daily Weekly 1–3 t/m <10 t/s Never use # % # % # % # % # % Internet* 24 60.0 7 17.5 3 7.5 4 10.0 2 5.0 Library at work* 1 2.5 9 22.5 10 25.0 10 25.0 10 25.0 Lecturers 3 7.3 8 19.5 7 17.1 11 26.8 12 29.3 Peers* 3 7.5 8 20.0 7 17.5 9 22.5 13 32.5 Local university libraries 2 4.9 6 14.6 6 14.6 12 29.3 15 36.6 Australian university library 0 0 2 4.9 3 7.3 11 26.8 25 61.0 Public libraries* 2 5.0 2 5.0 5 12.5 6 15.0 25 62.5 Overseas university library* 0 0 1 2.5 0 0 4 10.0 35 87.5 Other Two participants (4.9%) made comments in the field ‘Other’. Note: 1–3 t/m = 1–3 times per month; <10 t/s = less than 10 times per semester; # = number of responses; % = percent. *One participant (2.4%) did not answer each of these sub-questions.
Within the answers given as ‘Other’, one participant explained that the library at work was just an information room for specialists. Another pointed out that there was no library at work.
In regard to preferences for an information source, 87.8% of the participants considered ‘fast’ and ‘close to home or work’ as the most important factor. This was followed closely by 85.3% of participants who selected ‘access at home at any time’. ‘Stable system and easy to use’ was supported by 80.5% of participants. ‘Familiarity’ was considered by 78.1% participants as critical in choosing information sources. Only 73.2% of the participants considered relevant materials and an opportunity for browsing Chapter 4 Data analysis 100 as important factors for choosing an information source. On-site support was considered an important or very important factor by 61.0% of the participants (see Table 4.4).
Table 4.4 Considerations Given by the Participants in Choosing Information Sources in Descending Order—Harbin Important features Very Less Not Important Neutral important important important # % # % # % # % # % Get information faster 22 53.7 14 34.1 2 4.9 2 4.9 1 2.4 Close to home or work 17 41.5 19 46.3 1 2.4 2 4.9 2 4.9 Access at home at any time 21 51.2 14 34.1 3 7.3 2 4.9 1 2.4 Stable system and easy to use 20 48.8 13 31.7 5 12.2 3 7.3 0 0 Familiar information system 17 41.5 15 36.6 7 17.1 2 4.9 0 0 Has relevant materials 15 36.6 15 36.6 7 17.1 4 9.8 0 0 Browse the books 12 29.3 18 43.9 7 17.1 3 7.3 1 2.4 Get on-site help 7 17.1 18 43.9 11 26.8 2 4.9 3 7.3 Note: # = number of responses; % = percent.
4.2.1.4 Perception and use of library online information resources
In respect of participants’ perceptions of the usefulness of various library information resources and services, ‘library catalogue’ was ranked as very useful or useful by 48.8% and 34.1% of participants respectively. This was followed by ‘databases’, which 41.5% and 36.6% of participants considered very useful and useful respectively. ‘Literature search’ was viewed as very useful by 39.0% and useful by 36.6% of the participants.
Compared to other listed resources and services, online technical support, online tutorials, document delivery and online reference collection were considered as less useful. Eight participants (19.5%) never used ‘online technical support’ and ‘online tutorial’. Seven participants (17.1%) never used a document delivery service, and nine participants (22.0%) never used the online reference collection (see Table 4.5).
Table 4.5 Usefulness of Library Online Resources and Services Perceived by Participants in Descending Order—Harbin Perception of library Very useful Useful Less useful Useless Never used N/A resources and services # % # % # % # % # % # % Catalogue 20 48.8 14 34.1 2 4.9 1 2.4 1 2.4 3 7.3 Databases 17 41.5 15 36.6 5 12.2 0 0 1 2.4 3 7.3 Literature search 16 39.0 15 36.6 3 7.3 1 2.4 3 7.3 3 7.3 E-Journals 13 31.7 12 29.3 9 22.0 0 0 4 9.8 3 7.3 E-Books* 9 22.5 14 35.0 9 22.5 2 5 3 7.5 3 7.5 Document delivery 8 19.5 12 29.3 10 24.4 2 4.9 6 14.6 3 7.3 Online technical support 6 14.6 14 34.1 9 22.0 2 4.9 7 17.1 3 7.3 Online tutorial 5 12.2 14 34.1 8 19.5 4 9.8 7 17.1 3 7.3 Online reference collection 6 14.6 11 26.8 10 24.4 3 7.3 8 19.5 3 7.3 Virtual references service 4 9.8 12 29.3 12 29.3 5 12.2 5 12.2 3 7.3 Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; N/A = Not applicable; *One participant (2.4%) did not answer this sub-question about E-Books.
Chapter 4 Data analysis 101
Regarding the purpose of using library online information resources and services, 85.4% of the participants needed to find materials for assignments. For 80.5% of the participants, the purpose of library use was to support academic research and to find answers for specific questions. For 77.5% of the participants, their library use was to read recommended material and for 75.6%, it was directed towards staying up to date in their field. To get material for an assignment, 43.9% of the participants used library online resources on a weekly basis. Three participants (7.3%) considered online library information resources and services as not applicable to their situation (see Table 4.6).
Table 4.6 Frequency of Using Library Online Resources for Various Purposes in Descending Order—Harbin Purpose of use Daily Weekly 1–3 t/m <10 t/s Never use N/A # % # % # % # % # % # % To get material for assignment 3 7.3 18 43.9 5 12.2 9 22.0 3 7.3 3 7.3 To support academic research 4 9.8 10 24.4 12 29.3 7 17.1 5 12.2 3 7.3 To find specific answers 11 26.8 11 26.8 8 19.5 3 7.3 5 12.2 3 7.3 To read recommended 3 7.5 13 32.5 10 25.0 5 12.5 6 15.0 3 7.5 material* To stay up-to-date in the field 5 12.2 10 24.4 13 31.7 3 7.3 7 17.1 3 7.3 Other No participant (0%) made a comment in the field ‘Other’. Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; 1–3 t/m = 1–3 times per month; <10 t/s = less than 10 times per semester; N/A = Not applicable; *One participant (2.4%) did not answer this sub-question.
Regarding access to online library resources, 65.9% of the participants accessed this information source from their library at work and 56.2% of the participants accessed it via local university libraries. Sixteen of the participants (39.1%) accessed this source from the public library. Twenty-five participants (61%) never used their Australian university library for online resources (see Table 4.7).
Table 4.7 Frequency of Information Sources Used for Access to Online Library Resources in Descending Order—Harbin Use of information sources Daily Weekly 1-3 t/m <10 t/s Never use N/A for online library resources # % # % # % # % # % # % Library at work 2 4.9 11 26.8 7 17.1 7 17.1 11 26.8 3 7.3 Local university library 2 4.9 7 17.1 5 12.2 9 22.0 15 36.6 3 7.3 Public library 2 4.9 2 4.9 2 4.9 10 24.4 22 53.7 3 7.3 Australian university library 1 2.4 3 7.3 3 7.3 6 14.6 25 61.0 3 7.3 Other overseas university 0 0 3 7.3 0 0 4 9.8 31 75.6 3 7.3 library Other One participant (2.4%) made comment in the field ‘Other’. Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; 1-3 t/m = 1-3 times per month; <10 t/s = less than 10 times per semester; N/A = Not applicable
One participant (2.4%) pointed out that the library facilities at work were inadequate.
For a few participants who accessed their Australian university library, 32.5% relied on Chapter 4 Data analysis 102 using its URL, while 31.7% accessed it through the library home page or the distance students’ web page. Students seldom accessed that library via the specific portals designed for international students, offshore students or faculty. Others either never used these access points or considered them as not applicable (see Table 4.8).
Table 4.8 Frequency of Access Points Used for Accessing Australian University Library in Descending Order—Harbin. Access points Daily Weekly 1–3 t/m <10 t/s Never use N/A # % # % # % # % # % # % URL* 3 7.5 4 10 3 7.5 3 7.5 9 22.5 18 45.0 Library home page 2 4.9 3 7.3 3 7.3 5 12.2 11 26.8 17 41.5 Distance students’ web site 0 0 3 7.3 2 4.9 8 19.5 10 24.4 18 43.9 My portal 3 7.3 3 7.3 2 4.9 3 7.3 12 29.3 18 43.9 International students’ site 0 0 1 2.4 4 9.8 3 7.3 15 36.6 18 43.9 Offshore students’ web site 0 0 0 0 1 2.4 7 17.1 15 36.6 18 43.9 Faculty web site 0 0 3 7.3 1 2.4 4 9.8 15 36.6 18 43.9 Other No participant (0%) made comment in the field ‘Other’. Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; 1–3 t/m = 1–3 times per month; <10 t/s = less than 10 times per semester; N/A = Not applicable; *One participant (2.4%) did not answer this sub-question about ‘URL’.
More than 68.0% of the participants considered the use of the Australian university library online resources and services as ‘not applicable’ to them. Only a small number of participants did use the Australian university library resources and they often experienced difficulties in using various resources. These included using the library catalogue, databases, literature search, E-books, document delivery services and E- journals at various times (see Table 4.9).
Table 4.9 Frequency of Difficulties Experienced by Participants when Using Australian University Online Resources and Services—Harbin Library resources and Most times Sometimes Occasionally At no time N/A services # % # % # % # % # % Catalogue 2 4.9 4 9.8 5 12.2 1 2.4 29 70.7 Literature search 3 7.3 2 4.9 5 12.2 3 7.3 28 68.3 E-Journals 2 4.9 4 9.8 4 9.8 2 4.9 29 70.7 E-books 2 4.9 2 4.9 6 14.6 3 7.3 28 68.3 Virtual reference service 1 2.4 5 12.2 4 9.8 3 7.3 28 68.3 Document delivery 2 4.9 2 4.9 5 12.2 4 9.8 28 68.3 Databases 2 4.9 3 7.3 4 9.8 2 4.9 30 73.2 Library online tutorial 1 2.4 3 7.3 5 12.2 4 9.8 28 68.3 Online technical support 0 0 3 7.3 3 7.3 6 14.6 29 70.7 Online reference collection 0 0 2 4.9 4 9.8 5 12.2 30 73.2 Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; N/A = Not applicable.
The following Sub-section 4.2.1.5 further investigates the barriers to the access to, and use of, the Australian university library online resources and services. Chapter 4 Data analysis 103
4.2.1.5 Barriers to the access and use of the Australian university library
Regarding the barriers to the access and use of the Australian university library online resources and services, 53.7% and 34.1% of participants, respectively, strongly agreed or agreed that ‘language’ was a barrier. ‘Slow Internet’ was strongly considered by 47.5%, or considered by 30.0% of the participants to affect their library access. The next concern was ‘time consuming’, which was strongly supported or supported by 35.0% and 37.5% of the participants respectively; further, 15.0% and 57.5% of the participants strongly viewed or perceived ‘a lack of technical support’ as a barrier. ‘Search interface’, ‘computer hardware’ and ‘software set-up’ caused similar levels of concern among 65.0% of the participants. Complicated use instructions were a concern for 60.0% of the participants. For 56.1% of the participants, ‘overcrowded web pages’ and their ‘own information skills’ were perceived as barriers. Half of the participants (50.0%) considered ‘delayed reply’ as a barrier. The ‘cost’ and ‘password authentication’ were ranked at the bottom of the list as barriers (see Table 4.10).
Table 4.10 Barriers to the Use of Australian University Library Online Information Resources and Services in Descending Order—Harbin Barriers Strongly Strongly Agree Neutral Disagree agree disagree # % # % # % # % # % Language limitation 22 53.7 14 34.1 3 7.3 1 2.4 1 2.4 Slow Internet speed* 19 47.5 12 30.0 5 12.5 4 9.8 0 0 Time consuming* 14 35.0 15 37.5 7 17.5 3 7.5 1 2.5 Lack of technical support* 6 15.0 23 57.5 9 22.5 2 5.0 0 0 Search interface* 7 17.5 19 47.5 10 25.0 4 10.0 0 0 PC software set-up* 7 17.5 19 47.5 12 30.0 2 5.0 0 0 PC hardware set-up* 6 15.0 20 50.0 10 25.0 3 7.5 1 2.5 Complicated use instruction* 7 17.5 17 42.5 15 37.5 1 2.5 0 0 Overcrowded web pages** 5 12.8 17 43.6 12 30.8 5 12.8 0 0 Own information skills 7 17.1 16 39.0 15 36.6 2 4.9 1 2.4 Delayed reply* 4 10.0 16 40.0 14 35.0 5 12.5 1 2.5 Cost 10 24.4 10 24.4 16 39.0 4 9.8 1 2.4 Password* 5 12.5 14 35.0 13 32.5 6 15.0 2 5.0 Other No participant (0%) made comment in the field ‘Other’. Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; *One participant (2.4%) did not answer these sub-questions; **Two participants (4.9%) did not answer this sub-question.
Apart from the above barriers, other reasons for the lack of use of the Australian university library online resources and services included getting information from alternative sources. Some 24.4% and 41.5% of the participants respectively strongly believed or believed that they could get what they needed from the Internet, and 9.8% and 48.8% of the participants, respectively, strongly considered or considered lecturers as information sources. The contention that a preference for print materials was one of Chapter 4 Data analysis 104 the reasons for the non-use of the Australian university library was agreed, or strongly agreed by 45.0% and 5.0% of the participants, respectively (see Table 4.11).
Table 4.11 Reasons for a Lack of Use of Australian University Library Online Resources and Services in Descending Order—Harbin Strongly Strongly Agree Neutral Disagree Reasons agree disagree # % # % # % # % # % Internet 10 24.4 17 41.5 13 31.7 0 0 1 2.4 Lecturers as source 4 9.8 20 48.8 14 34.1 2 4.9 1 2.4 Preferred prints* 2 5.0 18 45.0 16 40.0 2 5.0 2 5.0 Own adequate ways 5 12.2 13 31.7 17 41.5 5 12.2 1 2.4 Course material 3 7.3 15 36.6 17 41.5 4 9.8 2 4.9 Browsing shelves 3 7.3 12 29.3 19 46.3 5 12.2 2 4.9 Peers** 2 5.1 13 33.3 20 51.3 3 7.7 1 2.6 Lack relevant 1 2.5 3 7.5 25 62.5 9 22.5 2 5.0 information Other Four participants (9.8%) made comments in the field ‘Other’. Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; *One participant (2.4%) did not answer this sub-question; ** Two participants (4.9%) did not answer this sub-question.
Three participants emphasised language as a barrier; one indicated the need for theses, reports and literature in print form.
4.2.1.6 Perceived usefulness of various learning aids
For the question about the perceived usefulness of various learning aids, options were given. The top three answers given were ‘ask lecturer’, ‘peer help’ and ‘user guide’. These were followed by ‘on-screen help’ and ‘on-site support’. ‘Library online forum’ was ranked at the bottom of the list of useful aids to learning about the Australian university library online resources and services (see Table 4.12).
Table 4.12 Perceived Usefulness of Various Learning Aids in Descending Order—Harbin Very useful Useful Less useful Useless Never use Learning aids # % # % # % # % # % Ask lecturer 6 14.6 25 61.0 1 2.4 0 0 9 22.0 Peer help 11 26.8 19 46.3 1 2.4 3 7.3 7 17.1 User guide 13 31.7 15 36.6 4 9.8 0 0.0 9 22.0 On-screen help 12 29.3 16 39.0 3 7.3 2 4.9 8 19.5 On-site support* 11 26.8 15 37.5 3 7.5 2 5.0 9 22.5 Orientation training 8 19.5 18 43.9 4 9.8 2 4.9 9 22.0 Web-based tutorial 8 19.5 15 36.6 7 17.1 3 7.3 8 19.5 FAQ 7 17.1 16 39.0 9 22.0 1 2.4 8 19.5 Brochures 8 19.5 13 31.7 10 24.4 1 2.4 9 22.0 Ask a librarian 5 12.2 15 36.6 8 19.5 3 7.3 10 24.4 Library online forum 5 12.2 7 17.1 18 43.9 3 7.3 8 19.5 Other No participant (0%) made comment in the field ‘Other’. Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; *One participant (2.4%) did not answer this sub-question.
Chapter 4 Data analysis 105
When participants offered their views on various ways to better support their information needs, 70.7% and 63.5% of the participants respectively indicated the need for improvements in simplified access and document delivery services, and the need for information skill training was cited by 61.5% of the participants. Other electronic resources such as E-journals and E-books appealed to 58.5% and 56.1% of the participants respectively, and 48.7% and 46.4% of the participants, respectively, were interested in acquiring more textbooks and a full text database (see Table 4.13).
Table 4.13 Participants’ Expectation for Improving the Australian University Library Online Resources and Services in Descending Order—Harbin Participants’ expectation Strongly Strongly Agree Neutral Disagree agree disagree # % # % # % # % # % Simplified access 18 43.9 11 26.8 11 26.8 0 0 1 2.4 Document delivery 9 22.0 17 41.5 13 31.7 0 0 2 4.9 Information skill training* 11 28.2 13 33.3 13 33.3 0 0 2 5.1 E-Books 6 14.6 18 43.9 15 36.6 1 2.4 1 2.4 E-journals 5 12.2 18 43.9 16 39.0 1 2.4 1 2.4 Textbooks 6 14.6 14 34.1 20 48.8 0 0 1 2.4 Full text database 9 22.0 10 24.4 20 48.8 1 2.4 1 2.4 Other One participant (2.4%) made comment in the field ‘Other’. Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; * Two participants (4.9%) did not answer this sub-question.
One participant suggested the need for a multilingual library interface in the Australian university library.
4.2.1.7 Cross tabulation analysis
The quantitative data were further analysed by means of cross tabulation analysis and the significant results (chi-square statistics at a p level of < 0.05) were outlined in Appendix 14. The cross tabulations were conducted to investigate differences in perception, access and use of library online resources between males and females, and students of different age groups. Only the differences across male and female groups in their responses to Question 5 and Question 6 appeared to be statistically significant at p<0.05 level (as shown in Appendix 14).
Pearson’s chi-square tests were used to investigate whether there was any association between groups of students categorised by gender, age and their perception and use of library online resources and services. The Cramer's V was used to calculate the strength of association between the variables and their approximate significance.
Babbie et al. (2003) suggested that relationships would be worth attention if the association level r was more than 0.30 and p value <0.05. The results of the chi-square Chapter 4 Data analysis 106 tests indicated that some of the relationships between gender and their perceptions of library resources were significant, with the association level r < 0.406 at the p<0.05 level (see Appendix 14.1). The results indicated relationships of weak to modest strength (1 being the maximum possible value). Based on the results of cross tabulation analysis, an inference can be drawn that male students tended to value library online resources and services more than the female students.
Although the relationships between gender and use of library online resources and services for getting materials for assignments were significant (r=0.484, p=0.012), relationships between the gender and use of library online resources and services for various learning purposes were weak (as shown in Appendix 14.2). This result indicated that factors other than age and gender may explain the students’ library use or non-use behaviour.
4.2.1.8 Summary of quantitative analysis results—Harbin
In summary, the overall survey results for Harbin show that all the participants had Internet access either at work or from home, and a majority of the site’s participants held positive views about libraries (as shown in Figure 4.2 on next page). The participants considered the library catalogue and E-journals as useful resources in their studies. While the analysis results show that participants used some library resources, the results also reveal that most participants preferred fast and convenient access. To achieve such access, participants often used the Internet and lecturers as information sources in their studies (as shown in Figure 4.3).
With regard to the use of Australian university library online information resources and services, a high percentage (61.0%) of participants were non-users, and there were many reasons for this. Besides the language barrier, the slowness of the Internet and being time poor, some participants also indicated that they had alternative ways of obtaining information, such as the Internet and lecturers.
The survey revealed that personal, interpersonal and environmental factors were related to the students’ use (or non-use) of various information sources. It also showed that the personal factors were English language skills, user perception of library resources and user preferences. The environmental factors included slowness of the Internet and alternative information sources. Chapter 4 Data analysis 107
Perceptions of libraries A source of ideas 7.3 7.3 34.1 31.7 24.4
A place for asking questions 0 24.4 43.9 24.4
An essential part of your…4.9 4.9 22 31.7 39
A gateway to information 0 12.2 51.2 36.6 Barriers to the use of the Australian university library Password* 5 15 32.5 35 12.5
Cost 2.4 9.8 39 24.4 24.4
Delayed reply* 2.5 12.5 35 40 10
Own information skills 2.44.9 36.6 39 17.1
Overcrowded web pages** 0 12.8 30.8 43.6 12.8
Complicated instruction* 02.5 37.5 42.5 17.5
PC hardware set-up* 2.5 7.5 25 50 15
PC software set-up 0 5 30 47.5 17.5
Search interface* 0 10 25 47.5 17.5
Lack of technical support 0 5 22.5 57.5 15
Time consuming* 2.5 7.5 17.5 37.5 35
Slow Internet speed* 0 9.8 12.5 30 47.5
Language limitation 2.42.4 7.3 34.1 53.7 Reasons for a lack of use of the Australian university library Lack relevant information 5 22.5 62.5 7.5 2.5
Peers** 2.6 7.7 51.3 33.3 5.1
Browsing shelves 4.9 12.2 46.3 29.3 7.3
Course material 4.9 9.8 41.5 36.6 7.3
Own adequate ways 2.4 12.2 41.5 31.7 12.2
Preferred prints* 5 5 40 45 5
Lecturers as source 2.44.9 34.1 48.8 9.8
Internet 2.40 31.7 41.5 24.4 Expectations of the Australian university library services Full text database 2.42.4 48.8 24.4 22
Textbooks 2.40 48.8 34.1 14.6
E-journals 2.42.4 39 43.9 12.2
E-Books 2.42.4 36.6 43.9 14.6
Information skill training** 5.10 33.3 33.3 28.2
Document delivery 4.90 31.7 41.5 22
Simplified access 2.40 26.8 26.8 43.9
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% Strongly disagree Disagree Neutural Agree Strongly agree
*One participant (2.4%) did not answer this sub-question; ** Two participants (4.9%) did not answer this question.
Figure 4.2 Students' views about library and information sources — Harbin Chapter 4 Data analysis 108
Access points for using the Australian university library services Faculty web site 0 7.3 2.4 9.8 80.5
Offshore students’ web site 02.4 17.1 80.5
International students’ site 02.4 9.8 7.3 80.5
My portal 7.3 7.3 4.9 7.3 73.2
Distance students’ web site 0 7.3 4.9 19.5 68.3
Library home page 4.9 7.3 7.3 12.2 68.3
URL* 7.5 10 7.5 7.5 Libraries used for accessing library online resources and services Other overseas university library 0 7.3 9.8 9.8 82.9
Australian university library 2.4 7.3 14.6 14.6 68.3
Public library 4.94.9 24.4 24.4 62
Local university library 4.9 17.1 22 22 43.9
Library at work 4.9 26.8 17.1 17.1 34.1 Purpose of using library online resources and services To stay up-to-date in the field 12.2 24.4 31.7 7.3 24.4
To read recommended material* 7.5 32.5 25 12.5 22.5
To find specific answers 26.8 26.8 19.5 7.3 19.5
To support academic research 9.8 24.4 29.3 17.1 19.5
To get material for assignment 7.3 43.9 12.2 22 14.6 Venues used for accessing the Internet Internet café 0 7.3 17.1 75.6
Public library 4.9 4.9 4.9 14.6 70.7
University library 4.9 7.3 22 26.8 39
At home 34.1 43.9 0 7.3 14.6
At work 63.4 26.8 0 7.3 2.4 Information sources used for study-related purpose Overseas university library* 02.50 10 87.5
Public libraries* 5 5 12.5 15 62.5
Australian university library 04.9 7.3 26.8 61
Local university libraries 4.9 14.6 14.6 29.3 36.6
Peers* 7.5 20 17.5 22.5 32.5
Lecturers 7.3 19.5 17.1 26.8 29.3
Library at work* 2.5 22.5 25 25 25
Internet* 60 17.5 7.5 10 5
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Daily Weekly 1-3 t/m <10 t/s Never use
*One participant (2.4%) did not answer this question.
Figure 4.3 An overview of students' access and use of information sources — Harbin Chapter 4 Data analysis 109
The survey also revealed that human support from lecturers and peers rather than librarians was most useful for the students in learning about the Australian university library. This suggests that interpersonal interaction was important in the students’ information seeking.
The limitation of the quantitative survey is that it only provides an overview of students’ information-seeking behaviour. The nature of library use (or non-use), the influence of the socio-cultural and information environments on students’ information seeking, however, are still unclear. There is a need for research that focuses on exploring the social and cultural aspects of students’ information-seeking behaviour, and a qualitative approach is warranted as the social influence and myriad environmental factors are better understood in their individual context (Yin, 2009). The conceptual framework outlined in Section 4.2 has been closely followed in the following qualitative data analysis.
4.2.2 Qualitative data analysis—Harbin
Interviews with participants in this study provided useful insight into the information- seeking behaviour of the students in their individual contexts. Interviews were conducted with 12 participants at Harbin; these took place in a variety of settings. At the interview sites, I made observations and took photos to provide enriched contextual information for this study (see Appendix 11). I met all the participants where and when it was convenient for them and recorded the interviews for later transcription. Appendix 5 is an interview guide with all the open-ended questions used in the semi-structured interviews. The same interview guide was used for individual interviews at Harbin and Hangzhou. An example of an interview transcript is presented in Appendix 12.
This study seeks to understand students’ information-seeking behaviour through students’ voices. The interviewees’ comments are provided in a ‘thematic analysis matrix’, as suggested by Miles and Huberman (1994), and this matrix provides a useful structure by which to link the responses to the key factors for subsequent use in the comparison with the survey results. The matrix tables that display factors identified and related comments from the participants. Participants’ comments are shown in the voice sheet in Appendices 9 and 10 for Harbin and Hangzhou respectively. The following Sub-sections 4.2.2.1 to 4.2.2.9 provide a detailed analysis of the factors identified from the interview data. Chapter 4 Data analysis 110
The next section starts with a discussion of the influence of personal and role-related or interpersonal factors in the students’ information-seeking processes. This is followed by a discussion of environmental factors that influence students’ information seeking. The personal factors analysed include demographics, students’ knowledge of information sources, user preferences and information skills. The role-related or interpersonal factors considered are work roles, role-related power and guanxi (a term often used by the participants, meaning special interpersonal relationships in China). The environmental factors include Western teaching methods, library provision, and the local information and socio-cultural environments. Some quotes are repeated; this reflects the interrelationships between the influencing factors in the students’ information-seeking process. Appendix 9 provides the participants’ quotations in voice sheets from the thematic coding analysis for Harbin.
4.2.2.1 Demographics
At Harbin, students were geographically located in different cities in the far north of China. A majority of the students were full-time teachers and/or educational administrators, whose prior education took place in the 1980s, before information technology was introduced to schools in China. Thus, they had limited experience of using technology in learning and information seeking. A brief profile of the interview participants is presented in Appendix 9.5.
As full-time teachers, participants emphasised that their studies were closely related to work. For their assignments, they focused on integrating what they learned to improve teaching practices at work. Participants made these comments:
My research topic aimed to apply what we learned into problem solving, such as dealing with issues existing in our teaching process (Student S).
My university was responsible for planning for the training scheme of ‘Graduates for Each Village’ in Heilongjiang province. I knew very well the planning process of this project. So, for my topic, what I searched was mainly related to this area (Student T).
It can be seen that participants’ information needs and their information seeking extended across the academic learning and work contexts. This leads into a discussion of students’ knowledge of information sources and their user preferences in response to their complex information needs. Chapter 4 Data analysis 111
4.2.2.2 Knowledge of information sources and user preferences
The data analysis results strongly indicate that students’ knowledge of information sources and user preferences determined their choice of major information sources such as the Internet, people and library.
The Internet was viewed as the most important source of information among the participants. There was a belief that the Internet offered ‘very direct’ and ‘updated’ information which might not have been published in any journal yet. One participant stressed the need to hear the ‘truth’:
Internet was used to obtain information about the current situation. Only those people on the Internet could voice out the truth (Student R).
Due to censorship and restriction in publications in China, the Internet was a venue where people could express their own views and opinions11.
Another participant said:
The Internet was a great resource where you could find almost everything (Student O).
Some participants relied on search engines such as Google and Baidu, or whatever the default home page that was attached to their free email box. One participant commented:
From the Internet, I could find all the information I needed very quickly once I put in keywords. It would show all the relevant book titles, or journal articles. For my assignment, 75% of the information was obtained from the Internet, 20% from books and 5% from journal articles (Student X).
Being brought up within a Chinese teacher-centred educational culture, many participants viewed Australian lecturers as sources of wisdom, and for recommended reading materials, these lecturers were often called upon as a source of information. One participant stressed:
11 In China, the Chinese government is responsible for regulating, censoring and distributing news, print and Internet publications. A recent report by Lorentzen (2014) explained the current practices of censorship and the media control strategy in China. Chapter 4 Data analysis 112
It was very important that foreign lecturers gave us guidance, and provided the updated information, such as the well-known scholars in the field. Then we could search for their concepts and literatures from the Internet and the library (Student R).
With respect to their Australian university library, some participants assumed that the Australian library collection was English only. Others perceived that the Australian university library resources were Western-oriented and would not be suitable for their Chinese context. For example:
I believed that there was limited literature relevant to my topic in the foreign libraries because our concepts were different. So, I seldom used the Australian university library (Student V).
In relation to the local libraries, the participants’ view of the library was as a place for reading and book access. They mainly used the library through physical visits. One participant used these words:
First, we went to the library, but the book collection was very limited. Apart from the print material, there were some electronic resources and they were not enough. So, in addition to using the library, we used other sources to search for information (Student W).
Some participants mentioned the Publication Department of the University Bulletin12 because its subject coverage was related to their own specialist fields. They indicated that they could access reciprocal journals and research papers submitted to the Publication Department of the University Bulletin at their universities. One participant said:
With respect to the use of journals in our library, there was little information about skiing in the journals in the whole society. It might be the research field or the scope of my research was too narrow. I would go to the Publication Department of the University Bulletin as I could read all the submitted papers (Student W).
Others emphasised the importance of textbooks, course materials, core professional journals and print materials as sources of information. These were evident in the following comments:
I go through all the textbooks, all of them (Student O).
12 Each university has its own University Bulletin which contains publications of original articles and research projects relevant to the university. Chapter 4 Data analysis 113
It may be due to the traditional national educational system, we all learned from textbooks (Student U).
We must use the core professional journals13 if we want to get our papers published in the journals (Student W).
In essence, familiar sources such as the Internet and other people were the most preferred information sources. Students might access the library but generally there were few successful attempts. Apart from the Internet and people sources, participants were knowledgeable about the range of information channels at work that enabled them to find the specific information they needed. Instead of using the library, some participants preferred to use the Publication Department of the University Bulletin or related departments within their field of knowledge. With all these information-seeking strategies, participants tried to get as much information as they could for their assignments. Table 4.14 summarises the multiple information sources participants commonly used for various information needs for their academic learning and work problem-based assignments.
Table 4.14 Information Sources Used by Participants for Assignments—Harbin Information needs Information types Information sources Current research on Case studies, books and journal Internet, blogs, local libraries, personal specific topics articles, newspapers, meeting minutes collection, information channels at work Solutions for specific Institutional reports, expert advice, Internet, people, personal knowledge, teaching issues government publications work files, local library, related departments Data information Statistics, insider knowledge People, guanxi, related departments Recommended Articles, research publications Australian lecturers, bookshops, bilingual readings course materials International theories International publications, research Australian lecturers, bilingual course and practices literature materials
Other factors impacting on student information seeking might be related to students’ information skills, as discussed below.
4.2.2.3 Information skills
Interview responses showed that most participants had limited Internet knowledge and online information skills. Some participants indicated that they had only learned to use a computer immediately before joining the offshore program. One participant admitted:
13 Each year, the Library of Beijing University in China publishes ‘A Catalogue of Chinese Core Journals’ based on the citation rate, usage rate of the journals and other parameters in the various fields.
Chapter 4 Data analysis 114
I was not good at computer. When I searched the Internet, I could not access some of the full text articles. It only showed you the abstract or general information. I did not know why the full text articles could not display (Student U).
When this participant demonstrated online access to the library at work from his office, he searched for his institution’s library page by using a search engine.
When conducting online information searches, all participants mentioned using keyword searches and were frustrated with unsuccessful searching. Participants commonly stated:
Sometimes, I conducted a keyword search. I was not sure why some of the websites returned results that were totally irrelevant (Student V).
I conducted a keyword search. Although it showed the abstract, it did not display the full text. Maybe the way that I searched was not right (Student O).
With limited information skills, some participants did not know how to do a Boolean search, and experienced information overload. One participant said:
When you searched for some less popular topics, there might be little information. But if you searched for hot topics, there were a lot of things… All of a sudden, thousands of hits displayed and you did not know what to select... There were many duplicates (Student S).
For some students at Harbin, the two hours of database training at the end of their offshore program was their first experience of the benefit offered by a library online database. One participant stated:
I only used the library online resources when we searched information at the database training session last time. I did not use it again because there was cost involved when using that database. I found a lot of information relevant to my topic and downloaded the articles at that time. It was a great result. I felt that was really good. It gave an accurate result that was really what I wanted (Student O).
For another participant, the two hours of database training session came too late. For his assignment topic, the participant compiled a bibliographic index by manually going through all the volumes of related journal titles for the past five years. He explained his experience:
Chapter 4 Data analysis 115
I had a personal subscription for two journal titles, and the department had four journal titles. I borrowed the bound volumes of journals for the past five years, and used my personal subscription as well. Then I created an annotated bibliography of the articles relevant to my assignment (Student U).
This participant would have been more efficient if he knew how to search the journal database that was actually available at the university library at his workplace.
4.2.2.4 Work role, role power and guanxi
Wilson (1999b) highlights the influence of role-related and interpersonal factors such as work roles and social networks in the information-seeking process. At Harbin, there was a close relationship between work roles and the undertaking of assignment research. Students emphasised that their study was work-oriented and the learning point was to integrate what they learned into work practices.
Students had complex information needs for both academic learning and problem solving at work. Many participants indicated that their research topics were related to current issues at work. Assignment topics included curriculum reform, teaching program design and a graduates’ employment opportunity study. One participant said:
Because my work gave us a lot of convenience, most of the time I chose something that was related to my current work. It could improve work practice and I could also collect information for my topic from work (Student S).
Students not only drew on their personal knowledge and work experiences; they also used work roles and role-related power to facilitate information access. For their self- defined assignment, students were mindful of the information resources they could access using special social relationships (also called guanxi in Chinese) at their disposal. Fan (2002) provides a detailed discussion on the meaning of guanxi in a Chinese context. Guanxi, defined as a special social connection, a social construct and a symbol of Chinese social value, is also viewed as a type of personal asset (Fan, 2002).
