Reference by Your Side: Redesigning the Library Help Desk

ABSTRACT

This bibliographic essay examines recent (1994–2006) research into the evaluation of reference effectiveness. Different methods for evaluating traditional in-person reference services are compared and contrasted from an unobtrusive or obtrusive methodology perspective, including those that use the “Willingness to Return” factor and the Wisconsin-Ohio Reference Evaluation Program (WOREP). A review of emerging trends is provided as well as recommendations for future research.     

Telephone Calls Received at an Academic Library's Reference Desk: A New Analysis

ABSTRACT

It has been established that much of the assistance provided to library patrons at reference desks does not require the knowledge and expertise of a professional librarian. Is the same thing true of the telephone calls received at reference desks in academic libraries? This article reports the results of one academic librarian's reference desk transaction log analysis which focuses on the categories of assistance provided to patrons who called the library's reference desk.     

The Problem Patron and the Academic Library Web Site as Virtual Reference Desk

Summary

Emerging technologies continue to offer librarians new opportunities to improve user services. Comment and query links on some library web pages are absorbing a significant share of the customer service workload previously handled by traditional reference desks. Fa miliar types of patron problems of course continue to crop up at the “vir tual reference desk.” New and different aspects of patron problems also appear. Originating with the experiences of a research university li brary's web group in dealing with incoming user messages, this study examines the challenges as well as advantages of dealing with “problem patron” phenomena in a virtual environment.     

Adding Value at the Desk: How Technology and User Expectations are Changing Reference Work

The notion of what reference service ought to be continues to change as technology provides new ways to interact with users and alters their expectations of the library and librarians. As new tools for interaction become available, it is critical that librarians continuously evaluate their effectiveness at providing users with a valuable service that meets the needs of the community being served. By assessing tools and techniques in light of user expectations and satisfaction, librarians can come up with unique service programs that also incorporate their own knowledge and interpersonal skills.     

Instructing College Students on the Ethics of Information Use at the Reference Desk: A Guide and Literature Review

As educators and members of the academic community, reference librarians should take a proactive stance toward instructing students about the ethics of information use. The authors summarize the best practices found in the existing library literature, consider the context of ethical information use from a global perspective, and make an argument for the role of librarians. Our goal is to provide a guide for librarians attempting to successfully integrate ethical issues, such as intellectual property and academic integrity, into their reference instruction.     

Reference for the Remote User Through Embedded Librarianship

Embedded librarians serve an important role in assisting remote users. Despite the varying degrees of embeddedness, all maintain the goal of ensuring the same high-quality reference and instruction services that users have come to expect from the traditional library setting. Embedded librarians select and use technology that most effectively meets the needs of this unique user group. This technology can include the library Web site, course management systems, research guides, lecture and screen capture software, remote reference (including telephone, chat, and email), web conferencing, online survey tools, citation management, and social media.     

Text Messaging the Reference Desk: Using Upside Wireless' SMS-to-Email to Extend Reference Service

The author discusses “Text a Librarian,” a short message service-to-email service provided via Upside Wireless, Inc., a Canadian telecommunications provider. Any user of the University of Virginia Library who has a cell phone and text messaging capability can send a text message to a local phone number provided by Upside Wireless. Upside's “virtual SMS channel,” which forwards the message to the Library's reference e-mail account. Librarians then respond to the query with an e-mail message that the user receives as a text message on his or her cell phone. This article describes the process by which a library developed the idea for the service and decided to contract with Upside, as well as staffing for the service and the challenges, successes, and possible new directions. A brief survey of the SMS reference landscape is included.     

Reference Desks in Public Libraries: What Happens and What To Know

With staffing and funding shortages and rapidly changing expectations from patrons, what is actually happening at the reference desk in today’s libraries? Understanding the needs today’s reference librarians face can be useful in developing ways to support those needs. Asking them to make some predictions on the future of public library reference work gives Library and Information Science (LIS) students, and libraries preparing for the future, a valuable look at the expertise provided by experience. This understanding will help make some realistic decisions about reference staffing and service needs and provide some guidance for those aspiring to careers in public library reference.     

Material-Mind-Method: On the Teaching of Reference beyond the Lecture: In-Class Hands-On Contact with Reference Sources

ABSTRACT

Reference librarians need to know how to use a vast array of reference sources. How do they acquire this knowledge? How can students arrive at their entry level positions with an arsenal of known sources and strategies for advancing this knowledge? Various strategies can be employed to provide students with options on how to launch their understanding for how and when to use specific sources. This column provides examples of how to incorporate active learning activities devoted to providing students in a group setting with options on how to begin and share their learning about reference sources.     

