Managers’ Information Behavior in Business Decision-Making: A Qualitative Meta-Synthesis with a Focus on Personality Traits

Document Type : Original Article (Qualitative)

Authors

1 PhD Student, Department of Knowledge and Information Science, Faculty of Education and Psychology, Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Ahvaz, Iran

2 Assistant Professor, Department of Knowledge and Information Science, Faculty of Education and Psychology, Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Ahvaz, Iran.

Abstract
Managers’ information behavior plays a central role in business decision-making. However, evidence concerning individual and contextual factors remains fragmented, offering a limited understanding of how managers seek, evaluate, and use information. This study aimed to synthesize qualitative evidence and develop a conceptual framework explaining managers’ information behavior in business decision-making. An interpretive qualitative meta-synthesis was conducted on 35 studies indexed in Scopus and Web of Science and published between 2006 and 2026. The findings were organized into three dimensions: individual and cognitive characteristics; situational conditions of decision-making; and the social and organizational context of information interactions. The first dimension highlighted associations between cognitive complexity, curiosity, dogmatism, and proactivity and the breadth of information seeking, diversity of sources, and approaches to information processing. The second dimension demonstrated the importance of decision-making situations in explaining differences in managers’ information acquisition and use. The third dimension highlighted the roles of organizational culture, hierarchy, incentives, and interpersonal relationships in shaping information-seeking and sharing patterns. Overall, the resulting framework conceptualizes managers’ information behavior as a contextually embedded phenomenon emerging from the interaction of individual characteristics, decision-making conditions, and organizational context. It underscores the need to design information services and decision support systems that accommodate differences among managers and the demands of specific decision-making situations.

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Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 03 November 2026

  • Receive Date 16 January 2026
  • Revise Date 18 June 2026
  • Accept Date 08 October 2026