infoknit fw final

8/14/2019 infoknit FW final

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METHODOLOGYQualitative observations and focus group

Village Yarn and Tea ShopGifted Hands

Yarn Garden (focus group)Church of the Holy StitchHearts and Hands

Quantitative questionnaire

16 respondents

Lushlee.com


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Observations 9 observations conductedencompassing 50 knitters.

Allwere women.

Village Yarn and Tea Shop Church of the Holy Stitch Gifted Hands Hearts and Hands

YarnGarden

Focus Group 5 participants questioned atthe Girls Night Out at the

Yarn Garden in Gig Harbor,WA. Interviewees ranged inage from 20-65. Again, all

women.

Church of the HolyStitch


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DISCUSSION TOPICS


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Upon realizing an information need, knittersoverwhelmingly (69%) chose to seek assistance from

friends, relatives, or other non-professional knitters. During the course of conversation, several alternativesources for knitting information were suggested amongknitters.

YouTube How To videos Ravelry.com Facebook friend advice Pattern books or magazines Libraries, bookstores, Amazon.com Email lists, blogs, bulletins

This advise is especially interesting if you consider that iteven came first from a friend, relative, or non-professionalknitters.


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Anomalies & Areas forFurther Study

Surprisingly, the WA Womens Correctional Facility knitting group,Hearts and Hands, did not fit Chatmans small world as expected.

The inmates seemed to overcome information poverty. They

were openly seeking advice about knitting and aspects of theirlives inside and outside the prison.

They were trusting and friendly with the volunteers who ran theknitting group. Didnt feel like they had outsider or, us andthem issues despite geospaciallity.

They happily gave others in their social network advice aboutprison rehabilitation programs and, above all, knitting.

They did have a limited number of roles and shared a common lifesituation.


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Questionnaire Respondents Questionnaire was administered in person or online to 16 volunteers.

10 multiple choice questions were asked. 2 open-ended questions were asked. 11 statements were evaluated by participants using a 5-pointLikert-type scale. Totaling 23 questions

Respondents were 87% female and 12.5% male.

62.5% of those polled were between theages of 30 and 39. No questionnaireparticipants were between the agesof 50-69


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Paid workers described theirprofessions as:


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When asked where they prefer to get crafting information from, 75% of participants responded that they prefer to search for information in

person from people I know (non-professional yarn crafters). 68% likecrafting information from online websites.


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Further Findings When asked if they prefer to craft alone or in groups, 75% of respondents like to do both. 56.25% say they have met with a groupmore than once, but not regularly.

56% of yarn crafters share information about knitting with othercrafters more than once a month.

43.75% of those polled said that professional knitting resources arenot the most helpful.


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An Interesting Finding 62.5% of knitters are sometimes willing to pay for knittinginformation. This supports their earlier claim that the best resourcesare trusted and accurate (56.25%). Furthermore, 68% prefer onlineresources and 37.5% always go the internet first when they needhelp solving a problem.

However, the numbers show that half of knitters (50%) make use of more than one resource when solving an information need. Basedon the fact that 75% prefer to ask other knitters for help solving aninformation need, and 50% reported they nearly always ask othersfor help, we may conclude that:

There is a fairly even split between use of online resources to fulfillan information need and in-person resources to fill an informationneed.


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Points to Ponder Observations took place in a number of settings and groups.

Compare and contrast the findings in different observationalsettings.

Do you think the knitting group we observed in the WA CorrectionalFacility for Women fit into Chatmans Small World?

If 75% of knitters prefer to get information in-person from friends,and 68% prefer information from on-line websites, what does thatsuggest about the nature of preferred information? Do yarn craftersprefer formal or informal information? Do they prefer quick,accurate and trusted, or easily accessible information?

Do you think the age demographic (nearly all questionnairerespondents under the age of 50) has anything to do with ourknitters preferring both online and in-person resources? Do you

think anything will change as older generations disappear?

infoknit fw final

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