Psychologists’ research activities and professional information-seeking behaviour: Empirical analyses with reference to the theory of the Intellectual and Social Organization of the Sciences

Abstract

Five facets of professional information-seeking behaviour were analysed in a sample of 298 psychology researchers from the German-speaking countries. In an online survey data were gathered on (1) information-processing behaviour during research project development, research implementation, results publication, use of citation databases, and preferred publication language, (2) scientists’ functional dependence, strategic dependence, technical uncertainty, and strategic uncertainty with reference to the theory of the Intellectual and Social Organization of the Sciences, (3) scientists’ engagement in Big vs Little Science and (4) in psychological subdisciplines, and (5) scientists’ personal characteristics (age, job position, sex, information competence, cognitive style). Empirical results refer to (1) the construction of economical psychometric Scales on Perceived Mutual Dependence and Task Uncertainty in the Sciences (S-DUS) and (2) the prediction of information behaviour by the DUS-scales, research engagement in Big vs Little Sciences and in subdisciplines, as well as age in hierarchical regression analyses. The paper discusses the broad usability of the S-DUS and the result that different facets of scientists’ information behaviour require differential predictors.