Running head: Task Complexity in Equation Ambiguity

Task Complexity in Equation Ambiguity Elizabeth Tschetter Emporia State University

Task Complexity in Equation Ambiguity Task Complexity in Equation Ambiguity

All information has to be created, and therefore a need must exist for information to exist (p. 126). Matthews information need was created when he found an equation in a book he was reading, and it had no referenced source of origin. Matthew utilized his familiarity of math and physics to deduce that the equation defines frequency resonance in a square box (p. 148).Although confident in his own efficacy, Matthew was unable to immediately determine the significance of the equation beyond what could be inferred from the math (p.136). Uncertainty and personal curiosity motivated him to conduct a more thorough search into the equations implications within the context of both the book and physics (p. 125). This is an example of establishing motivation through acknowledgement of ignorance (unknown factor) and identification of salient information (information need) (p. 134). As a visual learner, Matthew instated the internet as his primary information resource. He also acknowledged other resources he could have utilized, were he an auditory or tactile learner, such as producing noise in a room with the same specifications as the room used as a constant in the equation in order to determine the factors of the equation using auditory clues, or creating a model from which one can hypothesize factors of the equation with appropriate conversions. The employment of the internet as his principal source over bound text is a culturally relevant factor because Matthew has had consistent enough access to the internet to breed familiarity with its use, and to eliminate time-constraints that individuals utilizing a different source may experience. Cultural immersion is not exclusively beneficial to him, as he is limited to search results in English, as well as restricted by societal standards, which not only limit time spent on personal research and knowledge acquisition, but also demand considerable dedication to the progress of society.

Task Complexity in Equation Ambiguity

Although Matthew did not have a specific answer or result in mind, he knew exactly what he was searching for when he started gathering information. A methodology, defined as certain assumptions made about a subject matter and how to study it was established based on prior experience and attained knowledge. Having utilized passive acquisition to determine the purpose of the equation, Matthew then employed active acquisition, or gathering of new information (p. 136). Matthews first step in active acquisition was looking up and reading about acoustics on Wikipedia to build onto his direct experience or knowledge representation and memory. The newly- acquired material then actively underwent assimilation into his pre-existing knowledge of the subject in order to redefine the context of the search by including both old and new concepts. From the assimilated results, search terms were formulated in the second step for use with research tools such as Google, Google Books, Wikipedia, Hyperphysics, and Matthews personal textbooks (p.159). The search terms were used in step three to identify salient search results produced by the utilization of several sources (p. 134).Applicable results were then evaluated for contextual relevancy. Although Matthew had access to an academic and a public library for this search, he chose not to make use of the access as a resource in his search. He was comfortable and confident in his ability to utilize all relevant resources in the library, but determined that using the library for this specific search was not worth the effort. This statement is, ironically an unintentional direct application of Mooers Law which suggests that no one will use an information system if using it is more trouble than it is worth (p. 153).Although he admits there is a good chance he would have access to more substantial and relevant information by utilizing the librarys resources (such as potentially useful textbooks he does not otherwise have access

Task Complexity in Equation Ambiguity to), the trade-off between the effort required to employ this particular type of strategy and the quality of the resulting action is not substantial enough. The Cost-Benefit Paradigm applies toward such conscious decisions regarding the expenditure of effort necessary to achieve a specific goal (p. 154).Matthew stated he was not aware of any type of assistance or resource access an Information Specialist or member of the library staff could provide him with that would improve the results of this specific search. He also doubts a librarian or information specialist has the ability to utilize anything he is not already able to access as a resource. Task complexity is perceived by the seeker and is based on both personal and situational factors. It also determines what methods are used, and how complicated said methods are. Education and prior knowledge were the determining personal factors in the complexity of Matthews search. His prior knowledge of physics and math made it simpler for him to identify the context of his search, but he has determined that his lack of prior knowledge about/low

expertise in acoustics affected his ability to determine the best search methods for this search (p. 133). Matthew stated that the largest obstacle in this search is the same as the original purpose of the search. Not only did the authors lack of context for the equation make it difficult to determine the equations origin, it also eliminated the information seekers ability to define any search methods that may have been deduced by access to said context. This led to Matthew's inability to find results pertinent to his original information need. He stated that although his curiosity was not satiated, his dedication to the search was sufficient for the time being, and he will continue the search indefinitely (p.136). Ultimately, Matthews frustration in continued lack of results overpowered his initial motivation and curiosity toward this subject (p. 129).

Task Complexity in Equation Ambiguity Based on this search, I would hypothesize that factors that would improve likelihood of satisfactory results would be, and are not limited to: expanding Matthews knowledge,

experience, and familiarity of acoustics, assimilation of any deferred information acquired during this search into current knowledge representation and in order to redefine the context of information needs, utilization of unused sources such libraries, bookstores, forums, utilization of social networking to connect to professionals/experts, colleagues, information specialists, etc.

Task Complexity in Equation Ambiguity References

Case, D. O. (2006). Chapters 6-7. Looking for information: A survey of research on information seeking, needs, and behavior. (2nd ed., pp. 120-160). Toronto: Academic Press.