Before continuing with the discussion of the guanxi factor in relation to the students’ information seeking, it is important to note that the Chinese guanxi is very different to social networking in Western society. Guanxi originated from traditional Chinese Confucianism, which defines cardinal relations such as superior and subordinate between friends and emphasises respect for authority and personal commitment to Chapter 4 Data analysis 116 relationships (Chen, Chen, & Huang, 2013; Kiong & Kee, 1998). Social networking in Western society is associated with the Western modern theories of social exchange, reflecting the Western impersonal instrumental relationship (Chen, Chen, & Huang, 2013; Hammond & Glenn, 2004). In contrast to the Western social networking governed by the Western normative theories of morality (Chen, Chen, & Huang, 2013), guanxi is mediated by Chinese cultural values such as face-saving value, reciprocity and trust in authority (Fan, 2002; Yau, Chan, & Lau, 1999). For example, trust was found as an important factor which influenced information sharing among students in Singapore (Majid & Reaz Tina, 2009; Yuen & Majid, 2007). Yuen and Majid’s (2007) study, using a questionnaire survey, showed that undergraduate students were less likely to share information for graded assignment tasks due to a lack of trust and the fear of competition; and they were more likely to share information for other learning activities. Another questionnaire survey study by Majid and Reaz Tina (2009) also revealed that postgraduate students in Singapore preferred to work with close friends or fellow students who had successful collaborative experience in group projects.
In this study, the students’ guanxi networks included friends, colleagues, Australian lecturers, subordinates, fellow students and personal contacts established through work and social networks. Students’ use of guanxi as an information-seeking strategy is a significant Chinese cultural behaviour. In contrast to the non-Chinese students’ casual use of social networks for information (Chang, et al., 2012), the students’ use of guanxi in information seeking was associated with trust in authority, social connectedness and a respect for the tradition of reciprocation in Chinese culture. A participant commented:
You could not get these things, such as English graduate employment trends from the Internet or books. I had to get it from the school employment consultancy service or the coordinator of the English Department (Student R).
Guanxi signified that Chinese social connectedness in peer information exchange was the preferred route for some participants. Thus,
Another source was through information exchange between peers. For example, we might ask where we were up to amongst our peers. Sometimes we might circulate what we found among us (Student T).
Guanxi was also represented in a purposively established relationship that would enable reciprocation for a favour. One participant claimed that Chapter 4 Data analysis 117
I could obtain information from the employers of our graduates as we had established guanxi (Student O).
Participants used guanxi as the common method for obtaining information from people, particularly for information that they could not find through library and other information channels. Their use of guanxi as an information-seeking strategy also, at times, hindered the development of their independent information-seeking skills.
4.2.2.5 Western teaching methods
Participants had many comments about the impact of Western teaching methods on their approach towards learning and information seeking. The influence of Western teaching methods on the students’ information seeking came from three aspects: classroom activities, lecturers’ teaching techniques and the nature of the assignment.
Western teaching methods such as using role playing, drama and debate forums were used in the classroom in Harbin. These carefully designed classroom activities created an educational environment which engaged students in learning through information sharing in group discussions.
Comments from one participant vividly showed the journey of transitional thinking in adapting to Western teaching methods:
At the beginning, I was not used to the Australian teaching method. Later on, we found that this teaching method was very good. The modern Western teaching methods were directly applied onto the practices of Chinese education. All of a sudden, my concepts were changed. And then, there was also a huge change in the learning approach through this teaching method. The Western teaching method was very open and encouraged creative thinking (Student M).
Another important influence of Western teaching methods on student information seeking was the high professional integrity, teaching techniques and friendly teaching style of the Australian lecturers. To overcome communication barriers, a suggestion box was set up to allow students to raise questions and suggestions, as revealed in the interview with the Australian lecturer B. The Australian lecturers tried to answer or discuss the questions the next day at the beginning of the class. They imparted democratic values, creativity and critical thinking skills in the process of interacting Chapter 4 Data analysis 118 with the students. The students saw how the Western teaching methods were applied in the Chinese classroom. Through this process, Western teaching methods contributed to the students’ changed approach to how they did an assignment. One participant stated:
The point was that if your way of thinking changed, then your concept and approach towards your assignment also changed (Student M).
Another participant admitted:
Australian lecturers never told us the answers. However, the way they showed us, we never forgot (Student T).
Western teaching methods encouraged students to integrate learning to work practices through self-defined assignments relating to issues at work. For their assignments, students mentioned different information needs. Most students talked about the information they required for a literature review in order to define a research topic on issues at work. They needed to find current research, case studies, organisations’ operational data, government documents, journal articles and specific information on topics. One participant admitted:
I never knew that we needed so much information for one assignment (Student V).
As students accustomed to learning by memorising textbooks within the traditional Chinese educational culture, in adapting to the Western teaching methods, they needed to learn how to find, evaluate and cite information properly in line with Western academic practice. In this regard, Chinese co-teacher B praised the extra effort put in by Australian lecturers in teaching educational research methods and repeatedly explaining the policy of plagiarism to the students in several dedicated class times—despite the tight and intensive offshore teaching schedule. Thus, in an offshore program, Australian lecturers also delivered academic support to facilitate students’ academic learning and research. One participant commented:
Now I could conduct information search professionally and wrote down the name of the author and page numbers carefully. I also paid attention to the references at the end of the articles (Student R).
In adapting to Western teaching methods, students engaged in information seeking in a ‘Chinese way’. One participant remarked: Chapter 4 Data analysis 119
We followed the Australian lecturers’ way of thinking, but we searched for relevant information according to our Chinese method. In our Chinese way of doing an assignment, we searched for relevant information from the Internet and other books (Student O).
The ‘Chinese way’ of information seeking was common among the participants. Another participant claimed:
In respect of information seeking, although we followed the Australian method to do the assignment, I wrote about my own experience and most of the information was from my own collection (Student T).
To understand the ‘Chinese way’ of information seeking for their assignments, we also need to take into account the library provision and local information environment of the students, as discussed below.
4.2.2.6 Library provision
All the students had legitimate access to the Australian university library online resources. However, these resources were beyond the abilities of the students and most participants never accessed the Australian university library, citing a lack of culturally relevant content, a low level of English language skill, slow Internet and the lack of user training as explanations.
Australian library online resources were Western-oriented and students considered that Western content would not be suitable in the Chinese context. Participants commonly shared the view that
For us, there are differences between Western and Chinese culture. What I used must be close to my concepts. I did not use the Australian online library resources (Student V).
Australian library resources were in English only, and some students found it very difficult to navigate as there was no multilingual interface at the Australian university library page. One participant expressed resentment in these words:
At the moment, developed countries have more information resources than in China. Many Chinese university websites already offer the options to choose an interface in English, or Japanese or Chinese… Although Australia is an English-speaking country, it should also consider their students of other nationalities and provide other language options since there were a lot of Chinese students (Student Q).
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The slow Internet also prohibited student access to the Australian university library online resources. One participant explained:
I felt that sometimes it was very slow to log onto the Australian university library website (Student S).
Adding to the access problems was a lack of user training for the students from the Australian university library. There were different views among the students towards library training. One participant explained that some students did not want library user training since they might not be able to use the Australian library due to their limited English skill. A similar view was shared by Australian lecturer A who believed that students did not need to use online information resources as most reading materials were provided. However, another participant commented:
I hoped that the Australian lecturers could give us some guidance in respect of using Australian university library websites. Currently, there was a lack of guidance. I logged on before, but quite often, I couldn’t find the library page (Student R).
The only information skill training offered to the students at Harbin was a two-hour training session on the Chinese journal database, near the end of the offshore program. This was at the time when the students were doing their final assignment. In the space of two hours, the Harbin students had a glimpse of library journal databases. For some of them, this was also their first hands-on experience of a library database, as they did not have access to databases in their local libraries.
During the training, the Chinese co-teacher A asked how many students had access to the databases at work and only seven (out of 58) students indicated that they did. The Chinese co-teacher then asked how many students had experience of using the databases and received positive responses from only four students. Many students had limited computing skills and experienced difficulties in following the instructions. They needed help to download and save the articles. Field notes and photos taken from the Chinese journal database training session are included in Appendix 11.3.
Students’ lack of access to databases at local libraries reflected the local information environments in individual locations in China. The local information environment is discussed in more details below. Chapter 4 Data analysis 121
4.2.2.7 Local information and technological environment
Many of the students at Harbin worked in academic institutions with different information environments. Some participants had laptops with intranet access to a library from their office, but some had to share one desktop computer with a dial-up Internet connection in the faculty. One participant declared that she did not have a computer in the office as they were allocated based on the work hierarchy. Although all students had access to broadband or dial-up access to the Internet at work or at home, the Internet speed was very slow. Participants had these comments:
I used dial-up; it was slow, very slow especially with our international websites. You could not log on. For example, it took two hours to submit my assignment. I just managed to get it done (Student U).
Internet speed was relatively slow; logging onto the Australian university website was a bit slow (Student N).
It took four or five minutes to display a page when I tried to open the Australian university library page from home (Student O).
While most students had access to libraries at work, academic library information resources and facilities varied tremendously between the universities and TAFE institutes in China. At one college, the library had online databases and a multimedia room with many desktops. Another TAFE library only had a small computer room with 10 computers. One library had one OPAC only outside the library entrance. One participant, who worked in a high school, only had access to a teacher’s resources room. I took photos to capture some of the library facilities and local information environments during the site visits (as shown in Appendix 11).
Not all academic libraries had electronic journal databases. Some participants indicated that they did not have a digital library at work. Other participants indicated that their institutions were just in the process of developing library electronic resources or making a library service available online. Participants had these comments about their libraries:
I used print materials, and seldom used online resources. Because our institute was a specialised institute, there were limited online resources in this field (Student N).
The library collection at work was a bit dated. There was no material which was relevant to the subjects in the offshore program (Student W). Chapter 4 Data analysis 122
I mainly used the Internet to search for relevant resources, such as articles, theses and various concepts because the digital library was not fully developed as yet in the library at work (Student O).
Library resource sharing was still a new phenomenon in China and ‘interlibrary loans’ were rare among the university libraries. One participant explained that the limited interlibrary loan activities were partly due to the unbalanced library resources distribution among the universities. Even though rare, the concept of resource sharing among university libraries was mentioned by two participants:
In regards to the use of local libraries, we could use our library at work as well as several other university libraries around us. They were open to the public (Student M).
In the library of the Harbin Normal University, non-university members might use library databases to download journal articles for a small fee (Student W).
Only one participant talked about local public libraries and he made this comment:
As far as I know, no one used the public library to search for information. The public library was poorly equipped. It only had books. It was at the beginning stage of developing the library online resources (Student X).
Apart from traditional library resources and service, the alternative information sources available to the students included the Internet, other people, course materials, faculty reading rooms, personal collections, related departments and bookshops. One participant explained:
I used Internet resources because there was a lack of information relevant to my topic in journals (Student N).
Many of the recommended books from the offshore program were not available in the local libraries. Students could buy books from only a handful of large book stores in Harbin. One participant stated:
I only went to Heilongjiang University Book Shop, the biggest one in Harbin. I had to spend a lot of money on the recommended books (Student W).
The above reports from the participants revealed the inequality in information and Chapter 4 Data analysis 123 technological access among the students and the challenges students faced in finding information for their assignments.
The next section explores the socio-cultural environment and its influence on offshore student information seeking.
4.2.2.8 Socio-cultural environment
The socio-cultural environment within which the students worked and lived influenced their attitudes, beliefs and values in their information seeking. The influence included the Chinese teacher-centred educational culture, face-saving culture, guanxi culture and a non-English speaking socio-cultural environment.
Raised within a Chinese teacher-centred educational culture, the students had a high regard for the Australian lecturers’ professional knowledge and expected the Australian lecturers to give correct answers. Participants commonly remarked that ‘Australian lecturers never told us the answers’.
The face-saving culture in Chinese society restricted information flow. To save face, some information related to graduate employment, case studies and operational data were not generally available to the public. The participants indicated that they had to obtain this type of information through personal contacts, and one participant revealed the cultural situation:
You could not get these things, such as English graduates employment trends from the Internet or books. I had to get it from the school employment consultant service and the coordinator of the English Department (Student X).
The use of personal contacts and special social connections at work to access information reflected another significant socio-cultural influence on offshore student information seeking. The influence of guanxi on information seeking is discussed in detail in Section 4.2.2.4.
Another cultural influence was related to the non-English speaking socio-cultural environment in China. Living in the Chinese society, the students had little opportunity to learn and practice English. Many participants described their lack of English language proficiency as barriers to their use of the Australian university library Chapter 4 Data analysis 124 resources. Participants commonly stated:
In fact there was a problem which was due to language limitation. Our English skill was very limited as we needed translation services during the Australian lectures (Student N).
I really want to use Australian university library resources. It was mainly the language issue. I had to read a lot of instruction and I felt that was difficult (Student Q).
4.2.2.9 Summary of qualitative analysis results—Harbin
In summary, data analysis results reveal that many participants used multiple information sources to gather information for their assignments, and that they largely used informal (non-library) sources to find information. There were many factors (personal, interpersonal and environmental) affecting offshore student information seeking and their access and use of the Australian university library online resources and services. Western teaching methods engaged the students in critical learning and information seeking. However, there was no library user training and a lack of relevant information resources in support of students’ information-seeking efforts.
The Australian university libraries resources and services were beyond the abilities of the students. Many participants did not use the Australian university library. Limited English language skills and slow Internet were claimed by the participants as the most common reasons for their non-use of Australian university library online resources.
Other factors affecting student library use included a lack of relevant library resources, students’ limited information skills, limited library knowledge, their strong belief in guanxi and the underlying socio-cultural values. Together, these multiple interrelated factors affected students’ information seeking. Students managed their information needs through various alternative sources.
Table 4.15 presents a summary of significant factors influencing the students’ information seeking activities at Harbin.
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Table 4.15 Factors Influencing the Students’ Information-Seeking Behaviour—Harbin Major factors Findings Example of participant quotes Demographic As mature-age adult learners, ‘My research topic aimed to apply participants had rich work experiences. what we learned to problem solving, As teachers, participants desired to such as dealing with issues existing in learn from international practices in our teaching process.’ order to improve their own teaching at work. Knowledge of Participants’ view of ‘library’ was a ‘No, you did not need to use information place for reading and for book access. database. Once logged onto the sources and user Participants had little or no knowledge Internet, we were connected to a lot preferences of Australian university library of resources.’ resources and services. Internet, people, bilingual course ‘You could only learn about current material and books were generally developments from the Internet. The Personal factors viewed as useful information sources. most useful sources were books, Participants preferred familiar, fast, professional literature and current convenient and easy-to-use information theses.’ sources. Information skills Participants had limited information ‘I conducted a keyword search. skills (e.g. using simple keyword Although it showed the abstract, it search). did not display the full text.’ Work role, role Work role, role power and guanxi ‘I could obtain information from the power and guanxi enabled information access, but also employers of our graduates because prohibited the development of we had established guanxi.’ independent information seeking skills. factors interpersonal Role-related or
Western teaching Western teaching methods engaged ‘The learning environment created by methods students in critical learning and her way of teaching encouraged information seeking. independent thinking, especially critical thinking among students.’ Library provision Australian university library failed to ‘There was a lack of guidance. I felt provide user training and information it was not convenient to use the resources culturally relevant to the Australian library as I had little students’ context. knowledge about the Library.’ A two-hour database training for the students at the end of the course was ‘What I used must be close to my too little, too late. concepts. I did not use the Australian university library.’ Local information Students had broadband or dial-up ‘There were limited online resources environment Internet access, but both speeds were in our library. slow. Inequalities in information access ‘There was a lack of material relevant existed among the students in their to the offshore program in library at individual locations. work.’ Information resources relevant to offshore programs were lacking Environmental factors locally. Socio-cultural Academic authorities were well ‘You could not get these things, such environment respected in Chinese culture. as English graduates employment Chinese face-saving culture prohibited trends from the Internet or books. I information flow and information had to get it from the Employment access. Consultant Service and the Chinese social norms such as trust and coordinator of the English reciprocity impacted on students’ Department.’ approach towards information seeking. A lack of English language proficiency ‘I did not use the Australian prohibited student use of Australian university library due to our English university library online resources. skills.’
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As shown in Table 4.15, despite many difficulties that impeded participants’ information seeking, librarians were not consulted. Participants might have asked for help from the Australian lecturers, but no participants mentioned consulting a librarian.
The next section cross-examines information from the quantitative survey and the qualitative interview to provide a complete picture of students’ information-seeking behaviour in Harbin.
4.2.3 Integrating quantitative and qualitative data analysis results— Harbin
As discussed in Chapter 3, this pragmatic mixed-methods case study is designed to gain a deeper contextualised understanding of students’ information-seeking patterns in relation to their local social, cultural and information environments. The comparison of quantitative and qualitative data analysis findings (Creswell, 2003; Tashakkori & Teddlie, 1998) helps uncover the major influencing factors and their interrelationships presented in the students’ information-seeking process.
Findings from the independent analysis of the survey and interview data provide both overlapping and different aspects of the information concerning the information-seeking behaviours of the students at Harbin. To conduct a comparison, I used Miles and Huberman’s (1994) ‘conceptual matrix’ as a guide to develop a concept map. This concept map links and compares the quantitative and qualitative data analysis results in relation to the research questions. Creswell and Plano Clarke (2010) also illustrate a useful matrix table for the comparison of information from quantitative and qualitative data analyses in mixed-methods research.
The data analysis shows that several identified factors are supported by both the survey and the interview data. These include: user preferences for fast and easy information access; the non-use of the Australia university library; and students’ reliance on the Internet and people sources. However, some factors clearly apparent from the interviews were not identified in the survey. These included: Western teaching methods; the socio-cultural environment; local information environments; student knowledge of information sources; and the influence of work role, role-related power and guanxi on Chapter 4 Data analysis 127 students’ information seeking. Many of these characteristics were unique to the local contexts.
The understanding of information-seeking behaviour revealed in the quantitative survey data was enhanced by contextually rich narrative accounts given by the participants at Harbin. The qualitative interview captured the participants’ information-seeking behaviour in their culture-specific environments.
As an example, both the quantitative and qualitative findings indicated that students used the Internet, library and lecturers as sources of information for their assignments. The findings from the interviews further explained the nature and the context related to student use of the Internet, library and people sources. The participants described how they searched for information in the ‘Chinese way’. They used the Internet to identify relevant information, and used the library to obtain books or articles as, otherwise, a charge would apply over the Internet. Alternatively, participants also used guanxi such as friends and personal contacts for easy access to information.
The quantitative findings showed student library use only occurred one to three times per month, or less than 10 times per semester. The findings from the interviews revealed that participants might visit local libraries, but that they were often disappointed at the lack of information relevant to offshore programs. Another situation revealed from the interviews was that not all local libraries had electronic databases. As a result, participants had limited knowledge and skills to use library online information resources.
Both the quantitative and qualitative findings indicated that language and slow Internet speeds were major barriers to the use of the Australian university library. The findings from the interview further revealed that using the Australian university library was beyond the abilities of the students. There was a lack of multilingual library interfaces and a lack of user training for the students to facilitate their library access and use.
The two-hour Chinese database training at the end of the offshore program did not provide sufficient time to develop a good working knowledge of online information search skills. Students still could not use the online tools. Through the interviews, some participants explained that they used alternative sources such as the Internet, lecturers, Chapter 4 Data analysis 128 work roles or guanxi for easy access to information. Their knowledge of information channels at work enabled them to find what they needed for their assignments by using work resources.
The interview findings highlighted the important influence of guanxi on students’ information seeking. In an environment where information resources were limited, guanxi became a strategic means for accessing information.
4.2.4 Summary of data analysis results—Harbin
In summary, the integrated analysis results unveiled the nature, the context, and the socio-cultural dimensions of students’ information seeking at Harbin. The integrated results provided a fuller picture and enriched understanding of the complex environments in which the students searched for information for use in their assignments. It revealed the challenges the students faced in adapting Western teaching methods, embracing technology and using online information resources in their information seeking.
The data analysis results indicate that language and slow Internet were the two most common factors that affected students’ use of Australian university library online resources and services at Harbin. Other important factors included a lack of relevant information resources and library user training, student knowledge of information sources, user preferences, the students’ belief in guanxi and underlying socio-cultural values. All these factors had compounding effects on student information seeking and their choice of information sources.
Table 4.16 shown on the next page presents the quantitative and qualitative analysis results at Harbin. In this table, the main research questions14 are not displayed due to space limitations. After the table, the Sub-section 4.3 reports within-site data analysis results from Hangzhou.
14 The main research questions are: (1) How do offshore students in China seek information for their assignments? and (2) How do environments in China impact on the lack of access to, and use of, Australian and local libraries by the offshore students? Chapter 4 Data analysis 129
Table 4.16 Quantitative and Qualitative Data Analysis Results—Harbin Research Quantitative data analysis results from Qualitative data analysis results from questions questionnaire in-depth interviews 1.1 How do they The top three information sources used by In adapting to Western teaching methods, many participants find and obtain the students were: engaged in information seeking in the ‘Chinese way’: what they need 95% participants used the Internet for their 75% participants used Library at work Many participants obtained information from convenient assignments? 70.5% participants used Lecturers as sources such as the Internet, people and information information source channels at work. Participants used the Internet to identify relevant For their studies, information, and then used the library to obtain proprietary 60% participants used the Internet daily information which was otherwise subject to a charge 25% participants used library at work 1–3 applied over the Internet. times per month Participants relied on search engines and keyword search, 25% participants used library at work less and often experienced information overload or irrelevant than 10 times per semester hits. Some participants might visit local library for books and The top three purposes of using the library journals, but were disappointed at the lack of information online resources were: relevant to the offshore program. to get materials for assignments For first-hand information, some participants consulted to support academic research people and related departments at work. to find answers for specific questions 1.2 What types of The Internet and Lecturers were deemed the Participants considered the Internet and people as the most information most important sources. important information sources. Their views and choices of sources and 65.8% participants preferred the Internet information sources were influenced by multiple factors resources are 58.6% participants used lecturers as which span three broad categories: perceived to be information source Personal factors: important to Participants needed information for both academic them, and why? In selecting their information source, learning and problem solving at work. 87.8% participants considered getting Participants had limited library knowledge and information faster and close to home or information skills, and they perceived it was easier to work as important search the Internet than use the library. 85.4% participants indicated that access at Participants preferred the Internet over journals for current home at any time was critical information. 80.5% participants considered ease of use Participants preferred convenient and familiar sources as vital such as people and information channels at work. The top three useful library resources and Role-related or interpersonal factors: services considered by the students were Role-related power enabled information access. catalogue, database, literature search Guanxi was viewed as an important means for access to trustworthy information. Environmental factors: Australian university library online resources were beyond the abilities of the students. Course materials were available in both Chinese and English. Participants had access to a range of information channels at work. Not all local libraries had databases and relevant information resources were lacking. Chinese face-saving culture restricted information flow and information access. 2.1 What are the The main barriers were language, slow Environmental, interpersonal and personal factors that main barriers to Internet and a lack of technical support: contributed to the non-use of Australian university library the general use of 87.8 % participants said limited English include the following: the Australian and skills There was a lack of culturally relevant library content, no local libraries by 77.5% participants indicated slow Internet multilingual library interface and no library training for the students? 72.5% participants considered the amount the students. of time needed and a lack of technical Slow Internet speed and personal capabilities (limited support as barriers English skills, a lack of library knowledge and limited 65.0% participants cited search interface, information skills). computer hardware and software set-up In relation to library use, participants might ask lecturers for help, but no participant mentioned librarian support. 2.2 How do the 61.0% participants never used Australian ‘Trial and error’ access or superficial use: barriers affect the university library online resources and A few participants used ‘trial and error’ strategies to way the students services navigate around the library page. access and use the More than 73.0% participants considered Some participants might have a look at the library page Australian and ‘asking lecturer’ or ‘peer’ as an aid to out of curiosity. local libraries? learn about library Others simply gave up as it was difficult and time- 32.5% participants used URL to access consuming to read complicated user instructions in the Australian university library page English.
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4.3 A Within-Site Analysis—Hangzhou
This sub-section reports on the data collection and analysis in Hangzhou (Site B). The analysis and discussion closely follow the conceptual framework outlined in Chapter 3. In the discussion that follows, it begins with the quantitative data analysis of the survey, and this is followed by the qualitative data analysis of the interview.
4.3.1 Quantitative data collection and analysis—Hangzhou
The survey of the M. Ed. Leadership students in Hangzhou was conducted and distributed at the end of a class in the partner university, Hangzhou, China. On the day of the survey, 48 questionnaires were distributed to the students and 41 valid responses were returned. Among them, 73.0% of the survey participants (27) are male and only 27.0% participants (10) female, and 9.8% of participants (4) did not indicate their gender and are shown as missing data. At Hangzhou, 48.8% of the participants (20) were from the 36–45 age group, 27.0% (10) from the 26–35 age group, 17.1% (7) were over 45, and 9.8 % (4) did not indicate their age and are shown as missing data (see Figure 4.2).
26-35 Gender Male Age 36-45 Female Over 45 Missing 9.8% 9.8% Missing 24.4% 17.1% 24.4%
65.9%
48.8%
Figure 4.4 Distribution of participants by gender and age—Hangzhou
4.3.1.1 Perception of libraries
Participants were asked to indicate their perceptions of the library as a gateway to information, a source of ideas, a place for asking questions and as an essential part of their studies. Table 4.17 clearly shows that 31.7% and 48.8% of the participants, Chapter 4 Data analysis 131 respectively, strongly agreed or agreed that the library is ‘a gateway of information’. Only slightly more than half of the participants considered library as ‘a place for asking questions’ and ‘a source of ideas’, and 19.5% and 34.1%, respectively, of the participants strongly supported or supported the statement: ‘Library as an essential part of their studies’ (see Table 4.17).
Table 4.17 Variations of Support to Different Views about Libraries in Descending Order— Hangzhou Perception Strongly agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly disagree
# % # % # % # % # % A gateway to information 13 31.7 20 48.8 7 17.1 1 2.4 0 0 A place for asking questions 9 22.0 14 34.1 14 34.1 4 9.8 0 0 A source of ideas 8 19.5 14 34.1 18 43.9 1 2.4 0 0 An essential part of your 9 22.5 7 17.5 21 52.5 3 7.5 0 0 study* Other One participant (2.4%) made comments in the field ‘Other’. Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; *One participant (2.4%) did not answer this sub-question
4.3.1.2 Internet access
All the participants had Internet access at work, and 85.4% of participants indicated that they accessed the Internet at home daily, weekly, 1–3 times per month or less than 10 times per semester. More than half of the participants (57.5%) also used the Internet from the public library, but less than 48% of participants used university libraries for Internet access. Only two participants (5.0%) used an Internet café (see Table 4.18).
Table 4.18 Venue Usage Frequency for Internet Access by the Participants in Descending Order— Hangzhou Venue Daily Weekly 1–3 t/m <10 t/s Never use # % # % # % # % # % At work 36 87.8 2 4.9 3 7.3 0 0 0 0 At home 15 36.6 14 34.1 4 9.8 2 4.9 6 14.6 Public library* 1 2.5 1 2.5 13 32.5 8 20.0 17 42.5 University library* 1 2.5 3 7.5 6 15.0 9 22.5 21 52.5 Internet café* 0 0 0 0 1 2.5 1 2.5 38 95.0 Other One participant (2.5%) made comment in the field ‘Other’. Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; 1–3 t/m = 1–3 times per month; <10 t/s = less than 10 times per semester. *One participant (2.4%) did not answer each of these sub-questions.
4.3.1.3 Preference and use of information sources
Participants were asked about their use of various information resources for study- related purposes. The most popular information source was the Internet, supported by a majority of the participants (97.5%), and followed by 83.7% of participants choosing ‘peers’. This was followed by ‘library at work’, the choice of 79.5% of the participants. Chapter 4 Data analysis 132
That was closely followed by 73.7% of the participants choosing ‘Lecturer’. About 66.0% and 53.8% of participants respectively selected public libraries and local university libraries. The Australian university library was at the bottom of the preference list, and 89.7% of the participants indicated that they never used the Australian university library (see Table 4.19).
Table 4.19 Frequency of Information Sources Used by the Participants in Descending Order— Hangzhou Information source Daily Weekly 1–3 t/m <10 t/s Never use # % # % # % # % # % Internet 34 82.9 4 9.8 1 2.4 1 2.4 1 2.4 Peers*** 4 10.8 13 35.1 8 21.6 6 16.2 6 16.2 Library at work* 3 7.7 16 41.0 9 23.1 3 7.7 8 20.5 Lecturers** 2 5.3 8 21.1 12 31.6 6 15.8 10 26.3 Public libraries**** 0 0 5 13.9 9 25.0 10 27.8 12 33.3 Local university library* 1 2.6 5 12.8 5 12.8 10 25.6 18 46.2 Overseas university library* 0 0 1 2.6 3 7.7 2 5.1 33 84.6 Australian university library* 0 0 2 5.1 1 2.6 1 2.6 35 89.7 Other One participant (2.6%) made comments in the field ‘Other’. Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; 1–3 t/m = 1–3 times per month; <10 t/s = less than 10 times per semester. *Two participants (4.9%) did not answer either of these sub-questions; **Three participants (7.3%) did not answer either of these sub-questions; *** Four participants did not answer this sub- question; ****Five participants did not answer this sub-question.
It is apparent that ‘getting information faster’ was considered as very important or important by 41.5% and 46.3% of the participants. ‘Accessing information sources at home at any time’ and being ‘close to home or work’ were supported by more than 75.0% of the participants. More than 73.0% of the participants considered a ‘familiar source’ and a ‘stable system and easy to use’ as equally important in choosing information sources (see Table 4.20).
Table 4.20 Considerations Given by the Participants in Choosing Information Sources in Descending Order—Hangzhou Important factors Very Less Not Important Neutral important important important # % # % # % # % # % Get information faster 17 41.5 19 46.3 2 4.9 2 4.9 1 2.4 Access at home at any time 22 53.7 10 24.4 7 17.1 2 4.9 0 0 Close to home or work 19 46.3 12 29.3 9 22.0 0 0 1 2.4 Familiar information system 13 31.7 17 41.5 9 22.0 1 2.4 1 2.4 Stable system and easy to 14 34.1 16 39.0 10 24.4 1 2.4 0 0 use Has relevant materials* 11 27.5 17 42.5 10 25.0 1 2.5 1 2.5 Get on-site help* 8 20.0 18 45.0 12 30.0 2 5.0 0 0 Browse the books** 4 10.3 19 48.7 12 30.8 3 7.7 1 2.6 Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; *One participant (2.4%) did not answer either of these sub- questions; **Two participants (4.9%) did not answer this sub-question.
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4.3.1.4 Perception and use of library online information resources
Participants were asked about the perceived usefulness of library online information resources and services in support of their studies. The top three library resources considered as very useful or useful were the catalogue, databases and document delivery: 36.6% and 41.5% of the participants, respectively, considered catalogue as very useful or useful. Similarly, databases were viewed as very useful and useful by 24.4% and 51.2% of the participants. ‘Document delivery’ was perceived as very useful or useful by 9.8% and 53.7% of the participants respectively. Only about half of the participants (51.2%) considered library online resources such as E-journals and E-books as useful. There were 39.0% and 36.6% of the participants, respectively, who regarded online technical support and online reference collection as useful. Only two participants (4.9%) viewed online reference collections and online tutorials as very useful, and 36.6% and 31.7% of participants perceived online references collection and online tutorials as useful, respectively. Six participants (15.0%) regarded virtual references services as very useful and 20.0% of participants considered virtual references services as useful. Five participants (12.2%) did not consider any of these library online resources and services as applicable to them (see Table 4.21).
Table 4.21 Usefulness of Library Online Resources and Services Perceived by Participants in Descending Order—Hangzhou Perception of library Very useful Useful Less useful Useless Never use N/A resources and services # % # % # % # % # % # % Catalogue 15 36.6 17 41.5 0 0 1 2.4 3 7.3 5 12.2 Databases 10 24.4 21 51.2 2 4.9 2 4.9 1 2.4 5 12.2 Document delivery 4 9.8 22 53.7 2 4.9 3 7.3 5 12.2 5 12.2 Literature search 12 29.3 14 34.1 3 7.3 3 7.3 4 9.8 5 12.2 E-Journals 6 14.6 15 36.6 10 24.4 2 4.9 3 7.3 5 12.2 E-Books 2 4.9 17 41.5 12 29.3 1 2.4 4 9.8 5 12.2 Online technical support 3 7.3 16 39.0 6 14.6 4 9.8 7 17.1 5 12.2 Online reference collection 2 4.9 15 36.6 7 17.1 4 9.8 8 19.5 5 12.2 Online tutorial 2 4.9 13 31.7 10 24.4 4 9.8 7 17.1 5 12.2 Virtual reference service* 6 15.0 8 20.0 10 25.0 5 12.2 6 15.0 5 12.2 Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; *One participant (2.4%) did not answer this sub-question.
Although participants held positive views about library online resources, they did not make frequent use of the library. For 39.0% of the participants, the library was used only one to three times per month for obtaining materials for assignments. On a weekly basis, 31.7% of the participants used the library to find specific answers, 36.6% of the participants used it to read recommended materials and 25.6% of participants used it to stay up to date in their field. Only 26.8% of the participants used the library one to three Chapter 4 Data analysis 134 times a month to support their academic research. Five participants (12.2%) did not consider any of these purposes of library use as applicable to them (see Table 4.22).
Table 4.22 Frequency of Using Library Online Resources for Various Purposes in Descending Order—Hangzhou Purpose of library use Daily Weekly 1–3 t/m <10 t/s Never use N/A # % # % # % # % # % # % To get material for 1 2.4 9 22.0 16 39.0 8 19.5 2 4.9 5 12.2 assignments To find specific answers 3 7.3 13 31.7 10 24.4 7 17.1 3 7.3 5 12.2 To read recommended 3 7.3 15 36.6 9 22.0 4 9.8 5 12.2 5 12.2 material To stay updated in the field* 3 7.3 10 25.6 10 25.6 6 15.4 5 12.8 5 12.8 To support academic 3 7.3 8 19.5 11 26.8 6 14.6 8 19.5 5 12.8 research Other No participant (0%) made comments in the field ‘Other’. Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; 1-3 t/m = 1–3 times per month; <10 t/s = less than 10 times per semester; N/A = Not applicable; *Two participants (4.9%) did not answer this sub-question.
