محمد زره ساز

This study aims to identify and determine the job titles and professional competencies of the public library librarians.

Adopting a descriptive approach, the study employed the content analysis and the Delphi method involving expert opinions. The research population included job advertisements for public library positions on prominent global employment websites, as well as experts in the field of public libraries in Iran. Data collection tools included a checklist and coding in MAXQDA software for content analysis and questionnaires for the Delphi panels.

Based on the content analysis of job advertisements, public library job titles worldwide were categorized into four groups, including management and administrative roles, public services, technical services, and technology-related roles, with 54 items. Subsequently, new and contextually relevant job titles for the context of Iran were identified in consultation with experts, leading to four categories and 35 items. Additionally, 81 job competencies were extracted for the public library librarians, organized into six categories: customer and social services, marketing and promotion, education and reading promotion, library-specific expertise, management and planning, and technical and technological skills.

This study analyzed the job titles and competencies required for the librarians working in the public libraries in the Iranian context, being informed by global experiences. The findings reveal the significant diversity and appeal of public library activities worldwide and highlight the potential for Iranian public libraries to expand their job titles and competencies. These results can assist policymakers and public library managers in redefining new roles and competencies and may serve as a resource for faculty members in knowledge and information science to revise the curriculum content.

In the digital era, enhancing the visibility and usability of websites is essential, especially for university library websites that serve as critical knowledge-sharing platforms. This study identifies the aesthetic criteria for Iranian academic library websites.

A Delphi panel method with snowball sampling was employed, involving 21 experts in the first round and 15 in the second. SPSS software was used for data analysis, with Cronbach's alpha calculated to assess internal consistency.

A total of 68 aesthetic criteria were identified and grouped into five categories: digital image aesthetics, technical design elements, visual complexity, user-centric aesthetics, and content quality. A checklist with 37 scales was developed, achieving strong reliability (Cronbach’s alpha > 0.9). The study also identified 17 highly significant components prioritized by Delphi experts, such as up-to-date content, ease of navigation, and responsive design.

The findings offer a robust framework for improving the aesthetic quality and usability of academic library websites. While designed for Iranian websites, the results are adaptable to other cultural contexts. The study contributes significantly to the field by providing a comprehensive tool for website evaluation and emphasizing the need for culturally nuanced designs.

Value: 

This research is the first in Iran to apply a Delphi approach for identifying aesthetic website criteria, contributing significantly to the global understanding of web aesthetics in academic contexts.

This research explains the technological requirements for the policy of acquiring and protecting digital resources in the National Library of Iran from the stakeholders' point of view. The stakeholders form the policy's three pillars: texture, content, and process; in other words, they play an active role in the policy-making process. This research was conducted in a combined process and three stages. In the first stage, the qualitative content analysis method of related documents and documents and the qualitative data analysis software MAXQDA were used to code the texts. At this stage, the research community included 29 Latin articles, 24 Persian articles and 17 national and international standards. After that, he benefited from the expert opinions of the specialist focal group. Then, the codes from the focus group meetings were combined with the codes from the texts, and 82 codes were finalized. In the following steps, the questionnaire to determine the priority of the codes was provided to the expert group of the Delphi panel using Pressline software, and their average was finalized. The findings in the category of technological requirements included four general axes. On the axis of preserving and disseminating digital national cultural heritage, three codes for setting up and managing a national system for protecting and accessing digital resources, using digital rights management technology, and using digital protection strategy. There are two codes on the axis of the application of digital standards: the application of the principles and functional requirements of records in digital administrative environments and the application of government security standards and requirements. In the axis of using user-friendly system facilities, the code of using adaptive technologies for access to the national digital system for people with sensory-motor impairments, and in the axis of using suitable infrastructural system facilities, two codes of the possibility of loading digital resources in the national digital system and analyzing the behaviour of users to improve services, they won the highest points in the national digital system. The results of this research show that in order to solve or reduce the challenges of protecting digital information resources, it is crucial to define and apply agreed standards between libraries or agreements with business organizations in the field of national heritage. The findings also underscore the importance of managing existing and future protection challenges by applying and using standards and suitable infrastructure system facilities comprehensively and in interaction with other similar systems in Iran. The high priority given to the codes of these two axes in the Delphi panel indicates their significance in creating a strong and reliable national system. The codes of these two access with more than 50% by creating a suitable and reliable platform, the portals of acquisition digital resources to the active form is launched and the digital heritage of Iran can be saved for the present and the future

