Individual Differences in Undergraduate Students’ Collaborative Information Seeking Behavior When Working on Group Projects: A Study on Willingness to Collaborate and Sources Used

Abstract

Small-group teaching has been a preferred pedagogy in higher education, and it requires to communicate or seek information with peers. Therefore, collaborative information seeking (CIS) plays an important role in students’ group projects. The current study investigates undergraduate students’ individual differences and their CIS behavior when working on coursework-related group projects. A questionnaire was used, with 535 participants recruited from undergraduate students having related experiences. Results show that students with different individual differences exhibit different CIS preferences. Upperclassmen and task-oriented students tend not to work with others due to various concerns. Additionally, female, underclassmen, and task-oriented students used a wider variety of sources. Based on findings, several suggestions for instructors in higher education institutions were provided. (Article content in Chinese with English extended abstract)

Keywords

• information behavior
• collaborative information behavior
• college students
• demographics
• personality traits