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The information needs faced by managers are not always clear and straightforward. Therefore, the motivation behind a manager's information gathering behavior is not easily defined. In this research study it is suggested that managers have a tendency to seek and accumulate information for which they have no explicit or known need.This tendency to accumulate information enables managers to behave as they do, for example, making rapid decisions, jumping from problem to problem and foregoing the formal information search process that non-managers may follow when seeking to close a gap in knowledge. Three hypotheses will be empirically tested by statistically comparing line managers to non-managers. A questionnaire is used to gather quantitative data on the line-managers' perceptions and information behaviors. The results offer some evidence to the difference in behavior between managers and non-managers.

A professional association can be defined by its membership, its mission and a variety of different offerings, services, characteristics and attributes. One such characteristic is the research that is presented at the annual conference and published in the proceedings. The intent of this paper is to explore whether there has been a change in the basic research presented and published at the ASIS&T annual conference since the association's name change in 2000. Is more empirical research being presented? Has there been any measurable shift from theoretical to empirical?

This year's ASIST theme of humanizing information technology invites inquiry into the human elements that influence information behavior. The results of this qualitative study revealed that relationship, more than knowledge, may be the reason a manager is sought as an information source within a business environment. The context was a large business unit within a major US corporation. Social network mapping was selected as the appropriate method so as to capture a more intimate view of the information relationships within a business environment.Content analysis was used to analyze the data and to draw out the themes. The non-hierarchical flow of knowledge among managers and the reasons managers seek others as information sources further differentiates and documents line-managers as a unique information user-group. Background and IntroductionThe information needs of managers are not easily defined (Grosser 1991, Katzer & Fletcher 1992; therefore the behaviors associated with information gathering are not easily understood. To gain insight into the information gathering behaviors of line-managers a series of research studies were conducted within a for-profit business environment. At the 2002 ASIST Annual Meeting the results of a quantitative study (Mackenzie 2002) was presented that suggested that line-managers tend to stay close to a broad range of information at work regardless of its relevance to the manager's role within the organization. Managers also tend to cooperate with other individuals at work to a greater extent than non-managers. And, managers acknowledge that socializing at work provides access to information (Mackenzie 2002). These manager information behaviors lead to an accumulation of knowledge that is stored in the individual's cognitive savings account. When decision opportunities emerge, the manager is able to draw from these stored funds. These behaviors assist the manager in reducing uncertainty, making decisions on the spot, projecting a public image of being "in the know," and being well connected.The quantitative results from this first study offered a partial view of how managers gather information within a business environment. The current study reported in this article provides further insight into the information gathering behaviors of line-managers. In this study the social network of the business environment was studied in order to identify and understand what factors influence managers to select certain individuals as information sources. Literature ReviewManagers play a central role in the production, dissemination, interpretation, storage, use, and disuse of information.Mintzberg (1 973) had studied and characterized manager behaviors and preferences. For example, managers prefer to receive their communication verbaily, want the most up-to-date information, and prefer to plug into the most current flow of information. (Mintzberg 1973, Luthans 1988. Research on information flow has revealed that a small number of key people exist within an organization "upon whom others relied ve...