Min-Chun Ku

Overview

Currently I'm a third-year doctoral student of the Ph.D. program in Information Science and Technology, School of Information Studies, Syracuse University. I also received my M.S. in Library and Information Science here at the School of Information Studies, SU in May 2007. I received my Bachelor of Education from Division of Library and Information Science, Department of Adult and Continuing Education, National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei, Taiwan, in 2004. I also had a minor in health education and secondary education program.

Research Interests

Min-Chun's research interest includes information behaviors, specifically information seeking. I like to know how humans perceive and act upon what they understand to seek information and apply it in different situations and contexts, such as online networking systems. In particular, I'm interested in various discourse communities in which insiders have similar sets of beliefs, values, and customs that shape what types of information they seek and exchange, evaluate and decide what information is relevant or not, how they use information, and how these information behaviors define their social roles and affect their interactions. I like both quantitative and qualitative methods because the former allows me to see bigger picture while the latter allows me to experience and understand the rich nature of a specific phenomenon.

Personal Interests

I like traveling and cooking. I especially like to try all of those ingredients that I have never tried and seen and learn about those interesting and fascinating stories behind cuisine and ingredients from various cultures.

I have a blog telling my life and experiences in the U.S. It can be reached at http://minchuntaiwan.blogspot.com/. Welcome to visit my blog and leave a comment.