In search of existential authenticity: Information behaviors during a time of personal transformation

Abstract

Abstract Many people make changes to their lives to provide a greater sense of value, purpose, or coherence to their everyday existence. One goal in making such changes is to improve their sense of existential authenticity, a feeling that their lives are being lived in what they see as meaningful and productive ways. This study looks at the process of creating a sense of existential authenticity from an information perspective. Through interviews with 10 people who have made significant changes to their lives, the study seeks to understand the process for searching for a greater sense of existential authenticity, and the associated information behaviors that occur during this process. The findings reveal a complex and emergent process of information activities leading to a new life and a new information world and open a new area of study for information transitions research.

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