Participants were asked to indicate how often they used the library online resources from their Australian university library and other information service providers. The choice for ‘Library at work’ and ‘Public library’ topped the list as the most often used source, with the support of more than 70% of the participants. However, usage was not very frequent. For example, library at work was only used one to three times per month by 20.5% of the participants. For 31.7% of the participants, the use of a public library for online information resources only occurred less than 10 times per semester. Some 41.5% of the participants never accessed a local university library for online information resources, and 73.2 % of the participants never used their Australian university library online resources (see Table 4.23).
Table 4.23 Frequency of Information Sources Used for Access to Online Library Resources in Descending Order—Hangzhou Use of information Daily Weekly 1-3 t/m <10 t/s Never use N/A sources for online library # % # % # % # % # % # % resources Library at work* 7 17.9 7 17.9 8 20.5 8 20.5 5 12.8 4 10.3 Public library 2 4.9 8 19.5 6 14.6 13 31.7 8 19.5 4 9.8 Local university library 2 4.9 4 9.8 7 17.1 7 17.1 17 41.5 4 9.8 Other overseas library 2 4.9 0 0 2 4.9 5 12.2 28 68.3 4 9.8 Australian university library 0 0 1 2.4 0 0 6 14.6 30 73.2 4 9.8 Other No participant (0%) made comments in the field ‘Other’. Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; 1-3 t/m = 1-3 times per month; <10 t/s = less than 10 times per semester; N/A = Not applicable; *Two participants (4.9%) did not answer this sub-question.
Access to the Australia university library was mainly via ‘my portal’ as indicated by 36.6% of the participants, while 30.0% of the participants relied on using a URL. About Chapter 4 Data analysis 135
25.0% to 29.4% of the participants used access points in other specific websites designed for distance students, faculty and international students. At least 29.3% of the participants never used any of the listed access points. There were 14 participants who did not consider any of the access points as applicable to them (see Table 4.24).
Table 4.24 Frequency of Access Points Used for Using Australian University Library in Descending Order—Hangzhou Access points Daily Weekly 1–3 t/m <10 t/s Never use N/A # % # % # % # % # % # % My portal 5 12.2 3 7.3 0 0 7 17.1 12 29.3 14 34.1 URL* 4 10.0 3 7.5 1 2.5 4 10.0 15 35.0 14 35.0 Library home page 2 4.9 4 9.8 2 4.9 4 9.8 15 36.6 14 34.1 Distance students’ web site 2 4.9 2 4.9 2 4.9 6 14.6 15 36.6 14 34.1 Faculty web site 4 9.8 3 7.3 1 2.4 3 7.3 16 39.0 14 34.1 International students’ site* 1 2.5 3 7.5 2 5.0 4 10.0 16 40.0 14 35.0 Offshore students’ web site* 1 2.5 1 2.5 4 10.0 4 10.0 16 40.0 14 35.0 Other No participant (0%) made comments in the field ‘Other’. Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; 1–3 t/m = 1-3 times per month; <10 t/s = less than 10 times per semester; N/A = Not applicable; * One participant (2.4%) did not answer either of these sub- questions.
More than 65.9% of the participants considered the Australian university online resources and services as not applicable to them. Only a few of them did use it, but they experienced difficulty with all the Australian university library online resources and services (see Table 4.25).
Table 4.25 Frequency of Difficulties Experienced by Participants when Using Australian University Online Resources and Services in Descending Order—Hangzhou Library resources and Every time Most times Sometimes Occasionally At no time N/A services 3 7.3 # % # % # % # % # % Catalogue 3 7.3 0 0 7 17.1 3 7.3 1 2.4 27 65.9 Databases 3 7.3 4 9.8 3 7.3 2 4.9 2 4.9 27 65.9 Literature search 1 2.4 2 4.9 4 9.8 4 9.8 2 4.9 28 68.3 Document delivery 2 4.9 1 2.4 3 7.3 5 12.2 2 4.9 28 68.3 E-books 3 7.3 0 0 5 12.2 2 4.9 3 7.3 28 68.3 Library online tutorial 3 7.3 1 2.4 4 9.8 2 4.9 2 4.9 29 70.7 Online technical support 2 4.9 2 4.9 2 4.9 4 9.8 2 4.9 29 70.7 Online reference collection 2 4.9 0 0 2 4.9 6 14.6 2 4.9 29 70.7 E-Journals* 2 5.0 1 2.5 4 10.0 2 5.0 2 5.0 29 72.5 Virtual reference service 2 4.9 2 4.9 3 7.3 2 4.9 3 7.3 29 70.7 Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; N/A = Not applicable; *One participant (2.4%) did not answer this sub-question.
4.3.1.5 Barriers to the access and use of the Australian university library
With respect to barriers to the access and use of the Australian university library online resources and services, 34.1% and 17.1% of the participants strongly agreed or agreed that their own limited English language skill was the major issue. About one-third of the Chapter 4 Data analysis 136 participants also believed that the complicated instructions, a lack of technical support, a slow Internet and the different PC hardware set-up constituted barriers to use. Less than 28.0% of the participants considered the different PC software set-up, overcrowded web pages, the amount of time involved, delayed replies, password issues, costs and an inadequate search interface as major issues affecting their use. Only six participants (15.4%) considered their own information skills as barriers to the use of the Australian university library online resources and services (see Table 4.26).
Table 4.26 Barriers to the Use of Australian University Library Online Information Resources and Services in Descending Order—Hangzhou Strongly Strongly Agree Neutral Disagree Barriers agree disagree # % # % # % # % # % Language limitation 14 34.1 7 17.1 17 41.5 3 7.3 0 0 PC hardware set-up* 3 7.5 11 27.5 25 62.5 1 2.5 0 0 Lack of technical support 3 7.5 10 25.0 25 62.5 2 5.0 0 0 Slow Internet speed** 4 10.3 8 20.5 23 59.0 4 10.3 0 0 Complicated instruction* 5 12.5 7 17.5 27 67.5 1 2.5 0 0 PC software set-up* 3 7.5 8 20.0 28 70.0 1 2.5 0 0 Overcrowded web pages*** 3 7.9 6 15.8 26 68.4 3 7.9 0 0 Time consuming** 5 12.8 4 10.3 28 71.8 1 2.6 1 2.6 Delayed reply* 3 7.5 6 15.0 29 72.5 2 5.0 0 0 Password* 2 5.0 7 17.5 28 70.0 3 7.5 0 0 Cost* 5 12.5 3 7.5 30 75.0 2 5.0 0 0 Search interface* 4 10.0 3 7.5 30 75.0 3 7.5 0 0 Own information skills** 2 5.1 4 10.3 30 76.9 3 7.7 0 0 Other Two participants (5%) made comments in the field ‘Other’. Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; *One participant (2.4%) did not answer either of these sub- questions;**Two participants (4.9%) did not answer either of these sub-questions. ***Three participants (7.3%) did not answer this sub-question.
In addition to the above difficulties and barriers to access and use, there were also other reasons for the lack of use of the Australian university library. For example, more than 61.0% of the participants believed that they could simply rely on the Internet and course materials, and 20.5% and 33.3% of the participants, respectively, strongly agreed or agreed that they used lecturers as an information source instead of the Australian university library. About 17.9% and 35.9% of the participants strongly agreed or agreed that they had their own adequate ways to find information, respectively. Preferences for browsing shelves and prints were also claimed as reasons for non-use of their Australian university library by 37.5% and 35.9% of the participants respectively. Although 5.3% and 18.4% of participants strongly agreed or agreed respectively that a lack of relevant information was the reason for the non-use, 60.5% of the participants were neutral in answering these sub-questions (see Table 4.27).
Chapter 4 Data analysis 137
Table 4.27 Reasons for a Lack of Use of Australian University Library in Descending Order— Hangzhou Reasons Strongly Strongly Agree Neutral Disagree agree disagree # % # % # % # % # % Internet** 10 25.6 16 41.0 12 30.8 1 2.6 0 0 Course material** 6 15.4 18 46.2 13 33.3 2 5.1 0 0 Lecturers as source** 8 20.5 13 33.3 16 41.0 2 5.1 0 0 Own adequate ways** 7 17.9 14 35.9 16 41.0 2 5.1 0 0 Peers** 4 10.3 13 33.3 18 46.2 4 10.3 0 0 Browsing shelves* 4 10.0 11 27.5 22 55.0 2 5.0 1 2.5 Preferred prints** 5 12.8 9 23.1 23 59.0 2 5.1 0 0 Lack relevant 2 5.3 7 18.4 23 60.5 6 15.8 0 0 information*** Other One participant (2.6%) made comments in the field ‘Other’. Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; *One participant (2.4%) did not answer this sub- question;**Two participants (4.9%) did not answer either of these sub-questions. ***Three participants (7.3%) did not answer this sub-question.
4.3.1.6 Perceived usefulness of various learning aids
While participants faced many difficulties and barriers to access and use of the Australian university library, only 53.0% of the participants considered the user guide and brochures as useful aids to learning about it. In the view of 47.5% of participants, ‘asking lecturer’ was a useful approach. ‘Ask a librarian’ and ‘Library online forum’ were ranked at the bottom of the list as useful learning aids (see Table 4.28).
Table 4.28 Perceived Usefulness of Various Learning Aids in Descending Order—Hangzhou Learning aids Very useful Useful Less useful Useless Never use # % # % # % # % # % User guide** 10 25.6 11 28.2 7 17.9 1 2.6 10 25.6 Brochures* 5 12.5 16 40.0 4 10.0 2 5.0 13 32.5 Ask lecturer* 5 12.5 14 35.0 7 17.5 3 7.5 11 27.5 On-site support** 8 20.5 10 25.6 4 10.3 3 7.7 14 35.9 Orientation training* 6 15.0 12 30.0 7 17.5 2 5.0 13 32.5 On-screen help** 6 15.4 11 28.2 7 17.9 1 2.6 14 35.9 Peer help* 7 17.5 10 25.0 7 17.5 2 5.0 14 35.0 Web-based tutorial* 6 15.0 9 22.5 9 22.5 2 5.0 14 35.0 FAQ* 3 7.5 11 27.5 8 20.0 2 5.0 16 40.0 Ask a librarian* 4 10.0 8 20.0 10 25.0 4 10.0 14 35.0 Library online forum* 2 5.0 8 20.0 11 27.5 5 12.5 14 35.0 Other No participant (0%) made comments in the field ‘Other’. Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; *One participant (2.4%) did not answer each of these sub- questions;**Two participants (4.9%) did not answer either of these two sub-questions.
When students were asked about the possible ways that the Australian university library could provide better support for their information needs, many participants were neutral. For those whose choice was not neutral, ‘simplified access’ topped the list as the best option, and 56.4% (22) of the participants shared this view. One-third of the participants indicated the need for full text database, E-books, document delivery and E-journals. Chapter 4 Data analysis 138
The need for textbooks was the choice of only 28.2% of the participants. It brought to my attention that book loans might not be available to the students. The need for information skills training was at the bottom of the list. A small proportion (7.9%) did not think information skills training was needed (see Table 4.29).
Table 4.29 Participants' Expectations for Improving the Australian University Library Online Resources and Services in Descending Order—Hangzhou Students’ expectations Strongly Strongly agree Agree Neutral Disagree disagree # % # % # % # % # % Simplified access* 11 28.2 11 28.2 17 43.6 0 0 0 0 Full text database* 4 10.3 10 25.6 24 61.5 1 2.6 0 0 E-Books* 4 10.3 9 23.1 25 64.1 0 0 1 2.6 Document delivery* 5 12.8 8 20.5 25 64.1 1 2.6 0 0 E-journals* 6 15.4 6 15.4 26 66.7 0 0 1 2.6 Printed textbooks* 4 10.3 7 17.9 27 69.2 1 2.6 0 0 Information skill 5 13.2 5 13.2 25 65.8 2 5.3 1 2.6 training** Other No participant (0%) made comments in the field ‘Other’. Note: # = number of responses; % = percent; * Two participants (4.9%) did not answer each of these sub- questions;** Three participants (7.3%) did not answer this sub-question.
4.3.1.7 Cross tabulations analysis
The quantitative data were further analysed using cross tabulation and the significant results (chi-square statistics at a p level of < 0.05) are outlined in Appendix 14.3 and Appendix 14.4. The cross tabulations were conducted to investigate differences in perception, access and use of library online resources between male and female groups, and students of different age groups. The differences between male and female groups in their responses to Question 5 and Question 6 were the only ones that appeared to be statistically significant (as shown in Appendix 14.3 and Appendix 14.4).
Pearson’s chi-square tests were used to investigate whether there were any associations between groups of students categorised by gender, age and perception and use of library online resources and services. The results indicated that differences exist between the gender and perception and use of library online resources. More than 40 percent of the female students never use library online resources and services for their academic learning. The relationships between gender and perception and use of library online resources and services appeared to be modest, with the association level r ranging being 0.315 and 0.573 at the p<0.05 level. The results indicated that library catalogues and databases were more valued by the male students (85.2%) than the female students (40%), with association level r being 0.509 at a p level of 0.008. These results indicated that the male students were more likely to have used library online resources and services for various purposes than the female students, with association level r >0.427 at the p <0.05 level. However, relationships between gender and use of library online Chapter 4 Data analysis 139 resources and services for getting materials for assignments (r=0.315, p=0.160) and reading recommended materials (r=0.329, p=0.135) were modest, and not significant. There was a lack of strong relationship between gender and/or age and perception and use of library online resources and services. This result indicated that factors other than the age and gender may explain the students’ library use and information-seeking behaviour.
4.3.1.8 Summary of quantitative analysis results—Hangzhou
In summary, the survey analysis showed that participants held positive views on the role of libraries for their studies. However, their preferences for fast and convenient information governed their choice of information sources (as shown in Figure 4.5 on next page). It is clear that most participants opted for informal information sources such as the Internet, peers and lecturers instead of the library resources in seeking information for their assignments (as shown in Figure 4.6). The reasons behind the students’ limited use of library resources may relate to their library awareness, information skills or availability of information resources in the libraries.
In particular, there was a lack of use of the Australian university library. The main barriers encountered were associated with language, slow Internet, time, limited knowledge and perceived difficulty of use. Other barriers were students’ reliance on the Internet, course materials and lecturers as alternative information sources. In spite of many of the difficulties experienced in using the library, some participants did not recognise or realise the need for information skills training as a priority in supporting their studies.
Chapter 4 Data analysis 140
Perceptions of libraries An essential part of your study* 0 7.5 52.5 17.5 22.5
A source of ideas 2.40 43.9 34.1 19.5
A place for asking questions 0 9.8 34.1 34.1 22
A gateway to information 2.40 17.1 48.8 31.7 Barriers to the use of the Australian university library Information skills** 0 7.7 76.9 10.3 5.1
Search interface* 0 7.5 75 7.5 10
Cost* 0 5 75 7.5 12.5
Password* 0 7.5 70 17.5 5
Delayed reply* 0 5 72.5 15 7.5
Time consuming** 2.62.6 71.8 10.3 12.8
Overcrowded web pages*** 0 7.9 68.4 15.8 7.9
PC software set-up* 02.5 70 20 7.5
Complicated instruction* 02.5 67.5 17.5 12.5
Slow Internet speed** 0 10.3 59 20.5 10.3
Lack of technical support 0 5 62.5 25 7.5
PC hardware set-up* 02.5 62.5 27.5 7.5
Language limitation 0 7.3 41.5 17.1 34.1 Reasons for a lack of use of the Australian university library Lack relevant information*** 0 15.8 60.5 18.4 5.3
Preferred prints** 05.1 59 23.1 12.8
Browsing shelves* 2.5 5 55 27.5 10
Peers** 0 10.3 46.2 33.3 10.3
Own adequate ways** 05.1 41 35.9 17.9
Lecturers as source** 05.1 41 33.3 20.5
Course material** 05.1 33.3 46.2 15.4
Internet** 02.6 30.8 41 25.6 Expectations of the Australian university library services Information skill training** 2.65.3 65.8 13.2 13.2
Printed textbooks* 02.6 69.2 17.9 10.3
E-journals* 2.60 66.7 15.4 15.4
Document delivery* 02.6 64.1 20.5 12.8
E-Books* 2.60 64.1 23.1 10.3
Full text database* 02.6 61.5 25.6 10.3
Simplified access* 0 43.6 28.2 28.2
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% Strongly disagree Disagree Neutural Agree Strongly agree *One participant (2.4%) did not answer this question; ** Two participants (4.9%) did not answer this question; ***Three participants (7.3%) did not answer this question
Figure 4.5 Students' views about library and information sources — Hangzhou Chapter 4 Data analysis 141
Access points for using the Australlian university library services Offshore students’ web site* 2.52.5 10 10 75
International students’ site* 2.5 7.5 5 10 75
Faculty web site 9.8 7.3 2.4 7.3 73.1
Distance students’ web site 4.9 4.9 4.9 14.6 70.7
Library home page 4.9 9.8 4.9 9.8 70.7
URL* 10 7.5 2.5 10 70
My portal 12.2 7.3 0 17.1 63.4 Libraries used for accessing library online resources and services Australian university library 02.40 14.6 83
Other overseas library 4.904.9 12.2 78.1
Local university library 4.9 9.8 17.1 17.1 51.3
Public library 4.9 19.5 14.6 31.7 29.3
Library at work* 17.9 17.9 20.5 20.5 23.1 Purpose of using library online resources and services To support academic research 7.3 19.5 26.8 14.6 32.3
To stay updated in the field* 7.3 25.6 25.6 15.4 25.6
To read recommended material 7.3 36.6 22 9.8 24.4
To find specific answers 7.3 31.7 24.4 17.1 19.5
To get material for assignments 2.4 22 39 19.5 17.1 Venues used for accessing the Internet Internet café* 02.52.5 95
University library* 2.5 7.5 15 22.5 52.5
Public library* 2.52.5 32.5 20 42.5
At home 36.6 34.1 9.8 4.9 14.6
At work 87.8 4.9 7.3 0 Information sources used for study-related purpose Australian university library** 05.12.62.6 89.7
Overseas university library** 02.6 7.7 5.1 84.6
Local university library** 2.6 12.8 12.8 25.6 46.2
Public libraries**** 0 13.9 25 27.8 33.3
Lecturers*** 5.3 21.1 31.6 15.8 26.3
Library at work** 7.7 41 23.1 7.7 20.5
Peers**** 10.8 35.1 21.6 16.2 16.2
Internet 82.9 9.8 2.42.42.4
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% Daily Weekly 1-3 t/m <10 t/s Never use *One participant (2.4%) did not answer this question; ** Two participants (4.9%) did not answer this question;***Three participants (7.3% did not answer this question; ****Four participants (9.8%) did not answer this question
Figure 4.6 An overview of the students' access and use of information sources - Hangzhou Chapter 4 Data analysis 142
To understand the ‘inner world’ of the students (Johnson & Onwuegbuzie, 2004), we need to hear the students’ voices and their subjective thoughts in the information- seeking process. The following in-depth interview analysis explores the various factors in relation to the students’ information-seeking behaviour in their specific contexts.
4.3.2 Qualitative data analyses—Hangzhou
The interview with 12 participants from Hangzhou has deepened our understanding of the offshore student information-seeking behaviour in their individual environments. Data collection and analysis closely follows the procedures outlined in Chapter 3.
The following data analysis presents various factors (personal, interpersonal and environmental) affecting students’ information seeking. It starts with personal factors (demographics, offshore student knowledge of information sources, user preferences and information skills), and is followed by interpersonal ones (work role, role power and guanxi) influencing students’ approaches to information seeking and the choice of information sources. This, in turn, is followed by a discussion of environmental factors (Western teaching methods, library provision, local information environment and socio- cultural environments) and their influence on the students’ information seeking at Hangzhou. Appendix 10 provides voice sheets from the thematic coding analysis for Hangzhou.
The conceptual framework outlined in Section 4.2 has been closely followed in the following analysis.
4.3.2.1 Demographics
At Hangzhou, participants were senior managers in full-time employment. Most of them had left formal education in the early 1980s and they had many years of working experience. A brief profile of the interview participants is presented in Appendix 10.5. As adult learners, their studies were closely related to their work. Participants stressed the need to gain an in-depth understanding of international educational practices in order to improve their own educational management at work. As a result, their information needs spanned both the academic learning and work contexts. Participants had these comments: Chapter 4 Data analysis 143
I would really like to learn about the operation in Western society. There were of course some introduction, case studies and information from the class. But we focused more on the integration of specific techniques, concepts and practices (Student C).
Why we took the Educational Leadership program (was), because it was relevant to our professional practices (Student G).
As full-time managers in senior positions, participants were time-poor:
In our middle age, our fellow students were at least at the management level. So, I thought time was valuable for us (Student J).
I used my own journal subscription as I did not have time to go to the library (Student C).
I searched the Internet which was very fast as it took a lot of time to search the library (Student K).
It is clear that participants emphasised the use of time-efficient means in seeking information for their assignments. A discussion of students’ knowledge of information sources and user preferences follows.
4.3.2.2 Knowledge of information sources and user preferences
For the assignment, participants emphasised the need to integrate theories and concepts into current practices. Participants mentioned their information needs as spanning both academic learning and for reflection on their work practices. Participants, therefore, needed a range of information, including relevant websites, current research, government reports, events or case studies, theories and concepts in the subject area. Participants showed different levels of knowledge of libraries and other information sources.
For specific topics, some participants emphasised library databases, journals and books as important sources of professional information. One participant indicated:
The most important one that I used was library databases because what I searched was quite subject-specific (Student C).
Another participant stated: Chapter 4 Data analysis 144
In respect of information, we generally obtained it from research institutes, museums, library databases and the Internet (Student L).
Others used both the Internet and library sources to find information, as one participant described:
I used the Internet to see the range of information available and used the library for subject-specific online resources (Student C).
For theoretical and subject knowledge, some participants preferred the professional literature, original works and monographs. They perceived that the journals and recommended articles were too short and did not have the in-depth information they needed. However, they did not have a wide knowledge of information sources in the subject area. One participant remarked:
I hoped Australian lecturers could give our Chinese students as much as possible information on advanced educational concepts in Australia and overseas. At the moment, Australian lecturers only touched on some views from scholars during the lecture, not the original works (Student L).
Another participant said:
Although we were supposed to search for information ourselves, all the recommended materials were articles only, not the professional literature and monographs. I felt there was not enough information (Student G).
Bilingual course materials were considered as valuable information sources to learn about international practices. One participant explained:
There was a large amount of information from these bilingual course materials and I mainly used these materials (Student H).
Analysis of the interviews also showed that many participants had no knowledge of the Australian university library online resources and services. For example, one participant admitted:
I never used the Australian university library as I did not know how to get to the page (Student G).
Many of the participants preferred fast and convenient information sources. They considered that the Internet or their personal collection were sufficient for their Chapter 4 Data analysis 145 information needs. They used the Internet, other people or their personal collection as time-saving measures. One participant declared:
I did not need to use a journal database; I could find everything from the Internet (Student F).
Other participants stated:
For our research topic, I mainly used Chinese websites such as Google and Baidu. Apart from this, I also exchanged information with my old friends (Student D).
A lot of information was from my work documents (Student C).
In essence, some participants appeared to have limited knowledge of information sources in the subject area. They preferred familiar sources such as the Internet, people and work documents. Student preferences for informal information sources may also relate to their information skills as discussed in the next sub-section. Table 4.30 shows the multiple information sources participants commonly used for various information needs for their academic learning and assignment research on issues in their workplaces.
Table 4.30 Information Sources Used by the Participants for Assignments—Hangzhou Information needs Information types Information sources Current research on specific topics Case studies, books, theses, Chinese search engines, people, monographs, websites local libraries, databases, research institute, museum Solutions for specific work Expert advice, internal Internet, work document, guanxi, problems organisational information field experts, peer exchange Recommended readings Books, research publications Australian lecturers, bookshops International theories and International publications, Australian lecturers, bilingual practices research publications course materials
4.3.2.3 Information skills
The previous section showed that students had limited knowledge of library information resources. They avoided using the library because they lacked self-confidence in using it to find what they needed. This was evident in comments from the participants, as shown below.
I mainly used the Internet as it was much quicker and convenient. The library might have a wide range of information, but I might not be able to find what I needed. It was very time consuming to use the library and needed a lot of effort (Student K). Chapter 4 Data analysis 146
Information seeking was very time consuming. After five or six hours, you might not find anything (Student J).
Other participants lacked an understanding of the importance of citing references in Western academic writing and did not know how to cite their own work. For example, one participant stated:
It was a real pain to list a few references as most of the information came from my working document. I raised the question and asked whether it was OK not to list any references (Student C).
At the end, this participant managed to find some references to fulfil the assignment requirements.
Through the interview, some participants indicated that they acquired information skills in the process of doing the assignment. One participant described:
As I needed to quote the references, I must carefully record the information, the page number, book titles, date of publication and the authorship. It was very different from before. So it was searching and using professional information (Student A).
4.3.2.4 Work role, role power and guanxi
Guanxi exists in many forms in a Chinese society (So & Walker, 2006). It can exist in the form of collegial relationships at work with people such as immediate supervisors, colleagues or subordinates; it can also include social friendships of family members.
At Hangzhou, many participants were senior managers. They had established guanxi networks at work and in affiliated businesses. They were used to asking their subordinates to find information for them. Their senior roles gave them the advantage and convenience of accessing relevant information through their guanxi networks. Some participants commented that:
It was very easy for me to find relevant information as there were teachers of the relevant subject in the Educational Institute in our university. I talked to one of these field experts (Student I).
The financial reports and theses could only be accessed by certain groups of people. I had friends who gave me the passwords to access them. Then, I would get my subordinates to search for related theses and data (Student J).
Chapter 4 Data analysis 147
Other participants believed that knowing people in important positions would enable them to find trustworthy information and insider knowledge. One participant claimed:
The Heads of the Departments were in charge of policy making and implementation. They had in-depth knowledge of the future development of policies and case studies. I would ask for their opinion. The information that I gained from the interaction and communication with these people was tremendous (Student K).
To some extent, students’ use of guanxi as an information-seeking strategy reflected the barriers to information access in individual environments. Some participants believed that it was more time-efficient to obtain information through colleagues. However, reliance on guanxi and other people formed a barrier to independent information seeking and library use among the students as they did not search for information personally.
4.3.2.5 Western teaching methods
Many participants felt that Western teaching methods encouraged critical thinking and participative learning. Through well-crafted classroom activities and assignments, Western teaching methods had a positive influence on the students’ approach to learning and information seeking. For example, one participant commented:
The course was very well organised, with strict requirements. It involved information seeking in the learning process (Student A).
Group discussion allowed students to learn through information sharing with peers and to draw on rich work experiences from each other. One participant said:
During the lectures, there was reflection and discussion which was closely related to our practices. The foreign lecturers’ Western teaching methods encouraged us to think and to integrate learning into our practices (Student G).
Another participant added:
I felt that our practices in some areas were different when compared to the foreign practices. Our vision was expanded by doing this course (Student E).
The self-defined research topic engaged students in meaningful information seeking. For their assignments, students were required to show their understanding of theoretical concepts and to use these concepts to critically evaluate practices in their workplaces. Chapter 4 Data analysis 148
Participants interacted with information resources and improved their information consciousness in their assignment topic design and research. For example, one participant explained:
The teaching methods of this offshore program encouraged active thinking and we were all motivated. The assignments were quite flexible. Some assignments were self-defined topics. We chose a topic which helped to improve our understanding of the subject. Information seeking expanded our knowledge and understanding in the subject area. I used multiple channels to gather information (Student E).
4.3.2.6 Library provision
While Western teaching methods required students to learn through information seeking, there was a lack of library training support for the students.
Participants indicated that they only received a login ID and password for online access to the Australian university library at the beginning of the offshore program. However, they did not know how to use the Australian university library resources. A commonly held view was that:
I did not use the Australian university library because I did not know how to access it. There was no specific introduction to library use (Student G).
Many participants could not offer their views about the Australian university library online resources as they did not have any user experience.
4.3.2.7 Local information and technological environment
All the participants had Internet access at work, but their information environments varied. Participants who worked in academic institutions or large organisations might have access to libraries at work. Some participants from the government agencies or small organisations only had access to a reading room at work. For example, one participant explained:
At work, only large firms have libraries. Schools might have a library. We did not have a library at the Department of Education. We only had a reading room. This was the reality in our real lives here (Student E).
Although some participants had libraries at work, these were either located on another campus or lacked relevant information. Participants had these views: Chapter 4 Data analysis 149
A majority of the library resources are located on another campus. We did not go there very often (Student L).
I went to the library, but it did not have much relevant information (Student F).
Some participants had access to public libraries, but library facilities and resources varied. Some public libraries were in the process of developing an electronic library. For example, in a recent development of the University Zone in Ningbo, the Chinese government invested in digital libraries with modern technologies. One participant described:
Our University Zone Library15 had thousands of volumes of books and it was open to the general public (Student H).
Different views from the participants about local libraries are evident in these comments:
Some public libraries had rich collections, but they were not electronic libraries in the real sense. They only had a searchable function to allow you to find the book (Student K).
I would like to go the libraries to search for information if there were good libraries. However, the good libraries are located very far away. Therefore, the chances of using the library were limited if you did not have a car (Student D).
Apart from the traditional library resources and services, the alternative information sources available to the participants included bilingual course materials, work files, lecturers and guanxi.
4.3.2.8 Socio-cultural environment
Analysis of the interview data showed that the socio-cultural environment, incorporating the socio-cultural value system, the hierarchical social structure and social norms influenced student information seeking at Hangzhou.
In Chinese culture, academic authorities are well respected. In this study, the
15 In October, 2007, a participant arranged for me to visit the Ningbo University Zone Library, which is located far from the city. During the escorted library tour, the deputy director and public relations manager explained that the general public often comes to the library at the weekend. Field notes and photos taken from the visit are included in Appendix 11. Chapter 4 Data analysis 150 participants’ perceptions and use of the information sources were closely related to their beliefs and cultural values. For example, the participants used bilingual course material as they looked upon Australian lecturers as a source of wisdom and knowledge. One participant explained:
I used course materials including recommended readings as they were gathered by the Australian lecturers and they were an integral part of the professional experience and knowledge of the lecturers (Student H).
In the Chinese hierarchical society, senior positions give individuals high social status and easy access to resources. Most of the students at Hangzhou were in important positions that gave them advantages to access human resources. In their senior positions, several participants indicated that they ‘asked their subordinates or colleagues to search assignment information for them.’
Many of the case studies that participants needed were only available internally as a consequence of the Chinese face-saving culture. To save face, there is a tendency to suppress discussion of what can be perceived as negative aspects in society, and this restricted information access. Students needed to use informal information channels such as people as a popular source for ‘Internal’ 16 information. One participant explained:
I mainly used ‘Internal’ information because information in the journals was for general public interest only and lacked in-depth information (Student J).
The influence of role power and the guanxi network on student information seeking has already been discussed in Sub-section 4.3.2.4 above.
Another cultural influence was related to students’ English language proficiency. Through the case study, it is clear that many participants had limited English language skills which prohibited the use of the Australian university library. This was evident in comments from the participants as shown below:
I never used the Australian university library as I could not understand due to my limited English skills (Student E).
16 ‘Internal’ information was a category of information that was classified for internal staff viewing only, and was not for distribution outside of the organisation. Chapter 4 Data analysis 151
The Australian university library collection was mainly in English. Some literature was highly professional. It might not be easy to use (Student L).
Closely related to English language proficiency was the cultural interpretation of the concept of plagiarism for the students. Participants had difficulty in understanding the meaning of ‘copying’, ‘reference’ and ‘synthesis’, which might be interpreted differently in different cultures. In Chinese, ‘reference’ is also called cānkǎo, which could mean merely ‘having a look to get some ideas without direct copying others’. But in Western concept, using other’s ideas without acknowledging sources of information could constitute a breach of the academic code of conduct. While participants were aware that unacknowledged direct copying was plagiarism, they had difficulty in understanding the need to reference the sources of ideas that they adopted from others. For their assignments, one participant claimed:
I did not like to copy others. Sometimes, I might read and evaluate their ideas and made some comparison and synthesis. Until now, all my paper was written by myself. Sometimes I might not remember the source of ideas…it was a real pain to list a few references as most of the information came from my working document. I raised the question and asked whether it was OK not to list any references (Student C).
In essence, the interview data analysis shows that student library use and information seeking were constrained by a lack of access to relevant information resources and personal inadequacies in English, as well as their library knowledge and information skills. For their assignment information needs, students often resorted to alternative information sources, such as people and guanxi.
Table 4.31 on next page summarises the factors influencing the students’ information seeking at Hangzhou. Chapter 4 Data analysis 152
Table 4.31 Factors Influencing the Students’ Information-Seeking Behaviour—Hangzhou Main factors Findings Example of participant quotes Demographic Mature-age adult learners engaged in ‘I would really like to learn about the work-related study. operation in Western society. There Teachers and/or senior managers in full- were of course some introduction, time employment who desired to learn cases and information from the class. from international practices in order to But we focused more on the improve their educational management at integration of specific techniques, work. concepts and practices.’ Knowledge of Many participants had limited library ‘I believed in traditional learning information knowledge. methods—finding information and sources and Some participants preferred books than knowledge from the books.’ user articles for structured information. preferences Others preferred familiar and easy-to-use ‘First, I found some relevant theses. information sources such as the Internet, Second, I searched the Internet by people and course materials. using keywords. Then I talked to
Personal factors some research experts in the field.’ Information Many participants had limited information ‘It was a real pain to list a few skills skills and relied on simple keyword references as most of the information search. came from my working document. I Some participants lacked self-confidence raised the question and asked whether in using the library. it was OK not to list any references.’ Some participants did not understand the importance of citing references in Western academic writing. Work role, role Participants used role power or guanxi for ‘I had the convenience of access as I
power and easy access to information or assigning had friends who could give me the guanxi information tasks to subordinates. password. Then I would ask the
or Students believed that being well- subordinates to search for related
factors connected was the key to information theses and data for me.’ Role-related interpersonal access. Western Western teaching method linked student ‘The foreign lecturers’ teaching teaching learning into practices and influenced the methods encouraged us to think and methods way students approached problems. to integrate into our practices.’ Library Australian university library did not ‘I never used the Australian provision provide user training to the offshore university library as I did not know student. how to get to the page.’ Local All participants had Internet access at ‘I went to the local library, but it did information work. not have much relevant information.’ environment Some participants had no local library access. ‘We did not have a library, only had a There was a lack of materials relevant to reading room.’ the offshore program locally. Socio-cultural Academic authorities were well respected ‘I used bilingual course materials, environment in Chinese culture. including the reading materials, as Face-saving culture prohibited they were gathered by our Australian information access. lecturers.’ Seniority and high social status gave privilege of easy access to information. ‘I mainly used “internal” information Participants believed that limited English because information in the journals skills were barriers to their use of the was for general public interest only
Environmental factors Australian university library. and lacked depth.’ English ability and cultural differences affected students’ understanding of the ‘I did visit the Australian university concept of plagiarism. library page, but seldom used it due to my English skill.’
