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Reference Interview
A reference interview is a conversation between a librarian and a library user, usually at a reference desk, in which the librarian responds to the user's initial explanation of his or her information need by first attempting to clarify that need and then by directing the user to appropriate information resources. Definition Bopp & Smith (1995) defines the reference interview as the "conversation between a member of the library reference staff and a library user for the purpose of clarifying the user’s needs and aiding the user in meeting those needs". According to ODLIS, the reference interview is "the interpersonal communication that occurs between a reference librarian and a library user to determine the person's specific information need(s), which may turn out to be different from the reference question as initially posed...A reference interview may occur in person, by telephone, or electronically (usually via e-mail) at the request of the user, but a well-trained reference l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Librarian
A librarian is a person who works professionally in a library providing access to information, and sometimes social or technical programming, or instruction on information literacy to users. The role of the librarian has changed much over time, with the past century in particular bringing many new media and technologies into play. From the earliest libraries in the ancient world to the modern information hub, there have been keepers and disseminators of the information held in data stores. Roles and responsibilities vary widely depending on the type of library, the specialty of the librarian, and the functions needed to maintain collections and make them available to its users. Education for librarianship has changed over time to reflect changing roles. History The ancient world The Sumerians were the first to train clerks to keep records of accounts. ''"Masters of the books"'' or "keepers of the tablets" were scribes or priests who were trained to handle the vast amount and c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Library
A library is a collection of materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a physical location or a virtual space, or both. A library's collection can include printed materials and other physical resources in many formats such as DVD, CD and cassette as well as access to information, music or other content held on bibliographic databases. A library, which may vary widely in size, may be organized for use and maintained by a public body such as a government; an institution such as a school or museum; a corporation; or a private individual. In addition to providing materials, libraries also provide the services of librarians who are trained and experts at finding, selecting, circulating and organizing information and at interpreting information needs, navigating and analyzing very large amounts of information with a variety of resources. Li ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Library Reference Desk
The reference desk or information desk of a library is a public service counter where professional librarians provide library users with direction to library materials, advice on library collections and services, and expertise on multiple kinds of information from multiple sources. Purpose and usage Library users can consult the staff at the reference desk for help in finding information. Using a structured reference interview, the librarian works with the library user to clarify their needs and determine what information sources will fill them. To borrow a medical analogy, reference librarians diagnose and treat information deficiencies. The ultimate help provided may consist of reading material in the form of a book or journal article, instruction in the use of specific searchable information resources such as the library's online catalog or subscription bibliographic/fulltext databases, or simply factual information drawn from the library's print or online reference coll ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Information Need
The term information need is often understood as an individual or group's desire to locate and obtain information to satisfy a conscious or unconscious need. Rarely mentioned in general literature about needs, it is a common term in information science. According to Hjørland (1997) it is closely related to the concept of relevance: If something is relevant for a person in relation to a given task, we might say that the person needs the information for that task. Information needs are related to, but distinct from information requirements. They are studied for: # The explanation of observed phenomena of information use or expressed need; # The prediction of instances of information uses; # The control and thereby improvement of the utilization of information manipulation of essential conditions. Background The concept of information needs was coined by an American information journalisRobert S. Taylorin his 1962 articl"The Process of Asking Questions"published in ''American D ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cobrowsing
Cobrowsing (short for collaborative browsing), in the context of web browsing, is the joint navigation through the World Wide Web by two or more people accessing the same web page at the same time. History of cobrowsing software Early cobrowsing was achieved by local execution of software that had to be installed on the computer of each participant. More advanced tools didn't have to be installed, but still required local execution of software or at least web-browser plug-ins, extensions, or applets. Most tools were limited to a single user that was able to navigate, while the others could only watch. Newer co-browsing solutions no longer require downloads, installations, or plug-ins. Instead, these solutions rely on peer-to-peer connections and DOM manipulation. Some tools provide very limited cobrowsing by only synchronizing the page location ( URL) of the page that should be shared. Full cobrowsing supports automatic synchronization of the browsers' state and content, including ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Instant Messaging
Instant messaging (IM) technology is a type of online chat allowing real-time text transmission over the Internet or another computer network. Messages are typically transmitted between two or more parties, when each user inputs text and triggers a transmission to the recipient(s), who are all connected on a common network. It differs from email in that conversations over instant messaging happen in real-time (hence "instant"). Most modern IM application (computing), applications (sometimes called "social messengers", "messaging apps" or "chat apps") use push technology and also add other features such as emojis (or graphical smileys), file transfer, chatbots, voice over IP, or Videotelephony, video chat capabilities. Instant messaging systems tend to facilitate connections between specified known users (often using a contact list also known as a "buddy list" or "friend list"), and can be standalone applications or integrated into e.g. a wider social media platform, or a website ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Unobtrusive Measures
