Most Americans rely on their own research to make big decisions, and that often means online searches
A big majority (81%) of Americans say they rely a lot on their own research – more than say they rely a lot on friends and family or experts.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
A big majority (81%) of Americans say they rely a lot on their own research – more than say they rely a lot on friends and family or experts.
A plurality of experts think sweeping societal change will make life worse for most people. Still, a portion believe things will be better in a ‘tele-everything’ world.
Lee Rainie, director of internet and technology research at the Pew Research Center, discussed the Center’s latest research at the Public Library Association’s 2018 meeting.
Lee Rainie discussed his group’s latest findings about the role of libraries and librarians on April 3 at Innovative Users Group conference. The latest work shows that many people struggle to find the most trustworthy information and they express a clear hope that librarians can help them.
Lee Rainie, director of Internet, Science and Technology research at the Pew Research Center, presented new findings about how people have shifted to the mindset of lifelong learners and the implications of that for librarians.
The new findings covered the latest library-usage trends, book-reading trends, and insights into the ways more and more Americans hope libraries will offer community-oriented and educational services.
Experts are split on whether the coming years will see less misinformation online. Those who foresee improvement hope for technological and societal solutions. Others say bad actors using technology can exploit human vulnerabilities.
Most Americans think that local libraries serve the educational needs of their communities and families well. But many do not know about key education services libraries provide.
Despite broad concerns about cyberattacks, outages and privacy violations, most experts believe the Internet of Things will continue to expand successfully the next few years.
In order to thrive in the future, librarians will need to be great forecasters and innovators. Lee Rainie will describe how the Center’s research provides guideposts for librarians along three dimensions of library activity: the people, the place, and the platform, at the VALA2016 conference in Melbourne, Australia on Feb. 9, 2016
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ABOUT PEW RESEARCH CENTER Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world. It conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis and other empirical social science research. Pew Research Center does not take policy positions. It is a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts.
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