A visual UML-based conceptual model of information-seeking by computer science researchers

•A model of the information-seeking process of computer scientists is proposed.•The model derives from two qualitative studies with computer scientists.•The model is described textually and is visually illustrated using UML.•The model contains the main concepts and relationships intervening in the process. The information-seeking process carried out by researchers is complex and full of different variables. We have represented this complexity for computer science researchers in the form of a conceptual model. The model is presented in a visual form using the UML modeling language, since it allows conveying all the complexity present in such a process with greater clarity. It has been obtained after carrying out two qualitative studies —a focus group and semi-structured interviews— with computer science researchers. The proposed overall model is composed of 4 sub-models: of the documents used in the process, of the tasks undertaken, of the user, and of the information-seeking process context. The conceptual model proposed can serve for the purpose of better understanding the information-seeking process, for example for librarians or for software designers wanting to provide a support to such task. It can also be useful as a framework to characterize different software solutions aimed to information-seeking in research activities, and to compare them.