Using IT for information seeking behavior: Viewpoints of University Physical Education Instructors

Amir  Zalpour; Shahrzad Ghalyan; Abolfazl  Taheri

doi:10.18502/ahit.v2i1.6167

Amir Zalpour Ph.D. in Medical Library and Information Science, Health Information Technology Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Science, Isfahan, Iran
Shahrzad Ghalyan Ph.D. Sport Management, Department of Sport Management, School of Physical Education and Sport Science, Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Ahvaz, Iran
Abolfazl Taheri Ph.D. in Medical Library and Information Science, Health Information Technology Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Science, Isfahan, Iran

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18502/ahit.v2i1.6167

Keywords: physical education; information-seeking behavior; Information technology

Abstract

Aim: This study investigated physical education (PE) instructors' attitudes and practices of information technology (IT) for information-seeking behavior (ISB).

Method: This cross-sectional study carried on eighty-eight PE instructors from three universities. The 36-item online questionnaire was designed electronically for measuring instructors' attitudes, IT use for ISB, and information-seeking (IS) methods. The analyses conducted for descriptive statistics involved reporting response frequency, percentages, means, and standard deviations for the attitude sections. Mean scores for attitude and use factors were used to conduct a
two-tailed Pearson correlation analysis. SPSS-23 was used for analysis.

Results: The findings indicated that participants generally had positive attitudes about technology use for ISB. Significant relationship exists between participants' perceptions of relevance/importance of IT use for IS (r = .565, p < .01). Also, a positive correlation was found between instructors' perceptions of relevance/importance of IT and physical instructors' IS methods (r = .536, p < .01).

Conclusion: Based on the current study, physical instructors may be willing to apply IT for IS if given opportunities to participate in searching databases workshops and practice and utilize appropriate information resources.