Comment

Abstract

A NOTABLE FEATURE of the changes which have occurred in librarianship in recent years is a reassertion of the importance of the individual. Within the organisational context, classical management theories, MbO and the like, which have been overly preoccupied with systems and processes, have given way to the Human Relations School, theories of social interaction and group dynamics, and participative styles of management. Similarly the trend towards subject specialisation, user education and information officers has made the individual user a growing focus of attention. These changes are reflected in the literature by an increasing number of articles advocating that training for librarianship should step beyond the subjects traditionally associated with professional education and embrace a wider range of interdisciplinary subjects more appropriate for the study of communications. Communication is, after all, the central concern of the library. The interaction between readers, information and librarians represents a social system where the behaviour, perceptions and values of the people involved are of crucial importance in many areas of library research. It would seem that librarians are beginning to realise that knowledge about libraries is fundamentally social.

Citation

Glossop, M. and Radmore, D. (1978), "Comment", New Library World, Vol. 79 No. 2, pp. 25-30. https://doi.org/10.1108/eb038386