Philosophical inquiry into art and beauty within the Western tradition can be traced back to ancient Greece. However, the concept of aesthetic experience gained prominence in the eighteenth century (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, entry on aesthetic experience, January 20, 2023). According to the Macmillan Dictionary, the term "aesthetics" was coined in Germany during this period and did not achieve acceptance in the English language until the nineteenth century (Macmillan Dictionary). Furthermore, as noted by Boo et al. (2018), the term is derived from the Latin phrase "aisthitiki," which translates to "perception through sensation." The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines aesthetics as "pleasing appearance." The fundamental meaning of beauty is encapsulated in the notion of "maintaining unity amidst diversity" (Moshagen & Tilsch, 2010, as cited in Venture, 1876).While beauty is a widely discussed concept in the field of art, it assumes a different significance within human-computer interaction, where it is referred to as "computational aesthetics." In 1994, Jakob Nielsen proposed a set of teninfluential factors designed to enhance user interaction systems. Among these factors is the principle of "aesthetic and minimalist design," which highlights the importance of reducing clutter in user interfaces. Understanding the dimensions of aesthetics can assist web designers in creating improved user interfaces. The current research aims to identify, rank, and propose a conceptual framework for the aesthetic components of digital images on the web. The rapid expansion of web-based technologies has led to an increasing volume of data and information production. Concurrently, the understanding of aesthetics—previously discussed in non-web or offline contexts—has now emerged in online environments utilizing digital tools. Moreover, cognitive sciences have gained particular significance in contemporary research priorities. According to Wong and Borman (2014), websites must not only be usable but also visually appealing. Despite extensive research conducted in usability, psychological aspects related to aesthetics within web environments have received considerably less attention (Wong & Borman, 2014). This study aims to address this gap by focusing on identifying the characteristics of images in web environments from an aesthetic perspective.

Methods and Materials:

The present research was conducted using a meta-synthesis method. Documents were retrieved from six databases: IRANDOC, ISC, SID, Google Scholar, Emerald, and Web of Science, utilizing a targeted keyword search and systematic approach that included 1,278 documents. Out of these, 54 documents were selected for inclusion in the study following the PRISMA approach. The importance coefficient of the identified codes was calculated using Shannon's qualitative content analysis method. EndNote software was employed for careful document storage and review. Initially, a foundational conceptual framework comprising 22 aesthetic characteristics for web images was developed based on insights from scholars and established sources. Subsequently, through meta-analysis, this framework was expanded to include 32 aesthetic codes applicable to images in web environments.

The basic conceptual framework was developed based on aesthetic theories from Kant, Berlyne, Leibniz, Adorno, Birkhoff, and Husserl, incorporating insights from 15 English-language documents that contained two categories, four concepts, and 22 aesthetic codes. Through meta-synthesis, this framework was enhanced to include two categories, four concepts, and 32 codes. In order of priority, the codes "symmetry or proportion" and "lack of complexity" exhibited the highest Shannon importance coefficient within the category of objective aesthetics and classical aesthetic concepts. Additionally, the codes "appealing color combination" and "moderate complexity—not too low and not too high (similar to Berlyne's theory of stimulus complexity)" were identified as having significant relevance within subjective aesthetics and classical notions of beauty. The category of subjective aesthetics pertains to users' perceptions as subjects interpreting images within web environments; conversely, objective aesthetics relates to the design of uploaded images themselves as objects within this interaction. Classical aesthetic concepts address elements that are independent of meaning and appearance; in contrast, semantic aesthetics focuses on aspects related to meaning and associations rather than mere appearances.

It is essential to consider both subjective and objective aesthetic codes equally. This research underscores the importance of scientific collaboration between experts in computer science and humanities to enhance understanding of aesthetics and improve human-computer interactions. The proposed conceptual framework represents a pioneering effort at both national (Iran) and international levels. It is recommended that developers of the Python library "Athec" utilize this conceptual framework to more accurately define the aesthetic characteristics of digital images within web environments by incorporating a broader range of aesthetic codes into their library programming.

Digital storytelling is an innovative tool and works as a promising activity to facilitate and develop learning in the postmodern society. Digital storytelling emphasizes the group process and people's experience in sharing stories, visual and verbal functions that are necessary for understanding language and thinking from the perspective of cognitive neuroscience. It also provides an interactive approach to create a learning group, engage learners in digital literacy and create educational opportunities for global interaction with audiences and can play an important role in expanding people's digital literacy. Therefore, as a modern tool, it can play an important role in the development of people's information literacy. This research was conducted with the aim of investigating the use of digital storytelling in expanding information literacy.

The current research was done with a qualitative approach and through content analysis. In order to obtain comprehensive information, all valid domestic and foreign scientific articles related to the research topic in the period of 2000-2024 were selected as the research community, and 53 articles were selected using targeted sampling. The search was performed in Google Scholar and specialized databases such as Medline, SID, Magiran, Pubmed, Scopus, and ScienceDirect. Key terms such as digital storytelling, information literacy, storytelling education, impact of digital storytelling, e-learning, new learning alone and combined were used to find articles. The entry criteria included the validity of the sources, their accessibility and the year of their publication in the desired time period. Data collection was done through reading articles until saturation was reached.

First, 53 basic themes were extracted from the texts. Then, the themes were divided into larger groups and identified as constructive themes. In the following, 14 constructive themes (verbal-linguistic skills, social skills, expansion of digital literacy, expansion of traditional literacy, collaborative learning, remembering content, organizing information, psychological capital, excitement, adaptability, intercultural communication, factors affecting the use of storytelling, attractiveness, Expansion of creativity) and finally 7 main themes (learning-remembering, verbal-social, psychological skills, individual-cultural adaptability, creativity, expanding literacy and causal factors) were identified.

From this research, it can be concluded that digital storytelling has different advantages that can affect people's literacy in digital and non-digital fields. Digital storytelling as an educational and communication tool can have a great impact on expanding people's information literacy. Digital stories usually contain various information and knowledge conveyed to people through storytelling. This information can be transferred through stories in an attractive and understandable way for people and increase their knowledge and awareness.