Unobtrusive research (or unobtrusive measures) is a method of data collection used primarily in the social sciences. The term "unobtrusive measures" was first coined by Webb, Campbell, Schwartz, & Sechrest in a 1966 book titled ''Unobtrusive Measures: nonreactive research in the social sciences''. The authors described methodologies which do not involve direct elicitation of data from the research subjects. Unobtrusive measures are contrasted with interviews and questionnaires, in that they try to find indirect ways to obtain the necessary data. The unobtrusive approach often seeks unusual data sources, such as garbage, graffiti and obituaries, as well as more conventional ones such as published statistics. Unobtrusive measures should not be perceived as an alternative to more reactive methods such as interviews, surveys and experiments, but rather as an additional tool in the tool chest of the social researcher. Unobtrusive measures can assist in tackling known biases such as sel ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Information Overload
Information overload (also known as infobesity, infoxication, information anxiety, and information explosion) is the difficulty in understanding an issue and effectively making decisions when one has too much information (TMI) about that issue, and is generally associated with the excessive quantity of daily information. The term "information overload" was first used as early as 1962 by scholars in management and information studies, including in Bertram Gross' 1964 book, ''The Managing of Organizations,'' and was further popularized by Alvin Toffler in his bestselling 1970 book ''Future Shock.'' Speier et al. (1999) said that if input exceeds the processing capacity, information overload occurs, which is likely to reduce the quality of the decisions. In a newer definition, Roetzel (2019) focuses on time and resources aspects. He states that when a decision-maker is given many sets of information, such as complexity, amount, and contradiction, the quality of its decision is decre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Five Whys
Five whys (or 5 whys) is an iterative interrogative technique used to explore the cause-and-effect relationships underlying a particular problem. The primary goal of the technique is to determine the root cause of a defect or problem by repeating the question "Why?" five times. The answer to the fifth why should reveal the root cause of the problem. The technique was described by Taiichi Ohno at Toyota Motor Corporation. Others at Toyota and elsewhere have criticized the five whys technique for various reasons (see ). Example An example of a problem is: The vehicle will not start. #''Why?'' – The battery is dead. (First why) #''Why?'' – The alternator is not functioning. (Second why) #''Why?'' – The alternator belt has broken. (Third why) #''Why?'' – The alternator belt was well beyond its useful service life and not replaced. (Fourth why) #''Why?'' – The vehicle was not maintained according to the recommended service schedule. (Fifth why, a root cause) The question ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Information-seeking Behavior
Information behavior is a field of information science research that seeks to understand the way people search for and use information in various contexts. It can include information seeking and information retrieval, but it also aims to understand why people seek information and how they use it. The term 'information behavior' was coined by Thomas D. Wilson in 1981 and sparked controversy upon its introduction. The term has now been adopted and Wilson's model of information behavior is widely cited in information behavior literature. In 2000, Wilson defined information behavior as "the totality of human behavior in relation to sources and channels of information". A variety of theories of information behavior seek to understand the processes that surround information seeking. An analysis of the most cited publications on information behavior during the early 21st century shows its theoretical nature. Information behavior research can employ various research methodologies gro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Library Reference Desk
The reference desk or information desk of a library is a public service counter where professional librarians provide library users with direction to library materials, advice on library collections and services, and expertise on multiple kinds of information from multiple sources. Purpose and usage Library users can consult the staff at the reference desk for help in finding information. Using a structured reference interview, the librarian works with the library user to clarify their needs and determine what information sources will fill them. To borrow a medical analogy, reference librarians diagnose and treat information deficiencies. The ultimate help provided may consist of reading material in the form of a book or journal article, instruction in the use of specific searchable information resources such as the library's online catalog or subscription bibliographic/fulltext databases, or simply factual information drawn from the library's print or online reference coll ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Reference Scenarios
A reference scenario is an imagined situation where a library patron brings a question to a librarian and there is then a conversation, called in the field a reference interview, where the librarian works to help the patron find the information they want. These scenarios are used in training future librarians how to help patrons. Basically, a scenario is as short as a couple of sentences, including a question and a situation that underlies that question. A great deal of reference teaching puts students to researching the answers to made-up questions. This focuses the student on learning about the reference sources at hand by using them to answer those questions. Scenarios are something different. They focus the student on the interaction with patrons. In class practice sessions, one student can be the patron and the other the librarian, as long as the one practicing as the librarian doesn't know the whole scenario in advance. Scenarios are valued because often the question as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
