Information Seeking Behaviour of Social Scientists of CRRID: A Case Study

The paper examines the information seeking behaviour of social scientists at a leading social science research institution. Results show that the most common source of information seeking in the social sciences is through discussion with one's colleagues and established experts in the field. Besides using traditional methods for locating and retrieving required information, the faculty at Centre for Research in Rural and Industrial Development (CRRID) also frequently use web aided procedures such as the internet, electronic mail, and other web based resources. The scientists cite non-availability of relevant information in respective area as the most common problem while seeking social science information. This implies that the libraries, in spite of their connectivity and regular up-gradation of infrastructures, should reflect on meeting the needs of the social science community through innovative and effective measures, such as using their resources skilfully by focusing on the use of various resources in social science on websites available through various networks.