scholarly journals Employment information needs and information behaviour of North Korean refugees

2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jieun Yeon ◽  
Jee Yeon Lee ◽  
Keyword(s):  
South Korea ◽  
Information Needs ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Public Institutions ◽  
Information Behaviour ◽  
Job Seeking ◽  
Related Information ◽  
North Korean Refugees ◽  
Social Accessibility ◽  
Group Interviews

Introduction. The employment-related information needs and behaviour of North Korean refugees during their settlement in South Korea were analysed, and provisions that public libraries should consider when providing employment-related information to North Korean refugees were suggested. Method. Semi-structured group interviews were conducted with twenty-one North Korean refugees who had job-seeking experience or who wanted to be employed. Also, five public and NGO workers that aid the employment seeking process for employment support services to North Korean refugees provided field data on the services provided and characteristics of North Korean refugees’ information behaviour. Analysis. The results were examined using content analysis according to the factors of Dervin’s sense-making theory—situation, gap, and use. We used NVIVO 12 to extract codes from interview parts according to the factors. Results. The employment situation of North Korean refugees in South Korea can largely be categorised into two types: employment-related and education-related. The frequent subjects of employment information needs were job posting, vocational education, and career. Participants suffered from a lack of intellectual, psychological, and social accessibility. North Korean refugees were most likely to get information from interpersonal sources, the Internet, and public institutions. Conclusion. We developed a model of North Korean refugees’ information behaviour based on the findings and provided guidance for public libraries on serving job-seeking North Korean refugees.

Influence of Information Literacy Competencies on Users of the Saulsville Public Library, South Africa

Mousaion ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rexwhite Tega Enakrire ◽  
Isaac Mpho Mothiba
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Information Needs ◽  
Formal Education ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Survey Design ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Information Discovery ◽  
Information Literacy Competencies

Information literacy competencies indicate the ability of an individual to apply a certain search strategy of information discovery, to understand its design, to value judgement, and to use it in various contents and contexts. The influence of information literacy competencies plays an important role in enabling information users to meet their information needs and prepares them for lifelong learning. The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of information literacy competencies of users in the Saulsville public library, South Africa. The rationale was a lack of awareness and the inability of the users to find their information needs based on the task and decision at hand. The descriptive survey design adopted for this study made use of a questionnaire to collect data from 1 120 registered members of the Saulsville library. Of the 1 120 registered users being the population for the study, the authors purposively used 10 per cent (112 members) of the population as sample size. The findings revealed that users of the Saulsville public library had limited awareness and competencies of information literacy. The users were exposed to some form of library orientation and the use of library resources during their visit to the library. The findings further indicated that the users’ information literacy competencies were affirmed through the quality of information obtained and the satisfaction of library services rendered by library staff. The study recommends the acquisition of new technologies that could enhance users’ interactive information literacy training in public libraries and formal education settings.  

scholarly journals A Qualitative Case Study on Influencing Factors of Parents’ Child Abuse of North Korean Refugees in South Korea

Healthcare ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 49
Author(s):  
Wonjung Ryu ◽  
Hyerin Yang
Keyword(s):  
Child Abuse ◽  
South Korea ◽  
Influencing Factors ◽  
Acculturative Stress ◽  
North Korean Refugees ◽  
Korean Parents ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Maternal Parenting Stress ◽  
Past Experiences

The purpose of this study is to investigate the influencing factors of parental child abuse by North Korean refugees who are living in South Korea. In-depth interviews were conducted with five parents who escaped from North Korea. The study identified three categories of factors impacting child abuse: the weakening of family functions from past experiences before and after defection, the stress of adapting to the culture of an unfamiliar society, and low parenting self-efficacy. North Korean parents suffered from emotional and functional crises from past traumatic events and, at the same time, experienced additional acculturative stress as a “minority” after entering South Korea, even as they continued to deal with Maternal Parenting Stress. These complex factors have been shown to lead to child abuse in migrant societies. This study contemplated the context of child abuse through specific examples. The results could provide thoughtful insights into child abuse among migrants and refugee parents, and provide evidence-based intervention plans for its prevention.