The user experience is at a higher level than the user interface. Nielsen's checklist recommended in 1994, consists of ten factors, one of which is aesthetics, but the dimensions of beauty in the web environment, after thirty years, remain unknown and have not been accurately interpreted. The present study was designed in order to reduce the mentioned ambiguity. The current research aims to identify the aesthetic components of "one website" based on Leibniz's theory and rank them based on the importance of the criteria. Proposing a conceptual framework for the ''aesthetics of one website'', is done.

In this study, the systematic review method of meta-synthesis with Shannon's qualitative content analysis approach was used. A targeting keyword search was conducted in six databases: Google Scholar, Emerald, Web of Science, IRANDOC, ISC, and SID. The numbers of 1110 sources were retrieved. Then, the numbers of 64 documents were selected for meta synthesis study, according to the PRISMA statement. Leibniz's theory of aesthetics and two studies, aesthetic factors from Lavie and Tractinsky (2004) and website analysis from Guo and Hall (2009) used as the basis of qualitative coding. Then, for each aesthetic code identified, the importance coefficient was calculated based on Shannon's qualitative content analysis method introduced by Azar (2000). The mentioned method looks at each code in the sources as an exchanged message, and the resources are the interviewees or experts who answered the research question.

The number of 2 categories 4 concepts and 75 aesthetic codes were obtained by performing meta synthesis. Two general levels of "objective aesthetics" and "subjective aesthetics" were obtained as the main categories of website beauty. The subjective level is related to the user and his perception (subject) and the objective level is related to the website design (object). Two main concepts were obtained for each category including "semantic aesthetics" and "classical aesthetics". The coefficient of importance for the codes of "typography" and "order" in the concept of classical aesthetics and the category of objective aesthetics were ranked first and second. In the category of subjective aesthetics, based on priority, the codes of "having an attractive color combination", "easy navigation" and "moderate visual complexity " in the concept of classical aesthetics, were obtained at the top of importance. The numbers of forty-three aesthetic codes for a website were identified with an importance coefficient greater than zero. A conceptual framework based on Leibniz, proposing for ''aesthetics of one website''. A number of 43 codes with an importance coefficient greater than zero were identified, which were ranked from 1 to 16. The other 32 codes (out of a total of 75 identified codes) that had a zero Shannon entropy significance coefficient (the number of 1 repetition in previous studies) were placed in the 17th rank of Shannon's significance. The top 12 codes, in order of priority, were "observance of typography techniques in website content design", "orderliness and cleanliness of website content", "observance of symmetry in website content design", "non-visual complexity", "attractive website color combination" From the point of view of the web user's mind", "Unity in website content design", "Easy navigation in website content from the standpoint of the web user's mind", "Observance of the organization through order and sequence and compliance with hierarchy during website design", "Complexity in Average limit (not too little and not too much) from the website user'sstandpoint", "Arousing the feeling of richness and variety from the website user's standpoint", "Website design with the approach of having a variety website content ", "Attractive and interesting And the non-boringness of the website from the standpoint of the web user". Adherence to the Gestalt principle, and adherence to the golden ratio in website design, are among the other identified codes.

It is appropriate for website administrators to pay attention to both the objective and subjective aspects of aesthetics to promote users. Several types of research have been conducted on the aesthetic factors of a website. But research such as the current one, which combines previous studies with a meta-synthesis approach and coding by Shannon’s entropy, is the first in Iran and also at the international level. In this field, interdisciplinary cooperation in the fields of computer sciences and social sciences is recommended.

One of the factors that affects the aesthetics of a website and attracts more users in the web environment is "visual complexity". The present research analyzed the correlation and regression between the SEO score and the level of visual complexity of the library websites of the top Iranian and international universities.

A comparative evaluation approach was adopted in this research. 41 library websites of top international universities (based on University Ranking 2023) and 41 library websites of top Iranian universities (based on ISC database 2021) were analyzed and compared. AIOSEO Analysis tool and Athec Python library were used for data extraction. SPSS was used for data analysis. Figures were generated using Excel.

There was no significant correlation and regression between SEO and visual complexity on library websites of top international universities (p=0.125). However, on library websites of top Iranian universities, there was a weak correlation (p=0.045; Pearson correlation coefficient=0.362) and a significant regression (p=0.045). According to the Mann-Whitney U test, a significant difference was seen between the two groups of library websites of top Iranian and international universities from the standpoint of visual complexity (p=0.019).

While top international academic libraries can rely on their strong branding, Iranian university libraries need to focus on both aesthetics and SEO to improve their visibility. Thus, using the experiences and knowledge of expert librarians in the fields of "SEO" and "aesthetics" is recommended.

In an era where information permeates every facet of our lives, the role of information consultants has gained prominence. These professionals serve as navigators, guiding individuals, organizations, and communities through the vast sea of data, ensuring informed decisions and meaningful outcomes. The aim of this research is to conduct a needs assessment for establishing the information consultant profession. Information consultant needs assessment involves examining the areas of need, the dimensions of those needs, and the requirements for acquiring this profession. Introducing the characteristics of information consultants appears essential given the rapid advancement of sciences and society’s need for purposeful guidance to access scientific and social benefits and achievements. In this comprehensive study, a needs assessment was meticulously conducted to uncover the underlying necessities within the information consultant profession.

