Research on Browsing Behavior in the Libraries: An Empirical Analysis of Consequences, Success and Influences

Browsing as an important part of human information behavior has been observed and investigated in the context of information seeking in the library in general and has assumed greater importance in human-machine interaction in particular. However, the nature and consequences of browsing are not well understood, and little is known of the success rate of such behavior. In this research, exploratory empirical case studies from three types of libraries were conducted, using questionnaires, observation logs, interviews, and computer search logs, to derive the empirical evidence to understand, from the user point of view, what are the consequences of browsing, what constitutes successful browsing, and what factors influence the extent of browsing. Content analysis and statistical analysis were conducted to analyze and synthesize the data. The research results show: (1) There are nine categories of the consequence of browsing, including accidental findings, modification of information need, found the desirable information, learning, feeling relaxation/recreational, information gathering, keeping updated, satisfying curiosity, and not finding what is needed. (2) Four factors that produce successful browsing: intention, the amount or quality of information, the utility of what is found, and help for solving problem or making judgment. (3) Three types of reasons for unsuccessful experience in browsing: not finding what one wanted, inadequate volume or quality of information, and not finding some things useful or interesting. (4) Three types of reasons for partial success: found the intended object but not happy with the quality or amount of information in it, not finding what one wanted but discovering new or potential useful information, not accomplish one purpose but achieve another one given multiple purposes. (5) The influential factors that affect the extent one engages in browsing include browser’s time, scheme of information organization, proximity to information resources, browser’s goals, browser’s knowledge, browser’s experience, browser’s interests, browser’s expectation, feedback from the information system. This study contributes to and has implications for information seeking theory, information retrieval research, system design and library practices.