Everyday life information seeking (ELIS) is a field of study examining the ways people answer their information needs (Savolainen, 1995) . While it has been extensively explored from the adult perspective, there is much we don’t understand about how young adults answer their daily information needs, and even less that looks at how they might or might not leverage their online communities to this end.

 

Tens of thousands of young people are members of Nerdfighter communities around the country and anecdotal evidence tells us that they are active participants in "particpatory culture" (Jenkins, 2009). However, we don't know a lot about how they leverage their particpation in these communities to answer their daily information needs. 

 

Young adults are frequent participants in online communities, such as nerdfighteria, which are often referred to as “affinity spaces” (Gee, 2000). In addition to sharing their fandom, young adults often use these communities to engage in ELIS practices.

 

This study seeks to explore this area and shed light on how young adults leverage their communities to answer their information needs.

 

References:

Gee, J. P. (2000). Identity as an analytic lens for research in education. Review of        research in education, 99-125.

 

Jenkins, H. (2009). Confronting the challenges of participatory culture: Media              education for the 21st century. Mit Press.

 

Savolainen, R. (1995). Everyday life information seeking: Approaching                          information seeking in the context of “way of life”. Library & information                science research, 17(3), 259-294.