Relevance in Web search: between content, authority and popularity

Anton Oleinik ()
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Anton Oleinik: Memorial University of Newfoundland St. John’s

Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, 2022, vol. 56, issue 1, No 9, 173-194

Abstract: Abstract The algorithms underpinning information retrieval shape its outcomes and have epistemological, social and political consequences. On the one hand, the Web search algorithms place a specific actor—the Web librarian (cataloguer), the document’s creator, the expert (“authority”), the user or the service provider (developer and operator of a search engine)—in the position of a decision-maker. Each of them has distinctive criteria of relevance in information retrieval. On the other hand, the application of those criteria determines what information the user receives. Content-based search places emphasis on the contents of retrievable documents whereas collaborative search shifts the focus of attention to opinions of experts and other users. The outcomes of content-based and collaborative searches diverge as a result. Depending on the information provided to the user, the development of her knowledge and socialization proceeds differently. A plea for customized Web search is made. It is argued that the user should be given an opportunity for selecting a combination of content-based and collaborative search that matches her interests and the context of a search query.

Keywords: Search algorithms; Information retrieval; Content-based search; Collaborative search; Page ranking; Content analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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DOI: 10.1007/s11135-021-01125-7

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