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Introduction: Social media are increasingly popular and emerging as important information sources. The study investigates how users' sex and problem-solving style affect their use and evaluation of social media in two contexts. Method: A Web survey including the problem solving inventory (problem solving inventory) was used to collect data. Over 1,000 undergraduates in the United States participated. Analysis: For each context, two-way ANOVAs were conducted with sex and problem solving inventory score as independent variables and the frequency of using different social media platforms and the frequency of taking different evaluative actions as dependent variables. Results: In academic contexts, significant sex effects were found in the use of wikis, blogs and internet forums. Significant effects of problem-solving style were found in the use of social networking sites, user reviews, blogs and microblogs. An interaction between sex and problem-solving style was found in the use of social networking sites and microblogs. In everyday life contexts, sex effects were found. Males used wikis and internet forums whereas females used social networking sites and microblogs frequently. As for problem-solving styles, ineffective problem-solvers used internet forums frequently. Regarding the use of evaluation strategies, females with effective problem-solving styles checked other users' reactions frequently while males with ineffective style did so in academic contexts. In everyday contexts, effective problem-solvers used most of the evaluation strategies frequently. Conclusions: Social media use and evaluation behaviours varied depending on contexts. sex effects remained significant when problem-solving style has been taken into account. Findings suggest that effects of sex on information behaviour may need to be examined along with other psychological and sociocultural factors. [This paper was published in: "Proceedings of ISIC: The Behaviour Conference" (Leeds, England, Sep 2-5, 2014), Part 2, Paper isic24.]

Social media have become increasingly popular among different user groups. Although used for social purposes, some social media platforms (such as Wikipedia) have been emerging as important information sources. Focusing on undergraduate students, a survey was conducted to investigate the following: (1) which social media platforms are used as information sources; (2) what are the main reasons for using these social media platforms for information seeking; and (3) what kinds of actions are taken to evaluate the quality of the information gained from such sources. The study provides a snapshot of current trends in terms of the use of social media as information sources. It also sheds lights on the actions that the undergraduate students took to evaluate information from social media, including social networking and video sharing sites that have rarely been studied previously. Based on the findings, suggestions are made for information literacy programs and roles of librarians and educators.

This study of undergraduates investigates how cognitive style, online database experience, and task type influence users' search behavior on the Web. Considers time spent, the number of nodes visited, search performance, navigational style, and ways to improve Web interfaces and Web user training programs. (Author/LRW)

Recent research shows that some types of social media such as wikis and social networking sites have emerged as important sources of information. While social media are becoming increasingly popular, the quality of information available through them varies widely and is difficult to assess. This study examined the main purposes behind undergraduate students' use of different social media platforms in information-seeking and the strategies they use for evaluating information from social media in academic contexts. The results were then compared with what academic librarians deem useful. The comparison helped identify gaps between students and librarians regarding the use and evaluation of information from social media. Two web surveys were conducted: one for undergraduates (n = 1355), and the other for academic librarians (n = 189). The study found the two groups similar in terms of social media platforms used for information-seeking, and also the main purposes for using them. However, a significant gap was detected in the strategies that students used, and those that librarians found useful, for evaluating information from social media. Based on the findings, suggestions were made for information literacy education and future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This cohort study examined longitudinal changes in undergraduates' use of social media as information sources in academic and everyday-life contexts, covering types of social media used, purposes of use, and evaluation strategies. Web surveys were used, collecting data from 1,355 and 928 undergraduates in 2013 and 2019. The study found that students used most types of social media less in 2019 than 2013 in both contexts. Only media-sharing services bucked this downward pattern. Overall, a majority of social media types underwent changes in the top three purposes of use. The 2019 cohort used most evaluation strategies more frequently in both contexts. However, they favored simplistic strategies relying on superficial physical cues when evaluating information. Based on the findings, this study provided recommendations for information literacy education and interface design, such as covering multimedia information evaluation, leveraging various heuristics to prime careful use of social media and analytical evaluation of information. • Students frequently used Wikis and Media-sharing services in both academic and everyday-life information-seeking contexts. • Media-sharing services was the only social media type with an increase in use in both contexts. • While using most social media less, students evaluated information from social media more frequently in both contexts. • Students evaluated information from SNS, Media-sharing services, and Microblogs more frequently in both contexts. • Students used superficial physical cues of information (e.g., length, image quality) for evaluation more in 2019 than 2013. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]