Dealing with Difficult People in the Library

Citation

Edwards, J. (2000), "Dealing with Difficult People in the Library", The Electronic Library, Vol. 18 No. 5, pp. 370-374. https://doi.org/10.1108/el.2000.18.5.370.5

I really enjoyed this book. It does exactly what it says on the label – gives advice on dealing with difficult library users. Its major drawback for the likely readership of this journal is that it is aimed fairly and squarely at US public library staff, particularly those who are more junior and less experienced.

That said, there is a lot of sound advice for everyone working in a library who has to deal with users face‐to‐face. The first and largest section has chapters on defining the problem, controlling the situation, and particular types of problem users. These include people such as noisy children, the homeless, and those with mental illness, as well as the more common (at least in my library) situations of people angry about a fine or those who will not stop talking. There are helpful lists of goals and guidelines for particular situations, and short case studies.

Section two is on communication, chiefly about listening skills and how to phrase your answer the right way. This is nothing new to most of us, but provides a succinct summary. Section three is about preventing problems before they arise. This covers making appropriate policies, applying them, and telling the users about them. Much of this is of course aimed at policy makers; it is therefore unfortunate that the general tone of the book, including this section, is so informal. There is a chapter entitled “Memo to the boss” which, like the rest of the book, is full of good advice, but I suspect that bosses are not the people who will be reading it.

The Appendixes include sample library policies and rules – all from US public libraries. I found these riveting reading. I hope I am not uniquely fortunate in never having worked in a library which found the need for rules banning soliciting, lovemaking, using the rest rooms as laundry facilities, or insisting on the wearing of shoes and shirts. There are also examples of a staff procedure manual and a customer service language manual, and a very brief overview of mental illness. I feel the latter needs backing up with staff training from a suitable professional.

Overall, I think this is a useful book, particularly for front‐line staff. A version covering UK libraries of all types, not just public libraries, would be ideal.