scholarly journals “I actually got my first job through my ex-colleague”: Employment-related information seeking behavior of Bangladeshi immigrants in Canada

2021 ◽  
pp. 096100062199280
Author(s):  
Nafiz Zaman Shuva
Keyword(s):  
Information Seeking ◽  
Information Needs ◽  
Information Sources ◽  
Information Source ◽  
Occupational Status ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Related Information ◽  
Immigrant Professionals ◽  
Government Of Canada ◽  
First Job

This study explores the employment-related information seeking behaviour of Bangladeshi immigrants in Canada. Using a mixed-methods approach, the study conducted semi-structured interviews with 60 Bangladeshi immigrants in Ontario, Canada, and obtained 205 survey responses. The study highlights the centrality of employment-related settlement among Bangladeshi immigrants in Ontario and reports many immigrants not being able to utilize their education and skills after arrival in Canada. The results show that Bangladeshi immigrants utilize various information sources for their employment in Canada, including friends and professional colleagues, online searchers, and settlement agencies. Although Bangladeshi immigrants utilized a large array of information sources for meeting their employment-related information needs, many interview participants emphasized that the employment-related benefits they received was because of their access to friends and professional colleagues in Canada. The survey results echoed the interview findings. The cross-tabulation results on post-arrival information sources and occupation status as well as first job information sources and occupational status in Canada show a significant association among the use of the information source “friends and professional colleagues in Canada” and immigrants’ occupational status. The study highlights the benefits of professional colleagues among immigrants in employment-related settlement contexts. It also reports the challenges faced by many immigrant professionals related to employment-related settlement because of the lack of access to their professional friends and colleagues in Canada. The author urges the Federal Government of Canada, provincial governments, and settlement agencies working with newcomers to offer services that would connect highly skilled immigrants with their professional networks in Canada, in order to get proper guidance related to obtaining a professional job or alternative career. The author calls for further studies on employment-related information seeking by immigrants to better understand the role information plays in their settlement in a new country.

scholarly journals The Information Behaviour of Social Workers: Needs, Seeking, Acquiring and Using Information in Practice

2019 ◽  
Vol 50 (5) ◽  
pp. 1588-1610
Author(s):  
Niamh Flanagan
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Information Needs ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Practice Research ◽  
Information Behaviour ◽  
Traditional Research ◽  
Search For Information ◽  
Information Landscape

Abstract In the debate about what informs social work practice, research remains the dominant discourse. However, the relationship between research and social work practice has always been an uneasy one, arguably passed from other clinical disciplines without resizing to fit social work. Even as social work research matures as a discipline it represents one element in a much broader composite which informs practice. This article takes a unique step back from the traditional research-practice discourse and examines the broader information landscape of social work practice, asking how practitioners inform their practice, rather than how research informs practice. This study explores the information needs that prompt practitioners to search for information, the strategies they employ, their acquisition of information and the uses to which the information is put. This study aims to elucidate the information behaviour with a view to improving dissemination and use. Findings demonstrate that the social work information base is substantially broader than has been suggested. Practitioners employ a pragmatic palette of strategies to navigate the breadth of information that supports practice, from research through to knowledge sharing. This article proposes that a pragmatic framework of information behaviour is required to accurately reflect the information behaviour of social workers.

scholarly journals Vitamin D status and associated metabolic risk factors among North Korean refugees in South Korea: a cross-sectional study

BMJ Open ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (11) ◽  
pp. e009140 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyeong Jin Kim ◽  
Yoon Jung Kim ◽  
Sun Hwa Kim ◽  
Jee Hyun An ◽  
Hye Jin Yoo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Vitamin D ◽  
South Korea ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Metabolic Risk Factors ◽  
Metabolic Risk ◽  
Vitamin D Status ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
North Korean Refugees

