The Transparency Problem

Tomorrow in class, we will be discussing and practicing online research. We'll discuss not only effective methods of keyword searching using Google, Ask, and Yahoo, but also how to navigate the somewhat ominous Purdue Calumet Library page.

There's more to Googling than just typing random words in the search field. Starting at Google, we'll discuss the importance of tracking and revising keywords, which eliminates duplicate searches. Then, we'll discuss Boolean searches, wildcard searching and sub-searching.

We'll begin with Google because this is the familiar research environment for the students. Why? By starting with something familiar, we can segway into something unfamiliar, which is what I do when we go to the Library website. There's no difference in methodology between Web research and library research.

There's also no difference in evaluating the sources. One of my CSW students made this point in his blog. He said, "As far as sources are concerned, the differences between online and print sources are minimal...In addition, checking for the integrity of a source remains the same. Find details about the parent company and author. Anyone can publish a book and anyone can post a blog. Common sense is also a great tool."

It's true. Just because information came out of a book, or an encyclopedia, or some other source traditionally recognized as authoritative, this does not make it so. And common sense is a great tool.

But that's where it gets sticky...

One of the pieces of research I have for my thesis is the MacArthur Foundation's Confronting the Challenges of Participatory Culture: Media Education for the 21st Century. One of the aspects of participatory culture discussed in this paper is the Transparency Problem.

In a nutshell, the Transparency Problem is what happens when a generation (or others) who have grown accustomed to suspending disbelief (p. 15) while immersing themselves in online environments so that a more realistic experience can be carried into effect.

I wondered how the Transparency Problem might affect online research - is it difficult to unsuspend disbelief in order to critically think?

While I was digesting the idea of a Transparency Problem, it occurred to me that perhaps the Transparency Problem isn't just a factor of immersive play environments; what if it is also related to the constant onslaught of rapid information in a variety of medias? What if the brain suspends disbelief as a filter?

I may be an exception, I don't know, but I do know that I have a very high filter (suspension of disbelief?) in regards to media information. I'm also a great deal older than the average person who has been enculturated in a digital environment.

So, what I'm wondering is are students truly superficial searchers of irrelvant data, or are they merely unable to unsuspend their disbelief?