Changing the Face of Reference: Adapting Biomedical and Health Information Services for the Classroom,Clinic, and Beyond

This article describes how the reference department at a large academic health sciences library evolved to address the clinical and research information needs of the parent organization without losing its close connections to the classroom and curriculum. Closing the reference desk, moving to on-call and house call models, designing positions such as clinical research librarian and basic biomedical sciences librarian, finding alternative funding to grow the department, providing technology and training to facilitate librarians' work, and developing programming for and taking advice from library clients facilitated efforts to create a relevant presence and solidify the library's place in the university community.     

The Information Explosion and the Adult Learner: Implications for Reference Librarians

Summary

In looking for answers to their learning and information needs, adult learners face an information explosion as one component of their complex world. While adult learners represent a wide variety of developmental stages, for information literacy, for a successful search for electronic information, each one must learn to cope with the burgeoning explosion of information. This paper explores the challenges of information gathering and examines the specific needs and characteristics of the adult learner in relation to information gathering. It presents strategies to assist the reference librarian in developing the necessary skills as well as methods to assist the adult learner.     

美国加州大学尔湾分校图书馆数字参考咨询服务及其启示

文章从数字参考咨询服务概况、参考咨询服务模式、参考咨询服务对象和服务内容、用户教育及参考馆员资质等五个方面较为详细地介绍了美国加州大学尔湾分校(University of California,Irvine,经常简称为UC Irvine或UCI)图书馆的数字参考咨询服务,指出其成功所在对我国高校图书馆数字参考咨询服务的启示。     

Answering Copyright Questions at the Reference Desk: A Guide for Academic Librarians

Copyright compliance is a major issue in higher education, and academic librarians are being approached more frequently by students and instructors with questions as to how copyrighted works can be legally used for teaching and research. This article provides a brief orientation to U.S. Copyright Law and introduces print and online resources librarians can refer patrons to in order to make informed decisions regarding the use of copyrighted works.     

Reference on the Go: A Model for Mobile Reference Services in Libraries

The following article is the first in an ongoing series entitled “Perspectives from the Developing World,” giving voice to authors beyond Europe and North America.

The concept of reference has greatly changed because of the increasing digital presence of reference material. The advent of mobile communication systems and the need for getting correct reference on the move has prompted many libraries to offer mobile related services. Most of the reference sources are now available as mobile-specific products, but there is no comprehensive single mobile interface that can be called as an alternative to the traditional reference desks. This article looks at the evolution of reference services over the years with special reference to creating a mobile reference application for an academic library taking the University of Swaziland Library as a case study.     

党校图书馆参考咨询服务大有可为

图书馆参考咨询服务的发展进入网络时代，网上参考咨询服务将成为图书馆参考咨询服务的发展趋势。而党校图书馆在这方面还存在着差距，这个差距正是党校图书馆大有可为之处，是党校图书馆近期可以努力为之的大事。     

The Reference Desk,Points-of-Sale,and the Building of Loyalty: Applications of Customer Relationship Management Techniques to Library Marketing

This article argues that the reference desk is a primary interaction point for direct marketing of the library and remains, despite all the other marketing methods (e.g., posters, speaker's events, email announcements, brochures, RSS feeds), an extremely potent agent to act as a physical point of sale for the library, so necessary in producing a loyal community of returning scholars. This method of marketing the library by the reference desk librarian has much to do with face-to-face interactions. Summaries adopted from Customer Relationship Management literature are discussed as marketing guidelines for the reference desk librarian.     

Reference Services: Meeting the Needs of International Adult Learners

Summary

International adult learners constitute a very large percentage of the international student and scholar population in the United States. The ability of this adult group to use libraries is hampered not only by their language, cultural and educational barriers, but also by librarians' limited understanding of their differences in learning styles. The relationship between learning styles and the methods of instructing them in library use is addressed in this paper. Recommendations for training and instruction of librarians on meeting the needs of this culturally diverse group are also provided.     

Excellent Care for Cancer Survivors: A Guide to Fully Meet Their Needs in Medical Offices and in the Community edited by Kenneth Miller

ABSTRACT

A new librarian offers advice and insights about what she has learned from working at a library within a health science center. The librarian earned her MLIS in spring 2015, and while she had previous teaching experience, she realized there was much more learning needed to properly teach medical, graduate and allied health students, faculty, and residents. In this “one-year on the job” column, the librarian describes the different teaching experiences today’s librarians encounter, and reflects on what she has learned from them and how they shape her view of the profession.     

Learning from Our Mistakes: Reflections on Customer Service and How to Improve It at the Reference Desk

Libraries have to compete with a barrage of online resources for patrons’ attention and with other campus departments for scarce funding and resources. In this competitive environment, customer service is one of the best strategies librarians can employ. Satisfied patrons will continue to use our services, thereby providing support for libraries’ budget requests. Even though librarians understand the importance of customer service, we do not always succeed in putting it into practice. Drawing on experiences from teaching a reference course, the author reviews examples of poor service and offers some ideas and guidelines for improving service on the front lines.