Does Workplace Matter? How Engineers Use and Access Information Resources in Academic and Non-Academic Settings

ABSTRACT

The ways in which engineers seek, read, and use information resources varies depending on their workplace. This study seeks to provide an understanding of how engineers in academia and engineers in other workplaces seek and use information resources and how those differ. For example, the researchers found that engineers in academia consider journal articles essential to their work, while engineers in other workplaces value standards over journal articles. By understanding that the workplace effects engineers’ information seeking needs, librarians can better meet the needs of engineers in a variety of workplace settings.

KEYWORDS:

• Engineers
• information resources
• workplace
• information seeking and use

Acknowledgments

This project was funding by the Engineering Information Foundation and the Gloria and David Sharrar Faculty Research Award. Thank you to IEEE, Sage Publishers, and ProQuest Pivot for distributing the survey link

Author Acknowledgements:

J.K. was responsible for data analysis, co-writing, and editing. C.T. was responsible for the conception of the study, obtaining funders and collaborators, development of the questionnaire, supervision of the analysis, co-writing, and editing. L.C. was responsible for data analysis.

Declaration of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Supplemental data

Supplemental data for this paper can be accessed on the publisher’s website.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Engineering Information Foundation [EIF17.11]