The present research carried out with a qualitative approach and a combination of two tools was used for data collection: library study and structured interviews. In this study, initially, relevant texts were extracted through systematic searches in target databases, including ScienceDirect, Scopus, Google Scholar, and domestic databases such as IranDoc, SID, and NoorMags. For the extraction of variables related to information consulting needs, 458 open codes were obtained from text analysis. Additionally, 122 codes were identified from interviews conducted with 12 experts in this field. Subsequently, the extracted codes from expert interviews were integrated with the concepts from the texts (a total of 580 codes). The main themes (selective coding) were categorized into four groups: current, incipient, unanswered, and future needs.

After a review of history and the groundworks of information consultant profession, a needs assessment was conducted to reveal the critical needs for the establishment of the information consultant profession. The recent needs assessment conducted shed light on these diverse requirements, categorizing them into four distinct areas. Regarding the requirements for establishing a professional information-sharing profession, 32 categories were identified, comprising a total of 580 components. Among the current needs, we can mention health literacy, engagement in industrial processes, resilience in the face of disruptions and unforeseen conditions, and job placement and career change. For incipient needs, we can highlight circular economy, integration with artificial intelligence, generative artificial intelligence, virtual identity and social networks, and industrial and commercial domains related to the human genome. Unaddressed needs include themes: organizational culture internationalization and compatibility, multi-modal data, increased uncertainty and the need for innovation, widespread use of clean energy, conflict between transparency and the interests of the organization, security and confidentiality in Metaverse. Future needs include: expanding boundaries and administrative processes, the secret language of science, cloud-based life, and cyborg-human integration.

Originality/value:

 Delving into the intricate world of information needs, we explored the essential role played by information consultants in our society. Beyond mere data retrieval, we dissected the dimensions of these needs, revealing why information consultants truly matter. By gaining a holistic understanding of our evolving information landscape, we recognized that information consultants must be well-equipped to address diverse requirements—from immediate queries to emerging trends. This research not only highlighted the extensive information needs but also laid the groundwork for a specialized profession. Whether deciphering health information, staying updated on global events or making informed business decisions, individuals seek reliable sources and expert insights. Information consultants, with their outside perspective and accumulated experience, bridge the gap, offering expertise, context, and personalized support.

The purpose of this research is to investigate the interaction of Users (graduate students of Kharazmi University) with Ganj database in order to evaluate the performance of this database according to the honeycomb user experience Model. It is expected that the results of this study can help to solve the existing interactive difficulties while identifying the status of effective elements in the user experience in interacting with this database. This research is practical and was done by survey method. The research tool was a questionnaire that was designed using 7 components of the honeycomb: the usefulness, accessibility, usability, searchability, validity, desirability and value of the Iranian scientific database (Ganj). Analysis of research data were performed using descriptive and inferential statistics and SPSS software. Also we used Amos software to confirm the research model using path analysis method.  Findings showed that there was a great positive effect between accessibility and usability, usefulness and availability, desirability and credibility of the Ganj database; That is, with increasing the amount of accessibility variable, the amount of usability variable and with increasing the amount of utility variable, the amount of accessibility variable and vice versa increases. As a result, if the Ganj database is not accessible, the usability and usefulness of this database, which aims to publish information for researchers, as well as the usefulness of the services provided to researchers by this database will be reduced. As the desirability variable increases, the validity variable increases and vice versa. As a result, if students are dissatisfied with the features of desirability (appearance design, design capabilities of search components ...), their trust in the database will be lost and the credibility of the Ganj database in providing better services will be reduced. From the findings of this study, it can be concluded that the variable "value" as a strong and powerful variable has a direct and indirect positive effect on other research variables. This finding shows that if a database like Ganj does not create value for users, other components related to the user experience will not be in a good condition, and vice versa. Among these, the accessibility variable is also of special importance, which affects other variables in the Ganj database. As a result of not having access to the Ganj database, the usability of this database is reduced. If the capabilities of using the Ganj database are compromised, the credibility and usefulness of the Ganj will be reduced, and therefore users will lose their trust in this database, and the work with Ganj will not be satisfactory and useful for its users.

The purpose of this study was to design a paradigmatic model of factors influencing the motivation of Knowledge and Information Science faculty members for voluntary activities of the Iranian Library and Information Association.

Qualitative research method based on grounded theory was used. Qualitative data collection tool was semi-structured interview and purposeful sampling method with theoretical approach. In this research, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 8 current and former board members of the Iranian Library and Information Science Association. The criterion of qualitative data analysis was based on the systematic design of grounded theory. Therefore, after the implementation, the text of the interviews was analyzed in five steps using open, axial, and selective coding methods.

By identifying the causal factors, background factors, interferers and consequences, the concepts proposed in the interviews were coded in the form of 15 main categories and 89 sub-categories. Accordingly, the paradigm model of the factors influencing faculty members to participate in voluntary association activities was formed. In this research, it was also found that various factors can increase or decrease the motivation of faculty members to participate in community activities. Some of these factors are personality traits and motivations; Such as having a spirit of service and participation, social commitment, encouraging worldview, being warm, interested in the growth of others and similar things. Considering the effective points in the promotion and promotion bylaws for participative activities and encouraging faculty members to participate in such activities can be a useful solution in this field. Also, including appropriate course contents in formal education courses (primary and high school) regarding the importance of associations and respective activities and teaching these concepts through the media (such as radio and social networks) can make families aware of the importance of paying attention to voluntary activities such as associational activities in the development of children's personality. Peace and political, economic, and social stability in society can also play an important role in the development and flourishing of associational activities.

