US aerospace engineering faculty and students were surveyed as part of the NASA/DoD Aerospace Knowledge Research Project. Faculty and students were viewed as information processors within a conceptual framework of information-seeking behavior. Questionnaires were received from 275 faculty members and 640 students which were used to determine (1) use and importance of information sources, (2) use of specific print sources and electronic data bases, (3) use of information technology and (4) the influence of instruction on the use of information sources and products by faculty and students. As information processors, US aerospace faculty and students are 'Information naive' seek out information alone or with the help of coworkers, tend not to make use of the information products and services oriented to them make limited use of librarians, and make considerable use of computer and information technology. Little evidence was found to support the belief that instruction in library or engineering information use has significant impact either on broadening the frequency or range of information products and sources used by US aerospace engineering students.
NASA/DOD Aerospace Knowledge Diffusion Research Project, Paper Twenty: Engineers as Information Processors: A Survey of U.S. Aerospace Engineering Faculty and Students. (Reannouncement with New Availability Information)
1991
20 pages
Report
No indication
English