IRList Digest Tuesday, 11 August 1987 Volume 3 : Issue 27 Today's Topics: Abstracts - Dissertation abstracts relating to inf. retrieval (pt 4 of 4) News addresses are ARPANET: fox@vtopus.cs.vt.edu BITNET: foxea@vtvax3.bitnet CSNET: fox@vt UUCPNET: seismo!vtisr1!irlistrq ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 6 Aug 87 16:45:32 EDT From: Susanne Humphrey Subject: new edition of abstracts for IRList and SIGIR Forum Selected IR-Related Dissertation Abstracts (continued - part 4 of 4) AN University Microfilms Order Number ADG87-06113. AU TAYLOR, RODERICK AUSTIN. IN The University of Texas at Austin Ph.D. 1986, 191 pages. TI Using multiple dialog modes in a user-system interface to accomodate different levels of user experience: an experimental study. SO DAI v47(12), SecA, pp4218. DE Information Science. Computer Science. AB This dissertation investigated a normative theory that says computer users have different dialog needs depending on their level of experience in using a computer. It was developed from the human factors and user-system interface research built upon differences in expert and novice problem solving strategies, memory, and learning. Experts want to control the interaction with a computer as with a command language whereas novices want to be led through their interaction as with menus and prompts. Since most computer interfaces only provide one dialog mode, some portion of a population having a wide range of user experience is not having their user-system interface needs met. This research hypothesizes that the answer to satisfy the needs of a mixed population is to have multiple dialog modes that the user is free to choose from and switch between as required. The hypotheses that experts and novices would perform better and be more satisfied with multiple dialog modes than with just one mode were tested empirically in a controlled laboratory setting. Both novice and expert computer users used one of three types of user-system interfaces (menu, command language, or both modes) to perform the same data base task. Results showed that those with both types of dialog modes were more satisfied and performed better than the command language group but were statistically equal to the menu group even though the performance scores and the satisfaction rating was slightly better for menu. It was found that the subject's choice of dialog mode, when both modes were available, and their satisfaction with a dialog mode had more to do with past experience and preference than with the difference in expert and novice problem solving strategies. Results also suggested that improvements in technology (e.g. fast display times for presenting the menus) and the incorporation of basic underlying functions developed from human factor studies into the user-system interface have tended to overcome some of the previous dissatisfaction by experts for computer directed (menu) type of dialog modes. In conclusion, it was found that even though multiple dialog modes did not improve performance and satisfaction over menus (although much superior to having just command language) almost 100% of the 98 subjects expressed a preference for multiple dialog modes. When the subjects were given a choice of dialog modes the subjects as a whole, regardless of experience, split 60/40, menu to command language. Thus, strong consideration should be given to having multiple dialog modes in a user-system interface for application systems that are to be used by a population with a diverse experience background. AN University Microfilms Order Number ADG87-10121. AU TSAI, BOR-SHENG. IN Case Western Reserve University Ph.D. 1987, 262 pages. TI The behavioral and structural analysis of a special subject literature. SO DAI v48(01), SecA, pp3. DE Information Science. AB "Information Retrieval" has always been one of the major concerns in Information Science. Because present searching methods for scientific literature basically use Boolean logic, probabilistic methods, etc., frustration in searching for quality documents is frequently experienced. To assist literature searching, a subject network approach to identify the significant authors related to a special subject literature can be very helpful. By expanding Goffman's Epidemic Model, ten stages and five formation periods of a population growth model are developed to help analyze the behavior, the structure, and finally, to identify the significant authors of this special subject literature. Using an original special subject database as a source, the citation data are thoroughly collected from Science Citation Index and plotted into author, journal, and document citation network maps as well as co-author network maps. The growth dynamics, citation ratios, and entropies of the co-author network, and document/author/journal citation networks are thus measured. An analysis about the frequency of occurrence of descriptors is also examined. The behavior of each communication network is detected, identified, and explained in stages and periods. Finally, based on the found formation periods, a stage-period table for the filtered and identified synthetic information elements (significant authors in this case) is constructed. The usage of this synthetic table to its related functions is presented. The strengths, the concerned issues, and further research areas related to this study are discussed. The construction of an intelligent database and its connected projects are suggested. AN University Microfilms Order Number ADG87-08276. AU BLACK, EZRA WILLIAM. IN City University of New York Ph.D. 1987, 181 pages. TI Towards computational discrimination of English word senses. SO DAI v47(12), SecA, pp4374. DE Language, Linguistics. AB An experiment is conducted which compares three different methods of deciding which of three or four senses characterizes each occurrence of a word for which a Key Word In Context concordance has been constructed. The three methods consist of a dictionary-based approach (DG) where categories intended to classify the words and expressions occurring in each concordance line are simply the subject codes of a major dictionary; an approach (DS1) in which categories are obtained via a frequency analysis of words occurring in the immediate neighborhood of the "node word"--the word in focus--of the concordance, and of "content" words occurring anywhere in a given line; and an approach (DS2) chiefly based on the content-analytic categories obtained by closely reading the concordances of a 100-type sampling of words occurring in the 20-25-million-token English text source, consisting of the official proceedings of the Canadian House of Commons. Results are that DG performs extremely poorly--in fact, near-randomly; DS1 and DS2 yield better and substantially similar performances. The conclusion is that domain-general, syntax-based approaches