An important point that should be kept in mind in order to increase the motivation of faculty members to participate in association activities, and the findings of the present research emphasize it, is the effort to explain the position of scientific associations in solving various problems of the country through appropriate policies in this field. Scientific associations are one of the dynamic institutions that enable the interaction of experts and receive informal training, and therefore can be attractive and effective. Creating a safe and attractive environment and providing the opportunity for veteran professors to interact with young professors can be another reason for scientific associations to attract faculty members.

Information counselors have different tasks depending on the different roles they can take on in libraries or other organizations. These tasks are based on the needs of the organization and, of course, current developments, especially in the field of emerging technologies. The first task of an information consultant in an organization can be to help determine the policies and information needs of that organization. The purpose of this study is to determine the model of desirable job competencies for holding an information consulting job in Iran.

This research was applied in the fall and winter of 2019 using thematic analysis and Delphi analysis methods. The research community in the first part includes texts in the field of information consulting and two parts of Delphi include experts and experienced people in the field of information consulting. In this research, a coding list and two questionnaires for Delphi panels have been used as data collection tools. SPSS software was also used for data analysis.

Findings showed an increase in the score of all types of individual competencies, knowledge, and skills at the advanced level compared to the basic level. Moreover, the average merit scores in both levels were higher than the average level. This finding indicates that despite the high importance of all competencies at both professional levels, the importance of many competencies is higher at the advanced level, where more complex responsibilities are envisaged for IT consultants.

In the research model, the types of individual competencies, knowledge, and skills required at both the basic and advanced professional levels are introduced. It should be noted that providing specialized training to job applicants such as information counseling can strengthen their desirable job competencies. Therefore, when starting to work in professions such as intelligence consulting, applicants should have an acceptable level of competence and experience the additional training, knowledge, and skills needed to take on higher and more complex levels of responsibilities

This study aims to investigate the relationship between the content provided on the Instagram pages of Iran’s public libraries and their users' engagement.

The present research is of applied type and has been done by content analysis method. The present research population included 10,132 posts from 110 Instagram pages of the public libraries of Iran. Also, in order to analyze the content of the research population, a checklist created by the researcher has been used and after categorizing their types of content, the level of participation of their users has been calculated with the formula of user participation rate of Instagram pages.

The research findings showed that the posts published on Iran’s public libraries' Instagram pages could be categorized into ten groups: Announcement of Upcoming Events, Completed Events, General Announcements about the Library, Local and General News, Technology, Emotionally Inspiring Messages, Announcement of Library Resources, Celebrational Posts, Backstage and others. Most of the content in the posts on the public libraries’ Instagram pages belonged to the categories of the Completed Events, Announcement of Library Resources, and Announcement of Upcoming Events. In addition, the greatest amount of user engagement belonged to the categories of Completed Events, Announcement of Library Resources, and Announcement of Upcoming Events, respectively. In terms of user engagement, among the formats used, photo and text formats, photo and video and text formats respectively received the most engagement.

Proper use of hashtags, engaging content formats such as photos and videos, and user-friendly content such as events, informing upcoming events, introducing library resources, and emotional and inspiring messages will increase user engagement.

To discuss challenges, opportunities and strategies to improve  practice in Iran based on the views of experts. Thematic and Delphi analysis methods were employed .First, transactions  from five Iranian Information Specialists  Annual Congresses between  2015 and 2019 ) were reviewed and categorized. Then, within two rounds of Delphi technique, the relevance and signinficance of each category and theme was determined.  The Delphi panel in th efirsty roeund consisted of 27, and the second round of 24 individuals.To identify challenges, opportunities, and strategies for improving the practice in Iran based on the views of experts. Thematic and Delphi analysis methods were employed in two steps. In the first step, transactions from five Iranian Information Specialists Annual Congresses held between 2015 and 2019 were reviewed. In the second step, the relevance and significance of categories and themes found in the first step were determined within two rounds of Delphi technique. The Delphi panel in the first round consisted of 27, and the second round of 24 individuals. With regard to training and education, the challenges were found to be mainly due to unbalanced syllabi od library schools and lack of up-to-date programs for on the job training.  Also, lack of educational documentation, inexperienced academic educators, uncertainty in teaching new topics, not sufficiently equipped labs. The panels suggested that experienced professionals be given roles in the education of information organization courses in schools and labs be equipped for teaching and research on new approaches, concepts and tools. With regard to research, challenges were identified to be shortage of professionals with up-to date knowledge of recent developments in the field and scattered nature of research. Up-to-date research in this field and the existence of basic professional tools provided by experienced experts in the past are also among the major opportunities. In terms of "professional cases", the main challenges were to the problems of specialized software, the lack of up-to-date professionals, and the disregard for the needs of users.Regarding the "strategic cases", the main challenges are related to the weakness of influential institutions and the lack of coordination at a national and international levels. The panels proposed to form a national committee to review education, to set up laboratories for implementing new models and increase communication among specialists and related sections. developing people-centered information organization. Paying attention to the increasing volume of data with a long half-life in social networks as well as the considerations about the Iranian-Islamic context in the information organization field are among the strategic opportunities that should be considered.In order to solve educational, research and professional challenges, in addition to other measures recommended in this research, it seems necessary to pay attention to strategic issues such as forming specialized committees and organizations and making strategic decisions at the national level.

