Kill the One-Shot: Using a Collaborative Rubric to Liberate the Librarian–Instructor Partnership

Subject faculty sometimes limit information literacy when they ask a librarian for “the library talk.” On the librarian’s end, this unimaginative request translates into a traditional one-shot, often focused on point-and-click skills rather than building deeper competencies. The authors developed a collaboration rubric to liberate librarians from this deadlock. The rubric uses nine lenses to focus the librarian-instructor collaboration on relevant sub-categories that display various instruction modes. These lenses include assignment design, the timing of instruction, librarians’ visibility in virtual class spaces, and librarians’ involvement in assessment. The rubric also outlines levels of collaboration, from None to Minimal, Healthy, and Superlative.     

“What Do You Say to Your Mother When Your Mother's Standing Beside You?” Birth and Adoptive Family Contributions to Adoptive Identity via Relational Identity and Relational–Relational Identity Gaps

Grounded in the communication theory of identity, the present study explores how adoptive identity—an individual's understanding of what it means to be an adopted person—is influenced by the relational layer of his or her adoptive and birth family relationships. Seven focus group interviews were conducted in which participants were prompted to engage in a dialog about their experiences as an adopted individual. Analyses revealed that adoptees' relational identity with both their adoptive and birth families contributed in meaningful ways to their adoptive identity, but these relationships at times come into conflict with one another and with the adoptees' personal layer of identity, generating relational–relational and personal–relational identity gaps.     

“Yo! What's it Like to be Black?”: An Exercise to Help Students Deepen the Content of Cross-Cultural Dialogue

Objectives: To help students ask questions across cultural groups that go beyond the superficial or generic so that they may move into deeper dialogue. To push students to use critical thinking and analytical skills to ask questions of substance. To help build relationships with strangers

Course: Intercultural communication     

Will Library E-Books Help Solve the Textbook Affordability Issue? Using Textbook Adoption Lists to Target Collection Development

In response to rising textbook costs, many have urged adoption of open educational resources (OER) for students. However, library-owned e-books also provide free access to students, without the potential disadvantages of OER. In this study the authors explore the suitability of e-books as textbooks by examining the social sciences textbook list in Fall 2017 at Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU). Overall, 18% of the textbooks were available as a multi-user format and this rate increased with course level. Despite their limited availability, multi-user e-books provide a free, convenient option for students, and they may play a role in the textbook affordability solution.     

But is My Resource Included? How to Manage,Develop, and Think about the Content in Your Discovery Tool

Implementing discovery tools and getting them to work with existing library services often leaves very little time for their promotion and for the thoughtful, ongoing evaluation and curation of their content. However, the expectations and experiences that users have about discovery tools are often directly related to the content and the way that content is described. In our efforts to work with vendors to resolve the underlying business issues that prevent us from having all of the metadata for our resources included in our discovery tools, we may have lost sight of our role in curating and evaluating the usefulness of the content that is already included in them.     

A Neurotic Extrovert Who is Open to New Experiences? Understanding How Personality Traits May Impact the Commenting Behaviors of Online News Readers

This article develops a theoretical context for the influence of personality traits on commenting behaviors on online news Web sites. Drawing on the literature of personality, and online behaviors, we examine how personality traits may influence which individuals make contributions on news Web sites. Additionally the article focuses on how the commenting “landscape,” in particular moderation policies and user interfaces, may impact those who contribute.     

Are Reference Desks Dying Out? Librarians Struggle to Redefine–and in Some Cases Eliminate–the Venerable Institution

ABSTRACT

This article describes ways in which reference service is changing, including an evolution away from desk-based service, appointment-based reference, the use of social-networking tools, and physical presence outside of library buildings at alternate service sites; summarizes divergent views toward the future of reference service as expressed at the 2007 ACRL National Conference.     

How are medical students trained to locate biomedical information to practice evidence-based medicine? a review of the 2007–2012 literature

Objectives:

This study describes how information retrieval skills are taught in evidence-based medicine (EBM) at the undergraduate medical education (UGME) level.

Methods:

The authors systematically searched MEDLINE, Scopus, Educational Resource Information Center, Web of Science, and Evidence-Based Medicine Reviews for English-language articles published between 2007 and 2012 describing information retrieval training to support EBM. Data on learning environment, frequency of training, learner characteristics, resources and information skills taught, teaching modalities, and instructor roles were compiled and analyzed.

Results:

Twelve studies were identified for analysis. Studies were set in the United States (9), Australia (1), the Czech Republic (1), and Iran (1). Most trainings (7) featured multiple sessions with trainings offered to preclinical students (5) and clinical students (6). A single study described a longitudinal training experience. A variety of information resources were introduced, including PubMed, DynaMed, UpToDate, and AccessMedicine. The majority of the interventions (10) were classified as interactive teaching sessions in classroom settings. Librarians played major and collaborative roles with physicians in teaching and designing training. Unfortunately, few studies provided details of information skills activities or evaluations, making them difficult to evaluate and replicate.

Conclusions:

This study reviewed the literature and characterized how EBM search skills are taught in UGME. Details are provided on learning environment, frequency of training, level of learners, resources and skills trained, and instructor roles.

Implications:

The results suggest a number of steps that librarians can take to improve information skills training including using a longitudinal approach, integrating consumer health resources, and developing robust assessments.     

What is the effect of country-specific characteristics on the research performance of scientific institutions? Using multi-level statistical models to rank and map universities and research-focused institutions worldwide

Bornmann, Stefaner, de Moya Anegón, and Mutz (2014) have introduced a web application (www.excellencemapping.net) which is linked to both academic ranking lists published hitherto (e.g. the Academic Ranking of World Universities) as well as spatial visualization approaches. The web application visualizes institutional performance within specific subject areas as ranking lists and on custom tile-based maps. The new, substantially enhanced version of the web application and the generalized linear mixed model for binomial data on which it is based are described in this paper. Scopus data are used which have been collected for the SCImago Institutions Ranking. Only those universities and research-focused institutions are considered that have published at least 500 articles, reviews and conference papers in the period 2006–2010 in a certain Scopus subject area. In the enhanced version, the effect of single covariates (such as the per capita GDP of a country in which an institution is located) on two performance metrics (best paper rate and best journal rate) is examined and visualized. A covariate-adjusted ranking and mapping of the institutions is produced in which the single covariates are held constant. The results on the performance of institutions can then be interpreted as if the institutions all had the same value (reference point) for the covariate in question. For example, those institutions can be identified worldwide showing a very good performance despite a bad financial situation in the corresponding country.     

What's So Funny About a Poke in the Eye? The Prevalence of Violence in Comedy Films and Its Relation to Social and Economic Threat in the United States, 1951-2000

We examined the violent content of the top-grossing comedy films from 1951 to 2000. Comedic violence increased sharply around 1970 and has been relatively consistent since then. Aggressors were depicted in somewhat more positive terms than targets, but in general, the message of comedic violence was not one of good triumphing over evil. Top-grossing comedy films featured more violence when unemployment, suicide, homicide, divorce, and the consumer price index were higher.