ABSTRACT
Decades of research on the information-seeking behavior of scientists have shown heavy reliance on informal communication and personal collections. Enliy into the literature is often gained through references in journal articles and other primary literature. This paper discusses these behaviors and some reasons for their use. Improvements in reference services to the scientific user community must be based on an understanding of scientific communication, information-seeking behavior, and the information needs of the user. Examples of user-oriented reference service are given.
