Time as a context of information seeking

The ways in which the temporal context of information seeking has been approached in the information-seeking literature are explored. Three major approaches were identified: (i) time as a fundamental attribute of situation or context of information seeking, (ii) time as qualifier of access to information, and (iii) time as an indicator of the information-seeking process. Temporal factors qualify situations and contexts of information seeking by expresssions such as dynamic, reiterative, and project. These factors can also be referred to as qualifiers of accessibility in the sense of constraints within which information may be accessed particularly in hurry situations. Temporal factors also qualify information seeking as a process from the viewpoint of stages or cycles. Recently, cyclic and non-linear models challenge the stage models of information seeking by emphasizing the contingency of information-seeking processes.