Thesis
Every step is moving me up - an information behaviour study of hikers on the West Highland Way
- Creator
- Rights statement
- Awarding institution
- University of Strathclyde
- Date of award
- 2024
- Thesis identifier
- T16874
- Person Identifier (Local)
- 202067079
- Qualification Level
- Qualification Name
- Department, School or Faculty
- Abstract
- This thesis explores the information behaviour of hikers on the West Highland Way (WHW), a long-distance hiking route in Scotland. This route has not been studied from an information science perspective before, placing findings in a novel context. To do so, the research focused on how embodied information was experienced by hikers on the WHW, how they sought, gathered and shared information in situ and how their information behaviour might inform wellbeing benefits during their walk. Ethnographic methods were used to conduct interviews in situ and then the qualitative data was subjected to reflexive thematic analysis, revealing a number of discoveries. The WHW is a rich field of embodied information, containing environmental embodied information, embodied information from within, embodied information from others and embodied information recorded using technology, developing new understanding of embodied information in physical activities. Information behaviour on the WHW was characterised by low information needs, which ran counter to everyday life information settings, and this made the activity pleasurable and memorable, placing information needs in a novel context relating to serious leisure activities. Wellbeing benefits were widely reported, principally in improved mindsets of walkers. These, and other benefits, were informed by environmental embodied information, low information needs, exchange of social information and immersion in the cultural heritage of the route. Reflections on this study show that embodied information and wellbeing benefits are ripe for further exploration from an information behaviour viewpoint, particularly in physical activities and creative fields, giving a more holistic view of information behaviour. Recommendations are made for the WHW to become a European Cultural Heritage Route, as well as proposals for the maintenance and promotion of this, and other, long-distance walking routes. Through this study, embodied information, information needs and wellbeing benefits have been placed into novel contexts for information behaviour research.
- Advisor / supervisor
- Dunlop, Mark
- Innocenti, Perla
- Resource Type
- DOI
Relations
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PDF of thesis T16874 | 2024-04-24 | Public | Download |