Part of being an information professional is being able to obtain information relevant to the needs of library patrons. Information retrieval systems come in the form of catalogs or databases, and they store information that can be accessed by inputting information, or a query, designed to pull the information from the system for the user to access. This process works in three stages: identification, location, and delivery. Identification happens when the user identifies the information need, and conducts a search (or query). Location is when the system processes the query, and finds the relevant information in the system. Delivery is the output that the system provides the user, or, the “answer” to the “query.”

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Designing an Information Retrieval System

During my MLIS coursework, I have taken two courses which have focused on designing information retrieval systems. One was the required core course, INFO 202, and the other was Information Technology Tools and Applications – Advanced Topic: Introduction to PHP/MYSQL.

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In INFO 202, I learned how to create descriptors and controlled vocabularies, and how to create an entry for a database. For this course, I had to consider factors that would potentially be included in a query and to understand how they should be made distinguishable. For example, when creating a system that can be queried, it is important to consider all possible options, and to make all of the criteria mutually exclusive. Let us for a moment consider that we were searching a database of colors. A system might allow searches for red, blue, green, yellow, etc. But, a user who is querying the system might search for the category “burgundy” or “maroon.” Because the designer might not be able to foresee all of the possible options, it is always important to include “none” or “other” as options for the field. It is important to make field selections as broad as possible so that users do not become frustrated if they are unable to retrieve the information that they need from the query.

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In INFO 246, I learned about the programming end of information retrieval, along with query statements using PHP and MYSQL. In this course, I used programming skills to create loops and if-then statements to help run a program designed to retrieve specific information.  An if-then statement helps a program decide which information to return. By using the logic that “if X is true, then y.” So, if we return to our example above of a database of colors, using PHP we could build a loop that said “if (user inputs blue) then (display results).” This is, of course, a very simplified example, and the code is actually much more complex than the example allows for, but when building a query, logic is important to understand so that a user knows why they get the results that they do.

 

Building a Query

Developing a good query is essential in information retrieval system use. Some databases, like Academic Search Complete, or other academic databases have built in tools that can help build a query. For example, search results can be limited by type, date, and whether or not they were peer reviewed. Some databases also have built in Boolean searching, which can assist in building a specific search statement. Boolean operators are words or symbols, which can either increase or decrease the amount of results retrieved from any given query. The most common Boolean operators are AND, OR, and NOT. Building a statement with AND narrows the search by forcing the retrieval system to find two elements. Using OR broadens a query by allowing the system to search for two different elements. NOT restricts the query, by leaving out certain elements.

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Example Boolean Query

To demonstrate how Boolean operators work, I will present a search statement using the three operators mentioned above. For the purposes of this example, assume I am building a search statement, and I want to differentiate students who access materials from computers or tablets.

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Desktop AND mobile = Will return results that mention both “desktop” and “mobile.”

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Desktop OR mobile = Will return results that mention either “desktop” or “mobile.”

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Desktop NOT mobile = Will return results that mention “desktop,” but not “mobile.”

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Evaluation

Evaluation happens in several stages through the information retrieval process. The first stage of evaluation happens at the user level. The user needs to evaluate what type of information that they need, so that they can form a query that will deliver relevant results. The user also needs to evaluate their query statement. Can the statement be improved by adding or removing elements? Are too few results being returned? Too many? If so, what ways could the query statement be developed to better meet the user needs?

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​After results are returned, the user must then evaluate the results to find out which results, if any, are relevant to the information need. Precision and recall are terms that are useful for thinking about information retrieval. Recall considers how many resources were found out of the total list of relevant resources in the database. Precision considers how many of the results are correct out of the total results. Depending on the specificity of the query, some results will be more relevant to the information need than others. If the results are not relevant, then the user should evaluate the terms that they used in the search and consider whether there might be other searchable terms which could produce relevant results.

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Evidence

For my first piece of evidence, I submit a group project from INFO 202 which consisted of creating a searchable database. For this project, my group chose to create a mock database for a liquor store owner, and to make the database searchable by type, color, price, brand, and proof. The work was divided evenly among the group members, with each of us locating items to enter into the database, creating rules for searching our items, deciding what factors should be searchable, and then executing multiple searches. This piece of evidence demonstrates my mastery of information retrieval system design by showing that I am able to consider the elements that need to be incorporated into a searchable database, and what elements users identify when conducting a search or building a query.

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My second piece of evidence to demonstrate mastery of this competency also comes from INFO 202. For this assignment, we were divided into groups, and asked to search through scholarly articles, and to evaluate our search results. We used full text searching of the article, along with keyword searches. For each search, we had to state what information we were looking for, how we searched, and the number of results that our searches provided. We then had to divide the search results into relevant and irrelevant results, and discuss ways to improve the results retrieved. This project demonstrates my mastery of evaluating information retrieval systems.

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My third piece of evidence is a series of instructional videos that I created for INFO 254, Information Literacy and Learning. For this course, we chose a database, and created a lecture for introducing students to the database, and best practices for using it. I created an introductory, beginner, and advanced video to support all levels of users. This piece of evidence demonstrates my mastery of querying information retrieval systems because it showcases my ability to explain these complex subjects to users. In order to teach or demonstrate a skill to someone, you must have a very thorough understanding of that skill. Creating this video demonstrates my depth of understanding by proving not only that I understand how to create a query, but I am also able to convey this information to other people.

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Conclusion:

The duties performed by information professionals have changed as technology has created new ways to access information. Once known for card catalogs, libraries now use electronic databases to keep track of materials. As periodicals such as journal articles are also increasingly accessed online, it is important for users to be able to create queries that result in relevant information delivery. Information professionals must understand the design of information retrieval systems to better understand how to build a query. Finally, information professionals must be able to evaluate these systems, queries, and the results of the query in order to provide useful and relevant information to the user.