Information Seeking Behavior of Researchers Visiting National Archives of Iran

To study the purpose, motivation and questions raised by users visiting National Archives of Iran during 2013 and compare it with demographic information (age, sex, education). It is a survey, and data is gathered from 419 forms which users are meant to fill before using the Archives. Twenty-nine incomplete forms were omitted. Sixty percent (60%) of users were MS students or had MS degree, more than 29% of which has studied history. Thirty-seven percent (37%) of users visited the Archives to write their thesis and 36% to author an article. Forty percent (40%) of users were history graduates. There is a correlation between the users’ field of study and usage. History students and graduates were the highest users of the collection.