Exploring the unknown: a study of expert use of a digital library

This study investigates how expert intermediaries interact with a corporate digital library when searching specialised topics. We identify query reformulation as being key to successful search and therefore present a more detailed account of this stage of an information seeking process. We propose that query reformulation forms a significant, distinct step from initial query formulation or subsequent browsing and monitoring behaviour. We qualitatively analysed the interactions of expert intermediaries using existing models of information seeking; while those existing models are adequate for the observed interactions, query reformulation is downplayed within them. We define query reformulation as an iterative process by which the intermediary develops a fairly precise set of query results. The process described is reactive, not predictive, and makes subtle use of term frequency, and traditional information retrieval skills, together with prior knowledge of the system to make changes and examine results.