‘I did not like to copy others. Sometimes, I might read and evaluate their ideas and made some comparison and synthesis. Until now, all my paper was written by myself. Sometimes I might not remember the source of ideas.’ Chapter 4 Data analysis 153
4.3.2.9 Summary of qualitative data analysis at Hangzhou
In summary, the interview results commonly revealed that the students at Hangzhou largely engaged in informal information-seeking activities to look for assignment information. Participants generally claimed that their limited English skills and library knowledge were the major barriers to the use of the Australian university online library resources and services. As a result, the lack of library training was a critical issue. The Australian university library was beyond their capability to use. This resulted in the participants not being equipped with the appropriate skills to use the Australian university online library resources for their studies.
In respect of the local libraries, the participants showed an avoidance attitude, and several factors contributed to students’ limited use of these libraries. These included a lack of relevant information resources in the local libraries, inconvenient library access, and students’ limited library information skills.
Faced with a lack of relevant library information resources and limited library information skills, students relied heavily on alternative information sources, including the Internet, bilingual course material, Australian lecturers and other people for easy access to information. Students’ ready access to a plethora of human resources and guanxi networks also made them less likely to use library resources on their own.
4.3.3 Integrating quantitative and qualitative data analysis results— Hangzhou
The quantitative and qualitative data analysis findings are presented using Miles and Huberman’s (1994) ‘conceptual matrix’ to guide the development of a concept map that links the findings to the research questions.
The data analysis shows that several themes are supported by both the survey and interview data in this pragmatic mixed-methods case study. These include: (1) easy access to the Internet at work and at home; (2) user preferences for fast and convenient information; (3) reliance on the Internet and people sources; (4) limited use of library resources; and (5) non-use of Australian university online library information resources and services. Chapter 4 Data analysis 154
There are also themes that were discovered through the interviews but not identified in the surveys due to the lack of appropriate survey questions to explore the themes. These themes were related to students’ reactions to the Western teaching methods, the local information environment, the socio-cultural environment, students’ knowledge of information sources, the use of guanxi as information-seeking strategies and its underlying socio-cultural value.
The quantitative survey results revealed that students perceived libraries as useful; however, only 40% of participants considered the library as an essential source of information for their studies. The interview data revealed that the Australian university library resources were beyond the reach of the students, who had received no user training from their Australian university. The students’ local library use was also constrained by inconvenient library access, a lack of materials relevant to offshore programs and their own library knowledge and information skills. As a result, they seldom used library resources but simply relied on the Internet, course materials and people as their assignment information sources.
The quantitative survey indicated student library use was restricted to getting material for assignments and finding answers for specific questions. The interview results further explained that participants needed a range of information for both academic learning and problem-solving at work. Western teaching methods engaged students in research on issues in their workplaces. They therefore drew heavily on their personal knowledge and work documents as sources of information, but they lacked understanding of the importance of citing references in Western academic writing.
The quantitative survey showed that students relied on other people as sources of information. The interview results further explained that students’ senior positions, high social status and the associated role power gave them easy access to human resources. As a result, some participants tended to ask subordinates or colleagues to search information for them. Another reality was that the cover-up culture affected information flow and access to organisational information. Students’ senior roles at work gave them the advantage of obtaining ‘internal’ information through guanxi networks. Chapter 4 Data analysis 155
4.3.4 Summary of data analysis results—Hangzhou
In essence, the Australian offshore program has disadvantaged the students by not providing them with the necessary library training to facilitate their independent information seeking within their studies. Student information seeking was constrained by multiple factors: a lack of library user training; a lack of relevant information resources support; students’ inadequacies in English language skills; limited library knowledge and information skills. The students’ strong cultural belief in guanxi was a strong influence and affected the way they approached information seeking for their assignments.
The interview and survey results have revealed that the participants not only used peers and lecturers as sources of information, but also used a network of human resources available to them. As senior managers, five participants had other human resources available to them and did not see the need to do it by themselves. They used their role power and asked subordinates or colleagues to gather information for their assignments.
In summary, the within-site analyses for Harbin and Hangzhou demonstrate the nature and context of information seeking embedded within each site. The within-site analysis helps identify the unique patterns of information-seeking behaviour and provides in- depth knowledge of individual environments in the students’ real world. At both sites, the use of questionnaires and interviews has provided a set of integrated data for comparison in the cross-site analysis in Section 4.4.
Table 4.32 on next page presents a comparison of the quantitative and qualitative data analysis results from Hangzhou. The main research questions 17are not listed in this table due to space limitations.
17 The main research questions are: (1) How do offshore students in China seek information for their assignments? and (2) How do environments in China impact on the lack of access to, and use of, Australian and local libraries by the offshore students? Chapter 4 Data analysis 156
Table 4.32 Quantitative and Qualitative Data Analysis Results—Hangzhou Research sub- Quantitative results from Qualitative results from interviews questions questionnaire 1.1 How do they find The top three information sources used In adapting to Western teaching methods, students needed and obtain what they by students were: information for both academic learning and issues at work. need for their 97.6% participants used the Internet They used multiple information sources for their assignments? 83.8% participants used peers assignments. 79.5% participants used library at Many participants used the Internet, people and their work personal collection as convenient and efficient ways to obtain information. For their studies, For assignment research on issues at work, participants 82.9% participants used the Internet drew on personal knowledge and work files as sources of daily information. 41% participants used library at For professional literature, some participants used local work on weekly basis libraries’ databases and journals. For international practices, course materials and lecturers The top three purposes of using the were used as sources of information. library online resources were: For recommended readings, some participants had to buy to get materials for assignments books from bookshops. to find answers for questions For their assignments, as time saving measures, some to read recommended material participants delegated information seeking tasks to subordinates. 1.2 What types of The Internet, course materials and Participants considered the Internet, people, books and information sources lecturers were perceived as the most course materials as important sources of information. Factors and resources are important sources of information. that influenced participants’ views and use of information perceived to be sources spanned three broad categories: important to them, and 66.6% participants opted for the why? Internet Personal factors: 61.6% participants preferred course Some participants considered library use as time materials consuming due to their limited library knowledge and 53% participants relied on lecturers information skills. Only 40% participants considered Others preferred structured information from books. library as essential to study Participants valued course materials as an integral part of the lecturers’ academic teaching experiences. In selecting an information source, As adult learners with rich work experiences, participants 87.8% participants said that getting emphasised personal knowledge and did not understand information faster was important the importance of citing references in Western academic 78.1% participants indicated that writing. access at home at any time was critical Role-related or interpersonal factors: 75.6% participants considered close Participants’ senior roles gave them easy access to human to home or work as vital resources and information. Guanxi was viewed as a time-efficient and convenient The top three useful library resources means for access to information. perceived by the participants were catalogue, database and document Environmental factors: delivery. Australian university library online resources were beyond the English abilities and knowledge of the students. Local libraries were either inconvenient to access or lacked information relevant to offshore programs. All participants had easy access to the Internet. Course materials and selected readings were available in Chinese and English. Face-saving culture prohibited information access. 2.1 What are the main The main barriers were language, PC- Personal, role-related or interpersonal and environmental barriers to the general hardware set-up and a lack of technical factors that contributed to the non-use of Australian use of the Australian support: university library include the following: university library 51.2% participants perceived Participants lacked the library knowledge, information online resources and language limitation as a barrier skills and English skills to use the Australian university services by the 35% participants indicated PC- library online resources and services. students? hardware set-up as an issue Some participants believed they had enough information 32.5% participants considered lack from own information sources. of technical support as a barrier Participants only approached lecturers for help and librarian support was absent. No library training was provided to the students. 2.2 How do the barriers 89.7% participants never used No participants reported using the Australian university affect the way the Australian university library online library online resources and services. students’ access and resources and services use the Australian 53.8% participants viewed user university libraries’ guide as an aid to facilitate access online resources and services? Chapter 4 Data analysis 157
4.4 Cross-site analysis and findings
Rowden (1995) asserts that the use of both within-site and cross-site analysis helps to strengthen the reliability and credibility of research findings. This study seeks to understand the students’ information-seeking behaviour more fully by combining the quantitative and qualitative data analysis in the within-site analysis. For example, in Hangzhou, the interview data revealed that no one ever accessed the Australian university library for their assignments. This explains why the students in Hangzhou, compared to those in Harbin, produced much higher ‘Neutral’ responses to several questions related to the use of the Australian university library online resources and services as they did not have user experience. However, this type of information would not be revealed by the comparison based simply on the statistical results between two sites. Through the cross-site analysis, I would be able to obtain a more comprehensive picture of student information seeking by comparing the data analysis results between the two sites. The cross-site analysis in this section is based on the procedures described in Sub-section 3.8.3. The comparison is made in response to the main research questions and sub-questions, with the aim to reveal students’ information-seeking behaviour and factors involved in their information seeking extended across both sites.
The cross-site analysis revealed that the participants at both sites engaged in information seeking for both academic learning and research on issues at work. At both sites, participants were non-users of Australian university online library resources and their use of local libraries was also limited. Instead, they largely engaged in informal information seeking, using non-library resources, such as the Internet and other people to meet their different assignment information needs. Multiple interrelated contextual factors were found to influence participants’ information-seeking behaviour at both sites.
Table 4.33 on next page presents the differences and similarities of findings between the two sites. The two main research questions18 are not listed in the table due to space limitations. Following the table, the discussion is structured to respond to the research questions and sub-questions.
18 The main research questions are: (1) How do offshore students in China seek information for their assignments? and (2) How do environments in China impact on the lack of access to, and use of, Australian and local libraries by the offshore students? Chapter 4 Data analysis 158
Table 4.33 Differences and Similarities of Findings between the Two Sites. Research sub- Findings from Harbin and Hangzhou questions Differences Similarities 1.1 How do they find Students’ ‘Chinese way’ of information and obtain what they At Harbin, students showed: seeking was characterised by: Limited computer skills need for their Dynamic information needs in the assignments? Work roles enabled information complex information-seeking context for access both academic learning and problem solving at work Utilising multiple sources for different At Hangzhou, types of information Well-connected to power and Students’ library use was limited guanxi was the key to information Students’ library use was often less than access satisfactory Some students used role power to Students largely engaged in informal delegate the information-seeking information seeking using the Internet, tasks to subordinates people, lecturers peer exchange, course materials, work roles/role power and guanxi to obtain information 1.2 What types of The Internet and other people were information sources At Harbin, students perceived as the most important sources. and resources are Accessed to libraries at work perceived to be Not all local libraries had electronic databases Factors that influenced students’ view and important to them, and use of information sources include: why? A lack of relevant library information At Hangzhou, resources support for the students Not all students had local library A lack of library knowledge and access information skills of the students Students had greater access to Perceived lecturer as source of wisdom human resources Preference for fast and easy use of the Students valued course materials Internet as an integral part of lecturers’ Trusted in people and guanxi as professional knowledge trustworthy information sources 2.1 What are the main barriers to the general At Harbin, students experienced: The main barriers were Slow Internet Students’ limited English language skills, use of the Australian and local libraries by A lack of library content relevant limited library knowledge and the students? to their Chinese context information skills A lack of user training
Lack of a multilingual library interface At Hangzhou, A lack of information resources relevant Slow Internet was not mentioned to students’ needs 2.2 How do the No participants reported actually using the barriers affect the way At Harbin, students Australian university library online the students access Used ‘trial and error’ access resources and services for assignments strategies and use the Australian Ask lecturer for help and local libraries? At Hangzhou, students Used user guide
4.4.1 Answers to the research questions
The cross-site analysis through the comparison of the data analysis results between the two sites has effectively helped address the specific research questions as follows. The first main research question concerns how offshore students in China seek information Chapter 4 Data analysis 159 for their assignments. The specific sub-questions are: 1.1 How do they find and obtain what they need for their assignments? 1.2 What types of information sources and resources are perceived to be important to them, and why?
The answer for sub-question 1.1 is that participants at both sites made limited use of library resources and largely engaged in informal information seeking using the Internet and other people as major information sources for their assignments. For these assignments, the students were required to integrate learning into workplace problem solving. Their information needs and information seeking extended across both academic learning and work contexts. They needed a wide range of information, from international practices to local case studies for their assignment topics on issues such as curriculum reform, teaching program design and graduates’ employment opportunities.
At both sites, participants did not use Australian university online library resources for their studies and their use of local libraries was limited. Although the students valued the libraries, their library use was driven by the need for the recommended readings, which often were not available in China. Some participants only used local libraries for the practical need to obtain journal articles after they identified the relevant titles from the Internet. Some participants did not place great emphasis on library use, others simply engaged in what they called a ‘Chinese way’ of information seeking—obtaining information through the Internet, other people, guanxi, bilingual course materials, personal collections, work files and information channels at work.
In their information-seeking process, participants at both sites adopted a peculiarly ‘Chinese way’ of information seeking, using a range of information seeking strategies, including: selecting assignment topics on which information was readily available at work, in their personal collection or through their guanxi;
using familiar sources, such as a related research department, publication department, faculty reading room and other information channels at work;
using role power at work to ask subordinates or other people to search and gather information for them; Chapter 4 Data analysis 160
using the Internet to search for information, then using a library to obtain articles when they could not get them online;
engaging in peer information exchange;
asking Australian lecturers for help; and
consulting field experts for advice.
Participants at both sites used the Internet for fast and convenient access to current information. However, their searching on the Internet was quite often limited by the use of search engines, where they mostly used keywords. Another reason for persisting through this process is that they were unable to narrow their search and therefore found the thousands of ‘hits’ overwhelming. Their reliance on one search engine from the default home page also appears to be a problem because they could not get comprehensive results.
Participants at both sites also used people or guanxi as important means to obtain insider knowledge or direct feedback in face-to-face consultation. Participants at Harbin tended to be teachers and often used colleagues for expert advice and peer support in their information seeking. They also used their own students and their connections to acquire their information from people in related departments at work. Participants at Hangzhou were more senior people with access to subordinate staff and as they had power they often delegated to their subordinates to seek the information they required. Participants at both sites used guanxi as an important means to get advice and gain access to organisational information, insider knowledge and authoritative information for their assignments.
Furthermore, no participants at either site mentioned consulting a librarian. Instead of using libraries, some participants used personal journal subscriptions and/or publication departments at work. With limited library online information skills, one participant had to spend a lot of time and effort to manually search and identify information from related journals volume by volume (as explained in Sub-section 4.2.2.3). Moreover, as revealed in Sub-section 4.2.2.6, some students only managed to find relevant assignment references with the help of the lecturers during the two-hour database training session at the end of their master’s program. Some participants felt that it would have been better if they had known how to use these library resources much earlier. The Chapter 4 Data analysis 161 students who could have effectively found the information they needed would have achieved a better learning outcome. This finding suggests that the students need to be equipped with adequate information skills to facilitate their independent information seeking for their studies.
The answer for sub-question 1.2 (viz. What types of information sources and resources are perceived to be important to them, and why?) is that participants at both sites expressed a positive view of libraries but their use of local libraries was limited. Three factors contributed to this. First, participants lacked confidence to use the library to find what they needed. Second, some participants did not have access to a library at work. Third, participants preferred books as they perceived textbooks as important sources for structured information, however, recommended readings and textbooks were hard to find in local libraries in China. As a result, their use of local libraries was limited and they considered the bilingual course materials as textbooks and as major information sources for information relating to international practices.
For the participants at both sites, the Internet and other people were considered to be important information sources. Their choice of information sources was based on ease of use, perceived personal capability in finding information, content relevance and specific information needs for academic learning and workplace problem solving. Sections 4.2 and 4.3 above explain the important factors that influenced their perception and choice of information sources. These factors include a lack of relevant library information resources support, Students’ lack of knowledge of library online resources, limited information skills, their preferences for current information from the Internet and their trust in other people and guanxi as important information sources.
With limited information skills and a lack of access to relevant information resources from the libraries, participants at both sites had a preference for the most convenient local information sources such as the Internet, other people and guanxi in seeking information for their assignments. In addition, participants at both sites believed that they could obtain more accurate information from the Internet than the censored publications as people could express the truth on the Internet. Therefore, their perceptions of information sources were influenced by the local information system and socio-cultural environments in China.
Chapter 4 Data analysis 162
A significant finding identified was that the socio-cultural environment was a major influence on the participants’ choice of information sources. Their beliefs in guanxi and role power (as explained in Sub-sections of 4.2.2.4 and 4.3.2.4) exemplified the influence of the socio-cultural environment, and these beliefs, in turn, influenced their perceptions and choices of information sources. Participants believed that people who were well-connected had better opportunities to find and obtain the information they needed in China. Participants who often used guanxi to fulfil their information needs had confidence in it as a trustworthy information source. For example, one participant commented:
The heads of department were in charge of policy making and implementation. They had in-depth knowledge of the future development of policies and case studies. I would ask for their opinion. The information that I gained from the interaction and communication with these people was tremendous.
In essence, the various information-seeking strategies and the wide range of information sources used by the participants also reflect their dynamic information needs, their knowledge of information channels at work and the complex local environments in which they were situated. This finding suggests that it is important to provide adequate library services by taking into account the specific needs and information skill levels of the students in their local contexts. Discussion of local environments is provided in more details in the following answers to the second main research question and sub- questions.
The second main research question concerns how environments in China impact on the lack of access to, and use of, the Australian and local libraries by the offshore students, and the specific sub-questions are: 2.1 What are the main barriers to the general use of the Australian and local libraries by the students? and 2.2 How do the barriers affect the way the students access and use the Australian and local libraries?
The answer for sub-question 2.1 is that a combination of interrelated contextual factors (personal, role-related or interpersonal and environmental) affected the students’ access and use of Australian and local libraries (as explained in Sub-sections 4.2.2 and 4.3.2; and presented in Tables 4.15 and 4.31). Chapter 4 Data analysis 163
The personal factors include students’ lack of sufficient English language skills, lack of knowledge of library resources, limited information skills and preferences for easy access to information (as explained in Sub-sections 4.2.2.and 4.3.2). These factors, together, formed some barriers to the students’ use of the Australian and local libraries. At both sites, the majority of the participants, as full-time university teachers or senior educational administrators, had little experience of using information technology in learning and information seeking. Their awareness of library online resources and services and online information skills were also limited, due to their limited exposure to library online resources in their prior education. As adult learners, the majority of them left formal education well before the current levels of information technology were introduced to libraries. Their library knowledge was largely related to print materials and they had limited knowledge and skills in the use of library online information resources. As a result, they lacked confidence in using Australian and local libraries.
The role-related or interpersonal factors are related to participants’ use of guanxi and work roles/role power as information-seeking strategies (as discussed in Sub-sections 4.2.2.4 and 4.3.2.4). The power aspects of work roles enabled the participants to access the required information for their study purposes. Some participants had senior roles and their social status impacted on their information-seeking behaviour, as they used role power to ask their staff to seek information for them.
Guanxi encompasses several aspects that contrasted to the Western cultural values, including trust, reciprocal benefits, power influence and a respect for authority. Trust is a core reason why guanxi has such a large influence on the students’ information seeking in China, not to mention the amount of time saved by using this special social relationship. Participants at both sites believed that they could use guanxi to obtain the information they needed more efficiently than by searching for it personally. Additionally, due to deficiencies in library resources support and students’ lack of necessary library information skills, guanxi has been a safety net for them when other resources failed to meet their needs.
At both sites, participants’ beliefs in guanxi influenced their mindset and approaches to information seeking for their studies. For example, some participants were mindful of what information they could get through work or their guanxi network even when Chapter 4 Data analysis 164 defining their assignment topic. The consequences were that participants did not actively seek information themselves. As a result, students’ reliance on work roles, role power and guanxi constrained the development of independent information-seeking skills which would enable them to use library resources for their assignments.
The environmental factors that affected students’ access and use of the Australian and local libraries include Western teaching methods (Sub-sections 4.2.2.5 and 4.3.2.5), library provision (Sub-sections 4.2.2.6 and 4.3.2.6), the socio-cultural environment (Sub-sections 4.2.2.7 and 4.3.2.7) and local information environments (Sub-sections 4.2.2.8 and 4.3.2.8). Western teaching methods provided an environment for the students to engage in meaningful information seeking and to integrate learning into practice. The students were in a state of transition in adapting to Western teaching methods and embracing information and communication technology into their learning. They were located in the complex contexts of seeking information for both academic learning and problem solving at work. While Western teaching methods engaged the students in information seeking, there was a lack of library user training to equip students with the adequate information skills required for their studies. Although the Australian institution provided bilingual course materials and simultaneous interpreter services to the students, there was no library induction to facilitate their library use. There was no formal arrangement for the students to have local access to the partner university library. Further, in this study, the Australian university library online instruction and tutorials were offered in English only, which was difficult for the students to understand.
Moreover, the restricted information flow in the local information environment and a lack of relevant information resources support to the students affected their library use. For example, some information related to graduate employment, case studies and operational data were not generally available in the public or censored publications in China. Therefore, participants tended to use guanxi or other methods to seek this information.
In answer to the sub-question 2.2 (viz. How do the barriers affect the way the students access and use the Australian and local libraries?), the study found that use of the Australian university library online resources and services were beyond the knowledge and skills of the students. Even when the library online resources were available, they Chapter 4 Data analysis 165 did not have the skills to access the materials electronically. Some participants used a ‘trial and error’ strategy when they searched through the Australian library website, while others only had a look at the website and made very limited use of it. Most participants simply did not bother to use the Australian university library, as the information system was foreign to them. Their inability to access the resources via the Australian university library and their inadequate search skills hindered them from performing information seeking to obtain the required information for their studies. They did not have those required IT skills beyond what they had for work. Therefore it would require effort and an extensive time commitment for them to attempt information seeking on their own.
In the absence of library training and relevant information resources support, participants at both sites turned to their Australian lecturers for help. They used Australian lecturers and bilingual course material as information sources to learn about international practices. As a result, opportunities for them to learn from international practices were limited by the information that they were able to access and use.
With regards to the use of local libraries, participants at both sites considered library use as too time consuming, and lacked information skills and confidence in finding what they needed from the libraries. To avoid searching information from the library, some participants used the Internet to identify relevant information and then obtained the material from the library. Others had to spend a lot of time searching for relevant information manually from the journals in prints. Some participants used the University Bulletin from the Publication Department instead of the library at work.
Moreover, the library access conditions impacted on participants’ library use at Harbin and Hangzhou. Some participants at Harbin did not have access to library databases at work and needed to go to other university libraries and pay for access to the library journal databases, while some participants at Hangzhou did not have access to a library at work and never used a library for their studies. This finding suggests that it is important to provide library training and arrange for the students to have local access to the partner university libraries to support learning and information seeking.
In summary, regardless of the different ways of using libraries, other people and guanxi in information seeking between the two sites, participants at both sites engaged in both Chapter 4 Data analysis 166 formal and informal information seeking at the same time, but they largely used non- library information resources, such as the Internet, other people or guanxi to obtain information.
The within-site analysis provides the groundwork for cross-site analysis. Further analysis results in key contextual factors that are most salient in relation to student information seeking. The cross-site data analysis shows that the students’ information- seeking behaviour is influenced by personal, role-related or interpersonal and environmental factors. Personal factors include demographics, knowledge of information sources, user preferences and information skills. Role-related or interpersonal factors include work roles, associated role power and guanxi. The environmental factors include Western teaching methods, library provision, and the socio-cultural and local information environments.
4.5 Chapter summary
Through rigorous analysis, this study has provided an enhanced understanding of the students’ information-seeking behaviour and the factors involved in their information seeking. The key findings are: (1) the students did not use Australian university library online resources as a result of many barriers; (2) the students’ use of local libraries was also limited. Instead, they largely engaged in informal information seeking using the Internet and other people as their major information sources for their assignments; (3) guanxi, a typical Chinese socio-cultural phenomenon, had a significant influence on the students’ information-seeking strategies; and (4) the students’ information-seeking behaviour was influenced by the multiple interrelated contextual factors. The factors contributing to the information-seeking behaviour included personal, role-related or interpersonal and environmental factors.
Although many participants claimed that their lack of English language proficiency was a major barrier to the use of the Australian university library, the lack of knowledge of library online information resources, limited information skills among the students and the lack of library user training were the real causes.
Another significant issue was that the students used guanxi as an information-seeking strategy. This reflected how a strong socio-cultural environment influenced student perceptions and their information-seeking behaviours. Guanxi is a typical Chinese Chapter 4 Data analysis 167 social-cultural phenomenon. The students used their connections to the right people to obtain credible information.
The environmental factors included Western teaching methods, the socio-cultural environment, library provision and the local information environments. In the offshore educational context, Western teaching methods encouraged learning through information seeking. However, the Australian university library failed to provide the necessary library training to facilitate these students’ independent information seeking. The students continued with their ingrained ‘Chinese way’ of information seeking. Many strategies were available to them to complete their master’s qualifications without actually having to develop their information-seeking skills, but this should have been part of their learning experience. Their lack of self-confidence in information seeking, due mainly to a lack of searching experience, tended to make most of the students choose a topic closely related to their work roles. As a result, they avoided the need to seek information from anywhere other than from those sources in the immediate vicinity. If sufficient training had been provided to equip students with a better knowledge of library information services, the students would have been in a better position to seek information independently.
The data analysis results in Chapter 4 have provided a firm basis of how the students conducted information seeking in their offshore context. The cross-site analysis enhances the probability of developing enriched understanding of important factors influencing the students’ information seeking behaviour in different contexts. The next chapter discusses the findings in relation to the existing related research, current library services and their underlying principles with an aim to develop better library services to offshore students. Based on a renewed understanding, ways are suggested to improve the Australian library service to support offshore students’ learning and information seeking. Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 168
5 Discussion of Findings
5.1 Chapter overview
As discussed in Section 1.4, this study aims to provide an in-depth understanding of the students’ information-seeking behaviour and the influence of the local environments on their information seeking in an offshore context. The data analysis results in Chapter 4 have shown that the majority of the students did not use the Australian university library, and largely engaged in informal information seeking using the Internet and other people as major sources of information. The findings also revealed that students’ information seeking took place in a complex environment and was subject to the influence of a combination of contextual factors.
This chapter discusses the main findings in relation to the existing studies (as reviewed in Chapter 2). The discussion shows how this study confirms or expands the findings from the related prior studies and contributes to the body of knowledge about the students’ information-seeking behaviour in the offshore context. It highlights fresh evidence from this study and similarities with existing literature. Through the discussion, important issues with existing library services are also revealed and strategies for improvement are suggested.
The structure of this chapter is as follows. Section 5.2 discusses Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) model, which helps identify the important contextual factors influencing students’ information seeking in this study. Section 5.3 discusses the characteristics of the students’ information-seeking behaviour in their complex offshore context. Section 5.4 reviews the significant factors that influence the students’ information seeking. Section 5.5 discusses issues concerning library services for the students and stresses the need for effective guidelines to ensure adequate library services to support offshore students in their learning and information seeking. Section 5.6 proposes ways to improve library services to offshore students, and Section 5.7 is a summary.
5.2 Wilson’s model in the offshore context in China
This study has adopted Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) model as a guide in the investigation of the students’ information-seeking behaviour and the factors involved in their information seeking in China. This study shows that the general model is useful in Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 169 identifying critical factors that influence information-seeking behaviour of the students in China. Many of the factors identified in this study generally fit into the broad categories of contextual factors in Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model. However, there are also emerging factors that are identified as significant—and more specific—to the students in this study.
The findings have shown that contextual factors depicted in the general model— psychological, demographic, role-related or interpersonal, environmental and sources characteristics—have an impact on the students’ information seeking, but may present their influence differently in the offshore context. This study identified several key contextual factors of importance to the students’ information seeking. These are: demographics, knowledge of information sources, information skills, user preferences, work roles/role power, guanxi, Western teaching methods, library provisions, socio- cultural and local information environments. Many of these factors are similar to those depicted in the general model. For example, the psychological factor shows up in the students’ knowledge of information sources that influence their information seeking. Demographic factors focus particularly on the students’ ages, their status as adult learners, prior Chinese educational experiences, employment and work experience. Source characteristics are related to the library provisions (i.e. online information resources and library user training), that affected the students’ library use in this study.
Wilson’s conceptual framework was developed in a Western information-seeking context in which the socio-cultural environments and information systems were very different to the offshore information-seeking context in an Eastern culture such as China. In applying Wilson’s model in this study, some elements were adapted to reflect the information-seeking context of this study. This is very different to the other studies (Ishimura & Bartlett, 2013; Niedzwiedzka, 2003; Nujoud, et al., 2012; Urquhart & Rowley, 2007) that applied Wilson’s model in the Western context.
In the Eastern context, this investigation found that important factors, such as guanxi, role power and Western teaching methods, were critical components of this study’s offshore context. The guanxi factor is similar to the interpersonal factor in Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model, but reflects the cultural dynamics of special interpersonal relationship in Chinese culture. Guanxi is built on trust, reciprocity and respect for authority (as explained in Sub-sections 4.2.2.4 and 4.3.2.4). In this study, Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 170 guanxi, which is unique to a Chinese context, enables information access. A detailed discussion on the guanxi factor is provided later in this chapter.
Closely related to guanxi is the power aspect of work roles that was identified to have influence on students’ information-seeking strategies such as using other subordinates to gather information. Although existing studies (Mutshewa, 2007; Niedzwiedzka, 2003) showed that role power affected the way people seek information, this study further revealed that role power closely aligned with the social status and hierarchical social structures in Chinese society. Power influence and respect for authority impacted the way the students obtained information for their assignments.
This study also found that Western teaching methods, characterised by their student- centred and problem-based teaching approach (Watkins & Biggs, 1996), linked the students’ learning to practices and engaged students in learning through information seeking. Detailed discussion on Western teaching methods in relation to the students’ information seeking is provided later in this chapter.
Furthermore, this study found that the students’ information seeking was situated within a mixed context: information seeking for both academic learning and problem-solving at work. For this study, the overlaps between academic learning and workplace problem-solving information needs contributed to the wide range of information sources that the students used for their assignments (as presented in Tables 4.14 and 4.30). In the students’ information-seeking process, all of the interrelated contextual factors collectively impacted on their information seeking. This finding asserts the importance of attending to the ‘overlapping contexts’ and the influence of ‘multiple interrelated factors’ on people’s information seeking, as advocated by Courtright (2007, p. 285).
In essence, this study has demonstrated that Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model, although developed in a Western cultural setting, can be applied to an Eastern cultural setting. The general model provides a way of thinking in considering factors that may affect the students’ information seeking in an offshore context. Through the use of Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model as a lens, this study found that the students’ information seeking was a complex process and was subject to the influence of multiple interrelated contextual factors.
Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 171
This study has shown that, in students’ information-seeking process, several key contextual factors played a role. The contextual factors are: knowledge of information sources, user preferences, information skills, demographic, work role and role power, guanxi, Western teaching methods, socio-cultural environment, local information environments and library provisions. Although many of these factors align with those identified in the Wilson and Walsh’s (1996)’s general model, there are some factors that have not been identified previously. These factors include Western teaching methods, role power and guanxi, which had an important impact on the way the students looked for information for their studies. To reflect the information-seeking context of this study, some components need to be expanded or added to complement the factors in Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model (see Figure 5.1).19
Figure 5.1 The contextual factors – an addition to the intervening variables in Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model
19 In Wilson’s models, the terms ‘variable’ and ‘factor’ were used interchangeably (Wilson & Walsh, 1996; Wilson, 1997). In this study, I used what Wilson and Walsh (1996) called ‘intervening variables’ and investigated them as ‘contextual factors’ which influence the students’ information seeking for their studies at two Australian offshore programs in China. Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 172
Note: The first column is extracted from Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) model as shown in Figure 2.2. The second column shows the contextual factors adding to the intervening variables in the general model.
In Figure 5.1, the contextual factors that influence the students’ information seeking and use in this study are made explicit. I used the detailed factors identified from this study to re-present Wilson’s six simplified intervening variables in order to explain the critical influencing factors needed to be recognised that are directly related to the context in this study (as shown in the second column of Figure 5.1).
More importantly, this study showed how students’ information seeking was influenced by multiple factors, interrelated and collectively impacting on their information-seeking activities, as discussed in more details later in this chapter.
5.3 Characteristics of the students’ information-seeking behaviour
This study finds that the students used a much wider range of information sources for their studies than those normally identified by earlier research. Studies of international students (Curry & Copeman, 2005; Hughes, 2010; Jiao & Onwuegbuzie, 1999; Mehra & Bilal, 2007a) in Western countries have often focused on their information-seeking experiences with library systems. Foley (2011) noted that students lacked confidence in their language skills and often turned to friends for help rather than asking the library staff; while Hughes and Bruce (2006) found that international students approached library staff or lecturers for help rather than using the library online help guides. Mehra and Bilal (2007b) found that international students tended to use the Internet for many of their information needs. Similarly, Byrne and Bates (2009) revealed that distance students used Google and the content from Blackboard, a virtual learning system, as their main sources of information, and relied on lecturers for information for their coursework. Thorsteinsdottir (2005) also showed that distance students lacked confidence in using remote library access and used interlibrary lending services for their studies.
In common with the previous research, this study found that the students used the Internet and other people as the major sources of information for their studies. However, it also investigated the information sources used by the students as alternatives to a Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 173 library. In this way, this study identified that the students largely engaged in quite informal information seeking, using a wide range of information sources outside the library to access information for their academic learning and problem-solving at work (as explained in Sub-sections 4.2.2.2 and 4.3.2.2 in Chapter 4). Table 5.120 presents a summary of the information sources used by the students to gain access to various types of information in their studies.
Table 5.1 Information Sources Used by the Students for Different Information Needs in their Studies Information needs Information types Information sources Current research on Books, journal articles, case Internet, search engines, local libraries, specific topics studies, newspapers, theses, personal collection, information channels monographs, meeting minutes, at work, blog, databases, research institute, research proposal, submitted museum, publication department, research paper department Solutions for specific Institutional reports, expert Internet, people, personal knowledge, teaching issues or advice, government publications, local library, related departments, work problems at work internal organisational document, guanxi, field experts, peer information exchange, minutes Data information Statistics, insider knowledge People, guanxi, related departments Recommended readings Books, articles, research Australian lecturers, bookshops, course publications materials International theories International publications, Australian lecturers, course materials and practices research literature
As shown in Table 5.1, students used a wide range of materials, including books, articles, theses, case studies, newspapers, monographs, meeting minutes, submitted papers, research proposals, work reports, government publications, organisational data, statistics, insider knowledge, expert advice and international research. To access this information, students used various information sources outside the library: the Internet, Australian lecturers, bilingual course materials, bilingual core reading materials, field experts, work files, the faculty reading room, book stores, personal subscriptions, personal collections, personal knowledge, peers, guanxi (i.e. friends, colleagues, subordinates, their own students and special social connections), and information channels at work. The range of information sources also reflects the complexity of the local information environment of the students in China. Figure 5.2 presents the range of information sources used by the students in this study, with the orange circle representing information sources from the Australian university and the green circle representing local information sources used by the students in China.
