How Reference Can Seize the Strategic Initiative for More Impactful, Relevant Services

Volume 27, Issue 1, January-March 2023, Page 49-54
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General practitioners' wellbeing during the COVID‐19 pandemic: Novel methods with social media data

Abstract

Background

It is difficult to engage busy healthcare professionals in research. Yet during the COVID-19 pandemic, gaining their perspectives has never been more important.

Objective

To explore social media data for insights into the wellbeing of UK General Practitioners (GPs) during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Methods

We used a combination of search approaches to identify 381 practising UK NHS GPs on Twitter. Using a two stage social media analysis, we firstly searched for key themes from 91,034 retrieved tweets (before and during the pandemic). Following this we used qualitative content analysis to provide in-depth insights from 7145 tweets related to wellbeing.

Results

Social media proved a useful tool to identify a cohort of UK GPs; following their tweets longitudinally to explore key themes and trends in issues related to GP wellbeing during the pandemic. These predominately related to support, resources and public perceptions and fluctuations were identified at key timepoints during the pandemic, all achieved without burdening busy GPs.

Conclusion

Social media data can be searched to identify a cohort of GPs to explore their wellbeing and changes over time.

The antecedents and consequences of intergroup affective polarisation on social media

Abstract

Social media platforms enable like-minded users to form online groups, interact and thereby contribute to ideological polarisation. However, online groups also polarise along a continuum of liking or affect for their group compared to other groups. We explore affective polarisation on social media and its implications for online intergroup interaction. Using social identity theory, we investigate the effects of group identification, passion, and affective polarisation on social media users' intergroup approach and avoidance tendencies. We test the research model in the context of political groups on social media. We find group identification contributes to affective polarisation by strengthening favouritism for the ingroup rather than hostility for the outgroup. Although those with greater group identification prefer to confront (approach) the opposition group on social media, the behaviour is a function of inflated feelings for the ingroup more so than animus for the outgroup. Interestingly, users with greater affective polarisation tend to shut out (avoid) the rival group on social media. Our findings imply affective polarisation contributes to group isolation that may exacerbate ideological polarisation.

Publisher’s note

Publication date: September 2022

Source: Information and Organization, Volume 32, Issue 3

Author(s):

Stressing affordances: Towards an appraisal theory of technostress through a case study of hospital nurses' use of electronic medical record systems

Publication date: December 2022

Source: Information and Organization, Volume 32, Issue 4

Author(s): Christopher B. Califf

From coexistence to co-creation: Blurring boundaries in the age of AI

Publication date: December 2022

Source: Information and Organization, Volume 32, Issue 4

Author(s): Lauren Waardenburg, Marleen Huysman

Students’ perceptions of the user education programmes at a South African university

IFLA Journal, Volume 49, Issue 2, Page 419-431, June 2023.
First-time university students lack the practical and complex skills to harness, evaluate, use and create information to achieve their educational, occupational, social and personal information goals. The purpose of this study was to explore students’ perceptions of user education programmes at the North-West University, South Africa. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data from 320 students across two faculties. The study’s findings reveal that the majority of first-year students had participated in different user education programmes, with 80.7% of the students indicating that they were satisfied with the content and quality of the programmes. Over 90% of the students who participated in the programmes affirmed that they had enhanced their capacity to make effective searches for information and improved their skills in correctly citating and referencing information sources for their assignments. The majority of the students searched for information and resources independently of librarians. This article draws several conclusions and makes recommendations based on the findings.

LEO Remembered – By the People Who Worked on the World's First Business Computer, second edition. Edited by Hilary Caminer and Lisa‐Jane McGerty. ISBN 978‐1‐3999‐3359‐9. Copies Available from the LEO Computers Society leoremembered@leo‐compu

Information Systems Journal, Volume 33, Issue 2, Page 418-418, March 2023.

Forthcoming Papers

Health Information &Libraries Journal, Volume 39, Issue 4, Page 402-403, December 2022.

In this issue…

Health Information &Libraries Journal, Volume 39, Issue 4, Page 310-311, December 2022.

Issue Information Covers

Health Information &Libraries Journal, Volume 39, Issue 4, Page i-iv, December 2022.

Finding and evaluating randomised controlled trials in nursing conducted by Spanish research teams: A scoping review

Abstract

Background/objectives

To identify and assess the main characteristics and the potential risk of bias of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) in nursing conducted by Spanish research teams.

