Concept-based Information Retrieval for User-oriented Knowledge Transfer

In today's knowledge driven society, the efficiency of the transfer and acquisition of knowledge has gained importance. In order to acquire new knowledge, a user needs information about the problem domain and the concepts within the knowledge structure. This information is required to create an internal representation of the knowledge structure. Due to the high amount of information available, retrieving suitable information is a strenuous task. It is particularly time consuming to identify promising sources and queries concerning the individual concepts. By applying the powerful concept approach in this context, a novel approach can be proposed to facilitate knowledge transfer and acquisition. Information Retrieval is applied on a concept-based level in order to assist the user in the conceptualization process. Such an approach requires the inclusion of personalized and contextualized search in digital libraries. This offers the user high quality scientific material concerning the individual concepts. At the same time, the personal characteristics of the user as well as the interrelated conditions of his current activities are taken into account during the search process.