20 Table 5.1 summarises the information sources used by offshore students at Harbin and Hangzhou (as shown in Table 4.14 and Table 4.30 in Chapter 4). Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 174
Personal People knowledge Information Personal channels collections at work Book store
Guanxi
Local Internet Information libraries sources used by the students
Bilingual Australian course lecturers materials
Bilingual Reading reading list materials
Figure 5.2 Information sources used by the students in their studies
As shown in Figure 5.2, the students used the Internet, other people, guanxi and other information sources. However, the Australian university library and any librarians are missing from the picture. The fact that the students did not use the Australian university library highlights important issues with the existing library services to the students in China. Detailed discussion on this is presented later in this chapter.
By looking beyond the libraries, this study has identified a wide range of information sources that the students used for their specific information needs in the broader environments, such as personal, interpersonal and the local environments. In this way, this study revealed that the students’ information-seeking behaviour was influenced by complex factors in the offshore context, as discussed below.
5.4 Factors influencing students’ information seeking in the offshore context
Wilson (1981) emphasised the importance of interpreting people’s information seeking in their individual context—personal, interpersonal and environmental. Wilson and Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 175
Walsh (1996) further suggested that people’s information seeking is subject to the influences of various factors, including psychological, demographics, role-related, interpersonal, environmental and source characteristics. All these factors also presented in this study and manifested as important influences on students’ information seeking, but there were also important factors specific to the offshore Chinese context.
In the following Sub-sections 5.4.1 to 5.4.4, the discussion focuses on the most significant factors: personal, role-related or interpersonal, environmental and library provision.
5.4.1 Personal factors
This study shows that several personal characteristics of the students influenced their information seeking and centred particularly on the fact that all the participants were adult learners with rich work experience who lacked knowledge of library online resources and had only limited information skills.
The majority of the study’s participants—full-time university teachers or senior educational administrators—had little experience of using information technology in learning and information seeking. Their knowledge of library online resources and services and online information skills was also limited, due to their limited exposure to the library online resources in their prior education; many of them returned to formal education after they left school in the early 1980s. Their concept of an electronic library was very different from that of people in the Western world. For example, at one participant’s library at work, the electronic library was just an online catalogue with a search function that enabled users to search for books. It was very different to what was offered in the Australian university library online resources and services.
In addition, using information technology in learning was a very new concept to the students. The results of this study show that some participants had difficulties in understanding what a URL was, and did not know how to download and save files on a computer. One participant mentioned that he had received a computer in his office very recently and had just started to learn how to use it. This shows a quite different setting to that of previous research (Hughes, 2010), in which participating international students had developed information skills even though they lacked a critical approach in information search. However, the finding of this study supports a recommendation from Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 176 earlier research (Black, 2004; Block, 2007) that adult learners returning to education need to learn new technology and to be able to cope with today’s electronic information environment. This study indicates that it is important, as a first step, to assess the students’ computer skills and information skills in their specific contexts in order to provide adequate training for the efficient use of technology in learning and information seeking.
The study also finds that the students’ use of alternative information sources instead of the library was partly due to their knowledge of information channels at work and partly related to their lack of confidence in using the library for their information needs. This is evident in one participant’s comment, that ‘I would search the Internet to find the information and then obtained the article from the library’. A similar finding in earlier research (McSwiney & Parnell, 2003, p. 73) also showed that ‘offshore students are more confident and keen to access the Internet than to access electronic journals’. The finding of this study suggests that the students need to be equipped with adequate information skills to encourage them to use the library for their studies.
This study also shows that the students, as adult learners, participated in the Australian offshore program with an expectation of using Western theories to improve their practices at work. Students’ academic learning was closely related to their work roles. For their assignments, students often drew on personal knowledge, and their rich work experiences informed their learning and academic research. This finding indicates that the students’ information-seeking activities were influenced by their work roles, rich work experiences and academic learning. This finding is in common with Given (2002), who reported the overlaps between mature students’ everyday life and academic information needs, and stressed the importance of understanding students’ information- seeking activities in a broader context. The finding of this study indicates that it is important to consider the overlaps between problem-solving at work and academic information needs in order to develop relevant information resources and information skill training support to the students.
5.4.2 Role-related or interpersonal factors
Existing literature focuses on work roles in terms of role-related tasks that influence the choice of information sources in people’ information seeking (Bystrom & Jarvelin, 1995; Hyldegård & Ingwersen, 2007; Vakkari, 1999; Wilson, 1981). Contrary to the Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 177 existing literature, this study found that the power aspect of the work role affected the students’ approach to information seeking, as they often used role-related power to ask other people to gather the information required for their studies, rather than finding it themselves.
Wilson (1981) suggested that interpersonal interaction and communication affect people’s information seeking as people may engage in information exchange and consult reference groups in their information-seeking process. Information sharing is very important in today's knowledge economy. For example, peer information sharing was encouraged by schools in Singapore as a means for developing students' interpersonal and social skills ready for the future workforce (Majid & Reaz Tina, 2009; Yuen & Majid, 2007).
Scholars (Chang, et al., 2012; Foley, 2011; Ishimura & Bartlett, 2013; Pibulsilp, 2010) also reported the use of help from friends and social networks among international students in their information seeking. Surprisingly, however, this study found that the students used guanxi as an important information-seeking strategy to gain access to information for their studies.
One may argue that guanxi is similar to the Western concept of social networking (Hammond & Glenn, 2004) and interpersonal relationships (Wilson, 1981, 1997) in enabling information access and exchange. However, in this study, the term ‘guanxi’ has different connotations to social networking or interpersonal relationships in Western countries (as explained in Sub-section 4.2.2.4).
Guanxi is an important personal asset that people can use to find help and information (Fan, 2002) and it acknowledges the socio-cultural dimensions that influence offshore student information seeking. ‘Face-saving’ value underlines the way Chinese people value and maintain guanxi relationships (So & Walker, 2006).
In this study, guanxi included family friends, colleagues at work, teachers and peers, or special contacts and social connections established in the social interaction process (Fan, 2002). Through their work roles and role-related power, the students developed their guanxi network. For their assignments, some participants used their work roles or guanxi to access information from related departments or used their role power to ask Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 178 subordinates to obtain information for them. This finding is similar to prior research (de Alwis, Majid, & Chaudhry, 2006; Niedzwiedzka, 2003), which showed that managers used their power and authority to access information.
In contrast to the international students’ casual use of help from friends in their library use (Foley, 2011), participants in this study believed that they could use guanxi to obtain the information they needed more efficiently than by searching for it personally. For example, one participant commented that ‘I would ask my subordinates to search [for] information for me…searching information was very time consuming and I might not find anything after five or six hours.’
The influence of guanxi on the students’ information seeking comes from the students’ trust in power and authority. They considered the use of guanxi as the most effective way of gaining trustworthy insider knowledge and organisational information in China’s restricted and censored information environment. Students’ use of guanxi as an information seeking strategy also affected the development of their independent information-seeking skills as they did not need to search for information personally. The result was that they did not improve their information skills and fell short of the requirements for a master’s level course. Their most preferred route for assistance in their information seeking was a person or network that could circumvent their possibly fruitless attempts due to their limited information skills in using the resources. An additional consequence is that they were inclined to choose topics that they could ‘cover’ using work resources that they were comfortable with and/or that their ‘guanxi’ networks could accommodate and support. This finding is different to the earlier research (Pibulsilp, 2010), in which ‘Asian international students acquired library knowledge and ability through friendship groups’. It seems that without training to address the underlying cultural influences that affected students’ approach to information seeking, the ‘Chinese way’ of information seeking will persist.
5.4.3 Environmental factors
Wilson (1981; Wilson & Walsh, 1996) suggests that environmental factors, such as library information systems, national culture, and the political and economic environments, affect information access and information seeking. Existing studies on library services to offshore students reveal that many barriers, such as Internet connection and copyright (McSwiney, 2002), content relevancy (Chakraborty & Tunon, Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 179
2002) and absence of human support (Karasmanis, 2007), have presented challenges to information access for offshore teaching and learning. While many of these barriers, such as slow Internet and the lack of relevant information support, were also present in this study, the students were situated in a much more complex environment than what was evident in those earlier studies. In this study, the students engaged in information seeking for both academic learning and their workplace problem-solving, and were subject to Western teaching methods but from within an Eastern socio-cultural environment. Clearly, this was a mixed context for their information seeking.
5.4.3.1 Western teaching methods
Western teaching methods adopt a student-centred approach with a focus on learning through ‘reflective and critical thinking’, ‘participative learning’ and ‘problem-based learning’ (Hudson, 2009; Watkins & Biggs, 1996). The use of teaching techniques such as role play, drama and problem solving are examples of Western teaching methods (Clarke, 2010), and this Western-style, problem-based learning approach emphasises independent learning and information seeking (Rankin, 1992).
In Western learning, students need to find information for themselves, and this approach can seem to conflict with what Chinese students are accustomed to; their expectations are of a more textbook-reliant learning (Watkins & Biggs, 1996). Other researchers (M. R. Chowdhury, 2003; Hockey & McSwiney, 2005; Wang, et al., 2008) observe that Western teaching methods present challenges to students in a developing country where the teacher-centred educational culture dominates and students expect teachers to convey all the subject knowledge.
In contrast to earlier research, fresh evidence from this study shows that Western teaching methods positively influence the students’ information seeking in four ways: problem solving through wide reading; learning through information seeking; critical thinking through information evaluation; and using new knowledge to review work practices. The influence of the Western teaching methods also comes from the teaching techniques, the Australian lecturers’ teaching styles, and the high levels of professionalism in teaching and assignment design (as explained in Sub-sections 4.2.2.5 and 4.3.2.5).
Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 180
Western teaching methods focus on the process of getting the solutions, not just finding the answers. In this study, the participants remarked that ‘the Australian lecturers never told us the answers. However, the way they showed us, we never forgot’. The way Australian lecturers guided the students in problem solving provided a role model for the students to follow. A Chinese co-teacher at the interview commented that ‘it was great to see that our students changed from passive learning and engaged in active learning through information seeking’. More importantly, participants reported that they used some of the Western teaching methods that they learned in their own teaching. This shows a profound influence of Western teaching methods on the students’ learning.
In adapting to the Western teaching methods, students improved their information evaluation and critical learning skills, both of which were important to independent information seeking. One participant stated, ‘In the past, there was only one book and one explanation, but now there were many views that we needed to synthesise.’ At the same time, the students also faced the challenge of a lack of library user training, a lack of relevant information resource support and a lack of their own information skills, all essential to information seeking in problem-based learning (Clarke, 2010; Rankin, 1992).
The above discussion shows that Western teaching methods brought about changes in the students’ approach to learning, from textbook reliance to learning through information seeking. However, the students were not equipped with the adequate information skills essential to the academic learning and problem-solving research for their master’s programs. Much more library and user training support was needed to enable these students to succeed in their adaptation to Western learning and information seeking.
5.4.3.2 Socio-cultural environment
This study found that the socio-cultural influences on the students’ information seeking come from several significant factors: the Chinese educational culture, the hierarchical social system, Chinese face-saving value and guanxi culture.
The findings of this study showed that in Chinese educational culture, students expected Australian lecturers to teach all the subject knowledge and considered Australian lecturers as authoritative information sources. The students’ prior educational Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 181 experiences were related to print textbooks, with little need to search for information themselves, and library use was a low priority for them. This finding confirms an earlier study (Hockey & McSwiney, 2005) that offshore students had a lack of understanding of the importance of information seeking in Western learning.
Furthermore, this study found that the students’ use of guanxi as an information-seeking strategy is a significant Chinese cultural behaviour. The notion of guanxi is evident in the behaviours of the master’s degree students at both sites. This is closely related to the hierarchical nature of Chinese’s social structure in which more powerful people utilise their staffing resources to achieve outcomes.
Similarly, reciprocity between friends is a mechanism by which to achieve ‘favours’ to help them achieve their aims. The use of friends for help in information seeking was also found among Chinese young adults in Sheffield, United Kingdom (Webber & Zhu, 2007), and among Asian international students in New Zealand (Pibulsilp, 2010). These prior studies did not show the socio-cultural dimensions that defined the cultural values and drove the way offshore students used guanxi in their information seeking, but these were uncovered by this study.
Additionally, the notion of trust has an important influence on how students chose their information sources. They gave a lot of attention to consideration about the trustworthiness of their sources which included Australian lecturers, the Internet, and recommendations by colleagues. The students trusted Australian lecturers as authoritative sources of subject information and tended to ask for guidance and recommended reading materials from them (as explained in Sub-sections 4.2.2.2). Some participants believed that they could obtain more accurate information from the Internet than the censored publications because people could tell the truth on the Internet (as discussed in Sub-section 4.4.1). For employment figures for graduate students from the English Department, some participants consulted the coordinator in the English Department (as explained in Sub-section 4.2.2.4).
The students’ use of guanxi as information-seeking strategy also reflects the complexity of the local information environment in China, as discussed below. Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 182
5.4.3.3 Local information environment
This study revealed that the students’ information seeking was situated in an information environment supported by a slow Internet connection, inadequate library information resources support and a wide range of alternative information sources outside the libraries (as shown in Figure 5.2).
This study also found that the slow Internet affected the students’ online information access in China. The level of Internet connection was very often not up to the standard required for effective information access to the Australian university library online resources. At the time of this study, it took five minutes to open the Australian university library homepage, and one participant took two hours to submit an assignment via the WebCT using a dial-up Internet connection at home. Although distance students in Western countries experience similar technological barriers associated with accessing remote libraries (Black, 2004; Cavanagh, 2001), the students faced more challenges due to the slow Internet connection across the national boundary.
A similar issue was also raised in previous research (Chakraborty & Tunon, 2002; McSwiney, 2002; Wang & Tremblay, 2009b). Therefore, this study suggests that connectivity issues concerning library information access from remote locations, in particular, crossing national boundaries need to be recognised in developing library services to the students.
The influence of library provision on the students information seeking is now discussed in more details.
5.4.4 Library provision
This study found that Australian university library online resources and services were beyond the reach of the students, and that they did not know how to use the libraries due to a lack of library user training. The students needed a wide range of information for their academic research and problem-based learning. However, they were not equipped with adequate information skills to enable them to use library resources in their learning and information seeking.
Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 183
Prior research (Hughes, 2013) found that international students experienced difficulty in learning how to use a foreign library system and asked the library staff or lecturer for help instead of using library online guides. However, the students in this study faced more challenges as they did not have direct exposure to the foreign library systems, the online English instruction was too complicated for them to understand and they did not have human support available locally when they needed help. The lack of human support is also recognised by the existing literature (Ferguson & Ferguson, 2005; Karasmanis, 2007). The finding of this study suggests that it is important for the students to have access to face-to-face library instruction and human support locally to facilitate their information seeking and library use for their studies.
This study also showed that many of the recommended books and materials relevant to the subjects in the Australian offshore programs were hard to find in the local libraries. In this study, the Australian offshore programs at the two sites provided packaged bilingual teaching materials and readings to support the offshore program delivery. At the time of this study, not all the libraries at the participants’ workplaces had online databases. There were also restrictions on information access over the Internet in China. Some participants indicated that the organisational reports and statistics they needed for their assignments were not available for public access.
This study also revealed that there was no arrangement for the students to have local access to the Chinese partner university libraries. As a result, many participants were unable to use the library sufficiently as a critical part of their studies. Some participants even considered the library as important but not essential for their studies because they did not have library access at work.
Given that the students experienced a challenging environment, they were not provided with adequate library support. They faced a need to find their own resources, which often were not available in China. The Australian university library did not provide training in how to find relevant information resources, and although the Australian offshore program provided bilingual course materials, assistance did not go beyond that.
In addition, the Australian university library did not provide a multilingual library interface to help the students navigate and find the information resources they needed. This finding is similar to that from earlier research (Mehra & Bilal, 2007a), which found Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 184 that international students experienced difficulties using a library website because it did not support searching in their own non-English language.
It is clear that library provision, the students’ knowledge of information sources and information skills were closely interrelated and together these factors impacted on students’ information seeking. In their environment, where library support was perceived as inadequate, participants opted for alternative sources such as the Internet and other people.
The lack of relevant information resources support is also reported by many earlier studies (Hoare, 2011; McSwiney, 2001; McSwiney & Parnell, 2003; Stella & Bhushan, 2011), and this study also lends weight to the importance for the Australian university offshore program providers to consider offshore students’ specific information needs in their local context in order to develop adequate library services to support offshore teaching and learning.
The above discussion outlined the students’ formal and informal information-seeking strategies and how the contextual factors influenced those strategies. However, it is important to note that not all the contextual factors are present at all times to affect the students’ information seeking in China.
In the students’ information-seeking process, a change in one contextual factor may cause one or more changes in others. For example, the improvement of library user training (library provision) may enhance students’ information skills (personal factor). The development of information skills (personal factors), in turn, may facilitate the adaptation to Western teaching methods (environmental factor), resulting in offshore student enhanced engagement in more frequent formal information seeking.
The same factors may function differently in different individual situations and contexts. For example, on one hand, guanxi may facilitate information access when the information resources are scarce. On the other hand, students’ beliefs and their use of guanxi could hinder the development of independent information-seeking skills for the students.
Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 185
At a time when the information environments are becoming more complex with information available in many forms and formats beyond the library, the dynamic information environments may influence students’ information seeking in different ways in different situations. The students may use formal and/or informal information- seeking strategies depending upon their situations, such as the availability of relevant material and/or their own capabilities in obtaining the information (see Figure 5.3).
Figure 5.3 The students’ formal and informal information seeking strategies
The discussion so far has shown that the students’ information seeking was subject to the influence of multiple contextual factors. These contextual factors interacted with one another and had compound effects on the way students searched for information. This study provides an enhanced understanding of the students’ library use or non-use by taking into account the alternative sources they used and explaining how the multiple interrelated factors impacted on their information-seeking strategies. The fact that the students did not use the Australian university library highlights a few important issues with the existing library services to the students, as discussed below. Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 186
5.5 Issues with the Australian university library services to offshore students
The discussion of findings highlights a few critical issues concerning Australian university library services to the students: (1) the lack of relevant information resources support; (2) the lack of relevant information skills training; and (3) the lack of effective guidelines to ensure adequate library services to the students. These issues warrant special attention, as they impact on the students’ information-seeking behaviour and ultimately the quality of the Australian offshore program.
The following Sub-sections 5.5.1 to 5.5.3 discuss these critical issues and stress the need for effective guidelines for library services to the students.
5.5.1 Lack of relevant information resources support
Evidence from this study showed that the lack of relevant information resources and services support to the students is a critical issue impacting on students’ learning and information seeking. It was found in this study that the Australian offshore program was developed as a bilingual course, i.e. supported by packaged teaching materials and readings in both Chinese and English.
The Western problem-based learning required the students to integrate learning to problem solving at work; they needed to learn from Western theories as well as local practices. To cope, they needed resources support. Students had complex information needs, with overlaps between problem-solving at work and academic learning information needs. The Australian university library resources and services, however, were available in English only and the online access services were not really accessible to many students due to their limited capabilities and also to cross-border differences in socio-cultural and information environments. The current model of Australian library online resources and services for the students was built based on an existing infrastructure designed for distance library services (The International Education Association of Australia, 2008). This is a self-service model which assumes that students can teach themselves how to use the library online services and search information without help from the librarians. That model demands a certain level of computer literacy skills, some knowledge of library resources and online information skills from the users, all of which presented challenges to the students in this study. Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 187
Although the Australian offshore program provided packaged bilingual teaching and reading materials, that was not enough to support the students’ specific information needs, such as organisational reports, graduate employment statistics, and case studies for their assignments. Most of these types of information were not easily accessible in China due to the socio-cultural and political constraints, and the Australian university library lacked culturally relevant contents such as case studies in a Chinese context. There was no arrangement for the students to have local access to the Chinese partner university libraries.
This study clearly shows that the packaged information support and Australian university library service were inadequate in supporting the students’ specific needs for their studies. In the offshore program and its course design, there was a lack of awareness of and consideration of local information resources support to provide culturally relevant materials to the students in China. This study confirms that the ‘lack of relevant information resources support to offshore students’, as identified a decade ago (Hoare, 2011; Kijanka, 1993; Lowry, 1991; McSwiney, 2001; McSwiney & Parnell, 2003) remains a critical issue. Given the specific information needs of the students for their integrated learning required by the Australian offshore programs, it is critical for students to have access to local knowledge and information that is culturally relevant to the local context. Therefore, it is important for an Australian offshore program provider to consider local information resources, content relevance, and the capabilities of the potential offshore students in the planning and development of offshore programs and library services.
5.5.2 Lack of information skills training
The Council of Australian University Librarians (2008) advocates ‘adequate’ library services by offering access to online library services for offshore students (p. 1). The services include some forms of ‘information skills training program which may be virtual, interactive, face-to-face, etc.’ (Council of Australian University Librarians, 2008, p. 3). Ironically, however, the guidelines for library services to offshore students give little consideration to library training provision based on real student needs. When offshore students’ information needs, knowledge and skill levels do not match the way the library information service could provide information; many issues arise, as discovered in this study. Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 188
This study shows that some participants did not have the basic computer skills, such as the ability to download and save articles. Even those who were good at computers did not have a sufficient knowledge of using the technology for their learning. This finding supports previous reports on international students (Allen, 1993; Hughes, 2013), and offshore students (Badger & Roberts, 2005; Di Matteo, 2004; Ferguson & Ferguson, 2005; Hockey & McSwiney, 2005; Kong, et al., 2007; Mcintyre, 2009), which found a lack of awareness of Australian library services and limited online information skills.
Adding to these problems, no library induction was provided to the students at either site. Some students and Australian lecturers were pessimistic that the students’ English skills would be sufficient for them to gain any benefit from library user training, and the students would still not know how to use the Australian library online resources even after the training. Eventually, only one two-hour training session on using Chinese journal databases was scheduled at the end of the master’s course—and only at one of the sites—to help students find the relevant references required for the literature review in writing a research proposal. For some participants, that training was their first experience of using a library database in learning. Some participants resented the lost opportunity to learn about the Australian university library, and felt that they had been disadvantaged, and further, that they would have been more effective in their research had they learned to use the library database earlier.
The students should not be denied an opportunity to learn to use the Australian library online resources and services. The development of information skills training programs needs to be based on a proper assessment of offshore students’ library information skills, and a policy is needed to provide guidelines on the assessment of offshore students’ information skills before the start of an offshore program. In this way, the Australian university library would be in a far better position to develop an adequate level of information training for offshore students. Extra support is needed for offshore students to develop the adequate computer skills and information skills required for their studies.
Providing the extra support to offshore students is, however, a challenge, and greatly depends on what arrangements the Australian university providing the offshore program has made with the partner universities. Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 189
5.5.3 Lack of effective guidelines for library services to offshore students
In offshore education programs, library provision depends upon arrangements made with partner universities (McSwiney, 2002; Stella & Bhushan, 2011). To ensure that ‘adequate’ library services are provided to offshore students, CAUL (2004, 2007, 2008, 2012) developed the Principles and Guidelines for Library Services to Offshore Students. These were developed within a framework governed by the transnational quality strategy (Australian University Quality Agency, 2008; Department of Education Science and Training, 2005), the Code of Practice and Guidelines for Australian Universities (Australian Vice Chancellors Committee, 2005), and the National Code of Practices for Registration Authorities and Providers of Education and Training to Overseas Students (Australian Government, 2009), and aim to ensure that library services provision for offshore students is ‘equivalent’ to those provided to onshore students (Council of Australian University Librarians, 2008, p. 1). The guidelines specify a range of library services, covering aspects such as the provision of authenticated access to electronic information resources, access to information skills training (virtual, interactive or face-to-face, etc.), and library induction for academic staff to enable them to assist offshore students. To ensure that there is ‘adequate’ information resources support (Council of Australian University Librarians, 2008, p. 1), CAUL (2007) provides an ‘offshore course library impact statement’ to incorporate library provision into the offshore program planning.
Although the CAUL (2007) guidelines focus on the library services support to offshore programs, little consideration is given to the offshore students’ specific needs in their particular context. In the most recent version, the guidelines (Council of Australian University Librarians, 2012) replace the term ‘offshore students’ with ‘students in remote locations’. However, there is an ambiguity in defining the library services to ‘remote locations’ that fails to recognise the differences in culture and information systems between Australia and other countries, and this must impact negatively on offshore students’ learning and information seeking across a national boundary, as is evident from this study. Moreover, the guidelines lack clear articulation of the level and quality of library provision that the policy seeks to ensure. There is also a lack of guidelines on information skills training and little consideration given to offshore students’ information needs from their own perspectives. The CAUL (2007) guidelines Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 190 are not legally binding on the Australian university libraries, and, perhaps as a result of this, there is a lack of consistency from the Australian university libraries in adapting them to develop and deliver library services to offshore students. Issues such as a lack of relevant resources support, a lack of library training, inadequate information infrastructure and limited access to local library services were still evident in this study. Without library user training and relevant resources support, providing ‘adequate library service’ is impossible.
This study found that the students’ information seeking was subject to many constraints—socio-cultural, environmental and information access—that need to be properly assessed in the development of library services. Given all these issues, what needs to be changed in order to improve library services to offshore students and engage them with library systems in their studies? The following Sub-section 5.6 proposes the development of some library services programs that incorporate the students’ perspectives. The development takes into account the contextual factors identified in this study.
5.6 Developing library service incorporating the students’ perspectives
This study has identified that the students require three important types of support, including: (1) teaching them practical skills and knowledge that will enable them to access and use information resources and library services; (2) making available information resources relevant to their needs; and (3) providing these students ongoing support in their information-seeking process.
Many Australian universities libraries have provided useful examples in offering library services through a local library service at an offshore campus (Ali, et al., 2006; University of Wollongong Library, 2004), library access through partnership arrangements with local libraries (McSwiney, 2001), or even fully delivered Western university libraries online or through various means such as DVD and WebCT (Best, Hajzler, & Henderson, 2007; Karasmanis, 2007). However, an integrated library service program comprising a suite of programs (as explained in Sub-section 5.5) is needed to effectively address the current problems related to the students’ information seeking in this study.
Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 191
Effective development of independent offshore student information-seeking skills requires well-planned and tailored library training. A library has a responsibility to prepare students to function effectively within their complex information environment. Many of the Australian university libraries have developed library services to support offshore teaching and learning (The International Education Association of Australia, 2008). For example, the University of Wollongong Library provided a compulsory information skills training program for newly enrolled students (University of Wollongong, 2007, p. 26), and the University of Newcastle offered academic literacy modules for students (University of Newcastle, 2009, p.13). These efforts have contributed to better practices in developing and delivering library services. In the case of the two sites in this study, however, the Australian university library did not provide adequate library services based on the local contexts that the students actually experienced.
This study found that the development of an information skills training program needs to consider the students’ knowledge of information sources, user preferences, information skill, and the local socio-cultural and information environments. In adopting Western teaching methods, the students need to learn how to seek information, and any training program will have to consider how to improve students’ library awareness and make use of library information resources in their information seeking. Information-skill training requires the support of relevant information resources in the offshore contexts.
To address the information-seeking issues associated with the knowledge of information sources, information skills, language and library provisions, I draw on the existing good practices from the Australian university libraries (The International Education Association of Australia, 2008) and proposes an integrated library service program. It uses the notion of adequate library services to offshore students from their own perspectives as a driving force in its development. Such a program would consist of a suite of user training, library resources and human support. It would aim to improve offshore students’ library awareness, to facilitate the development of independent student information-seeking skills and provide better library resources and human support to facilitate offshore students’ information seeking.
Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 192
To help offshore students develop independent information-seeking skills, as required by Western learning, some integrated library services programs are proposed, and the programs would include:
information skills training programs that form an integral part of curriculum design for offshore programs;
an information skills ambassador program that embraces guanxi culture in providing ongoing human support; and
an information resources partnership program to incorporate local information resource support through a collaborative arrangement with the partner university.
As discussed in the findings of this study, the students were accustomed to absorbing information from textbooks and looked for answers from their teachers. To facilitate offshore students’ independent learning and information seeking, it is important to develop their independent information-seeking skills with appropriate levels of information skills training. Such training would assist them to gain adequate skills to use libraries and relevant online information sources to search for information for their assignments.
While information skill training plays an important role in developing students’ independent information-seeking skills, it would also require ongoing support from an information skills ambassador program and the support of relevant information resources. Each program is discussed in more details below and this discussion shows how each of the programs is interrelated to create a supportive environment that would facilitate the development of students’ independent information-seeking skills.
5.6.1 Information skill training program
Information seeking is a learning process (Ford, 2004; Limberg, 1999), and information skill is ‘a catalyst for learning’ (Lloyd, 2010, p. 25). Information skills are a vital component of essential learning skills (i.e. literacy and numeracy), and information skill training should be considered an integral part of curriculum design.
This study found that telling the students the importance of information seeking and citing references in Western academic writing was not enough. The students needed to be equipped with adequate information skills to enable them to use library resources in their studies. In offshore programs, information skill training is particularly important Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 193 for offshore students whose learning skills have been largely related to textbooks in the traditional Chinese education. It is therefore paramount to provide training to help offshore students develop adequate computer and information skills in adapting to Western problem-based learning. In the first place, however, the information skills training must be based on a comprehensive assessment of students’ prior library knowledge and information skill levels.
Although in this study the library from the Australian university responsible for the master’s programs studied here made the library training available online, the instruction program was in English only. This was clearly unsuitable for the students due to their language, cultural and technological barriers. Offshore students are entitled to proper Australian library user training; such training should clearly demonstrate how the library system works, what to do with all its options, how to search effectively, and how to evaluate and use authoritative information and cite different types of materials in Western academic writing. A face-to-face, hands-on training workshop needs to be considered as an integral part of the offshore program.
It is anticipated that language barriers will present significant challenges to information skills training. The library database training can make use of the language interface options available in major databases such as EBSCO, ProQuest, Web of Science and Cambridge Scientific Abstracts (Zhuo, Emanuel, & Jiao, 2007). However, given the language limitations of the students, it is important to provide multilingual library information guides to enable the students’ use and access of resources and services.
5.6.2 Information skills ambassador program
Using guanxi affects the students’ overall information-seeking skills development. This widespread Chinese cultural practice inhibits the students from seeking information independently. While guanxi impedes the development of independent information- seeking skills, the role of guanxi and its social support in adult learning and students’ information seeking cannot be ignored (Jarvis, 2010). As discussed in sections 4.3.1.4 and 4.3.2.4, the students use guanxi as information-seeking strategies because other relevant information sources were not easily accessible. Thus, it is important to embrace a guanxi culture to create a network of human support critical to the ongoing development of independent information-seeking skills among Chinese offshore students. Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 194
The proposed information skills ambassador program is a program designed to provide information skills training to a small group of offshore students, local co-teachers and librarians of partner universities to learn to use the Australian university library system. In this study, no participants mentioned consulting a librarian. This would help improve students’ awareness of library resources available, their knowledge of databases, and help develop effective information skills. The program would also help communicate the value of library use in Western education and, by working through the program, offshore students, local co-teachers and local librarians would be in a better position to help other offshore students to use library online resources in their assignment information seeking. In this way, the program would help improve the interaction between the offshore students and the librarians.
Practising information skills that students have learned is important to the uptake of library online resources in their information seeking. The information skills ambassadors could provide the face-to-face feedback to offshore students at the time of their need. They could also provide follow-up consultation to reinforce what students have learned. It is within this context that an information skills ambassador program would be useful to provide a network of human support for offshore students.
The Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) suggests the use of the Ambassador programs in promoting library use.21 The Ambassador Programs have been proven as an effective means in promoting library services and new resources (Betz, Brown, Barberi, & Langendorfer, 2009; McKerracher, 2009).
5.6.3 Relevant information resources support through partnership arrangement
In this study, the students’ assignment information seeking faced the challenges of the lack of relevant information resources support, and this issue was twofold. First, no arrangements had been made for the students to have access to the partner university libraries. Second, the Australian university library lacked culturally relevant materials that met students’ specific information needs in China. This concurs with the earlier
21 ALIA provides advice about developing a library ambassador program on their website (http://www.alia.org.au/governance/committees/public.libraries/summit09/public.library.ambassador s.html). Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 195 findings from the Australian Universities Quality Agency (2004) which reported offshore student dissatisfaction with the low levels of the availability of library resources.
Although Australian university libraries have developed many good practices in support of the Australian programs (The International Education Association of Australia, 2008), it is difficult to develop a library collection and service to cater adequately for the dynamic information needs of offshore students located in a number of different countries. The Council of Australian University Librarians (2008) has suggested various partnership arrangements for library information support. These included an agreement with a local educational institution to facilitate library access for students and the creation of a learning centre or library offshore print collection at offshore teaching sites. The Australian university library and the offshore program administration need to formulate agreements with partner university libraries to provide adequate information resources and services for offshore students. With a mutual agreement and arrangement, this would allow offshore students to have access to local libraries for their studies.
The collaboration could be mutually beneficial to help improve the local libraries in their development of services. For example, an Australian university library may consider extending training provisions to local librarians or local co-teachers to update their technological skills and library knowledge. Swinburne University in Australia is an excellent example of such an effort. Their library invited offshore librarians from Malaysia to visit their Australian university library to keep them up to date with their current library resources and services, and a 2006 Swinburne (Sarawak) Library preliminary survey showed that offshore students’ satisfaction level improved due to the better support provided by a local librarian (pers. comm.).
Existing studies (Hegarty, Carbery, & Hurley, 2009; Hughes, 2010) show that library training has led to changes in learning approaches and information-seeking behaviour. In this present study, the two-hour database search training may not have led to offshore students’ abandonment of textbook-reliant learning preferences, but it did expand their awareness of the library online resources available and the potential benefits of these resources to their studies, as reported by the participants. It is anticipated that the enhanced information skill training would empower offshore students with a set of library information skills. The development of their independent information-seeking Chapter 5 Discussion of findings 196 skills would facilitate offshore student adaptation to Western problem-based learning and enrich their learning experience in their assignment information seeking.