Methods

Scoping review of an electronic search in three major databases (date of search: October 2021). For the eligible studies, both descriptive data, and data to assess the potential risk of bias, were collected and analysed.

Results

Of 3391 references retrieved, 199 were eligible. These RCTs were published in 122 journals, most of them in English (101, 82.1%) and were included in the Journal Citation Report (JCR) (107, 87.7%). Moreover, 32 (26.2%) of those included in the JCR were classified under nursing. Two thirds (81, 66.4%) of the journals followed the CONSORT guidelines. A total of 65 RCTs (33.7%) had a high overall risk of bias.

Discussion

Most of the identified RCTs were published in journals not specific to nursing and in English language. Also, shortcomings in RCT design and reporting were observed despite recommendations to adhere the CONSORT guidelines.

Conclusion

Comprehensive identification of RCTs in nursing may require searching in journals other than nursing-related. RCTs from Spanish research teams are more likely to be published in international journals published in English. CONSORT should be strongly advised to encourage proper design and reporting of RCTs.

Acknowledgements

Health Information &Libraries Journal, Volume 39, Issue 4, Page 400-401, December 2022.

Review of “LEO remembered—By the people who worked on the world's first business computer”. Edited by Hilary Caminer and Lisa‐Jane McGerty. ISBN: 978‐1‐3999‐3359‐9

Information Systems Journal, Volume 33, Issue 2, Page 417-417, March 2023.

Bibliometric analysis of COVID‐19 publications shows the importance of telemedicine and equitable access to the internet during the pandemic and beyond

Abstract

Background

Pandemics highlight the increasing role of information and communications technology for improving access to health care. This study aimed to present a bibliometric analysis of the concept of digital divide reported in the published articles concerning the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Methods

To conduct this bibliometric analysis of research topics and trends, we used VOSviewer software. We developed a search strategy to retrieve peer-reviewed publications related to ‘digital divide in the COVID-19 era' from the Scopus database.

Results

In total, 241 publications on the topic of digital divide and COVID-19 were retrieved from Scopus database between 2020 and 2021. The analysis of keywords co-occurrence of research topics revealed four main clusters including: ‘telemedicine’, ‘Internet access and Internet use’, ‘e-learning’ and ‘epidemiology’. Seven characteristic categories were examined in these research topics, including: sociodemographic, economic, social, cultural, personal, material and motivational.

Conclusion

‘Telemedicine’ and ‘Internet access and Internet use’ as the largest clusters are connected to topics addressing inequalities in online health care access. Thus, policymakers should develop or modify policies in more egalitarian Internet access for all community members not only during a pandemic like the COVID-19 but also at regular times.

Spread of misinformation during COVID-19: The case of Mauritius

IFLA Journal, Volume 49, Issue 2, Page 345-356, June 2023.
As COVID-19 continues to spread rapidly across the globe, it is imperative to regulate the content of information such that people have access to accurate information. Nevertheless, there is the fear that governments are abusing legislation to limit freedom of expression and that the pandemic is simply being used as an excuse to further obstruct free speech. As such, it is through the lens of human rights that this research critically examines the approaches undertaken by the Mauritian authorities to deal with misinformation during COVID-19. To achieve this research objective, the related laws on misinformation are critically assessed and a comparative analysis is caried out of international responses to misinformation during COVID-19. It has been noted that the law alone is not sufficient to deal with misinformation, and media literacy among citizens is also essential in this endeavour.

Continuing professional development in Cambodia: Perspectives of different stakeholders

IFLA Journal, Volume 49, Issue 2, Page 384-406, June 2023.
The objective of this study was to gather the views of training providers and library employees on the continuing professional development opportunities available in Cambodia and the associated barriers. In total, 26 semi-structured interviews were conducted – 14 with training providers and 12 with library employees. Four key barriers were identified: the lack of continuing professional development opportunities; the inability to meet real training needs; the challenges associated with attending programmes in other cities, such as travel, accommodation and study leave; and a lack of resource personnel to conduct continuing professional development programmes. Four areas of improvement are suggested: offering regular training programmes; conducting a training needs assessment study; organising a national-level meeting to discuss library staff development issues; and developing a library and information science ecosystem to support the continuing professional development framework. The findings of this study are expected to provide some background information for the development of a continuing professional development plan for the library and information science sector in Cambodia.

Abstracts

IFLA Journal, Volume 48, Issue 4, Page 742-770, December 2022.