The main purpose of the present study was to investigate the students’ information sharing behavior in the universities of South Khorasan Province in the social network sites of Instagram, Telegram, and WhatsApp.

This research was of an applied type and was conducted through a survey method. The study population consisted of all the students of universities affiliated to the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology in South Khorasan Province in Iran who were studying in the academic year of 2018-2019 with a minimum experience of six months in using one of the social network sites of Telegram, Instagram or WhatsApp.

Only about 33% of the respondents have used social network sites for less than an hour during 24h. The rate of use has been more than three hours in 24h for about 24.5% of the respondents. Nearly 50 percent of respondents have used social network sites for more than three years, and only about 13 percent have experienced using these networks between six months to a year. Among the social network sites surveyed, respondents mostly used Telegram to share information. The results showed that students shared information on social network sites more than average. In choosing a social network, there was no significant difference between the information sharing behavior of male and female students and students of different fields of study, but there was a significant difference between the information sharing behavior of students of different educational levels. In addition, the results showed that there was a significant difference between sharing economic, personal, and family, art, and sports information by male and female respondents. There was also a significant difference between economic, cultural- social, and religious information shared by students in different fields of study on social network sites. There was a significant difference between respondents of different educational levels regarding economic, entertaining, occupational-professional, cultural-social, religious, artistic, and sports information shared in social network sites

Students spend a lot of time sharing information on social network sites.

IFLAchr('39')s approach is to move towards developing qualitative guidelines and examining the feasibility of implementing these guidelines in the countries using them. The present research has been conducted with a view to formulating the related qualitative guidelines and surveying the feasibility of their implementation in the context of Iranchr('39')s public libraries.

The current research is an applied study in terms of purpose, which applies an exploratory sequential mixed method. In the qualitative part, IFLA guidelines were investigated using the focus group method and a checklist was made in order to categorize the guidelines and to determine the evaluating groups. In this part, the research sample consisted of 5 experts in the development of Iranchr('39')s standards that were selected using the purposeful sampling method. In the quantitative part, the tool for data collection was a questionnaire. In this part, the statistical population were composed of 4 groups evaluating IFLA standards in Iranchr('39')s public libraries, who consisted of 80 managers and organizational specialists, 111 librarians, 21 experts, and 342 users amounting to 559 people in total. Each sample group was determined using the sampling method and Krejcie & Morgan table. Data were collected by distributing questionnaires among 4 evaluating groups. 81 questionnaires were returned by managers and organizational specialists, 110 ones by librarians, 21 ones by experts and 342 ones by users. Data analysis was carried out using the descriptive and inferential statistics. Excel and SPSS software packages were employed to calculate the frequency rates, averages and to perform the Kruskal-Wallis test.

In the qualitative part of this research, different IFLA guidelines in 12 areas of public libraries` programs and services for various classes of user community were drawn on and confirmed in the checklist of focus group. Totally, out of 12 guidelines (51 guideline statements) appraised by 4 evaluating groups, 8 guidelines can be implemented in Iranchr('39')s public libraries and the remaining 4 groups can be implemented under certain conditions. The findings of the quantitative part and a comparison drawn among the 4 groups on common statements using the non-parametric Kruskal-Wallis test showed that there is no significant difference between the views of evaluating groups, namely librarians, experts, managers and organizational specialists; However, a significant difference was found between the above-mentioned groups and users. To increase the feasibility of implementation IFLA guidelines in Iranchr('39')s public libraries, some remedies are put forward, including: revising and correcting some instructions, learning about the population of users, assessing the user needs, setting up a task-force consisting of managers, librarians, experts and users to develop and regulate library activities.

The review of relevant literature in Iran and abroad showed that no research has already been conducted in order to codify IFLA qualitative guidelines in the field of public librarieschr('39') services and programs or to look into the feasibility of IFLA guidelineschr('39') implementation from the point of view of policy-makers and the relevant specialists. The findings of this research can help us with decision-making and policymaking in delivering implementing services and programs as well as in developing standards for public libraries.

The aim of present study was Analyzing the Perspectives of Instagram Followers of Iranian Public Libraries about Users` engagement and Features of pages` Content.

The study was conducted with a quantitative approach and survey method. The research community included followers of Instagram pages of Iranian public libraries. out of 602 of the research population (the followers of Iran’s public libraries pages), 235 followers were selected as the research sample using Krejcie and Morgan table. Data was collected through a questionnaire. Participants' responses to the questionnaire were analyzed using SPSS and descriptive and inferential statistics.

The results showed that the majority of participants in the study believe that receiving information about library events and news and being aware of library resources are the most important motivations for them to follow the Instagram pages of public libraries in Iran. Respondents considered library posts in Instagram relatively good and had a mediocre view of their own engagement with library posts. The relationship between user engagement and motivation, membership duration and age of users variables is significant and direct, and the relationship between user engagement variable and membership variable is significant and inverse. In other words, the relationship between user motivation and their engagement has been significant and direct, so that the more motivated users have more engagement. However, the relationship between membership and engagement has been reversed, meaning that people who were not members of public libraries were more likely to participate in the Instagram pages of public libraries. Also, the relationship between the time variable of membership and engagement is significant and direct. In other words, the longer a person has been in public libraries, the more involved they are in the Instagram pages of public libraries. There is also a positive increase between the two age and user engagment variables, and with increasing age, the engagement has also increased. Finally, the variable correlation coefficient of education level and user egagement showed that the users with higher education level have the higher engagment rate. Also, no significant relationship was observed between the feature of the content provided variable and the population variables.