5.7 Chapter summary
This chapter shows that Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model helped provide an enhanced understanding of the contextual factors that influence the students’ information seeking for their studies in the offshore context. The research findings are also discussed in relation to existing literacy, current library practices and the underlining guidelines for library services to offshore students advocated by CAUL (2004, 2007, 2008, 2012). It identifies the lack of consideration of the offshore students’ perspectives in the development of library provisions in the existing guidelines and explains the importance of incorporating students’ perspectives into the development of adequate library services to offshore students. In this regard, the CAUL’s Principles and Guidelines for Library Services to Offshore Students should provide a mechanism to incorporate the input from all the stakeholders, including offshore students and local librarians at partner universities in the development of library services. Based on the findings of this study, I propose an integrated library service program with the aim of improving library services to support offshore students’ learning and information seeking. Chapter 6 Conclusion 197
6 Conclusion
6.1 Chapter overview
Chapter 5 discussed the research findings together with the related literature and offered renewed understanding and interpretations of the findings. The aim of this study has been fulfilled by gaining an in-depth understanding of the students’ information-seeking behaviour and the underlying factors influencing their information seeking and library use in an offshore context. The study concentrated on the students’ information-seeking behaviour, their approach to information seeking, their use of library and other information sources and the impacts of different environments. It has explored, in some depth, the students’ information-seeking behaviour directly from the students’ point of view, instead of through library staff who serve the students and observe their behaviour and experiences. This research has been successful in discovering many useful findings, and has effectively answered all the research questions.
This final chapter summarises the study. It explains how the study’s aims have been achieved and discusses how the research questions have been answered. It presents a summary of research findings and the contributions made by this research are also described. The limitations of the study are discussed, and recommendations for future research are given.
6.2 Synopsis of this research
The number of offshore students in Australian offshore programs continues to grow; however, there is a lack of research on offshore students’ information-seeking behaviour and the influence of local contexts on their information seeking from their own perspectives. When this study started, that statement was true. This study was undertaken to understand the students’ information-seeking behaviour and the influence of different environments, and adopted a pragmatist view which emphasises that people’s behaviour is a function of the interaction between them and their environments.
In this study, the students’ information behaviour has been viewed as a process of interaction between the students and their environments (the local environments and the environment of the Australian university library) in an offshore context. Within that Chapter 6 Conclusion 198 context, it is important to understand students’ information-seeking behaviour by taking into account the broader socio-cultural environment as well as the library systems and local information environments.
Through a careful review of studies related to the research topic, issues have been identified that are pertinent to offshore students’ information seeking. Having identified the research problems, specific research questions were formulated and, using these questions, different methods, models and approaches in the field of information behaviour research were examined. After careful consideration of the alternatives, Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model was selectively adopted to guide this research, then a pragmatic mixed-methods case study approach was applied to address the research questions. Mixed methods—the use of both quantitative and qualitative methods in a single case study—provide an opportunity for a comprehensive insight into a phenomenon from multiple perspectives. Having chosen the research method, various marketing techniques were used to identify the research sites and participants. Through various means, support was gained from an offshore program leader to access two groups of students who were relevant to this study.
Following the rigorous procedures set out in the research design, data was collected from the students at two sites, using questionnaires, semi-structured interviews, observations and focus groups. Using within-site and cross-site analyses, this study provided a general overview of the students’ information-seeking behaviour, as well as an in-depth understanding of the complex interrelationships of the many multiple contextual factors influencing their information seeking.
In this chapter, a number of specific conclusions are drawn based on the findings of the empirical research. The following section presents the outcomes of this research.
6.3 Outcomes of this research
This study was based on two main research questions: (1) How do offshore students in China seek information for their assignments? and (2) How do environments in China impact on the lack of access to, and use of, Australian and local libraries by the offshore students? The study found that the students did not use the Australian university library and that their use of the local libraries was also limited. Instead, they used the Internet and other people as major sources to obtain information for their studies. The key Chapter 6 Conclusion 199 findings of the research are presented in Chapter 4 and discussed in Chapter 5, where the evidence of the study is interpreted in the light of the conceptual framework and prior research literature as reviewed in Chapter 2. This study provides a foundation for the improvement of library services to offshore students in the following ways:
it provides enhanced knowledge of the information-seeking behaviour of Chinese offshore students;
it offers in-depth insights into the contextual factors that influences Chinese offshore students’ information seeking and use in China;
it raises the profile of important issues and challenges facing Chinese offshore students in their access to, and use of, the Australian and local libraries for their studies;
it provides informed advice for improving library services and information skills training to offshore students in China;
it demonstrates the importance of and need for the assessment of information skills of offshore students to facilitate the planning and development of information skills training programs that are more relevant to students’ specific needs in China;
it provides rich data and information underpinning effective policy and program development by offshore program developers and policy makers in planning and developing offshore programs;
it expands the body of knowledge applying Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model in information-seeking behaviour research in an Eastern cultural context in China. A complementary outcome that has been achieved is using the research findings to develop an integrated library service program based on the specific needs of the students in China.
6.4 Contributions from this research project
This research used Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model as a guide to help obtain a comprehensive understanding of the students’ information-seeking behaviour as a basis for the provision of adequate library services to them within an offshore context. It has obtained information through multiple sources from completed questionnaires, semi- structured interviews, observations and focus groups across two different sites. By collecting more useful and relevant information directly from the students, this study uses data collected as ‘students’ voices’ to provide a better understanding of the reasons for their choices of information sources in their information seeking. In this way, this Chapter 6 Conclusion 200 research makes contributions both conceptually and practically towards an enhanced understanding of factors that influence the students’ information seeking and library use for their studies in the offshore context.
6.4.1 Theoretical contribution
Conceptually, this research adapted the key concepts from Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model developed within a Western cultural environment to examine the students’ information-seeking behaviour in an Eastern cultural environment in China. The research considers various important contextual factors, including factors identified through the use of the ‘intervening variables’ in Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model, to examine and understand the complex offshore context in China.
The significant factors identified in this study include personal factors (knowledge of information sources, user preferences, information skills, and demographics); role- related or interpersonal factors (work roles/role power and guanxi); and environmental factors (Western teaching methods, the socio-cultural environment, library provision and the information environment).
Research results confirm that all the contextual factors in the general model also applied in the context of this study. However, some factors are manifested in different ways in the Chinese socio-cultural environment. This research identified other important contextual factors pertinent to this particular study such as Western teaching methods, role power and guanxi in the Chinese socio-cultural environment. In this way, it has added to the understanding of how various factors could influence people’s information seeking differently in different contexts, as suggested by Wilson (1981, 2010).
Earlier studies in information-seeking behaviour research have seldom explained how each of the contextual factors interrelate with the others (Courtright, 2007, p. 285). This study has shown how multiple contextual factors interrelated and collectively impacted on the students’ information-seeking activities and reveals that the students’ information seeking is influenced by the overlaps between their academic learning and workplace problem-solving information needs. In this way, this research has filled some of the gaps that have become apparent in understanding the interplay of multiple factors (Courtright, 2007) and the overlaps between academic learning and other life contexts (Given, 2002) in information-seeking behaviour research. Chapter 6 Conclusion 201
6.4.2 Practical contribution
This study addresses the need for a comprehensive understanding of information- seeking behaviour of the students from their own perspectives. In relation to offshore students’ information seeking, much of the existing literature has focused on anecdotal evidence and library surveys of students’ library use or non-use and issues such as information skills, cultural differences, language and technical barriers (Ali, et al., 2006; Badger & Roberts, 2005; Best, et al., 2007; Chakraborty & Tunon, 2002; Gao, 2006; Hussin, 2007; Karasmanis, 2007; Kijanka, 1993; Lowry, 1991; McSwiney & Parnell, 2003; Shah & Nair, 2011; Stella & Bhushan, 2011; University of Wollongong Library, 2004; Waite, 1991; Ziguras, 2001). In the broader offshore context, with the truly related influencing contextual factors all examined, this research looks beyond the libraries and has provided an insightful understanding of the information-seeking strategies and alternative information sources that the students used and the influence of local environments.
This research informs the providers of library services about the necessity of library services and information skill training for offshore students. It will help all relevant parties to understand the complexities of the offshore contexts that influence offshore students’ information seeking. The specific implications for the relevant parties are further discussed below.
6.4.2.1 Implications for the offshore students
The findings of this study suggest that it is important for offshore students to have adequate information skills and library knowledge in order to use library resources in their studies. With adequate information skills, offshore students will be in a better position to engage in independent information seeking (Hegarty, et al., 2009; Hughes, 2010).
In this study, Western teaching methods created a learning environment that engaged the students in meaningful information seeking. However, the students looked for information in a ‘Chinese way’, using Internet, guanxi, other people and a wide range of non-library information sources due to their limited library information skills and the lack of library user training and relevant information resources support to the students. Offshore students need extra support to acquire basic computer and information skills to Chapter 6 Conclusion 202 facilitate their learning in Australian offshore programs. Further, the students’ lack of English proficiency was also a barrier to their access and use of Australian university library resources and services. To this end, there are important implications for the offshore program developer and Australian university libraries, as discussed below.
6.4.2.2 Implications for the offshore program developers
The findings of this study suggest that it is important to consider local information resources support in the development of bilingual offshore programs, as Australian university library content is mainly in English and lacks information resources relevant to the local Chinese context. It is important to seek the collaboration of local librarians and partner universities in the planning of offshore programs and library provision to facilitate the development of culturally relevant information resources support to offshore students. This study has shown that Australian lecturers are already engaged in research skills training by teaching students the concept of plagiarism, critical thinking skills and important steps in research. To help offshore students develop adequate information skills for their studies, a library user training program should be considered as an integral part of the curriculum for offshore programs. This also has important implications for Australian university libraries as discussed below.
6.4.2.3 Implications for the Australian university libraries
The findings of this study stress the importance of developing adequate library resources and training from the students’ perspectives by taking into account the multiple contextual factors and students’ specific needs for academic learning and research in the offshore context. Effective guidelines are needed to ensure the proper assessment of information skills of offshore students at the time of enrolment, and this will enable better planning and the development of adequate library resources and training services to offshore students. It is important to provide tailored information skills training programs at the beginning of the offshore programs, especially for offshore students who lack basic computer and information skills.
The information skills training programs also need to consider subject information resources and online information skills that are relevant to students’ specific needs in the local contexts. The provision of ongoing human support services for offshore students is critical in order to provide follow-up consultation to reinforce what the students have learned and provide a network of support to them at the point of their Chapter 6 Conclusion 203 needs. In this regard, it is important to develop a specific information skills training policy to ensure that offshore students are equipped with the adequate information skills required for the Australian offshore programs. Implications for policy makers are discussed below.
6.4.2.4 Implications for policy makers
The findings of this study indicate that it is important for the policy makers of national guidelines (Council of Australian University Librarians, 2012) to recognise the cultural and technological differences between library services to students at remote locations within Australia and those in other countries. The policy makers need to incorporate offshore students’ perspectives in the development of effective guidelines to ensure adequate library services to support offshore teaching and learning. This study shows that there is a lack of consistency in the level and quality of library resources and training services provided to the students. The national guidelines need to have an information skills training policy to assess and develop the information skills that offshore students need to facilitate their learning and research in the offshore context.
In summary, the development of adequate library services to offshore students requires the concerted efforts of all the stakeholders: offshore students, policy makers, the Australian offshore program developers, the Australian lecturers, Australian university libraries, local co-teachers, local librarians and the partner universities.
Australian university libraries need to find ways to engage offshore students with library resources and services in their studies. Based on the research findings, this study suggests ways to incorporate offshore students’ perspectives in developing adequate library services to meet their specific needs.
An integrated library service program is proposed to address the issues identified in this study. The integrated library service program could advise the library service provider how to satisfy the specific needs of offshore students better and provide them with independent information skills that improve their learning. The librarians, Australian lecturers and administrators who are engaged in offshore education may find the integrated library service program in this study useful. This research would directly benefit the offshore students and the key stakeholders such as librarians, Australian lecturers, administrators and more. Chapter 6 Conclusion 204
6.4.3 Recommendations
In an effort to summarise the various recommendations made at different points throughout this thesis, a consolidated list of recommendations is provided. It is suggested that offshore students are:
Taught practical skills and knowledge that will enable them to access and use information resources and library services and that these include: o A face-to-face, hands-on library user training program which needs to be considered as an integral part of the offshore program; o Effective guidelines to ensure the proper assessment of information skills of offshore students at the time of enrolment to facilitate the planning and the development of adequate library resources and training services to offshore students; o Provision of multilingual library information guides to enable the students’ use and access of resources and services, particularly given the English language limitations of the students.
Provided with information resources relevant to the students’ needs including: o Information skills training programs which need to consider subject information resources and online information skills that are relevant to students’ specific needs in the local contexts; o Formulation of agreements between the Australian university library and partner university libraries to provide adequate information resources and services for offshore students. With a mutual agreement and arrangement, this would allow offshore students to have access to local libraries for their studies.
Provided with ongoing support in their information-seeking processes: o Via an information skills ambassador program which would be useful to provide follow-up consultation to reinforce what the students have learned and a network of support to them at the point of their needs.
6.5 Limitations of this research project
There are some limitations identified in this study. First, the offshore context is quite complicated. As explained in the earlier chapters of this thesis, there are different types of offshore programs (distance, online, franchise, articulated and face-to-face) (Lang, Chapter 6 Conclusion 205
2011), and also different forms of library services (Council of Australian University Librarians, 2008). Because of the geographical distances and difficulties in accessing the students in China, this study only covered two groups of students in Australian offshore programs, both of which used face-to-face instruction in China. This mode of instruction is only one of the many types of offshore programs in offshore education.
This case was selected because it was the right one for this study and it was the only one for which the Australian university gave me permission to have access to the students at two sites in China. As it was very difficult to find other ones, I took the opportunity and used the students (total 113 students) in this case study. As this case study is situated within a specific context, the factors identified may only be applicable to the two unique sites in China.
Second, this study focuses on how the contextual factors influence the information- seeking strategies that students used to seek information for their assignments. It does not include the detailed search activities such as Internet, database and catalogue searching in the students’ information-seeking processes. Most of the participants could not share more information on their use of Australian university library resources, as only a few students actually accessed the library website.
Third, no ‘longitudinal’ study was undertaken, as this study only covers the students who were in their final year of the offshore programs. Further research work, conducted as a longitudinal study, is required in order to gauge any changes to offshore students’ behaviour over time in the offshore program. A longitudinal study would further enhance the validity of the proposed library service program developed in this study.
Finally, due to limited resources, this study only focuses on offshore students in China. In future, a comparative study of information-seeking behaviour between Chinese students studying in Chinese universities and offshore students studying in Australian university programs would be useful. Such a comparative study would help provide insight into the different learning environments, expectations of information seeking and library use in academic learning, and their influences on students’ information- seeking behaviour respectively.
Nevertheless, it is believed that this study provides a knowledge base for future efforts Chapter 6 Conclusion 206 in improving library service to offshore students. It will benefit a wider community of students studying Australian offshore programs in other non-English speaking countries and also be of benefit to the libraries providing services to those students. More research is required in different offshore contexts (for example Malaysia, Vietnam, India, etc.), and this may also help strengthen the findings of this study.
6.6 Suggestions for future research
The offshore education setting is a complex one where many types of offshore programs (i.e. face-to-face, online, franchise and articulated) exist. This study only covers the students in two face-to-face offshore programs (Master of Education and Master of Educational Leadership) at two different sites in China. Further research on information-seeking behaviour of offshore students in other types of offshore programs could usefully verify issues not addressed in this study.
There are many challenges to Australian university libraries in providing adequate library services and information skills training to offshore students in different types of offshore programs. Although this study has shed light on these challenges, it also leads to more questions that warrant further research. These include:
First, how do offshore students in the Australian twinning programs look for information for their studies? Offshore students in twinning programs may be different to those in the other types of program. Offshore students in the twinning program involve ‘study programmes, or parts of a course of study, or other educational services of the awarding institution provided by another partner institution’ (Stella & Woodhouse, 2011). Students may not have access to the Australian university library until the last year of a three-year program when they enrol directly with the Australian university (Gao, 2006). They lack knowledge of the Australian university library system when they begin the part of the twinning program with the Australian university (Hockey & McSwiney, 2005). Future research may investigate how offshore students in the twinning programs adjust to a new library system to complete their studies in a relatively short time in Australia. Alternatively, a comparison of information-seeking behaviour of offshore students in different types of offshore programs (twinning, international branch campus, face-to-face, or virtual) or in different offshore contexts (e.g. Malaysia, Vietnam or India) would illuminate the influence of contextual factors in different offshore settings. Chapter 6 Conclusion 207
Second, how can Australian university libraries develop information skills training programs that are relevant to the information skill needs of offshore students? This study argues that offshore students need extra support and tailored information skills training for their different information skill needs as they have a variety of levels of library knowledge, computer and information skills. To this end, an Australian university library needs to have an effective understanding of the library subject resources knowledge and information skills level of offshore students in order to develop information skills training programs relevant to their specific needs. Further research may need to develop some guidelines on the assessment of the information skill levels of the offshore students.
The information skill training program also needs to be developed in the light of the course requirements of the offshore programs, the socio-cultural, educational, work and information environments in different countries. For example, this study found that the students had limited knowledge of the concept of plagiarism. The students were required to use the APA style in their assignments, but they lacked knowledge of the citing of references in Western academic writing. These also presented challenges for the students when the assignments were submitted in Chinese as the modes of referencing in Chinese publications are very different to those in Western publications. A citation reference training workshop may need to cover considerations of types of materials (English or non-English), and the wide range of information sources that offshore students may use for their studies. Australian librarians may need to acquire knowledge of local information resources to facilitate the planning and development of an information skills training program to offshore students. Therefore, future research could also explore ways of incorporating local knowledge in information skills training that may facilitate offshore students’ information seeking in the offshore context. It could also investigate the development of students’ information skills each year through a longitudinal study. Alternatively, it could explore the influence of information skills training on offshore students’ approaches and the various steps taken in their information-seeking process.
Third, how can the Australian university libraries be encouraged to adopt national guidelines in developing library services to offshore students? This study found a lack of consistency in applying the national guidelines— ‘Principles for library services to Chapter 6 Conclusion 208 offshore students to support teaching and learning’ (Council of Australian University Librarians, 2004, 2007, 2008)—in providing library services to the students. Although recent efforts have been made by Australian university libraries to improve library provision to offshore students, the national guidelines are not legally binding on the libraries. Therefore, in applying the guidelines, there is a lack of consistency in the level and quality of library services provided to the students, as was evident in this study. Future research is needed to explore ways to encourage Australian university libraries to consider and adopt the national guidelines in developing adequate library services for offshore students.
Fourth, how can the developers of national guidelines be encouraged to include offshore students’ perspectives in developing adequate library services to support offshore teaching and learning? This study identified the lack of consideration of offshore students’ perspectives in the development of library services to the students. To address the issues identified from this study, an integrated library service program is proposed for adoption. However, to ensure adequate library services for offshore students, a mechanism is needed to enable inputs from the students into the library services development and planning process. An issue of concern is that offshore students, as a unique user group, are not recognised in the current policy—‘Principles and guidelines for library services to staff and students at remote locations’ (Council of Australian University Librarians, 2012). Offshore students are only considered as users at remote locations, similar to distance students in Australia. Offshore students’ specific needs and the fundamental differences in culture, language and information systems across the national boundaries and the challenges presented by cross-cultural information access and delivery are largely ignored. Future research will need to find ways to encourage national guideline developers to recognise offshore students as a unique student group and include their own perspectives in the development of library services to support teaching and learning offshore.
6.7 Chapter summary
This final chapter concludes the thesis. It summarises the research study. It provides a summary of the research findings and the outcomes of this research. On the whole, this study provides a comprehensive insight into the information-seeking behaviour of the students and the underlying factors that influence that behaviour within the offshore context. It explains the formal and informal information-seeking strategies used by the Chapter 6 Conclusion 209 students in their offshore context. It also reveals the complex interrelations between contextual factors, which have important influences on the students’ approaches to information seeking. In turn, the interrelated factors affect the students’ use of information sources in their assignment information seeking. An integrated library service program is proposed for adoption as a solution to the current problems with the students’ information seeking.
This study has applied Wilson and Walsh’s (1996) general model as a guide for the research of Chinese offshore students’ information-seeking behaviour in an Eastern cultural context. It adds to the body of knowledge about unique factors that influence the information-seeking behaviour of Chinese offshore students studying in Australian universities programs in China.
This research provides vital reasons and recommendations for remedial measures to improve library services. It suggests that having an insightful understanding of the students’ information-seeking behaviour and the complex offshore contexts is essential for librarians, Australian lecturers and administrators engaged in offshore programs. Such an understanding is critical in order to provide offshore students with adequate library services essential to improving their information seeking and learning. References 210
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Appendices
Appendix 1 Ethics Approval
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Appendix 2 Information Sheet
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Appendix 3 Consent Form
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Appendix 4 Questionnaire
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Appendices 232
Appendices 233
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Appendix 5 Semi-structured interview topic
Leading topic—please talk about your experience of looking for information for assignments. 1. Can you talk about how you look for information for your assignments? 2. How do you identify and choose information sources you need? 3. Can you talk about your experience of using the Australian library online resources and services? 4. Why do you not use the Australian library online resources and services? 5. Do you use the local libraries? Can you tell me a bit more about your local libraries? 6. Can you describe what you have learned in the process of seeking information for your study? 7. Would you have any other information you would like to add?
The participants were informed of the following list of questions by emails before the interviews:
Appendices 235
Appendix 6 Focus group consent form
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Appendix 7 Data analysis results verification
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Appendix 7.1 Extract of relevant comments from the focus group — Harbin
Categories Preliminary data analysis Comments from the focus groups results Student 1.Text-based learning, “Text-based learning existed, but not for all the learning limited English, work- students.” (S2) characteristics related study, time poor “At the beginning of our course, we got all the course material and digested all the theories.” (S3) “After the class, we also tried to digest. Apart from the course materials, some of subjects were topic oriented and some of the study needed to be broadened through further research.” (S5) 2. Had established “Yes. All of these were used.” (All) information channels: (Social relations, university bulletin department, colleagues, peers, lecturers) Information 3. Cultural difference in the “They become my understanding and knowledge after literacy use of references the reading. Some views might be similar, but not the exact words.” (S2) “Some people might have such a (plagiarism) tendency in the past. Now, some software was used to check and identify any plagiarism.” (S6) 4. Use Internet more than “Information from the library was more credible, library professional and accurate. Information from the Internet was very messy. People needed to judge and assess their credibility and reliability when they decided to use them.” (S5) “Younger learner opted for Internet-based learning where facilities permitted. This was a major source.” (S4) 5. Lack of exposure to “Apart from the lack of library user training, the library user training Australian university library services were not sufficient. It did not provide topic-oriented information, and no guidance was given about the ways to obtain information. If we needed any information, we often had to visit the library and search the library through the Internet. We needed to do the search ourselves. The Australian university library services in these aspects were limited.” (S6) Cultural 6. Insider knowledge from “Agreed. It was like that.” (All) beliefs & Social Relations, credibility values 7. Internet is free, fast, “Internet was often used first.” (All) updated with dynamic information; Quicker to find information from Internet than searching the library Information 8. Information need: updated “It would be wonderful if the international information seeking international information could be translated into Chinese simultaneously.” (S3) and theory to inform local practices, but lack the English capacity to do so 9. Information source use: “It was true.” (All) Internet, library, people, familiar sources, and social relations Appendices 238
10. Information search “We did not have other ways, just used keyword search. strategies: Key word search, We often used Baidu, and other major search engines.” cross-references, hyper/link, (S1) collaborative search “Yes, we mainly used key word search.” (All) 11. Information Evaluation: “Yes, there were a lot of cultural differences.” (All) Strong cultural value and beliefs in information evaluation and use Technical 12. Technical barriers “Yes, it would be better if it was multilingual. This was barrier including English interface, the situation at that time.” (S1) slow Internet speed prohibit the uptake of library online resources and service in learning Information 13. Limited access to local “Yes, some libraries did not have databases.” (S6) environment libraries; or library has “Neither the Australian university nor the Chinese limited resources and partner university treated us as their own campus facilities students. We were not given access right to the library at the Chinese partnering university.” (S5) 14. Different ICT capacity: “Not to mention using the Australian university library dial up, broadband, or to find information. No one could really have the Internet, and access to ability, or was able to find information. Not a single Australia library is slow one out of one hundred students could do it.” (S3) Library 15. Australian university “There was such situation.” (S6) provisions library collection is western “We had to look at it this way. If it was professional oriented; lack of local topic, especially current research, they were rarely relevant information freely available on the Internet, and you might be able resources to find them if using fee-based service.” (S6)
*Six participants attended the focus group meeting in Harbin. S1 = Student 1, S2 = Student 2, S3 = Student 3, S4 = Student 4, S5 = Student 5, S6=Student 6. All = all participants
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Appendix 7.2 Extract of relevant comments from the focus group —– Hangzhou*
Categories Preliminary data analysis Comments from the focus groups results Student 1.Text-based learning, “Two third of the material, including the reading learning limited English, work- material and others, were provided in Chinese.” (S1) characteristics related study, time poor “Personal capacity was also closely related to people’s age. Our English level might be poorer than the younger students. This situation would be gradually improved. What you pointed out here was correct.” (S2) 2. Had established “Yes. Our learning approach and learning style were information channels: very different, for example, the communication and (Social relations, university interaction in the learning process.” (S3) bulletin department, colleagues, peers, lecturers) Information 3. Cultural difference in “Differences existed in the cross-cultural teaching and literacy the use of references learning. However, we could learn from each other.” (S2) 4. Use Internet more than “We could find relevant and authoritative information library from the library. But for our daily information needs, we used the Internet more often. The Internet is very convenient.” (S4) 5. Lack of exposure to “Language was a barrier. Most of our students had library user training limited information literacy skills…. Although limited language and information literacy skills were issues, the access right or library user training should be provided.” (S1) Cultural beliefs 6. Insider knowledge from “Yes, it was like that.” (All) & values Social Relations, credibility 7. Internet is free, fast, “In terms of Internet, many of the current research were updated with dynamic published online. More and more information are information; Quicker to available online.” (S4) find information from Internet than searching the library Information 8. Information need: “Most of the information was about Australian seeking updated international education. There was lack of information about information and theory to education from other countries. We need to know about inform local practices, but international practices in education, but all the lack the English capacity to information provided was mainly from Australia.” (S3) do so 9. Information source use: “We could obtain updated information from the Internet Internet, library, people, in China at the same time as in the US and UK. So, we familiar sources, and social may not need to make extra effort to search overseas relations library.” (S5) “We could access information from our own network.” (S5) 10. Information search “Yes. I hoped the foreign lecturers could teach the strategies: Key word search methods and logical thinking.” (S5) search, cross-references, hyper/link, collaborative search Appendices 240
11. Information Evaluation: “Culture dictated our value orientation in our Strong cultural value and information seeking process. Culture determined our beliefs in information evaluation and assessment of information. Culture also evaluation and use created the differences in knowledge construction between western and eastern culture.” (S1) Technical 12. Technical barriers “In terms library access, I remembered that we were barrier including English interface, given user account in the first term. We did use it slow Internet speed prohibit during the class, but it was very difficult to log in due to the uptake of library online some technical problem.” (S4) resources and service in learning Information 13. Limited access to local “We could find relevant and authoritative information environment libraries; or library has from the library. But for our daily information needs, limited resources and we used the Internet more often.” (S4) facilities 14. Different ICT capacity: “I shared the same view when you talked about this.” dial up, broadband, or (S4) Internet, and access to Australia library is slow Library 15. Australian university “Our Australian university was leading in the field of provisions library collection is western Education, but many of the resources that we needed for oriented; lack of local our final thesis were not available.”(S3) relevant information resources *Five participants attended the focus group meeting in Hangzhou. S1 = Student 1, S2 = Student 2, S3 = Student 3, S4 = Student 4, S5 = Student 5 and All = All participants.
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Appendix 8 Semi-structured interview topic with Australian lecturers and Chinese co-teachers
1. Will you please tell me about your role as a course-coordinator/lecturer/co-
teacher for the offshore students?
a. What responsibilities do you have towards the offshore students?
b. How long have you been in this role?
c. Have these responsibilities changed since you’ve been in the role?
i. If yes, what and how?
2. How do you interact with offshore students?
3. Are the Australian university library resources and services to the offshore
students and on-campus students different?
a. Is there any service that is specially designed for offshore students?
b. Is there a library instruction to the offshore students?
c. Are you aware of any course assignments that require offshore students
to use library online resources and services?
4. Do you notice that offshore students have difficulty when they seek
information for their studies?
a. If yes. Can you be more specific?
5. Since the introduction of WebCT to the offshore program in Harbin Normal
University, has this influenced the teaching and learning of the offshore
program in any way?
a. If yes, how?
6. Do you have any other observations that might assist this research? Appendices 242
Appendix 8.1 Profiles of Australian lecturers and Chinese co- teachers
ID Code Roles
Australian lecturer A Course-coordinator / lecturer
Australian lecturer B Course-coordinator, lecturer and translator
Australian lecturer C Lecturer
Chinese co-teacher A Teaching assistant and translator
Chinese co-teacher B Teaching assistant and translator Appendices 243
Appendix 9 Voice sheet from thematic coding analysis—Harbin
Appendix 9.1 Western teaching methods—Harbin
Participant Comments from participants Categories Student M. ‘We found that this teaching method was very good…the advanced Western Creative teaching method was directly applied onto the practice of Chinese education. thinking All of a sudden, my concepts were changed. And then, there was also a huge change in learning approach following this teaching method. For example, for the assignment, there were no standards or fixed answers. As long as you had own ideas and opinions, it would be OK and it would be accepted. It [the Western teaching method] was very open and encouraged creative thinking. We gradually adapted and accepted this method. Now, we really liked it... This was a very good way of imparting knowledge.’ Student N. ‘The Western teaching method would have a great impact on the Chinese Integrated educational system in the future. I believed that we also adopted some of the learning to knowledge that we gained from the lecture in our teaching. We described practices them to our students and I felt that was very good.’ Student P. ‘Australian lecturer’s classroom instruction, her focus was completely Creative different from the Chinese teachers; the learning environment created by her learning way of teaching encouraged independent thinking, especially critical thinking environment among students. It was good to teach students how to look at questions and Encouraged analysis problems…not like the Chinese teachers who just showed the critical answers…the Australian lecturers never told you that way. She never told thinking you the answer…more likely she would show various views from the experts in the field, their consensus…she showed students how to analyse and evaluate from multiple pieces of information, and to identify the trends…We learned a lot from these.’
‘Australian lecturers never told us the answers. However, the way they showed us, we never forgot. ’ Student R. ‘I believed that the Australian lecturers brought about this kind of … how to Conceptual describe it? There was conceptual change, because she taught you how to do change an assignment and how to write a thesis. In China, the thesis was often not Using related to the practices, very hollow and very broad. But what was taught by update the Australian lecturers was very practical, with a focus. And then it focused knowledge on using up-to-date knowledge in writing the thesis.’ Student T. ‘During our lectures, we rehearsed drama and did some crafts. Half of the Critical time was used in discussion and debating. So, this would not be possible thinking within our country. However, through this course, through our study, I Information learned more about the difference in instruction between Chinese and foreign sharing in education. In China, it was teacher-centred education, teacher dominated. group Teacher was in charge in the classroom. But for foreign education, Western discussion teachers seldom gave answers, or what it was. They asked what you thought Encouraged it should be. Then she gave you some guidance and still did not tell you what critical the answer was at the end. However, you would not forget what you come up thinking with by following her guidance.’
Appendices 244
Appendix 9.2 Library provision—Harbin
Participant Comments from participants Categories Student O. ‘Australian webpage was English only. I logged on, but could Australian university not understand.’ library was beyond the ability of the students Student Q. ‘Because of language barrier and little knowledge about the Australian university Australian library and some other problems, and I felt it was not library was beyond the convenient to use.’ ability of the students ‘It was mainly the language issue. I had to read a lot of instruction and I felt that was difficult. This was the main reason. However, it was pity that I could not utilise these resources.’ Student R. ‘I thought there was lack of guidance. I logged on to the No library user training Australian university website before, but quite often, couldn’t find the library page.’ Student S ‘Australian website was very slow; the Internet speed was indeed Internet access to very slow. So, I tried several times, and it was continuously like library was slow that. I did not like to log on unless it was necessary.’ Student U. ‘Australian website was generally slow; it might be our national Internet access to network was slow.’ library was slow Student V. ‘Another issue was the limitation of the network. I felt that Internet access to sometimes it was very slow to log onto the Australian university library was slow library website.’ Student W. ‘So, it was not used very often as our time was very limited. So A lack of multilingual every day our schedule was very full. So, if you had to look up library interface new words from the dictionary, and then translated by using the Internet translation, it would be very slow. It would be much better if it could be directly translated, or if the Australian library had a translation software which could translate the information simultaneously.’ Student X. ‘Speaking from my professional view, I believed that there was Culturally relevant very little discussions about hosts in foreign libraries as our content concepts were different.’
Appendices 245
Appendix 9.3 Local information environment—Harbin
Participant Comments from participants Categories Student M. ‘In respect of local libraries, we had our university library. It was very Rich library convenient for us to search any information as we had a library with resources specialised journal collections which specially catered for the lecturers. We had a specialised information centre where we could borrow at any time. We could use these resources as well as other university libraries around us, such as the Harbin Normal University, the Biological Engineer and Harbin Engineering University. They were open to the public.’ Student N. ‘The Internet was slow. It was a bit slow to log on to the Australian Slow Internet university website.’ Limited relevant ‘I used print materials; seldom used online resources. Our institute was a information in specialised institute in the sports field; the online resources in this field library were not very rich.’ People source Related ‘So, it was a specific topic and there was very limited research departments information on skiing from the Internet or library. I gained much more detailed information from the Scientific and Research Department.’
