LIB300 Week 9 finding, analyzing, and documenting information

1. LIB300
Finding, Analyzing, and
Documenting Information
Week 9
Dr. Russell Rodrigo

2. How can I find information online
and in print?
• Learn how to do keyword searches.
Keywords are the terms that the computer searches for in a database or on
the web.
Use synonyms and keywords you can think of.
e.g. alternative dispute resolution
mediation
arbitration
employee grievances
Skim several of the first sources you find; if they use additional or different
terms, search for these new terms.

3. Subject Matter
Directories
• AccountingNet = www.accountingnet.com
• Education index =
www.educationindex.com
• Human resource management resources on
the internet = www.hr-guide.com
• Management and entrepreneurship =
www.lib.lsu.edu/bus/management.html
• The WWW Virtual Library: Marketing =
www.knowthis.com

4. News Sites
• BusinessWeek Online = www.businessweek.com
• CNN/CNNFN = www.cnn.com (news), http://money.cnn.com/ (financial
news)
• National Public Radio = www.npr.org
• NewsLink (links to U.S., Canadian, and international newspapers, magazines,
and resources online) = http://newslink.org/
• The New York Times = www.nytimes.com
• The Wall Street Journal = http://online.wsj.com/

5. Reference Collections
• Hoover’s Online (information on more than 13,000 public and
private companies worldwide) = www.hoovers.com
• Liszt (mailing lists) = www.liszt.com
• My Virtual Reference Desk = www.refdesk.com

6. Using the
Internet for
Research
Finding Web Pages
• Use root word to find variations
• E.g. a root word ‘stock+’ will yield stock,
stocks, stock market, etc.
• Use quotation marks for exact terms
• If you want only sites that use the term
‘business communication’, put quotes
around them.
• Uncapitalize words
• Capitalizing words limits your search to
sites where the word itself is capitalized.

7. Evaluating Web Pages
• Use reputable sources
• Start sites produced by universities and established companies or
organizations
• Some organizations are not going to post information that makes
them look bad.
• To get the other side of the story, access pages critical of the
organization. (Search for ‘consumer opinion’ and the name of the
organization
• Look for an author
• Do individuals take ownership of the information?
• What are their credentials?
• Remember that ‘.edu’ sites could be from students not yet expert on a
subject
• How can you contact them with quest

8. Evaluating Web
Pages
• Check the date
• How recent is the information?
• Check the source
• Is the information adapted from other
sources? If so, try to get the original.
• Compare the information with other sources
• Internet sources should complement
print sources. If facts are correct, you’ll
likely find them recorded elsewhere.

9. How do I write questions for
surveys and interviews?
Test your questions to make sure they’re neutral and clear.

10. Survey questions – the easiest way to ask
many through a questionnaire.
An Interview – a structured conversation
with someone who will be able to give you
useful information.
Use more objective measures:
ØVague : Do you use the Web often?
ØBetter: How many hours a week do you
spend on the Web?

12. Closed Questions
• Are you satisfied with the city bus service? (yes/no)
• How good is the city bus service?
Excellent 5 4 3 2 1 Terrible
• Indicate whether you agree or disagree with each of the following
statements about city bus service
A D The schedule is convenient for me.
A D The routes are convenient for me.
A D The drivers are courteous
A D The buses are clean.

13. Closed Questions
• Rate each of the following improvements in the order of their importance to
you (1=most important, 6=least important)
___ Buy new buses.
___Increase non-rush hour service on weekdays.
___ Provide earlier and later service on weekdays.
___Increase service on weekends.
___Buy more buses with wheelchair access.
___Provide unlimited free transfers.

14. Open Questions
• How do you feel about the city bus service?
• Tell me about the city bus service.
• Why do you ride the bus? (or, why don’t
you ride the bus?)
• What do you like and dislike about the city
bus service?
• How could the city bus service be
improved?