to automatic word sense discrimination and domain-specific, content-analytic approaches need and complement each other. AN University Microfilms Order Number ADG86-20874. AU AL-DOSARY, FAHAD MISFER. IN The University of Wisconsin - Madison Ph.D. 1986, 184 pages. TI Characteristics of research literature used by political scientists: a study of the influence of differences in research approaches on citation behavior. SO DAI v48(01), SecA, pp3. DE Library Science. AB A method is proposed to clarify certain factors underlying citation behavior within a single discipline. This approach, which is an extension and refinement of citation analysis as a method of research, was used to analyze the citation patterns of political scientists in relation to variations in their research approaches. A sample of 204 political science journal articles was examined to determine whether different research approaches used in a subject field are associated with differences in citation patterns. The articles were operationally classified as to their analytic disposition into behavioral or traditional and as to their method of research into quantitative or non-quantitative. Five citation variables were examined, in relation to both analytic disposition and to method of research, using a one-way analysis of variance. The variables were: (1) the number of subjects cited, (2) the percentage of non-political science subjects cited, (3) the percentage of non-English literature cited, (4) the journal citation rate, (5) the median age of cited literature. Results showed that differences in research approaches were a significant predictor for six of the ten relationships examined. Traditionalists and behavioralists were alike in subject and language dispersion; quantitative and non-quantitative were alike in the number of subjects cited. Journal citation rate was higher for behavioralists than traditionalists, as hypothesized. But contrary to expectations, behavioralists cited literature of greater median age than traditionalists, and the non-quantitative group cited a higher percentage of non-political science subjects, had a higher journal citation rate, cited literature of a lower median age and cited more non-English literature than did the quantitative group. AN University Microfilms Order Number ADG87-11722. AU HOLMES, GLORIA PRICE. IN The Florida State University Ph.D. 1987, 203 pages. TI An analysis of the information-seeking behavior of science teachers in selected secondary public schools in Florida. SO DAI v48(02), SecA, pp240. DE Library Science. AB The purpose of this study was to describe the information-seeking behavior of science teachers in selected secondary public schools in Duval County, Florida. Information sources they used, the characteristics of these sources important to the teachers, and factors affecting their selection of resources were analyzed. The goal of the study was to provide empirical data which can be used by school library/media specialists and other information providers to plan, design, and maintain more effective and efficient information systems. The questionnaire was used as the data collection instrument and was mailed to a total of eighty teachers who were identified as teaching at least one biology and/or chemistry course in the senior high schools in the Duval County Public School System. A total of sixty-eight questionnaires were returned for an acceptable response rate of eighty-five percent. Cross tabulations for the variables in the hypotheses were calculated using chi square analysis. The chi square statistical test at the .05 level of significance was used to report differences among the teachers. Three hypotheses were tested: (1) There are no significant differences in the information-seeking behavior of public school science teachers based on the subjects (biology and chemistry) taught. (2) There are no significant differences in the information-seeking behavior of public school science teachers based on the level (standard versus advanced) of the courses taught. (3) There are no significant differences in the information-seeking behavior of the teachers based on personal and professional characteristics such as: (a) Teaching experience. (b) Professional development activities. (c) Level of education. (d) Socio-economic status. The major findings of the study indicate that: (1) There is extensive reliance on the textbooks by the science teachers regardless of the subject taught; level of course taught; or personal and professional characteristics. (2) The teachers tended to rate the academic library "excellent" but used their personal libraries more. (3) A lack of time was the major problem in obtaining information. (4) The characteristics of an ideal information system included convenience, accessibility, currency, relevancy, computer technologies, appropriate staff, and timeliness. AN This item is not available from University Microfilms International ADG05-60261. AU HART, PAUL JASON. IN University of Southern California Ph.D. 1987. TI The use and role of commercial online databases in four organizations. SO DAI v48(02), SecA, pp242. DE Mass Communications. AB The influence of commercial online data base use on the roles of technical gatekeepers and search analysts, interdepartmental dependence, organizational status, and the attributed importance and work benefits associated with online database use and their relationships to task characteristics were examined in an aerospace firm, medical center, law firm, and bank. Data were collected by interviews (N = 48) and questionnaires (N = 91). Technical gatekeepers at the aerospace firm, medical center, and bank retrieved information from the databases which increased the scope and improved the accuracy of information processed for problem definition and problem-solving activities. Additional personnel were required to support online retrieval and some search analysts contributed to selecting and interpreting information retrieved. Evidence of increased organizational status and interdependence associated with online database use were also found. Mean factor scores indicated that among organizational groups where information volatility was lower attributed values associated with coverage were more important, whereas in groups where information volatility was higher, particularly among bank traders, values associated with scanning were more important. (Copies available exclusively from Micrographics Department, Doheny Library, USC, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0182.). AN This item is not available from University Microfilms International ADG03-75374. AU ARENS, YIGAL. IN University of California, Berkeley Ph.D. 1986. TI CLUSTER: an approach to contextual language understanding. SO ADD X1986. DE Mathematics. ------------------------------ END OF IRList Digest ********************