Exploring health-analytics adoption in indian private healthcare organizations: An institutional-theoretic perspective

Publication date: September 2022

Source: Information and Organization, Volume 32, Issue 3

Author(s): Sathyanarayanan Venkatraman, Rangaraja P. Sundarraj, Ravi Seethamraju

Academic libraries’ main strategies and services during the COVID-19 pandemic

IFLA Journal, Volume 49, Issue 2, Page 286-297, June 2023.
This study aimed to identify and evaluate the most important activities of academic libraries during the COVID-19 pandemic. This research was conducted using qualitative content analysis to discover the services that supported education and research, and social responsibilities, at the time of the crisis. Three hundred and one of the world’s top universities were randomly selected and analysed. The findings show that libraries used four strategies in supporting education and research: creating new services and activities, developing previous services and activities, changes in previous services and activities, and support for research on COVID-19. Seven substrategies were identified for social responsibilities: documentation of events, preparation of guidelines, current awareness of the public, COVID-19 rumours versus reality, physical and mental health-care programmes, providing useful information about COVID-19, and providing medical information about COVID-19. As the pandemic continues, the experiences presented in this article can help in the provision of library services during the current crisis and be used in times of similar crises in the future.

Coins in the library: the creation of a digital collection of Roman Republican coins

Abstract

In 2001, Rutgers University Libraries (RUL) accepted a substantial donation of Roman Republican coins. The work to catalog, house, digitize, describe, and present this collection online provided unique challenges for the institution. Coins are often seen as museum objects; however, they can serve pedagogical purposes within libraries. In the quest to innovate, RUL digitized coins from seven angles to provide a 180-degree view of coins. However, this strategy had its drawbacks; it had to be reassessed as the project continued. RUCore, RUL’s digital repository, uses Metadata Object Description Schema (MODS). Accordingly, it was necessary to adapt numismatic description to bibliographic metadata standards.With generous funding from the Loeb Foundation, the resulting digital collection of 1200 coins was added to RUCore from 2012 to 2018. Rutgers’s Badian Roman Coins Collection serves as an exemplar of numismatics in a library environment that is freely available to all on the Web.

The emergence of smart service ecosystems—The role of socio‐technical antecedents and affordances

Abstract

As physical products are increasingly augmented with digital technology, manufacturing firms have become part of the development of so-called smart products and smart services. As such, manufacturing firms are challenged by new market participants and ecosystem partners, particularly from the software development industry, and by the dynamic nature of business relationships. While the academic literature on the distinctive characteristics of ecosystems, particularly digital ecosystems, is rich, the effect of smart service ecosystems' emergence on the foundation of smart products remains uncertain. This study reports on case study research based on 47 semi-structured interviews with four companies that participate in an industrial smart service ecosystem. Taking an affordance-theoretic perspective, we uncover the antecedents of and the process of emergent smart service ecosystems. We find that smart service ecosystems have three socio-technical antecedents: a shared worldview, structural flexibility and integrity, and architecture of participation. We explain the emergence of smart service ecosystems as the result of specialisation in shared affordances and integration of idiosyncratic affordances into collective affordances. We derive seven propositions regarding the emergence of smart services, outline opportunities for further research, and present practical guidelines for manufacturing firms.

Celebrating 75 years of the Health Libraries Group

Abstract

To mark the CILIP Health Libraries Group celebrations of their 75th anniversary, this year's Virtual Issue brings together Health Information and Libraries Journal manuscripts that have been particularly influential or generated most interest in our readers, or represent a significant event in the journal's own history, while still having relevance to contemporary health library and knowledge service practice.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence information specialist development pathway: Developing the skills, knowledge and confidence to quality assure search strategies

Abstract

Quality assurance (QA) is an important process in ensuring that systematic reviews and other evidence syntheses are supported by a high-quality search. This paper describes how the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in the UK established a development pathway to ensure its information specialists had the skills, knowledge and confidence to undertake search QA. The key component of the pathway is that it blends technical knowledge with interpersonal skills. The pathway develops technical skills in the early steps before using peer support activities to build confidence while undertaking a range of searches. QA is effective when the search lead communicates the contextual information that has influenced search development. QA is treated as a collaboration to get the right search for the review. The key requirements for search QA, alongside technical knowledge, are communication, collaboration and negotiation skills.

Dynamic capabilities for orchestrating digital innovation ecosystems: Conceptual integration and research opportunities

Publication date: September 2022

Source: Information and Organization, Volume 32, Issue 3

Author(s): Bastian Kindermann, Torsten Oliver Salge, Daniel Wentzel, Tessa Christina Flatten, David Antons