Instagram is an effective tool for marketing libraries and their services. Based on the result of present research, it is recommended that librarians provide more of the following contents for their Instagram posts: brief and useful information about library resources, and announcement of upcoming events. Also, as users are more engaged with videos and photos, using these formats in library posts, would bring more attention of users. Keywords: social network marketing, Instagram, user engagement, public library

Considering the importance of teaching styles and approaches in teaching elementary students, the role of information literacy in choosing and using different teaching approaches has been studied in this research.

This research is carried out by survey method. The research population were the elementary school teachers of the sixth grade from the city of Semnan city. Out of 110 teachers of the sixth elementary school grade from Semnan city in the academic year of 2012-2012, 86 teachers were selected by the stratified random sampling method. To collect data, two researcher-made questionnaires were used to measure the teachers' information literacy status and identify their teaching approaches.

According to the results, teachers` points in information literacy (with the mean of 76.1) were more than the average. The interactive style has the largest mean rate among teaching styles. It also showed that the teachers use the direct teaching style less than the average level and use the other styles higher than the average level. Findings of the research hypotheses showed that there is an inverse relationship between direct teaching style and information literacy and a direct relationship between indirect, problem-oriented and interactive teaching styles and information literacy. Teachers with more information literacy use more teaching styles (two, three and four styles).

The results of the research indicated that the teachers with information literacy skills use different approaches in their teaching process. Therefore, having information literacy skills can play a more effective role in choosing more diverse teaching styles and improving them.

The main purpose of the present study was to assess the effect of the students’ information sharing behavior in social network sites on different features of social capital. This research was an applied one for which survey method was employed. The population consisted of all the students studying at the universities in South Khorasan Province affiliated to the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology in the academic year of 1397-1398 (2018-2019). The students were supposed to have a minimum experience of six months in using one of the social network sites such as Telegram, Instagram or WhatsApp. The sample size was 384, which was calculated through the Cochran formula for the unknown population. To test the conceptual model of research and the hypotheses, the Partial Least Squares Approach to Structural Equation Modeling and SmartPLS (version 2) were used. The results of the conceptual model of the study confirmed a positive and significant relationship between the students’ information-sharing behavior in social network sites and their social capital and all its four characteristics (interactional, structural, functional and normative). The results also indicated that the demographic variables of gender, field of study and educational level had no significant effect on the relationship between information-sharing behavior in social network sites and social capital.

The main purpose was to investigate the students’ information sharing behavior in social network sites with a qualitative approach.

An applied research with qualitative approach - A Thematic Analysis method was used.  Population consisted of all the students at the Universities in South Khorasan Province affiliated with the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology who had a  minimum of six months experience in using one of the social network sites such as: Telegram, Instagram or WhatsApp.   A non-probability (non-random), and a snowball sampling procedure was used and 17 persons were interviewed. The semi-structured type of interview was incorporated.

Results showed that most students’ information sharing was done on Telegram and Instagram, respectively. Eighteen primary codes were provided by  students as motives for information sharing in social network sites. These primary codes were categorized into two main categories (personal and social motives) and seven subcategories. Among all the primary codes of the two main categories, the sub-category of “net-surfing and entertainment” had the highest occurrence. For the types of information shared on social network sites by student, 24 primary codes were obtained. These primary codes were categorized into eight sub-categories and two main categories (knowledge and entertaining information). Among the sub-categories identified, the most recurrently shared types of information were “literary-artistic information” and “scientific-educational information”.

For surfing and entertainments’ own good - information sharing on social network sites could lead to admittance of valuable information. If properly planned, it may function as a suitable platform (available to diverse strata of the society, especially the students, at the lowest possible cost) to attain the best possible practice especially in educational settings.

The present study was conducted with the aim of analyzing the bibliometrics of Koomesh, as one of the oldest and most reputable Iranian medical journals.

This study was conducted using a bibliometric method on the articles published in Koomesh during the years 2006-2017. For this purpose, through advanced search in the Scopus database, 764 papers were extracted and bibliometric and Visualization analysis was carried out using Excel and VOSviewer software.

The publication process of articles and citations received by Koomesh is ascending. The number of articles reached from 14 to 100 articles in 2017 and the number of citations reached from zero citations in 2006 to 289 citations in 2017. The co-authorship map of the journal’s authors showed that Raheb Ghorbani, with 88 articles and 27 links, was the most active author and had the most co-authorship. Considerably, evaluation of organizational affiliation and contributing countries in the journal articles indicated that Semnan University of Medical Sciences was ranked first with 310 organizational affiliations and authors from nine countries participated in the articles received by the journal. According to the co-occurrence map of all 5424 keywords in the articles published in Koomesh, 127 keywords, which were the most frequent keywords in three clusters, had the frequency of 10 and more than 10. The article by Abdolreza Raja'i Fard, Abolfazl Mohammadbeygi and Narges Mohammad Salehi, "Estimation of natural age of menopause in Iranian women: A meta-analysis study" with 20 citations was the most cited article of Komosh in Scopus database.

