Towards understanding information encountering on the Web

This paper provides a preliminary report of a multi-phase research study currently in progress about accidental discovery of information (information encountering) on the Web. We first provide an introductory overview of the concept of information encountering and its research, and then we explore this concept as it pertains to electronic environments. Findings from two small-scale empirical studies pertaining to the characteristics of information encountering on the Web are then summarized and explained. In the conclusion of the paper we provide an initial interpretation of research findings and propose that (1) information users' capability to encounter information relates to the level of their sensitivity to the information environment and that (2) information encountering is a habitual activity adjusted to the unique characteristics of each information environment.