The e-book war in Denmark

2017 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
pp. 95-105
Author(s):  
Lisbeth Worsøe-Schmidt
Keyword(s):  
Public Libraries ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Public Institutions ◽  
Book Market ◽  
The Public ◽  
Library System ◽  
Commercial Market ◽  
Book World ◽  
Traditional Understanding

The aim is to investigate how digitisation and in particular e-books have changed relations between private players and public institutions within the Danish book world through a case study of eReolen, a private-public partnership functioning as common platform for public libraries’ lending of e-books in Denmark. Traditional and new models of the book world are discussed as the basis of understanding relations between the players. A new way of analysing the field outlined by literary sociologist, Professor Johan Svedjedal, is adopted. The main conclusions are that the lending of e-books has disrupted the traditional understanding and interaction between the public library system and the commercial book market. In addition, the Danish library system through the partnership has taken on a new function in relation to the commercial market, namely acting as the engine in building a market for Danish e-books.

scholarly journals Gender Differences in Suicidal Ideation and Related Factors among North Korean Refugees in South Korea

2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (6) ◽  
pp. 762 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jin-Won Noh ◽  
Hyunchun Park ◽  
Young Dae Kwon ◽  
In Hye Kim ◽  
Yo Han Lee ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gender Differences ◽  
Suicidal Ideation ◽  
South Korea ◽  
Related Factors ◽  
North Korean Refugees

scholarly journals How have governments supported citizens stranded abroad due to COVID-19 travel restrictions? A comparative analysis of the financial and health support in eleven countries

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pippa McDermid ◽  
Adam Craig ◽  
Meru Sheel ◽  
Holly Seale
Keyword(s):  
Information Needs ◽  
Design Tool ◽  
Government Support ◽  
Website Design ◽  
Global Public Health ◽  
Related Data ◽  
Related Information ◽  
Travel Restrictions ◽  
Health Support ◽  
Content Accessibility

Abstract Background: In response to the continuing threat of COVID-19, many countries have implemented some form of border restriction. A repercussion of these restrictions has been that some travellers have been stranded abroad unable to return to their country of residence, and in need for government support. Our analysis explores the COVID-19-related information and support options provided by 11 countries to their citizens stranded overseas due to travel restrictions. We also examined the quality (i.e., readability, accessibility, and useability) of the information that was available from selected governments’ web-based resources.Methods: Between June 18 to June 30, 2021, COVID-19-related webpages from 11 countries (Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Canada, United States of America (USA), United Kingdom (UK), France, Spain, Japan, Singapore, and Thailand) were reviewed and content relating to information and support for citizens stuck overseas analysed. Government assistance-related data from each webpage was extracted and coded for the following themes: travel arrangements, health and wellbeing, finance and accommodation, information needs, and sources. Readability was examined using the Simplified Measure of Gobbledygook (SMOG) and the Flesch Kincaid readability tests; content ‘accessibility’ was measured using the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) Version 2.1; and content ‘usability’ assessed using the usability heuristics for website design tool.Results: Ninety-eight webpages from 34 websites were evaluated. No country assessed covered all themes analysed. Most provided information and some level of support regarding repatriation options; border control and re-entry measures; medical assistance; and traveller registration. Only three countries provided information or support for emergency housing while abroad, and six provided some form of mental health support for their citizens. Our analysis of the quality of COVID-19-related information available on a subset of four countries’ websites found poor readability and multiple accessibility and usability issues.Conclusion: With large variance in the information and services available across the countries analysed, our results highlight gaps, inconsistencies, and potential inequities in support available, and raise issues pertinent to the quality, accessibility, and usability of information. This study will assist policymakers plan and communicate comprehensive support packages for citizens stuck abroad due to the COVID-19 situation and design future efforts to prepare for global public health emergencies.

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