1. A Cognitive Model of Document Use During a Research Project (Study I: Document Selection)
Authors: Peiling Wang and Dagobert Soergel
Reviewer: Douglas W. Oard
LBSC 878, Session 2, February 4, 2001

2. Outline
Methodology
Model
Results
Implications

3. Qualitative Methodology
Conditions
University agriculture library users
Dialog search
Procedure
Think aloud protocol
Anchored tri-state judgments
Analysis
Theory-guided emergent coding scheme
Discussion questions:
How transferable would this study be to:
1) Other users (e.g., engineers)?
2) Other collections (e.g., the Web)?
3) Other modalities (e.g., television shows)?
Why are tri-state judgments important?

4. A Decision Theory Model
Decision is a function of criteria
Decision: retrieve or don’t retrieve
They explain the function using “decision rules” and “values”
A criterion is a function of evidence (DIE)
e.g., journal can provide evidence for quality
Discussion questions:
Given Wilson’s definitions of “true relevence” and “perceived relevance,” which kind of relevance underlies Wang and Soergel’s decision theory model?
Wang and Soergel adopt what we will call a “combination of evidence” strategy in which many types of evidence contributes to the basis for assessing relevance. Does this correspond more closely to Wilson’s definition of logical relevance or of evidential relevance?

5. Criteria Cases with at least 2% shown Notes:
Unmentioned criteria cannot be discovered using this methodology
Cases with at least 2% shown

6. Sources of Evidence
Percent:
Cases with at least 4% shown

7. Decision Rules
Cases with at least 2% shown

8. Values Cases with at least 2% shown
Functional: Matches Soergel’s definition of pertinence
Epistemic: Useful as background knowledge
Conditional: Might become pertinent
Social: Provides information that enables personal relationships
Cases with at least 2% shown

9. Implications for Design
Query interface
Allow specification of selection criteria
Search
Embed knowledge about journal quality, etc.
Document selection
Emphasize evidence that facilitates rejection
Cluster (possibly) chained documents
Feedback
Let user indicate evidence that caused a decision