15. Closed
questions
• are faster for subjects to answer and easier
for researchers to score.
• are used for potentially embarrassing
topics.
• Put early in the questionnaire questions
that are easy to answer.
• Put harder questions (e.g. age and income)
near the end of the questionnaire.
• Pay careful attention to the design of the
document.
• Use indentations and white space
effectively.
• Include a brief statement of the purpose if
you will not be available to explain the
questionnaire or answer questions.
• Pretest the questionnaire to make sure the
directions are clear.

16. How do I decide
whom to survey or
interview?
• Use a random sample for surveys, if funds
permit.
• Use a judgment sample for interviews.

17. How do I decide whom to survey
or interview?
• The population (all business students at your college, or all consumers, etc.
depending on the purpose of your research).
• Random sample – people who answered randomly and often mean without
conscious bias.
• A convenience sample – a group of respondents who are easy to get;
students who walk through the student center, people at a shopping mall,
workers in your own unit. Cannot generalize from a convenience sample to
a larger group.
• A judgment sample – a group of people whose views seem useful and are
often good for interviews, where your purpose is to talk to someone whose
views are worth hearing.

18. How do I decide whom to survey
or interview?
• The response rate – the percentage of people who respond – can differ
according to the kind of survey used.
Example:
According to figures researchers have reported to the Marketing Research
Association, telephone surveys averaged 18% (31% when researchers work
from a list), door-to-door surveys averaged 53%. Face-to-face surveys in malls
and other locations averaged 38%, and Web surveys averaged 34%. Good
researchers follow up, contacting nonrespondents at least once and preferably
twice to try to persuade them to participate in the survey.

19. How should I analyze
the information I’ve
collected?
• Look for answers to your research questions,
patterns and interesting nuggets.

20. How should I
analyze the
information I’ve
collected?
• If your report is based upon secondary
date from library and online-research,
look at the sample, the sample size,
and the exact wording of questions to
see what the data actually measure.
• Identify the assumptions used in
analyzing the data.
• Understanding the Source of the Data

21. How should I analyze the
information I’ve collected?
• Check the identity of the writer.
ØIs he or she considered an expert?
ØCan you find at least one source printed if a respectable newspaper or
journal that agrees within the web page?
ØIf a comment appeared in chat groups, did others in the group support
the claim?
ØDoes the chat group include people who could be expected to be
unbiased and knowledgeable?
ØIf the issue is controversial, seek out opposing news.

22. How should I analyze the
information I’ve collected?
• Analyzing Numbers
ØAssign number to some categories arbitrarily (e.g. 1 as men and 2 as
women).
ØReport the number and percentage of men and women who responded
to your survey.
ØWhen you have numbers for salaries or other figures, start by figuring
the average, mean, the median, and the range.
Average/Mean = add up all the figures and divide by the number of
samples.
Median = the exact middle number.
Range = the high and low figures for that variable.

23. Analyzing Numbers
Common example:
3 very important
2 somewhat important
1 not important
To find the average in this kind of data,
1. For each response, multiply the code by the number
of people who gave that response.
2. Add up the figures.
3. Divided by the total number of people responding to
the questions.

24. Example
How important is each factor to you in choosing an
apartment?
n= 50;3 = very important
Extra parking for guests 2.5
Party house 2.3
Pool 2.2
Convenient bus line 2.0
The average gives an easy way to compare various features and the
result can then be arranged in order of importance.

25. Analyzing your
Words
• Have things changed over time?
• Does geography account for differences?
• What similarities do you see?
• What differences do you see?
• What confirms your hunches?
• What surprises you?

26. Checking your logic
• Causation means that one thing causes or produces another.
• Correlation means that two things happen at the same time. One might
cause the other, but both might be caused by a third.
• Search for at least three possible causes and three possible solutions for
each problem.
• When you have identified patterns that represent the causes of the problem
or the best solutions, check these ideas against reality. (Can you find support
in the quotes or in the numbers? Can you answer counterclaims?