‘The Publication Department of the University Bulletin had articles that people submitted to our University Bulletin for publication. The articles were related to sports and skiing. There were articles from our Scientific and Research Department which was in charge of all the research applications at the state or national levels. The information was for internal-use only. Our institute had a policy that would allow our teachers to browse and use. So, I might discuss with the principal researcher of the related research programs.’ Student O. ‘I used dial-up. It took 4 or 5 minutes to display a page when I tried it Slow Internet from home.’ No access to library ‘I only used the library online resources when we searched information at database the host university library last time. I did not use again after that as there Poor was cost involved.’ translation in the course ‘Our institute was in the process of developing electronic library materials resources.’ Developing library ‘I felt the translation did not match the original text of the course electronic materials.’ resources
‘I obtained information from the employers of our graduates as we had established guanxi.’ Student P. ‘Because the digital library was not fully developed as yet in our No access to university library, I mainly used the Internet to search for relevant library resources, such as articles, thesis and various concepts.’ database Internet Student Q ‘Our library at work had a large collection of electronic resources which Rich library could satisfy the general professional information needs at the electronic university.’ resources Student R. ‘We used the Internet to obtain current information. As you knew the Media reality in China, there were many disadvantages with school merge. In censorship that case, only those people on the Internet could voice out the truth. You Internet could not find those information if you searched the journal database. People What was voiced out on the Internet was truth.’ Internal document ‘When I did this assignment, I talked to teachers from the English Minutes Department and tried to understand their views from teachers’ Library Appendices 246
Participant Comments from participants Categories perspectives as well as the students’ perspectives. Then the leaders also database had a meeting which was a good opportunity because I was taking the minutes at the meeting. They discussed about school merge. You could not get these things, such as English graduate employment trends from the Internet or books. Then, I had to get it from the school employment consultant service and the coordinator of English Department.’
‘You could only use the Chinese Academic Journal database, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), and those full text databases from the university. We needed to pay for them if we accessed from home.’ Student S. ‘Australian website was very slow; the Internet was very slow. So, I tried Slow Internet several times, and it was continuously like that. I did not like to log on Offshore unless it was necessary.’ students had no access to local ‘Students from other universities, such as students from offshore host university programs could not access the host university library. All our offices had library the electronic facilities. I downloaded library e-books at work as I could Interlibrary not access them from home.’ loan was lacking ‘We used our own library collection. There was a lack of interlibrary loan Blog activities between libraries.’ Library electronic ‘Many well-known scholars had their own Blogs which had relevant resources articles.’ Student T. ‘There were rich electronic resources in our university because our Library university library was recently built and had a lot of electronic books. electronic There was also a lot of material in print. It might be due to laziness, I resources seldom visited the library to use printed materials.’ Library print materials Student U. ‘Australian website was generally slow; it might be our national network Slow Internet was slow.’ The Internet as alternative ‘Our library had very limited collection as I started teaching this course in source 1997. The course only ran for seven years and even stopped for one year Unstable in between. It was just at the beginning of the development. There was a intranet lack of investment from the University in this area. So, I mainly used the Limited library Internet and books. I had a lot of books in this area.’ resources Faculty journal ‘If students were using the Internet, you mostly could not use it as there were very limited computers in the library.’
‘I used dial-up; it was slow; very slow especially with our international websites. I could not log on. For example, it took two hours to submit my assignment. I just managed to get it done.’
‘Access to the Internet was not stable and the system was down very easily. This computer was shared by 6 to 7 staff. We just got it for 2 months.’
‘I took all the journals on Early Childhood Education for the past 5 years from the faculty…I went through them to find the relevant articles and created an annotated bibliography for my research topic.’ Student V. ‘Another issue was the limitation of the network. I felt that sometimes it Slow Internet was very slow to log onto the Australian university library website.’ No access to library ‘Database was very good, but I did not use this. I was used to the electronic traditional way. I used the Internet. Our university library did not have journals electronic journals’. Appendices 247
Participant Comments from participants Categories Student W. ‘Our university library collection was a bit dated. And there was a lack of Library lacked material which was relevant to this specific subject in the offshore relevant program.’ information The Internet ‘You could download a lot of information from the Internet and they were free’. Student X. ‘The library resources here were not the same as what you talked about. Poor public For example, we never used Hangzhou Library. We did not go to the library Hangzhou Library. It had inadequate equipment and the collection was resources dated. It had old books and not the current titles. The books were only for Bookshop general use. I never used the local libraries and mainly used the Internet. I went to the bookshop to buy most current titles.’
‘As far as I knew no one used the public library to search for information. The public library was poorly equipped. It only had books. It was at the beginning stage of developing the library online resources.’
Appendices 248
Appendix 9.4 Socio-cultural environment—Harbin
Participant Comments from participants Categories Student M. ‘I was used to passively listening to lectures. I just needed to pass the Chinese exam- exam.’ based educational culture Student N. ‘There were articles at the Scientific and Research Department which Restricted was in charge of all the research applications at the state or national information levels. The information was for internal-use only. Our institute had a access policy that would allow our teachers to browse and use. So, we might Invisible college discuss with the principal researcher of the related research programs.’ English language barrier ‘Language was a key issue. Because our English language skills were very limited, we needed translation services during the Australian lectures.’ Student O. ‘I went through all the text books, all of them.’ Chinese textbook- reliance learning ‘I could obtain information from the employers of our graduates as we culture have established guanxi.’ Guanxi network English language ‘Australian webpage was English only; I logged on, but could not barrier understand.’ Student P. ‘I used most of the course materials given by the lecturers for each Chinese textbook- subject as well as books, literature and articles that I read in the past.’ reliance learning culture ‘In respect of the Australian university library, I really did not use it. English language One of the reasons was that I was not sure whether it had Chinese or barrier not because it was difficult to read English due to our English skills.’ Student Q. ‘Due to the language barrier and little knowledge about using the English language Australian library, and some other problems, I felt it was not barrier convenient to use.’ Student R. ‘For the assessment, there should be something like exams, etc. Chinese exam- Otherwise, it seemed that everyone could get a pass. I did not think based educational this was good enough.’ culture Face-saving ‘The Internet was also used to obtain information about the current culture situation. As you knew the reality in China, there were many Media censorship disadvantages with school merge. In that case, only those people on the Internet could voice out the truth. You could not find that information if you searched the journal database. What was voiced out on the Internet was truth.’
‘You could not get these things, such as English graduate employment trends from the Internet or books. Then, I had to get it from the school employment consultant service and the coordinator of the English Department.’ Student S. ‘At present, my work was related to student management. I was very Guanxi network close to the students. Most of the time, I chose something that was English language related to my current work.’ barrier
‘I believed that language barrier was the biggest barrier.’ Student T. ‘Australian teacher’s teaching method, I believed such teaching Chinese teacher- method could not be used in Chinese classroom. For instance, it should centred be the teachers who gave the talks during the lecture.’ educational culture Student V. ‘For us, there were cultural differences between Western and Chinese Cultural value culture. What I used must be close to my concepts. About the library, I Cultural did not use the Australian library online resources. Why? I believed it difference was due to language barrier.’ English language Appendices 249
Participant Comments from participants Categories barrier Student U. ‘We all learned from textbooks in the Chinese national education Chinese textbook- system.’ based learning culture ‘My English skill was not very good. There were things that were hard English language to understand.’ barrier Student X. ‘There was restriction on the library online resources in China. The Media censorship majority of the articles that were published were short articles from a English language small number of people. The articles were one or two thousand words barrier in length. There was no lengthy discussion. It was only the opinions and thoughts from some individuals.’
‘I seldom used the Australian university library as my English was not very good. I might not be able to read the English articles, only read the translated articles.’
‘Speaking from my professional view, I believed that there was very little discussion about hosts in foreign libraries as our concepts were different. Even if I used, it might be just for the reference and nothing else could be gained. So I seldom used, seldom read the articles as my English was not very good, and I might not be able to read, only read the translated ones.’ Appendices 250
Appendix 9.5 Profiles of interview participants—Harbin
Participant Profile Student M. Age: Over 45 Gender: Female Work role: Teaching Chinese literature in a university English: Limited English skills Student N. Age: Over 25 Gender: Female Work role: Student coordinator and administrative officer in Student Management Office in a sport institute English: Limited English skills Student O. Age: Over 40 Gender: Male Work role: Deputy Secretary-General of National Party, teacher in a TAFE college English: Limited English skills Student P. Age: Over 45 Gender: Male Work role: Deputy Director in an agricultural college, responsible for school management, educational reform and education professional training. English: Limited English skills Student Q. Age: Over 30 Gender: Female Work role: administrative officer in a personnel department in a university English: Limited English skills Student R. Age: Over 25 Gender: Female Work role: Secretary of the School of Education in a university English: Had sound English skills and could understand the English on the websites Student S. Age: Over 30 Gender: Male Work role: Student coordinator, Student Management Office in a university English: Sound English skills Student T. Age: Over 40 Gender: Male Work role: Student coordinator, Student Management Office in a university English: Limited English skills Student U. Age: Over 30 Gender: Male Work role: teaching early-childhood psychology in a university English: Limited English skills Student V. Age: Over 40 Gender: Female Work role: teaching Medicine in a university English: Limited English skills Student W. Age: Over 45 Gender: Female Work role: Associated Professor at the School of Law in a university English: Limited English skills Student X. Age: Over 40 Gender: Male Work role: Lecturer in media education in a university English: Limited English skills Appendices 251
Appendix 9.6 Knowledge of information sources and user preferences—Harbin
Participant Comments from participants Categories Student M. ‘For the assignment, we used the Internet to find information, or we Internet exchanged information with each other, or found some information Books from books and journals.’ Journals Peer exchange Student N. ‘For this assignment, my topic was on employment trends for skiing Internet graduates, and the perspective for future development. We had a lot of Work documents information in this area as our sports institute was specialised in skiing. Publication Especially the quality review for the course was just completed. We Department of were specialised in skiing and we received the excellence award from University the Educational Department; and a lot of information and materials Bulletin were from our institute. So, these might be the advantages in finding Scientific and information at work.’ Research Department ‘Apart from these, I also obtained information from our Scientific and Library lacked Research Department which had all the research topics in sports and relevant skiing that our teachers submitted to apply for the state and national information research grants. Some of the information from these research programs Other people might be useful to my thesis.’ Limited information in ‘The Publication Department of the University Bulletin had articles that library people submitted to our University Bulletin for publication. These articles were related to sports and skiing. Some articles are from our Scientific and Research Department that was in charge of all the research applications at the state or national levels. The information was for internal-use only. Our institute had a policy that would allow us to browse and use. So, we might discuss with the principal researcher of the related research programs.’
‘In respect of journals, I would rather go to the Publication Department of the University Bulletin than use the library. There was little information about skiing in the journals in the whole society. It might be the research field or the scope of research was quite narrow. So, I mainly used the journal from the Publication Department of the University Bulletin in our institute.’ Student O. ‘Information mainly came from our course materials. I read through all Course materials the course materials that the lecturers used’. Preferences for the Internet than ‘Few book titles were current. For things like that, I felt it might be books for current better to use the Internet, as it was very direct. It took a long time to information publish a book, our concepts changed when the book went through the Other people process of editing, printing and publishing. So, some of these were not perfect. Generally, what we could get were mainly from the Internet.’
‘I could obtain information from the employers of our graduates as we had established guanxi.’ Student P. ‘For the assignments, I used several information sources. They were Course materials reference materials that I used before, such as course reference Books materials. The materials were provided by the lecturers and they were Internet the most direct information source because I was familiar with the material through the study. The second one was the books that I read in the past. The third one was from the Internet resources as the digital library was not fully developed as yet in our university library. I mainly used the Internet to search for relevant resources, such as articles, thesis and various concepts. There were a lot of resources in some university Appendices 252
Participant Comments from participants Categories web sites. These were used as reference materials. I mainly used these three channels.’
‘In respect of educational theories, they were from the books that we learned in the past, including some professional literature. In respect of cases, examples and models, they were mostly from the Internet.’ Student Q. ‘I used databases to search for information relevant to our assignment Library by using topics and keyword search to identify some relevant databases information.’ Student R. ‘The critical thing was that foreign lecturers should give us guidance Library database and provided us the updated information, such as the well-known Limited scholars in the field. And we could search for their theories from the knowledge of Internet and searched books from the library and looked for his books’ information sources in the ‘What information sources that I used depended on the topic. If it was subject field about leadership, or management, etc., there was more information in Choice of the journal database.’ information sources ‘Another one was Google and Baidu that we also used. You had to depending on search Google for things like the more recent, updated information and information data. For example, I wrote about employment trends, and the number of needs graduates this year, or things like that. You had to search Google. If you Library books used other websites and searched journal databases, there was no paper Personal on this because it had not been published yet. So you had to use the contacts Internet resources.’ Internet for current ‘My topic was about the employment trend analysis in relation to the information English graduates from university merge. There would be some new Other people data in this area. For example, for my assignment, I talked to teachers from English Department and tried to understand their views from the teachers’ perspectives and the students’ perspectives. Then the leaders also had a meeting which was a good opportunity because I was taking the minutes at the meeting. They discussed about school merge. You could not get these things, such as English graduates employment trends from the Internet or books. Then, I had to get it from the school employment consultant service and the coordinator of the English Department.’
‘I used the Internet to obtain current information. Because you know the reality in China, there were many disadvantages with school merge. In that case, only those people on the Internet could voice out the truth. You could not find that information if you searched the journal database. What was voiced out on the Internet was truth.’ Student S. ‘For a specific assignment topic, our work gave us a lot of convenience. Work resources At present, my work was related to student management. I was very Library close to the students. Most of the time, I chose something that was resources related to my current work. First, it could help to improve my work. Bookshop Second, it allowed me to do a questionnaire survey to gather Internet information from the students more objectively for the self-defined assignment.’
‘I also used library resources and relevant books’
‘For the topics related to future education, I might go to bookshop to find some relevant books, including research on future education or other relevant titles. Another source was from the Internet.’ Student T. ‘I used the online electronic journals in the library at work. There was a Preferred lot of information relevant to this course, very convenient. There were a convenient lot of things relevant to this subject. It was mainly through searching library electronic Appendices 253
Participant Comments from participants Categories relevant documents from the university library and journals. Another resources than one was through the hyperlink from the journals...’ prints Personal ‘There were rich electronic resources in our university because our knowledge university library was recently built and had a lot of electronic books. Other university There was also a lot of material in print. It might be due to laziness, I bulletin seldom visited to library to use printed materials.’ Internet Peer exchange ‘Most of the information for this assignment was from the material gathered over time; as this was part of my work.’
‘Another one was by doing keyword search through Baidu, or Google. In this way, we could search for more information. Another one was through information exchange between peers during thesis writing, for example, we might ask where you were up to between each other. Or sometimes we might circulate what we found among us.’ Student U. ‘For this assignment, I mainly used the Internet, through local websites, Internet such as Sohu, Baidu and Google, those websites. Because the Books Australian website was generally slow, it might be our national network Personal was slow. Besides, my English skill was not very good, there were knowledge things that were hard to understand… Another source was from books. Faculty journal In respect of information seeking, although we followed the Australian Personal method to do the assignments, but I wrote about my own experience as collections most of the information was from my own collection.’
‘I also had a personal subscription for two journal titles, and the Department had four journal titles. I used the bound volumes of journals from the past five years, and my personal subscription as well. Then I created an annotated bibliography for the articles relevant to this research for my assignment.’ Student V. ‘I used Sohu, which was simple to use and convenient and got enough Internet as information for my assignment.’ convenient sources Student W. ‘In respect of the way of looking for information, we did that according Limited library to our routine practices. First, we went to the library as we had a library resources in our university. But I thought the book collection was very limited Other university because it could not spend a lot of funds to update the collection.’ libraries Bookshop ‘Apart from the print material, there were also some electronic Faculty reading resources which were not enough either. So, apart from using the room library, we also used other sources to search for information. For Internet for free example, we had to go to the municipal library, public library and other resources university libraries, such as the Heilongjiang University Library and the Higher Harbin Normal University Library to search for information. In Education addition, we had to buy books ourselves.’ Research Department ‘Another source that we used a lot was the Internet. We used a lot of the Scientific Internet resources and downloaded some material because they were Research free and could be downloaded anytime.’ Department Publication ‘The best one was the journals, those at the library and those that were Department of subscribed to by each individual department.’ the University Bulletin ‘Apart from those, there were Higher Education Research Department, Scientific Research Department in the university, and the Publication Department of University Bulletin. There were a lot of journals in the Publication Department of University Bulletin.’ Student X. ‘The information search process included: First, I searched my personal Books collections, some professional literature and monographs about hosts. Personal Appendices 254
Participant Comments from participants Categories Second, I gathered information about the quality of hosts. I went to the collection library to borrow journals, various professional journals such as Modern Internet Media published by Communication University of China as well as Professional some other university bulletin, such as ‘Radio & TV’, ‘the China Radio journals & TV Academic Journal of the State Administration of Radio, Film, Thesis and Television’, and some professional journals about news media.’ University Bulletin Apart from these, I also used the Internet to look for relevant Journal articles information. However, to be honest, the Internet was far from lacked in-depth satisfactory in meeting my information needs for the thesis. Why? information There was restriction on the library online resources in China. The majority of the articles that were published were short articles from a small number of people. The articles were one or two thousand words in length. There was no lengthy discussion. It was only the opinions and thoughts from some individuals. So you could only learn about current development from the Internet, which was the limitation of Chinese website, which could only be used as supplementary information, the most useful one was books, professional literature and the most current theses.’ Appendices 255
Appendix 9.7 Information skills—Harbin
Participant Comments from participants Categories Student N. ‘We knew how to search information with focus, including information Search work from work.’ information Student O. ‘I only used the library online resources when we searched information No database at host university library last time. I did not use again after that as there search skills was cost involved.’ Non-selective use of the ‘The Internet was very a huge resource where you could find almost Internet everything.’ resources Keyword search ‘I conducted keyword search. Although it showed the abstract, it did not display the full text. It may be the way I searched was not right.’ Student P. ‘In the past, there was only one book and one explanation, but now there Synthesis skill were many views that we needed to synthesise.’ Student Q. ‘It was mainly through the database. I searched for those that were Keyword search relevant to our assignment by using topics and keyword search and saved them for reading and later reference that I needed.’ ‘I really hoped that we could make full use of the Australian library resources. It was not only required by the course or the assignment, it would also help with further learning in the future.’ Student R. ‘I normally drafted a topic outline and then searched for information Keyword search based on the topic.’
‘We already knew how to search journal databases and used them very often.’
‘Now I could conduct information search professionally and wrote down the name of the author and page numbers carefully. I also paid attention to the references at the end of the articles.’ Student S. ‘When you searched for some less popular topic, there might be little Keyword search information. But if you searched for hot topics, there were a lot of Information things. All of sudden, tens of thousands of hits displayed and you did not overload know how to select. What I needed was time sensitive, including Lacked Boolean borrowing books. Sometimes, it found 1960s. Then searched further, it search skills might be up to 2007, or last month, or might be this month. There were many duplicates. It was very important to know how to select recent and updated information.’ Student T. ‘It was mainly through searching relevant document from the university Expand search library and journals. Another one was through the hyperlink from the through journals. These hyperlinks included other university bulletins. The hyperlink bulletin included information relevant to the university and you could go in directly.’ Student U. ‘I was not good at the computer. When I searched the Internet, I could Limited not see some of the full text article. It only showed you the abstract or computer skills general information. I don’t know why the full text article was not Limited Internet displayed.’ search skills Student V. ‘But sometimes, I conducted keyword search, some of the websites, not Limited Internet sure why, the returned results were totally irrelevant’ search skill Keyword search Student X ‘From the Internet, I could find all the information I needed very quickly Keyword search once I put in keywords. It showed all the relevant book titles, or journal Non-selective articles. For my assignment, 75% information was from the Internet, use of the 20% from books and 5% from journal articles.’ Internet resources ‘I just read the articles for some ideas, but I did not copy others.’ Concept of plagiarism Appendices 256
Appendix 9.8 Work roles and guanxi in information seeking—Harbin
Participant Comments from participants Categories Student N. ‘My research topic was about our ice-skating graduates’ Information needs employment opportunity, and I had a lot of information from and seeking related work.’ to roles at work Work roles and ‘For enrolment data, I would obtain it from the Department of guanxi enabled Enrolment and Employment.’ access to internal documents ‘So, information about graduates’ employment opportunity might come from our course, specialised program and teachers in our faculty. I talked to the teachers to get some information about the subject programs that we offered and the study period the course might take up and the capacity of the curriculum.’
‘I might discuss with the principal researcher of the related research programs.’ Student O. ‘My topic was about integrated laboratory experiments in the Information needs teaching curriculum.’ and seeking related to roles at work ‘I could obtain information from the employers of our graduates as Work roles and we had established guanxi.’ guanxi enabled information access Student P. ‘It was very convenient to exchange information between Peer exchange students.’ Student Q. ‘I focused on current issues at work and aimed to find solutions to Information needs solve the problem.’ and seeking related to roles at work Student R. ‘My topic was about English students’ employment opportunities Information needs and I talked to lecturers, students and attended a related meeting.’ and seeking related to roles at work ‘The leaders had a meeting which was a good opportunity because Work roles enabled I was taking the minutes at the meeting. They discussed about information access school merge. You could not get these things, such as English graduate employment trends from the Internet or books. Then, I had to get it from the school employment consultant service and the coordinator of English Department.’ Student S. ‘For a specific assignment topic, my work gave us a lot of Information needs convenience. At present, my work was related to student and seeking related management. I was very close to the students. Most of the time, I to roles at work chose something that was related to my current work. So my Work roles enabled research aimed to improve my work performance.’ information access Student T. ‘Another one was through information exchange between peers Peer exchange during thesis writing, for example, we might ask where you were up to between each other. Or sometimes we might circulate what we found for perusal among us…’ Student W. ‘Apart from those, there were Higher Education Research Work roles enabled Department and Scientific Research Department in the university, access to internal as well as the Publication Department of University Bulletin. There information were a lot of journals in the Publication Department of the University Bulletin.’ Student X. ‘My research topic was about media host, a subject that I was Information needs teaching.’ and seeking related to roles at work
Appendices 257
Appendix 10 Voice sheet from thematic coding analysis—Hangzhou
Appendix 10.1 Western teaching methods—Hangzhou
Participant Comments from participants Categories Student A. ‘The course was very well organised, with strict requirements and it Learning involved information seeking in the learning process. We needed to through find information before the class, searched for information during the information class, and needed to do more information search after the class. At the seeking same time, we also needed to look for information for assignments. Therefore, for us, we always had to search information in the learning process.’ Student C. ‘Until now, all my papers are written by myself. Sometimes, I might Learning not remember the source of ideas. So, sometimes, somehow it was through annoying. It was a real pain to list a few references as most of the information information came from my working document. I raised the question seeking and asked whether it was OK not to list any references. Basically it Assignment needed to be in line with such an approach.’ reference requirement Student E. ‘Ah, through this study, I believed that our vision was broadened. Teaching how Second, I did feel that the way we approached problems; the method, to do research the point of view and the depth, changed. Third, I believed that we Improved stayed updated with current information. Since joining this program, I information felt that I gained a lot in this area.’ consciousness Student G. ‘With the lectures, there might be more reflection which was closely Critical related to our practices. The foreign lecturers’ Western teaching style thinking also encouraged us to think and to integrate into our practices. So, we Integrated might integrate our learning with our work.’ learning to practices Student H. ‘I felt there were some distances in some areas comparing to the Creative foreign practices. Our vision was expanded by doing this course which learning opened up our horizons. At the same time, the teaching style of this Learning joint program encouraged creative thinking and we were all motivated. through Then, there were also some assignments, which were quite flexible. information Some were self-defined. For the self-defined topic, we chose a topic seeking ourselves. This helped to improve our understanding of the subject. Improved Information seeking improved our understanding of advanced information knowledge in the subject area. I personally benefited from this course. consciousness I used multiple channels simultaneously to gather information.’ Student I. ‘Based on their concepts, we examined the current situation. We Reflective reflected and investigated the current situation in China.’ learning Student J. ‘In fact, when we were doing the assignment by ourselves, we first had Teaching how to understand the concepts or methods from the lectures. A lot of to do research things could not be verbatim copied, only the study methods that could be learned and then applied.’
Appendices 258
Appendix 10.2 Library provisions—Hangzhou
Participant Comments from participants Categories Student G. ‘I never used the Australian university library as I did not know No library user how to get to the page…’ training Student H. ‘I did visit the Australian university library page, but it was English content English only.’ Student L. ‘I did log on, but could not open the relevant page…and the No library user collections were mainly in English and some literature was training highly professional …it might not be easy to use.’ English content Appendices 259
Appendix 10.3 Local information environment—Hangzhou
Participant Comments from participants Categories Student A. ‘Library hours were limited. For example it closed at 5:30.’ Inconvenient library access Student B. ‘I used three information sources: the Internet, library database Internet and colleagues such as subject lecturers and professors in the Library databases field.’ People sources Student C. ‘I used the Internet to see the range of information available and Internet used the library for subject specific online resources.’ Library online resources ‘I had personal journal subscriptions and a lot of information Personal collection was also from my work documents. Another information source Work document was from the course materials, but the translated version was not Course materials precise.’ Student D. ‘You needed a car to go to a good library which was located Inconvenient library very far away.’ access Internet ‘For our research topic, I might use Chinese websites such as Friends Google and Baidu. Apart from this, I might exchange information with my old friends.’ Student E. ‘We only had a reading room at work.’ No local library access ‘First, I found some relevant theses. Second, I searched the Internet Internet by keyword. Then I talked to some research experts in People source this field.’ Student F. ‘I went to the library, but it did not have much relevant Library lacked information. I used journals from work.’ relevant information Journals at work Student G. ‘Wanfang Database was the only source of information as I Library database could not find much relevant books when I visited the library. It Library lacked might be that I did not search carefully.’ relevant books Peer exchange ‘For my study, we also exchanged information with each other.’ Student H. ‘Our university library had tens and thousands of volumes of Library books that were open to the general public.’ Journals Internet ‘First, I used journals. Second, it was from the Internet. Third, I Course materials used course materials, including the reading materials.’ Student I. ‘There was an educational institute and professional teachers in Other people this field in our university. So, there was quite a lot of relevant Books information and researchers in this field.’ Journals Intranet access to ‘Our university had intranet access to library online resources. library online There were some materials in the printed book as well as in the resources at work subscribed journals.’ Student J. ‘In some government departments, financial reports and theses Restricted could only be accessible by certain groups of people.’ information access Student K. ‘We did not have a library at work. I mainly used the Internet. No local library Electronic library might be widely used in foreign countries; but access in China, it was just at the beginning stage.’ People source Development of ‘I consulted educational experts, like school principal. This was electronic library most direct.’ under progress Student L. ‘Majority of the library resources located in another campus and Inconvenient library we did not go there very often.’ access Research institute ‘In respect of information, generally we got them from research Library databases institutes, museum, library databases and the Internet.’ Internet Appendices 260
Appendix 10.4 Socio-cultural environment—Hangzhou
Participant Comments from participants Categories Student A. ‘I only used information from the main stream and authoritative Cultural belief of sources.’ authority English language ‘In respect of English literature, it would be difficult for us to competency understand although I did know English; it would take more time to read English literature…’ Student B. ‘At work, I had colleagues, including teachers and professors from Guanxi network whom I could obtain some information.’ English language competency ‘I believed language was the major barrier to the use of Australian university library online resources.’ Student C. ‘Language was an issue and it would be time consuming if I used.’ English abilities and cultural ‘I did not like to copy others. Sometime, I might read and evaluate interpretation of their ideas, and made some comparison; and then critically the concept of synthesised. Until now, all my papers were written by myself. plagiarism Sometimes, I might not remember the source of ideas.’ Student D. ‘I might find my old friends to obtain some information.’ Guanxi network English ability and ‘We never searched international information as my English was very cultural limited.’ interpretation of the concept of ‘In fact, when we were doing the assignment by ourselves, we first plagiarism had to understand the concepts, or the Australian methods. A lot of things could not be verbatim copied. We could only learn to use and apply the methods.’ Student E. ‘I might find some people who were experts in this field.’ Guanxi network English language ‘I never used the Australian university library as I could not competency understand due to my limited English skills.’ Student F. ‘I really wanted to have a look at the Australia university library English language online resources, but my language skill was a barrier.’ competency Student G. ‘I might obtain some information from our lecturers.’ Guanxi network Cultural ‘We were quite serious with our assignments which were often work- interpretation of related. These were deep-thinking and not just copying from others.’ the concept of plagiarism Student H. ‘I used course materials because it was gathered by the Australian Cultural respect lecturers, representing their subject knowledge and teaching for academic experiences over the years.’ authority English language ‘I did visit the Australian university library page, but seldom use due competency to my English skill.’ Cultural interpretation of ‘We were quite serious with our assignments which were often the concept of related to issues at work. We still put in a lot of thought, not just plagiarism copying from the others.’ Student I. ‘Our university had an educational institute and professional teachers Guanxi network in this area. So, there was quite a lot of information relevant to this area, including some researchers and teachers in this field.’ Student K. ‘The heads of department were in charge of policy making and Restricted implementation. They had in-depth knowledge of the future information access development of policies and case analysis. I would ask for their to certain groups opinion.’ Student J. ‘In some government departments, the financial reports were only Social status and accessible for certain groups of people.’ privilege of information access Appendices 261
Participant Comments from participants Categories ‘In fact, when we were doing the assignment by ourselves, we first Cultural had to understand the concepts or methods from the lectures. A lot of interpretation of things could not be verbatim copied, only the study methods that the concept of could be learned and then applied.’ plagiarism Student L. ‘I did log on, but could not open the relevant page. The collection was English language mainly in English and some literature was highly professional which competency might not be easy to use.’ Appendices 262
Appendix 10.5 Profiles of interview participants—Hangzhou
Participant Profile Student A Age: Over 45 Gender: Male Work roles: The director of foreign affairs office, the Dean of Architecture Department and Institute of Art Branch in an art university English: Learned a little bit of English and could understand some of the English books Student B Age: Over 40 Gender: Male Work roles: Branch Head, Department of Education in a government agency English: Limited English skills Student C Age: Over 40 Gender: Male Work role: Deputy Director in a marine college, teacher English: Limited English skills Student D Age: Over 40 Gender: Female Work role: Principal of a high school English: Could not read English Student E Age: Over 40 Gender: Male Work role: Deputy Secretary of National Party, Research and Education Department in a government agency English: Limited English skills Student F Age: Over 40 Gender: Male Work role: teaching in a marine university English: Limited English skills Student G Age: Over 40 Gender: Male Work role: Vice-President of the Science and Technology Institute in an ocean university, responsible for Health and Safety Education, Student Enrolment and Career Office English: Limited English Student H Age: Over 40 Gender: Male Work role: Director of Auditing Office, Department of Education in a government agency English: Limited English skills Student I Age: Over 40 Gender: Male Work role: Deputy General-Secretary, Adult Education College in a university English: Limited English skills Student J Age: Over 40 Gender: Female Work role: Director of a cultural communication company, Chief Editor of an educational journal English: Limited English skills Student K Age: Over 30 Gender: Female Work role: Secretary in the Faculty of Education in a university English: Limited English skills Student L Age: Over 30 Gender: Female Work role: Researcher in a research centre of a university English: Sound English reading skills Appendices 263
Appendix 10.6 Knowledge of information sources and user preferences—Hangzhou
Participant Comments from participants Categories Student A. ‘I believed in the traditional learning method—finding information Books and knowledge from the books.’ Student B. ‘I used three information sources: the Internet, library database and Internet colleagues such as subject lecturers and professors in the field.’ Library Other people Student C. ‘I used the Internet to see the range of information available and used Internet the library for subject-specific online resources.’ Library Work documents ‘A lot of information was also from my work documents.’ Course materials
‘We mainly used course materials to obtain most of the Australian information or information abroad. ‘ Student D. ‘For our research topic, I might use Chinese websites such as Google Internet and Baidu. Apart from this, I might exchange information with my old Friends friends.’
‘I only heard about some new services in Hangzhou library, but I never used it.’ Student E. ‘I did not need to use databases. Now, once logged on to the Internet, Internet we were connected to a lot of resources.’ Other people Student F. ‘The most important one that I used was library databases. Library databases Journals ‘Although many concepts have been mentioned in the subject Lecturers materials, I would like the lecturers to give more references on modern theories and concepts.’ Student G. ‘Wanfang database was the only source of information as I could not Library database find much relevant books when I visited the library. It might be that I Peer exchange did not search carefully.’ Preferences for structured ‘For my study, we also exchanged information with each other.’ information from books ‘Although we were supposed to search information ourselves, all the recommended materials were articles only. For the professional literature and monographs, I felt that there was not enough information.’ Student H. ‘First, I used journals. Second, it was from the Internet through Journals Google and Baidu as it contained information from national as well as Internet international perspectives. Third, I used course materials, including Reading materials the reading materials as they were gathered by our Australian Lecturers lecturers, based on their knowledge and teaching experience in the Preferences for field.’ international knowledge from ‘I considered course materials as very useful. They were the subject course materials information that was gathered by the lecturers over the years; and it represented their understanding of the subject essence. It also represented the subject knowledge from an Australian perspective. There was a large of amount of information from these course materials and I mainly used this.’ Student I. ‘We used some materials in the printed book as well as in the Field expert subscribed journals.’ Books Journals
‘There was a teacher who was a specialist. I had the opportunity to Appendices 264
Participant Comments from participants Categories talk with him about Chinese education theories and the current status of education in China.’ Student J. ‘I mainly used internal information as information in the journals was Preference for for general public interest only and had a lack of depth.’ internal information Journals lacked in-depth information Student K. ‘I mainly used the Internet as it was much quicker and convenient.’ Preferences for convenient ‘The heads of department were in charge of policy making and information from implementation. They had in-depth knowledge of the future Internet development of policies and case analysis. I would ask for their Preferences for opinion. The information that I gained from the interaction and authoritative communication with these people was tremendous.’ information from trusted people Student L. ‘I mainly used journals. In respect of books, I would buy them from Research the bookshop. As a researcher, and for a subject, I believed that books institutions were the most basic information resources that should be used.’ Library databases Internet ‘I hoped Australian lecturers could give our Chinese students as much Journals as possible information on teaching and advanced educational Bookshop concepts in Australia and foreign countries; or some of the theoretical Lecturers discussion in the field. At the moment, lecturers only touched on some Preferences for in- views by those scholars during the courses, but not the original depth information works.’ from books Appendices 265
Appendix 10.7 Information skills—Hangzhou
Participant Comments Categories Student A. ‘There was an issue of permanent information. Books and printed Awareness of materials permanently existed and were traceable. But information quality of from the Internet might not be found after some time; no record, no information from source of reference. This would be a nightmare for an academic different sources researcher. I believed that, as a scholar, we wanted reliable and Acquiring the skills credible information.’ of citing reference
‘As I need to quote the references, I must carefully record the information, the pages, book titles, date of publication and the authorship, and chapters. It is very different from before, so it is professional information search and use.’ Student C. ‘First, I searched Google to see how much had been written on this Surfed the Internet topic. For professional and academic information, I must use library Lacked referencing databases.’ knowledge Lacked the ‘Sometimes, I might read and evaluate their ideas, and make some understanding of the comparison; and then critically synthesised. Until now, all my papers importance of citing were written by myself. Sometimes I might not remember the source references in of ideas. So, sometimes, somehow it was annoying. It was a real Western academic pain to list a few references as most of the information came from writing my working document. I raised the question and asked whether it was OK not to list any references. Basically it needed to be in line with such an approach.’ Student D. ‘For the assignment topic, I would use Chinese Internet websites, Relied on search such as Google and Baidu, etc.; and searched from those general engine websites.’ Limited library knowledge ‘I only heard about new services of Hangzhou Public Library, but I never used it.’ Student E. ‘No, I do not need to use databases…once logged on to the Internet, Self-efficacy we are connected to a lot of resources…search by keywords…’ Keyword search Student F. Now, the most important one that I use is online information Keyword search resources…I would use keywords to search different kinds of materials.’ Student J. ‘Information seeking was very time consuming. After 5 or 6 hours Lack self-confidence you might not find anything.’ in information seeking Student K. ‘I mainly used the Internet as it was much quicker and convenient. Lack self-confidence The library might have a wide range of information, but I might not in library use be able to find what I needed. It was very time consuming to use the library and needed a lot of effort.’