This study presents a general perspective on Koomesh performance during the years 2006-2017. The findings of this study can serve as a roadmap to journalists and assist them in continuing their way.

The purpose of this research is to determine contribution of effective thematic disciplines in the formation of user interface theses in iran and their methodological analysis. The research was carried out using a quantitative content analysis method and a checklist for collecting data. Results showed that in more than 25 different universities in the country (including state, Payame Noor, non-profit, and Islamic Azad Universities), the theses in the field of the user interface have been performed and completed. The findings of the present study indicated that specialists with a degree in 18 subject fields have played a role in forming, guiding, and providing consultations for conducting theses in this field. However, experts Knowledge and Information Science have conducted or directed more than half of the theses in this field in Iran. Findings about research methodology of theses showed that only some methods and often in quantitative approach have been used. More than 40% of theses have been conducted using the survey method that is one of the most important methods of quantitative approach. In addition, they have often practical and used a single tool, often a questionnaire or checklist, to collect data. The tendency to use a small number of samples, as well as targeted sampling methods is observed. It seems in addition to conducting practical researches (especially evaluating the designed products and providing feedback to their designers), it is necessary to review the theoretical foundations and principles in this area and develop the theoretical field with using new research approaches, methods and tools.

Abstract
Promotion of the life of people with disabilities depends on the provision of their information needs. Employment plays a key role in the lives of these people and is considered as a way to improve their lives. The present study is aimed at assessing the information needs of people with disabilities who participated in the supportive employment program.
A qualitative research with the use of Grounded Theory examines the information needs of people with disability. The required data in this research were collected from semi-structured interviews with twenty four jobseekers who were purposefully and theoretically selected, and interviews continued to the saturation of data. Then, in the three stages of Open coding, Axial coding and Selective coding which are used in the Grounded Theory researches, the information needs of those with disabilities participated in the Supportive Employment Pragramme, were extracted.
The results of the study indicated that there was a wide variety of information needs in these four categories: general information and news, (2) empowerment and personal and family problems, (3) research, education, Lifelong Learning and (4) Professional and career information. The most important communication Channels were classified into five categories: cyberspace, mass media, human resources information, training courses, and responsible government bodies 
Due to the importance of obtaining information by the people with disability, eliminating their concerns and other needs of these people, attention to their information needs seems to be necessary. These needs were in many respects similar to those of ordinary people. The observed differences are due to the specific physical and mental status of this community, which the responsible institutions are required to provide the necessary facilities for access to the information they need.

Understanding collaborative information seeking behaviour requires knowing about personal characteristics, differences between users, and the type of interactions occur during a collaborative behaviour. The aim of this study is to investigate dimensions of collaborative information seeking behaviour of graduate students of Kharazmi University when using a digital library based on easy and difficult task scenarios.   this was a mixed-method study with 60 (30 pairs) participant randomly chosen from graduate students of Kharazmi University (enrolled in 2017-2018). The sampling technique was purposive random sampling. Participants participated in a test based on easy and difficult tasks of collaborative information seeking using a digital library (Tebyan). the time spent interacting with peers or librarians was relatively short. Participants in difficult tasks mostly played the role of consultant. Most of information or help requests were of the type of procedural. the results confirm the important role of librarians in collaborative information seeking and the feasibility of providing human assistant in digital library environment to support users.

INTRUDUCTION: The main aim of this study was to answer the question why information literacy is needed from the viewpoints of psychology undergraduate students majoring in Semnan University. This study was an applied research and used the grounded theory approach to reveal the viewpoints of undergraduate psychology students majoring at Semnan University. All undergraduate students studying psychology in this university at the time of the study (2016-2017) were the statistical population. Data collection process continued until data saturation. Because of the qualitative and exploratory nature of the research, data collection and analysis were conducted synchronously, and 18 semi-structured interviews were done. MaxQDA software was used for data coding. FINDINGS: A total of 74 general concepts appeared in the open coding process. Eleven main categories, such as necessity of familiarity with general and specialized databases, need to familiarity with the library and library resources and search process in the library, need for familiarity with the Internet and Internet search tools, necessity of paying attention to the validation of information and resources, need to know about citation management and referencing styles, need to some necessary skills such as information management, information seeking and English language skills, need to familiarity with general and special social networks and finally, and need to familiarity with information services and resources available in research context were found in this study as some reasons for why information literacy is needed. The concepts and categories extracted in this study, such as not being familiarity with the content of Persian and English language databases in the field of psychology and need for students to be familiarity with the scientific journals of psychology, and necessity of paying attention to these topics in teaching information literacy to the students. Familiarity with the library and its various units should be addressed by information literacy instructors. Also, along with the familiarity with the library, paying attention to Internet search tools and need to understand network concepts is important for the students of psychology. The attention and teaching of citation manager software packages and the need to pay attention to methods of validating resource should also be addressed by information literacy instructors in information literacy programs related to the psychology students. The presence of social networks has created a need for familiarity with various types of social and social networks for psychology students. The concepts and categories of present research can be used for planning information literacy workshops for psychology students at Semnan University