27. Checking your
logic
• If you can’t prove the claim, modify your
conclusions to fit your data.
ØIdentify changes that might yield a different
result
ØDiscuss circumstances that my have affected the
results
ØSummarize your negative findings in progress
reports to let readers down gradually to give
them a chance to modify the research design.
ØRemember that the negative results aren’t
always disappointing to the audience.

28. How should I
Document sources?
Use APA format.

29. Exercises
Evaluate seven Websites related to the topic of your report. For each, consider
• Authors
• Objectivity
• Information
• Revision Date

30. Evaluating Survey Questions
Evaluate each of the following questions. Are they acceptable as they stand? If not, how can
they be improved?
A. Questionnaire on grocery purchases.
1. Do you usually shop at the same grocery store?
a. Yes
b. No
2. How much is your average grocery bill?
a. Under $ 25
b. $ 25 – 50
c. $ 50 – 200
d. $100 – 150
e. Over $150
B. Survey on Technology
Would you generally welcome any technological advancement that allowed information to be
sent and received more quickly and in greater quantities than ever before?

31. Task: Based on your chosen
topic, create questions for a
survey or interview.
Submit either a one or two-page
questionnaire or questions for a 20 to 30-
minute interview AND the information listed
below for the method you choose.
Questionnaire
1. Purposes/goals
2. Subjects (why, how many)
3. How and where to be distributed
4. Rationale for order of questions, kinds
of questions, wording of questions.

32. Interview
1. Purposes/goals
2. Subjects (who and why)
3. Proposed site, length of interview
4. Rationale for order of questions, kinds
of questions wording of questions,
choice of branching or follow-up
questions.

33. Comprehension questions
1. What is the difference between open and closed questions?
2. What is the difference between mean and the median?
3. How do you decide whether a Web site is an acceptable source for a
report?
4. Why do you need to know the exact way a question was phrased before
using results from the study as evidence?
5. Why should you test a questionnaire with a small group of people before
you distribute it?
6. Why should you look for alternate explanations for your findings?

34. Referencing
Two aspects involved in referencing:
In-text citations
• How you reference sources within the text of your assignment
Reference list
• The list of references mentioned in the text
• This goes at the end of your assignment

35. In-text Citations
General Principle
Note the author’s family name or names and
year of publication
Examples:
Sutton (2000) noted that …
The research showed that … (Sutton, 2000).
Marshall and Rowland (1993) found that …
The research suggested that … (Marshall &
Rowland, 1993).

36. Three to Five Authors
• List all the authors when they are first mentioned
Jones, Smith, Sutton, Gregory, and Lock (2011) stated …
The research showed that … (Jones, Smith, Sutton, Gregory,
& Lock, 2011)
• For subsequent citations, et al. can be used
Jones et al. (2011) mentioned that…
The research found … (Jones et al., 2011).
vUse et al. even for the first citation if 6 or more authors

37. Organizations
• State the full name and abbreviation for first citation
• State only abbreviation for subsequent citations
First citation:
The British Psychological Society (BPS, 2011) said …
They note that … (British Psychological Society [BPS], 2011).
Subsequent citations:
The BPS (2011) said …
They note that … (BPS, 2011).

38. Missing information
•Author is missing
Use the title of the publication in italics, or
title of the article within quotation marks
•Date is missing
Use n.d. meaning no date e.g. Smith (n.d.)
•Author and date is missing
Use title and n.d.

