تحقیقات اطلاعرسانی و کتابخانههای عمومی (Aug 2022)
The effect of trust on collaborative information seeking behavior of postgraduate students of Shiraz University
Abstract
Purpose: Today, Collaborative information seeking behavior has been an issue of concern to many researchers and is considered necessary to meet the information needs and solve problems that are difficult and complex for individuals. The purpose of this study is to identify the impact of trust on collaborative information seeking behaviors of postgraduate students of Shiraz University. Method: The present study is quantitative in terms of the nature of the data and descriptive-correlational in terms of the data collection method. The statistical population included all graduate students of Shiraz University in 1399, and the sample consisted of 302 students from different faculties who were selected based on Morgan table. Data collection was carried out through two questionnaires. The first questionnaire measured the tendency to collaborative information seeking behavior, which was made through studying the texts related to the field of collaborative information seeking behavior, and by extracting related items. Furthermore, the questionnaire of Costa and Anderson (2011) was used to measure the level of trust. In order to measure the validity of the form and content of the questionnaires, the opinions of seven experts in information science and epistemology were used. The reliability of the collaborative information seeking behavior questionnaire using Cronbach’s alpha coefficient with a value of 0.91 and the reliability of the trust questionnaire for the subcomponents of trust, i.e. the tendency to trust, perceived trustworthiness, cooperative behaviors and monitoring behaviors, were obtained 0.78, 88. 0, 0.87 and 0.70 respectively. Findings: The results of this research provided further evidence that the tendency to collaborative information seeking behavior can be predicted by the variable of trust (40. 5%). Among the sub-components of trust, the perceived trustworthiness sub-component had the greatest effect (32. 9%) on the tendency to collaborative information seeking behavior, followed by cooperative behaviors (31.8 %) and the propensity to trust (9 %), are placed. Indeed, in addition to its positive effects, trust can also lead to negative effects; In other words, higher levels of trust do not necessarily encourage cooperation because complete trust makes people rely on others and no longer have control over the work process or create a field for others to abuse. Originality/value: Despite the potential for trust in predicting collaborative activities, no research has been conducted to examine the role of trust in collaborative information seeking behaviors. The results of the research can lead to a better understanding of the factors affecting collaborative information seeking behaviors. The results of this study will also help all researchers, professors and managers to identify important sub-components of trust, to strengthen and improve these sub-components, and facilitate the desire for collaborative information-seeking behavior.
