Enhancing Exploratory Search with Hedonic Browsing Using Social Tagging Tools

Exploratory search offers users the privilege to take command of the search process by browsing, selecting, and navigating through the Web to locate targeted information resources. We introduce hedonic browsing as an enhancement for exploratory search. In this article, we propose and empirically validate a hedonic browsing model using social tagging tools. We introduce two hedonic components, namely Curiosity and Enjoyment, and measure their effect on the social tagging exploratory behavior. Our findings suggest that hedonic tag browsing exists and Curiosity with Enjoyment have a strong impact on exploratory browsing and search of social tags.