Impact of contexts, resource types and perceptions on information management within the personal domain among college students

Purpose: This study aims to investigate how college students' personal information behaviors were impacted by contexts, resource types and perceptions of personal information management. Design/methodology/approach: Using an online survey, a total of 1,194 valid responses were collected from college students. The three contexts used for this study include academic, health and personal digital history. Specific scenarios, along with sets of resource types, were provided for each context. Findings: The findings show that college students' perceptions and contexts strongly influence their activities related to personal information, and that resource types impact their activities depending on the context in which the resource types are situated. The findings of this study provide evidence of how varying factors influence personal information behaviors at different levels. Information professionals need to design their services and programs in a way that is cognizant of the factors that influence users and the challenges that users meet with in different contexts and resource types. Originality/value: The findings of this study contribute to personal information research by providing an understanding of how context, perceptions and resource types intertwiningly influence personal information behaviors. This study provides an insight into widely accepted patterns and perceptions of personal information behavior with particular information resource types and within specific contexts.