Ordinary Search Engine Users Carrying Out Complex Search Tasks

摘要

Web search engines have become the dominant tools for finding information onthe Internet. Due to their popularity, users apply them to a wide range ofsearch needs, from simple look-ups to rather complex information tasks. Thispaper presents the results of a study to investigate the characteristics ofthese complex information needs in the context of Web search engines. The aimof the study is to find out more about (1) what makes complex search tasksdistinct from simple tasks and if it is possible to find simple measures fordescribing their complexity, (2) if search success for a task can be predictedby means of unique measures, and (3) if successful searchers show a differentbehavior than unsuccessful ones. The study includes 60 people who carried out aset of 12 search tasks with current commercial search engines. Their behaviorwas logged with the Search-Logger tool. The results confirm that complex tasksshow significantly different characteristics than simple tasks. Yet it seems tobe difficult to distinguish successful from unsuccessful search behaviors. Goodsearchers can be differentiated from bad searchers by means of measurableparameters. The implications of these findings for search engine vendors arediscussed.