Appendices 266
Appendix 10.8 Work roles/role power and guanxi in information seeking—Hangzhou
Participant Comments Categories Student B. ‘I might ask my colleagues, including lecturers, professors, to Used guanxi for give me some information.’ convenient information access ‘There was also peer information exchange.’ Peer exchange Student C. ‘As adult learners, our study was closely related to work.’ Work-related learning Student D. ‘I might find my old friends to obtain some information.’ Guanxi enabled easy access to information Student E. ‘I might find some people who were experts in this field.’ Guanxi Student G. ‘We really wanted to learn something. Why did we take the Information needs Educational Leadership program? Because it was relevant to our and seeking related professional practices.’ to roles at work
‘All our assignment topics were related to our work.’ Student I. ‘It was very easy for me to find relevant information as there Role power and were relevant subject teachers in the Educational Institute in our guanxi enabled university…I talked to one of the field experts.’ information access Student J. ‘For example, financial reports and theses could only be Guanxi enabled accessible by certain groups of people. So I offered the information access convenience of access as I might have friends who could give me Used role power to the password. Then I would get the subordinates to search for delegate related theses and data.’ information tasks Student K. ‘I would consult educational experts, like school principals. This Work roles and was most direct. The Heads of Department were in charge of guanxi enabled policy making and implementation. They had in-depth information access knowledge of the future development of policies and case analysis. I would ask for their opinion.’
Appendices 267
Appendix 11 Field notes and photos taken by the researcher during the site visits
Appendix 11.1 Local library facilities in participants’ locations at Harbin
Note: This is a database room in a TAFE library.
Note: This is an OPAC located outside of a specialised institute library.
Notes: This is a computer lab in a university library. Appendices 268
Appendix 11.2 Technological and professional environment of the participants
Note: Intranet access to library at work from a participant’s office
Note: Search interface was the default home page from the Internet provider
Note: A participant located his library home page at work by searching a search engine Appendices 269
Appendix 11.3 Chinese database training session in local partner
university computer laboratory
Excerpt from the field notes of non-participative observation that I took at the training session: ‘…On 6th February, 2007, I was invited to attend a database training session for 50 offshore students at Harbin. It was in a computer lab of the host university library in Harbin. The two-hour database training session was the only user training that the students received for this Master of Education Program. The training was conducted near the end of the Master of Education program. It was also the time when the students were doing their final assignment of the Master program. As their final assignment, students were required to submit a research proposal for a topic of their interest.
Before the training started, the Chinese co-teacher asked how many students had access to the databases at work and only seven (out of 58) students indicated so. The Chinese co-teacher then asked how many students had the experience of using the databases and received responses from four students.
In the computer lab, there were enough desk-top computers for each student. The computers had access to the intranet and the Internet. There was no overhead projector and the Chinese co-teacher used a microphone to give instructions. He had to speak on top of his voice to spell out the URL address and waited for each student Appendices 270
to open the page. At times, some students failed to follow the instructions and asked for repeating the instruction. And some were lost and needed individual guidance from the other co-teachers who helped facilitate the training session.
The Chinese co-teacher provided the training of using China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) full-text databases. After initial instruction, students were asked to search and identify articles related to their topic of interest. It appeared that some students were excited to find a few relevant articles. And some students started doing something not relevant to the training, such as checking email and reading online newspaper.’ Appendices 271
Appendix 11.4 Focus group meeting at Harbin
Appendices 272
Appendix 11.5 Local library facilities in participants’ locations at Hangzhou
Note: Library reading room in one university
Note: Computer room in one university library
Note: Multimedia booth in a municipal library Appendices 273
Appendix 11.6 Focus group meeting at Hangzhou
Appendices 274
Appendix 11.7 Examples of documentations collected by the researcher during the site visits Appendices 275
Appendix 12 Example of an interview transcript
Researcher: Student A., I was very pleased that you were able to participate in this interview. I hoped you would be able to talk about your experience of doing assignments and your thoughts during this process. Would you like to talk about these with me? Specifically, for example, the way you looked for information and problems you faced in the information search process, etc. You were very busy with work, and were also studying for the Master’s course. In your busy schedule, how did you take the time to find information for your assignments? Please talk about your views, thank you.
Student A.: OK. This course was devoted to pursuing a master’s degree of an Australian university, and to study the whole Australian program according to the requirements. The course was very well organised, with strict requirements. Like what you just mentioned, it involved information search in the learning process. [We] needed to find information before the class, searched for information during the class, and needed to do more information search after the class. At the same time, we also needed to look for information for assignments. Therefore, for us, we always had this problem of searching information in the learning process. Well, as far as I was concerned, the way I searched information was not the same as the others. They liked to use the Internet; I did not like to use the Internet to search for information. It might be that I was a bit conservative, a bit more traditional. From my time at the university to work at present, I believed in the traditional learning method; that was to search information from books, to learn from books.
Researcher: Searched for all the information from the books?
Student A. Yes. I used to find information from books. The concept of books was very broad, including magazine, journal, theses, professional books, etc. For example, in order to complete the assignments for the Master’s course, I also specially spent almost a thousand yen on professional books, such as books on management, leadership skills, team building and learning organisation, etc. From these books, I found all the information that I needed for assignments. The information search process was actually a process of further study. I often paid attention to current affairs and social reality. So, I could find useful information from the ongoing Appendices 276 developments. For example, my recent assignment was about Chinese basic education. I did not have much knowledge in this area. Then, what to do? Only one way, searched from the book, searched for information from professional books. Some information could be found as our lecturer would recommend some readings for us to read. These were quite professional, very focused. Some of them were too professional, and it needed time and effort to find them. The benefits of [using] media such as journals and magazines, etc., were for prompt report and updated information. So recently I used a lot of information from the latest news and media report in my assignments. Such as two new programs developed by the Shanghai Municipal Government, one was Integrated Arts, and another was a handmade craft skill curriculum for after school programs. These new practices were innovative teaching programs. There were similar practices in Beijing and it started from this summer. It would add skill programs at high schools. Zhen Jian Province already implemented such a kind of educational reforms. This was the most updated information. I emphasised the use of the updated, hot topics and directional information in my assignments. These would enhance the quality of my assignments, and improve their readability and professional standards. Certainly, it did not mean that we could not use the Internet. The only concerns were its reliability and credibility. I would use the Internet if there was credible and authoritative information.
Researcher: Eh.
Student A. I did not want to look for information on the Internet due to the concern of its authority and credibility. There was a lot of false and superficial information on the Internet. But we could not allow any false and superficial information in academic research. I might log on to have a look at the Australia university home page because it had some sources and websites that should be fairly authoritative and reliable. I might look at something like that, or used them as references if was necessary. So, in terms of searching for information, that was how I did it. But I preferred searching for information from books than using the Internet.
Researcher: Ah. How did you choose the information sources?
Student A.: In regards to information source, I adopted a pragmatic approach. As long as they were useful to me, I would use whatever I found first. I might not use those that were useless or not directly related. In terms of the reliability of the information, just like what I said before, it depended Appendices 277 whether it belonged to the mainstream, or was an authoritative information source. I would not read, nor use them if they were not from the mainstream or authoritative source. I still liked to obtain information from books, print materials, professional literature and professional journals. There was an issue of permanent [information]. Books and printed materials permanently existed and were locatable. But information from the Internet might not be found after some time. There was no record and no source of reference. This would be a nightmare for an academic researcher. I believed as a scholar, we wanted reliable and credible information. Following, I talked about Australia university library. To be honest, the Australia university library was good, with comprehensive collections and rich information, but most of them were in English. With the English version, the majority of Chinese readers found it difficult to read. Of course, I learned a little bit of English and could understand some of them. Even so, I would be very tired if I really read original books. It might take twice the time to read original books (comparing the Chinese version). Therefore, sometimes, we really wanted to use the Australia university library as we were doing the Australia Master’s degree program; and we should use Australian information and resources, and also wanted to know more relevant information regarding Australia. But it was really very tedious when it came to do the reading. For example, it might take half an hour for me to read a Chinese article, but it might take one or two hours or even more to read originals. I did not want to spend too much time as I needed to use a long time to read them. I was just telling the truth.
Researcher: So, what about local library, you just mentioned that you bought a lot of books. Then, did you have a library that could provide these kinds of materials?
Student A: Local library certainly had, and [we] certainly could find the information that we needed. Library certainly had more information and collection than what I could buy. But I had specific reasons. When I did my assignments, I might use the books several times or even more than ten times. It would waste too much time if I had to go to the library whenever I did my assignments.
Researcher: Ah.
Student A.: I considered it was too much trouble to go to the library and was also wasting time. So, I bought all them and used them at any time I wanted. Besides, the books could be used for a long time and had collectible value. Therefore, I bought all the relevant books that were useful to me. Appendices 278
Researcher: Ah.
Student A.: It was useful for now, could be used, and might be useful in the future and could be used again. This was my view. So, sometimes I had to go to the library, only if I hadn’t got them. I had to go to the library to search as I hadn’t got them. Another reason was that there was restriction with the library hours. You knew our Chinese library opening hours were very limited, which closes at five. It opened when we were at work. It also closed at the same time when we finished work. It closed after office hours, so, I could not use it. Therefore, I seldom visited the library.
Researcher: Ah. Is it the public library or the library at work?
Student A.: The library at work was the same. It opened when I was busy with my work and I could not go. It also closed when I finished work, so it was not convenient.
Researcher: So, in the process of searching for information for assignments, did you feel any changes in the way that you searched for information?
Student A.: Certainly changed. Previously, it could be said that I search information very randomly and aimlessly. Occasionally, I might try to find out something because of some interest. But now, I thought that this was fairly professional, and also had a focus. I did this course program and went for the degree, I needed to do assignments. I should go and search for information. Besides, the level of search was more serious and had focuses rather than the previous random search. As I needed to quote the references, I must carefully record the information, the pages, book titles, date of publication and the authorship, and chapters. It was very different from before, so it was academic information search and use.
Researcher: This was very good. Is there anything that you would like to add?
Appendices 279
Student A.: Did you mean the assignment?
Researcher: Ah.
Student A.: I assumed that you could do this. I suggested that you could learn about different levels of fellow students. I worked at the university. You might find someone who works at the high school and primary school. We had school principals from high schools and primary schools. You might ask them. From different work roles, the starting point might be different. The way they searched information, their information seeking methods and strategies might be different. I believed you should find people from different levels, even different genders. As each people had different habit, that might be useful to you.
Researcher: I agree, there is a lack of woman’s voice.
Student A.: We had several female students who were very competent. OK?
Researcher: That’s good. Thank you very much for your contribution and your time. Appendices 280
Appendix 13 Reliability of questionnaire
Appendix 13.1 Reliability of questionnaire assessed using Cronbach's alpha — Harbin
Items Mean SD Cronbach's Alpha Q1A. In your view, a library is a gateway to information 1.74 0.677 0.814 Q1B. In your view, a library is a source of ideas 2.28 1.025 Q1C. In your view, a library is a place for asking questions 2.21 1.08 Q1D. In your view, a library is an essential part of your study 1.95 1.025 Q2A. How frequently do you use the Internet at work? 1.59 .999 0.507 Q2B. How frequently do you use the Internet at home? 2.24 1.392 Q2C. How frequently do you use the Internet at university 3.88 1.166 libraries? Q2D. How frequently do you use the Internet at public libraries? 4.41 1.117 Q2E. How frequently do you use the Internet at Internet cafe? 4.68 0.610 Q3A. How often do you use Australian university library 4.46 0.886 0.715 information sources for study-related purposes? Q3B. How often do you use other overseas university libraries 4.89 0.53 information sources for study-related purposes? Q3C. How often do you use local university libraries information 3.77 1.285 sources for study-related purposes? Q3D. How often do you use public libraries information sources 4.29 1.202 for study-related purposes? Q3E. How often do you use the library at work as information 3.43 1.22 sources for study-related purposes? Q3F. How often do you use the Internet as information sources for 1.91 1.292 study-related purposes? Q3G. How often do you use lecturers as information sources for 3.74 1.197 study-related purposes? Q3H. How often do you use peers as information sources for study- 3.69 1.301 related purposes? Q4A. The information source is close to your home or work as 1.87 1.056 0.841 important factor in choosing an information sources Q4B. You can get on-site help there as important factor in 2.44 1.071 choosing an information source Q4C. You can browse the contents of books 2 0.889 Appendices 281
Q4D. You can get the information faster 1.72 0.972 Q4E. The information source has relevant materials 2 0.973 Q4F. You can access the information source from home and at any 1.74 0.993 time Q4G. The electronic information system is stable and easy to use 1.77 0.959 Q4H. The electronic information system is one that you are 1.85 0.904 familiar with Q5A. How useful do you perceive library catalogue is in support of 1.5 0.98 0.951 your study? Q5B. How useful do you perceive Databases is in support of your 1.61 0.974 study? Q5C. How useful do you perceive E-Journals is in support of your 2.08 1.363 study? Q5D. How useful do you perceive E-books is in support of your 2.13 1.298 study? Q5E. How useful do you perceive virtual reference service is in 2.53 1.31 support of your study? Q5F. How useful do you perceive literature (subject) search is in 1.82 1.249 support of your study? Q5G. How useful do you perceive document delivery services is in 2.39 1.424 support of your study? Q5H. How useful do you perceive online tutorial is in support of 2.55 1.483 your study? Q5I. How useful do you perceive online technical support is in 2.53 1.52 support of your study? Q5J. How useful do you perceive online reference collection is in 2.61 1.534 support of your study? Q6A. How often do you use the library online information 2.66 1.419 0.954 resources and services to read recommended material? Q6B. How often do you use the library online information 2.5 1.331 resources and services to get material for an assignment? Q6C. How often do you use the library online information 2.26 1.483 resources and services to find answers to specific questions? Q6D. How often do you use the library online information 2.68 1.416 resources and services to support academic research work? Q6E. How often do you use the library online information 2.71 1.487 resources and services to stay updated in the field? Q7A. For your study, how often do you use the library online 4 1.589 0.901 Appendices 282 resources and services from Australian university library? Q7B. For your study, how often do you use the library online 4.31 1.507 resources and services from other overseas university libraries Q7C. For your study, how often do you use the library online 3.41 1.618 resources and services from local university libraries? Q7D. For your study, how often do you use the library online 3.92 1.596 resources and services from local public libraries? Q7E. For your study, how often do you use the library online 3.1 1.553 resources and services from library at work? Q8A. When using Australian university library, how often do you 2.21 2.195 0.981 access library home page? Q8B. When using Australian university library, how often do you 2.08 2.235 access my portal? Q8C. When using Australian university library, how often do you 2.39 2.331 access faculty web site? Q8D. When using Australian university library, how often do you 2.39 2.296 access international student's web site? Q8E. When using Australian university library, how often do you 2.55 2.368 access offshore student's web site? Q8F. When using Australian university library, how often do you 2.26 2.214 access distance student's web site? Q8G. When using Australian university library, how often do you 1.89 2.064 access from URL? Q9A. When using Australian university library catalogue, how 0.95 1.605 0.988 often do you experience difficulty? Q9B. When using Australian university library Databases, how 0.9 1.635 often do you experience difficulty? Q9C. When using Australian university library E-Journals, how 0.97 1.662 often do you experience difficulty? Q9D. When using Australian university library E-books, how often 1.15 1.843 do you experience difficulty? Q9E. When using Australian university library virtual reference 1.13 1.794 service, how often do you experience difficulty? Q9F. When using Australian university library literature (subject) 1.1 1.789 search, how often do you experience difficulty? Q9G. When using Australian university library document delivery 1.18 1.89 services, how often do you experience difficulty? Q9H. When using Australian university library online tutorial, 1.21 1.908 Appendices 283 how often do you experience difficulty? Q9I. When using Australian university library online technical 1.21 2.002 support, how often do you experience difficulty? Q9J. When using Australian university library online references 1.1 1.944 collection, how often do you experience difficulty? Q10A. Would you consider computer hardware set-up affect your 2.32 0.944 0.885 access and use of Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10B. Would you consider computer software set-up affect your 2.24 0.796 access and use of Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10C. Would you consider complicated use instruction affect your 2.24 0.76 access and use of Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10D. Would you consider lack of technical support affect your 2.19 0.739 access and use of Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10E. Would you consider delayed reply affect your access and 2.59 0.927 use of Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10F. Would you consider password authentication affect your 2.65 1.033 access and use of Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10G. Would you consider different search interfaces affect your 2.27 0.871 access and use of Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10H. Would you consider over-crowded web pages affect your 2.38 0.861 access and use of Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10I. Would you consider slow internet speed affect your access 1.78 0.947 and use of Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10J. Would you consider time consuming affect your access and 2.08 1.038 use of Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10K. Would you consider language limitation affect your access 1.7 0.939 and use of Australian university library online information resources and services? Appendices 284
Q10L. Would you consider lack of my own information skills 2.3 0.909 affect your access and use of Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10M. Would you consider costs affect your access and use of 2.3 0.996 Australian university library online information resources and services? Q11A. How useful do you find library user guide aids to learn 2.37 1.496 0.972 about the Australian university library online information resources and services? Q11B. How useful do you find brochures aids to learn about the 2.74 1.408 Australian university library online information resources and services? Q11C. How useful do you find library orientation training aids to 2.63 1.441 learn about the Australian university library online information resources and services? Q11D. How useful do you find web-based tutorial aids to learn 2.66 1.4 about the Australian university library online information resources and services? Q11E. How useful do you find on-screen help aids to learn about 2.39 1.462 the Australian university library online information resources and services? Q11F. How useful do you find library online forum aids to learn 3.03 1.241 about the Australian university library online information resources and services? Q11G. How useful do you find FAQ page aids to learn about the 2.66 1.341 Australian university library online information resources and services? Q11H. How useful do you find asking a librarian aids to learn 2.89 1.41 about the Australian university library online information resources and services? Q11I. How useful do you find asking lecturer aids to learn about 2.5 1.371 the Australian university library online information resources and services? Q11J. How useful do you find peer help aids to learn about the 2.39 1.386 Australian university library online information resources and services? Q11K. How useful do you find on-site support aids to learn about 2.55 1.483 the Australian university library online information resources and Appendices 285 services? Q12A. If you rarely or do not use the Australian university library 2.64 0.961 0.866 online resources and services it is because you can manage with the course material Q12B. If you rarely or do not use the Australian university library 2.39 0.871 online resources and services it is because you can get what you need from your lecturers Q12C. If you rarely or do not use the Australian university library 2.67 0.793 online resources and services it is because you can get what you need from peers Q12D. If you rarely or do not use the Australian university library 2.17 0.91 online resources and services it is because you get most of the information you need from the Internet Q12E. If you rarely or do not use the Australian university library 2.61 0.964 online resources and services it is because you have adequate ways to get what you need Q12F. If you rarely or do not use the Australian university library 3.19 0.786 online resources and services it is because the libraries don't have what you want Q12G. If you rarely or do not use the Australian university 2.81 0.951 library online resources and services it is because you are used to finding items from the shelves Q12H. If you rarely or do not use the Australian university library 2.58 0.906 online resources and services it is because your prefer printed books Q13A. Would you consider the Australian university library could 1.92 0.983 0.928 better support your information needs with more simplified access? Q13B. Would you consider the Australian university library could 2.43 0.835 better support your information needs with more printed textbooks? Q13C. Would you consider the Australian university library could 2.41 0.956 better support your information needs with more full-text databases? Q13D. Would you consider the Australian university library could 2.38 0.861 better support your information needs with more E-books? Q13E. Would you consider the Australian university library could 2.41 0.832 better support your information needs with more E-journals? Appendices 286
Q13F. Would you consider the Australian university library could 2.24 0.983 better support your information needs with more document delivery services? Q13G. Would you consider the Australian university library could 2.16 1.041 better support your information needs with more information skills training?
Appendices 287
Appendix 13.2 Reliability of questionnaire assessed using Cronbach's alpha — Hangzhou
Items Mean SD Cronbach's Alpha Q1A. In your view, a library is a gateway to information 1.93 0.745 0.791 Q1B. In your view, a library is a source of ideas 2.36 0.791 Q1C. In your view, a library is a place for asking questions 2.36 0.906 Q1D. In your view, a library is an essential part of your study 2.48 0.917 Q2A. How frequently do you use the Internet at work? 1.20 0.564 0.293 Q2B. How frequently do you use the Internet at home? 2.30 1.400 Q2C. How frequently do you use the Internet at university libraries? 4.15 1.099 Q2D. How frequently do you use the Internet at public libraries? 3.98 1.050 Q2E. How frequently do you use the Internet at Internet cafe? 4.93 0.350 Q3A. How often do you use Australian university library information 4.8 0.63 0.722 sources for study-related purposes? Q3B. How often do you use other overseas university libraries information 4.69 0.758 sources for study-related purposes? Q3C. How often do you use local university libraries information sources 4 1.203 for study-related purposes? Q3D. How often do you use public libraries information sources for study- 3.83 1.014 related purposes? Q3E. How often do you use the library at work as information sources for 3.06 1.371 study-related purposes? Q3F. How often do you use the Internet as information sources for study- 1.29 0.86 related purposes? Q3G. How often do you use lecturers as information sources for study- 3.4 1.265 related purposes? Q3H. How often do you use peers as information sources for study-related 2.94 1.305 purposes? Q4A. The information source is close to your home or work as important 1.83 0.946 0.76 factor in choosing an information sources Q4B. You can get on-site help there as important factor in choosing an 2.17 0.834 information source Q4C. You can browse the contents of books 2.51 0.952 Q4D. You can get the information faster 1.8 0.928 Q4E. The information source has relevant materials 2.1 0.944 Q4F. You can access the information source from home and at any time 1.71 0.929 Appendices 288
Q4G. The electronic information system is stable and easy to use 1.9 0.768 Q4H. The electronic information system is one that you are familiar with 2.02 0.935 Q5A. How useful do you perceive library catalogue is in support of your 1.71 1.235 0.958 study? Q5B. How useful do you perceive Databases is in support of your study? 1.76 1.078 Q5C. How useful do you perceive E-Journals is in support of your study? 2.14 1.299 Q5D. How useful do you perceive E-books is in support of your study? 2.36 1.303 Q5E. How useful do you perceive virtual reference service is in support of 2.62 1.592 your study? Q5F. How useful do you perceive literature (subject) search is in support of 1.98 1.44 your study? Q5G. How useful do you perceive document delivery services is in support 2.21 1.423 of your study? Q5H. How useful do you perceive online tutorial is in support of your 2.67 1.509 study? Q5I. How useful do you perceive online technical support is in support of 2.48 1.486 your study? Q5J. How useful do you perceive online reference collection is in support of 2.67 1.557 your study? Q6A. How often do you use the library online information resources and 2.44 1.415 0.922 services to read recommended material? Q6B. How often do you use the library online information resources and 2.61 1.302 services to get material for an assignment? Q6C. How often do you use the library online information resources and 2.41 1.341 services to find answers to specific questions? Q6D. How often do you use the library online information resources and 2.76 1.529 services to support academic research work? Q6E. How often do you use the library online information resources and 2.63 1.496 services to stay updated in the field? Q7A. For your study, how often do you use the library online resources and 4.29 1.37 0.92 services from Australian university library? Q7B. For your study, how often do you use the library online resources and 4.1 1.67 services from other overseas university libraries Q7C. For your study, how often do you use the library online resources and 3.54 1.69 services from local university libraries? Q7D. For your study, how often do you use the library online resources and 3.12 1.552 services from local public libraries? Q7E. For your study, how often do you use the library online resources and 2.66 1.575 Appendices 289 services from library at work? Q8A. When using Australian university library, how often do you access 2.51 2.237 0.98 library home page? Q8B. When using Australian university library, how often do you access 2.32 2.196 my portal? Q8C. When using Australian university library, how often do you access 2.44 2.259 faculty web site? Q8D. When using Australian university library, how often do you access 2.66 2.265 international student's web site? Q8E. When using Australian university library, how often do you access 2.71 2.261 offshore student's web site? Q8F. When using Australian university library, how often do you access 2.61 2.257 distance student's web site? Q8G. When using Australian university library, how often do you access 2.44 2.259 from URL? Q9A. When using Australian university library catalogue, how often do you 1 1.593 0.987 experience difficulty? Q9B. When using Australian university library Databases, how often do 0.95 1.577 you experience difficulty? Q9C. When using Australian university library E-Journals, how often do 0.9 1.605 you experience difficulty? Q9D. When using Australian university library E-books, how often do you 1 1.711 experience difficulty? Q9E. When using Australian university library virtual reference service, 0.95 1.696 how often do you experience difficulty? Q9F. When using Australian university library literature (subject) search, 1.05 1.71 how often do you experience difficulty? Q9G. When using Australian university library document delivery services, 1.07 1.759 how often do you experience difficulty? Q9H. When using Australian university library online tutorial, how often 0.9 1.605 do you experience difficulty? Q9I. When using Australian university library online technical support, 0.95 1.681 how often do you experience difficulty? Q9J. When using Australian university library online references collection, 1 1.739 how often do you experience difficulty? Q10A. Would you consider computer hardware set-up affect your access 2.6 0.672 0.926 and use of Australian university library online information resources and services? Appendices 290
Q10B. Would you consider computer software set-up affect your access and 2.7 0.608 use of Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10C. Would you consider complicated use instruction affect your access 2.65 0.7 and use of Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10D. Would you consider lack of technical support affect your access and 2.65 0.7 use of Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10E. Would you consider delayed reply affect your access and use of 2.8 0.608 Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10F. Would you consider password authentication affect your access and 2.85 0.662 use of Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10G. Would you consider different search interfaces affect your access 2.8 0.723 and use of Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10H. Would you consider over-crowded web pages affect your access and 2.8 0.723 use of Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10I. Would you consider slow internet speed affect your access and use of 2.75 0.809 Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10J. Would you consider time consuming affect your access and use of 2.63 0.774 Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10K. Would you consider language limitation affect your access and use 2.2 0.966 of Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10L. Would you consider lack of my own information skills affect your 2.88 0.607 access and use of Australian university library online information resources and services? Q10M. Would you consider costs affect your access and use of Australian 2.78 0.698 university library online information resources and services? Q11A. How useful do you find library user guide aids to learn about the 2.85 1.548 0.974 Australian university library online information resources and services? Q11B. How useful do you find brochures aids to learn about the Australian 3 1.504 university library online information resources and services? Q11C. How useful do you find library orientation training aids to learn 3.1 1.535 about the Australian university library online information resources and services? Appendices 291
Q11D. How useful do you find web-based tutorial aids to learn about the 3.26 1.517 Australian university library online information resources and services? Q11E. How useful do you find on-screen help aids to learn about the 3.18 1.537 Australian university library online information resources and services? Q11F. How useful do you find library online forum aids to learn about the 3.54 1.295 Australian university library online information resources and services? Q11G. How useful do you find FAQ page aids to learn about the Australian 3.36 1.46 university library online information resources and services? Q11H. How useful do you find asking a librarian aids to learn about the 3.38 1.388 Australian university library online information resources and services? Q11I. How useful do you find asking lecturer aids to learn about the 2.97 1.423 Australian university library online information resources and services? Q11J. How useful do you find peer help aids to learn about the Australian 3.08 1.579 university library online information resources and services? Q11K. How useful do you find on-site support aids to learn about the 3.1 1.651 Australian university library online information resources and services? Q12A. If you rarely or do not use the Australian university library online 2.28 0.784 0.87 resources and services it is because you can manage with the course material Q12B. If you rarely or do not use the Australian university library online 2.3 0.853 resources and services it is because you can get what you need from your lecturers Q12C. If you rarely or do not use the Australian university library online 2.55 0.815 resources and services it is because you can get what you need from peers Q12D. If you rarely or do not use the Australian university library online 2.15 0.802 resources and services it is because you get most of the information you need from the Internet Q12E. If you rarely or do not use the Australian university library online 2.35 0.834 resources and services it is because you have adequate ways to get what you need Q12F. If you rarely or do not use the Australian university library online 2.88 0.723 resources and services it is because the libraries don't have what you want Q12G. If you rarely or do not use the Australian university library online 2.65 0.834 resources and services it is because you are used to finding items from the shelves Q12H. If you rarely or do not use the Australian university library online 2.58 0.781 resources and services it is because your prefer printed books Q13A. Would you consider the Australian university library could better 2.15 0.864 0.914 Appendices 292 support your information needs with more simplified access? Q13B. Would you consider the Australian university library could better 2.68 0.694 support your information needs with more printed textbooks? Q13C. Would you consider the Australian university library could better 2.6 0.709 support your information needs with more full-text databases? Q13D. Would you consider the Australian university library could better 2.63 0.774 support your information needs with more E-books? Q13E. Would you consider the Australian university library could better 2.63 0.838 support your information needs with more E-journals? Q13F. Would you consider the Australian university library could better 2.6 0.744 support your information needs with more document delivery services? Q13G. Would you consider the Australian university library could better 2.73 0.847 support your information needs with more information skills training?
Appendices 293
Appendix 14 Cross tabulation analysis results
Appendix 14.1 Cross tabulation between gender and perception of library online resources and services — Harbin
Students' perception of library online resources and services: Male and Female (N=41) Very useful Less useful Approx. Items Gender Valid No. Never use Cramer's V or useful or useless Sig Library Male 38 92.0% 8.0% 0.0% .435 .028 Catalogue Female 38 61.5% 15.4% 23.1% Male 38 88.0% 12.0% 0.0% Database .417 .037 Female 38 61.5% 15.4% 23.1% Male 38 72.0% 28.0% 0.0% E-Journals .420 .035 Female 38 46.2% 30.8% 23.1% Male 38 60.0% 36.0% 0.0% E-Books .418 .084 Female 38 46.2% 30.8% 23.1% Virtual Male 38 52.0% 48.0% 0.0% reference .486 .011 Female 38 15.4% 61.5% 23.1% services Literature Male 38 80.0% 20.0% 0.0% .406 .044 search Female 38 61.5% 15.4% 23.1% Document Male 38 48.0% 52.0% 0.0% delivery .418 .036 Female 38 46.2% 30.8% 23.1% services Male 38 44.0% 56.0% 0.0% Online tutorial .459 .018 Female 38 53.8% 23.1% 23.1% Online Male 38 52.0% 48.0% 0.0% technical .411 .040 Female 38 46.2% 30.8% 23.1% support Online Male 38 44.0% 56.0% 0.0% references .409 .042 Female 38 38.5% 38.5% 23.1% collection
Appendices 294
Appendix 14.2 Cross tabulation between gender and use of library online resources and services for various purposes — Harbin
Frequency of using library online resources and services for various purposes: Male and Female (N=41) Daily or 1-3 t/m or < Approx. Items Gender Valid No. Never use Cramer's V weekly 10 t/s Sig To read Male 38 36.0% 44.0% 20.0% recommended .202 .459 Female 38 30.8% 30.8% 38.5% material To get material Male 38 48.0% 48.0% 4.0% .484 .012 for assignments Female 38 46.2% 15.4% 38.5% To find answers Male 38 52.0% 36.0% 12.0% to specific .379 .065 Female 38 53.8% 7.7% 38.5% questions To support Male 38 44.0% 44.0% 12.0% academic .359 .086 Female 38 15.4% 46.2% 38.5% research To maintain Male 38 44.0% 36.0% 20.0% updated in the .298 .185 Female 38 15.4% 46.2% 38.5% field
Appendices 295
Appendix 14.3 Cross tabulation between gender and perception of library online resources and services — Hangzhou
Students' perception of library online resources and services: Male and Female (N=41) Very useful Less useful Approx. Items Gender Valid No. Never use Cramer's V or useful or useless Sig Library Male 37 81.5% 14.8% 3.7% .494 .011 Catalogue Female 37 60.0% 0.0% 40.0% Male 37 85.2% 11.1% 3.7% Database .509 .008 Female 37 40.0% 20.0% 40.0% Male 37 59.3% 37.0% 3.7% E-Journals .473 .016 Female 37 40.0% 20.0% 40.0% Male 37 48.1% 48.1% 3.7% E-Books .483 .013 Female 37 40.0% 20.0% 40.0% Virtual Male 37 29.6% 63.0% 7.4% reference .492 .030 Female 37 30.0% 30.0% 40.0% services Literature Male 37 63.0% 33.3% 3.7% .487 .012 search Female 37 50.0% 10.0% 40.0% Document Male 37 63.0% 33.3% 3.7% delivery .487 .012 Female 37 50.0% 10.0% 40.0% services Male 37 37.0% 59.3% 3.7% Online tutorial .505 .009 Female 37 40.0% 20.0% 40.0% Online Male 37 48.1% 48.1% 3.7% technical .483 .013 Female 37 40.0% 20.0% 40.0% support Online Male 37 40.7% 55.6% 3.7% references .539 .005 Female 37 50.0% 10.0% 40.0% collection
Appendices 296
Appendix 14.4 Cross tabulation between gender and use of library online resources and services for various purposes — Hangzhou
Frequency of using library online resources and services for various purposes: Male and Female (N=41) Daily or 1-3 t/m or < Approx. Items Gender Valid No. Never use Cramer's V weekly 10 t/s Sig
To read Male 37 48.1% 33.3% 18.5% recommended .315 .160 Female 37 30.0% 20.0% 50.0% material To get material Male 37 25.9% 63.0% 11.1% .329 .135 for assignments Female 37 20.0% 40.0% 40.0% To find answers Male 37 48.1% 40.7% 11.1% to specific .427 .034 Female 37 50.0% 20.0% 30.0% questions To support Male 37 33.3% 48.1% 18.5% academic .489 .012 Female 37 10.0% 20.0% 70.0% research To maintain Male 37 44.4% 40.7% 14.8% updated in the .573 .002 Female 37 0.0% 30.0% 70.0% field