Blockchain Bachelor’s Thesis – Information Overload and Methods of its Elimination in the Modern Information Society: First Draft of the Interview

Source

Previously published

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Introduction

Blockchainized Bachelor’s Thesis
Blockchainized Bachelor’s Thesis – Initial Brainstorm

Thesis

1. Preface

Sources

1.Battling Information Overload in the Information Age
2.1.The knowledge-attention-gap: Do we underestimate the problem of information overload in knowledge management? pt.1
2.2.The knowledge-attention-gap: Do we underestimate the problem of information overload in knowledge management? pt. 2
3.Database Research faces the Information Explosion
4.The experience of mobile information overload: struggling between needs and constraints

Case study: Interview

1. First draft

Case study

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Case study has to be part of the thesis. Luckily I left my options rather open until the very end (I had to lock in the topic AND the abstract a whole YEAR before the actual work needed to be done). Anyway, after careful consideration and dialog with the thesis supervisor I decided to do an interview. I was never fond of quantitative research, therefore qualitative one was the only viable option. The time is slowly running out, so I had to come up with the first draft of the interview. I still want to keep the backdoor opened and don’t want to decide yet whether the interview will be structured or semi-structured. I have great confidence in the participants that have already chosen to help me out by volunteering. I feel very prepared to host even an unstructured interview, but it never hurts to have at least the baseline prepared. On the other hand though I need to gather relevant data and what if the participants fail to meet my expectations? Also I might be able to gather a bit more data, maybe even interesting data who knows, through Steem. I therefore decided to make a structured version of the interview too, but in the real life interviews I will give the participants all the room they might possibly want to speak about anything they find relevant about the topic. In other words, I don’t want to constrain them.

If any of you guys want to participate I will need at least your age, gender, field of expertise and any personal information you’re willing to give up so I can categorize you properly. Ideally you could share with me your Steem introduction post. Any information input about the topic is welcome! The prerequisite for that is to read the preface! The interview (or rather questioner in this environment) done online will have to be structured though. If I’ll feel like you have spent some time answering the question truthfully and amply, I’ll try to reward you sufficiently through the tools at my disposal.

As always I welcome ANY feedback! In fact I need it!

First draft of the interview

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1. Did you hear / read about the information overload before I introduced it to you from any verified or trustworthy source?
   a) Have you considered it critically and evaluated its possible real impact on your life? Can you at least try to outline your logical process?

2. Are you forced to use information technology for your economic success (work / survival)?
   a) How many times a week?
   b) For how long each individual day?

3. Do you use information technology on a voluntary basis for personal non-working purposes?
   a) How many times a week?
   b) For how long each individual day?

4. Describe as much as possible the business issues and the informal issues you deal with on which device (PC / portable device).
   a) Do you feel any difference between information overload caused while using a PC and a portable devices? Elaborate

5. Do you extend your day for your information needs/tasks? Try to outline your situation.

6. Is it common practice for you to accumulate information sources (which you cannot consume right away) and subsequently, for any reason, discard them? What are the reasons?
   a) How do you filter these information sources? Highly important is the description of the criteria for selecting trusted information.
   b) Are you deliberately avoiding any information?
   c) Have you discovered your limit when you still can process the information and when are you already overwhelmed? Are you able to somehow describe this limit?

7. Do you tend to concentrate on one thing only, or do you voluntarily let something to "disturb you" to increase your efficiency (wind up, let your though processes mature) in order to get back to the original topic later?
   a) For how long are you able to focus on one thing (according to your beliefs)? Are your claims valid for both work-related and informal matters?

8. Do you have a system by which you organize your personal stuff? Elaborate.
   a) If technologies made it easier for you to organize both online and off-line stuff, would you use them? What exactly would you appreciate?

9. Now, when you have a rough idea of what information overload really is, do you feel the impact in your life more than in the past? Has your rationalization of the problem somehow changed?
   a) Are you now more inclined to the Renaissance model of education (trying to know everything), or do you prefer specialisation and why?

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