Insights into the Search Behavior of Non-Medical Professionals Based on Task Difficulty and an Evaluation against New Generation Medical Information Retrieval Strategies

Abstract

Medical information searching is amongst the most common type of search performed on the Internet. The accessibility and availability of publicly available medical domains has made medical domains a popular destination to perform medical type searches. However, non-medical professionals may find performing a medical type search difficult due to limited knowledge and expertise. Thus, medical information retrieval strategies are key in assisting non-medical professionals experience a productive search session. In this chapter, the authors review information retrieval strategies and introduce new generation information retrieval strategies. They then analyze search behavior of non-medical professionals when searching across varying levels of task difficulty. This is followed by an evaluation on how new generation medical information retrieval strategies support a non-medical professional’s medical search session when searching across varying levels of task difficulty. Results of this research study provide a better understanding of the search behavior of non-medical professionals when searching across varying levels of task difficulty. The results also provide suggestions on how information retrieval strategies can better assist non-medical professionals when searching across varying levels of task difficulty.