Abstract: This study aims to clarify the Public’s Acquisition of Government-Disclosed Information during Public Emergencies, explore the process of public information acquisition and its influencing factors, and corstruct a theoretical framework for information acquisition. The research employed semi-structured in-depth interviews and quqlitative data analysis to reveal the process of public information acquisition, and futher analyzed the characteristics and influcing factors in the process of public information acquisition through questionnaire surveys and logistic regression. The results indicate that three factors motivate the public to acquire information during emergency, such as information tracing, information comparison, and information supplementation, leading to acquisition behaviors migrate from passive information acquisition to active seeking. Additionally, the public’s preferences for information sources, information channels and information forms are influenced by various factors. This study helps the government to understand the process of public information acquisition during emergencies, and lays down a theoretical and practical foundation for improving the quality of information disclosure.

Key words: Public emergency, Government information disclosure, Information acquisition behavior, Information acquisition process, Influencing factors