Questions on search request forms

This research took the form of an investigation into how different questions on online search request forms elicit different responses from users, and how the resulting differences in user input can influence search quality. Users of an academic library search service completed online search request forms which asked open, bibliographic and structural questions. Structural questions elicited longer responses than open questions, while bibliographic questions elicited very short responses. In some cases, the longer responses to structural questions led to the inclusion of more terms in search expressions. On average, these searches achieved lower precision. It appears that searchers who take a flexible approach to search topics are more affected by different amounts of user input than searchers who are less flexible. Because of the importance of the user‐intermediary interaction in initiating the retrieval process, online search request forms must be carefully designed. This includes selecting questions which will elicit an appropriate amount of detail about the information need.