1. 1 Information seeking behavior within “walls” Situational aspects influence the way we seek for information. Chatman, Harris and Dwedney focused on a certain type of end-user. What is common to battered women and “prison inmates”?

2. 2 The Context Information on the web about battered women: http://www.dvsheltertour. org/http://www.dvsheltertour. org/ Essential information for battered women..what is essential? When I arrived from the Dominican Republic, I discovered that my husband had an alcohol problem. At first we argued constantly. Then he started verbally abusing me and then physically abusing me. But the decision to leave home isn't made in a minute, especially if you don't have anywhere else to go. I knew I had to leave the day my husband got drunk and threatened me with a knife

3. 3 Women in prison in USA Some stats: Family characteristics Two-thirds of the women had at least one child younger than 18; altogether, they were mothers to more than 56,000 minor children. *An estimated 46% of women with minor children said they talked with those children on the phone at least once a week; 45% had contact by mail at least once a week; and 9% were visited by their children. *More than half reported their minor children were living with grandparents; a quarter, with the father. *About 47% of the women reported having an immediate family member who had been in jail or prison. About 35% had brothers and 10% had sisters who had been incarcerated. http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/abstract/wopris.htm (1994)http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/abstract/wopris.htm

4. 4 Information seeking behavior within “walls ” “ There is often a collision between the mismatched expectations of ordinary people and the responses of organizations and professionals whose job is to help” (Harris and Dwedney, p.138). “information needs arise out of particular situations and vary according to individual perspective” (Harris and Dwedney, 139) How do inmates view their world? “What absorbs their concentration is a localized worldview, centered on everyday concerns” (Chatman, p.215) First-order information world. “When people seek information only from others much like themselves or are skeptical of claims not personally experienced, their world has a limited range of possibilities” (p.215, Chatman).

5. 5 Information and uncertainty How does uncertainty play a role here? Imagine other “uncertain” environments. When do we really trust information? What are suppose to do in order to develop more trustable information systems?