39. Additional Points
• Two or more authors in brackets
List alphabetically and divide by semi-colon
(Jones, 2000; Sutton, 2001)
• Two authors with same family name
Add the initial to distinguish them
P. Jones (2000) and J. Jones (2001)
• Same author with two publications in the same year
Add suffix a and b to distinguish them
Jones (2001a) and Jones (2001b)

40. Primary vs. Secondary Sources
• Primary Source is a source you have actually read
• Secondary Source is a source you read about in another source and
have not read the original
How to show secondary sources:
Locke (1977, as cited in Sutton, 2000, p. 27) stated that…
The research showed that …. (Locke, 1977, as cited in Sutton,
2000, p. 27).
Only list Sutton (2000) in the Reference list

41. Reference List
• Must list all sources mentioned in text
• Must be alphabetical
• Format must be consistent – e.g. commas, full stops, italics, capital letters
• Must follow APA guidelines

42. Citing a Book
Edited Book:
Duncan, G. J., & Brooks-Gunn, J. (Eds.). (1997). Consequences
of growing up poor. New York, NY: Russell Sage Foundation.
Chapter in an Edited Book:
O'Neil, J. M., & Egan, J. (1992). Men's and women's gender
role journeys. In B. R. Wainrib (Ed.), Gender issues across the
life cycle (pp. 107–123). New York, NY: Springer.

43. Citing a Book
Template
Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of work: Capital letter also for
subtitle. Location: Publisher.
Examples
Fry, R. (2011). How to study (6th ed.). Malaysia: Advantage Quest
Publications.
Collins, C., & Kneale, P. E. (2001). Study skills for psychology students: A
practical guide. London: Arnold.

44. Citing a Journal Article
Template
Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year). Title of article.
Title of Journal, volume number(issue number), pages.
Examples
Sutton, P. (2000). Using lecture notes on the internet as learning
support materials for lectures: Student and staff perspectives on
note-taking. Psychology Teaching Review, 9(1), 26–37.
Harlow, H. F. (1983). Fundamentals for preparing psychology
journal articles. Journal of Comparative and Physiological
Psychology, 55, 893–896.

45. Citing Electronic Sources
Template
Author, A. (date). Title of document [Format description].
Retrieved month day, year, from http://xxxxxxxxx
Lee, C. (2011). Writing in-text citations in APA style [Blog
post]. Retrieved from
http://blog.apastyle.org/apastyle/2011/01/writing-in-text-
citations-in-apa-style.html

46. Citing Electronic Sources
• Online journal
Marsh, E. J., & Sink, H. E. (2010). Access to handouts of
presentation slides during lecture: Consequences for
learning. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 24, 691–706.
Retrieved from http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/
10.1002/acp.1579/full
• Online newspaper
Miwil, O. (2012, June 23). Recycling boxes misused as
garbage bins. New Straits Times. Retrieved from
http://www.nst.com.my/streets/ central/recycling-boxes-
misused-as-garbage-bins-1.97311

47. Citing Electronic Sources
• Online Forum or Discussion Board Posting
Frook, B. D. (1999, July 23). New inventions in the cyberworld of toylandia
[Msg 25]. Message posted to
http://groups.earthlink.com/forum/messages/00025.html
• Blog (Weblog) and Video Blog Post
J Dean. (2008, May 7). When the self emerges: Is that me in the mirror?
[Web log comment]. Retrieved from
http://www.spring.org.uk/the1sttransport
Psychology Video Blog #3 [Video file]. Retrieved from
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqM90eQi5-M

48. Citing Electronic Sources
• Using Wikis
Please note that the APA Style Guide to Electronic References warns
writers that wikis (like Wikipedia, for example) are collaborative projects
that cannot guarantee the verifiability or expertise of their entries.
Wikis can be useful, as they often provide simple and clear explanations
of complex topics or issues. However, any information found in these
sources must be triangulated using legitimate sources. Once verified, that
research should be cited using those sources.

49. How to cite sources
• Much of your research will likely come from internet sources.
• Cite a commercial document from a website in the same way as a printed
document i.e. author and date.
• Missing information is shown in same way as a printed source
Author and date: (Jones, 2007)
Author, no date: (Smith, n.d.)
No author (title of article), date: (The Joy of Vietnamese Life, 1998)
No author (title of article), no date: (The Rocky Road to Marriage, n.d.)

50. References Page

51. Print Sources

52. Online Database Sources

53. Internet / Web Page
Sources

54. Internet / Web Page
Sources