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In recent years public libraries have increasingly been required to collect data for the assessment of their performance and to inform service developments. The purpose of this paper is to describe an initiative to promote an evidence‐based approach to library management in a UK county library service.

The paper gives a definition of evidence‐based librarianship and describes how a three‐year study put evidence‐based management (EBM) principles into practice, and the implications for the staff and service as a whole.

An evidence‐based approach to library management yields considerable benefits in terms of service delivery and staff attitudes to data handling. When staff understand the purpose and benefits of collecting data and have the skills to handle evidence, they are more inclined to take ownership of these processes.

This research is limited to one public library authority in the UK. A key priority for future work is the exploration of how the experience gained in this initiative may be transferred to other library services and domains.

The practical implications of this work are widespread across the service. Staff at all levels seem to have greater awareness of the data collection process and how evidence can be used to inform decisions, both in the day‐to‐day running of the service and in the strategic planning process. The project culminated in the formulation of a performance management resource; a single point of reference for all staff involved in data handling and decision making.

A practical study of evidence‐based librarianship has never before been undertaken on this scale in the UK.

Young homeless people have mental health needs. Research and national policies have highlighted that accommodation providers need to offer holistic interventions to encourage this vulnerable group to break the cycle of homelessness. Currently no research literature documents how homeless shelters respond to mental health needs. This research was intended to address this research question.A postal questionnaire was sent to 132 managers of homeless shelters, achieving a response rate of 64.4%. Frequencies and descriptive statistics were calculated, and written data was analysed using content analysis. Mental health problems were highly prevalent, and homeless shelters responded in a variety of ways (use of GP services, internal services, referring to external services, in‐house outreach services, no service provision, etc). Only 27.1% of managers of homeless shelters reported that their services were sufficient to meet their young people's needs. These findings reflect the need for inclusion of mental health in homeless shelters' strategic objectives, and development of commissioning of local partnerships with health agencies.

The voluntary sector has an important role to play in the provision of services for people with mental health needs of lesser severity, thus complementing statutory services, as suggested by recent national policy. This article describes such a service for young homeless people, and discusses the perceptions of key stakeholders of the benefits and challenges of such a service. The service largely met the mental health needs of young people who would not have easily accessed statutory mental health services, and who fulfilled the criteria (low/moderate need) of the service. Challenges for the future included the different organisational cultures, the professional isolation of the mental health practitioners and the lack of operational and commissioning links with statutory mental health services.

The Library and Information Statistics Unit at Loughborough University (LISU) was recently commissioned to develop an evaluation toolkit for a project aimed at supporting the development of new creative partnerships between libraries, museums and the arts using books and reading as a launch pad to develop new audiences and new venues for reading inspired creativity. Entitled “Books Connect”, the project comprised 13 individual cross‐domain events or initiatives that took place in the nine local authority areas in the East Midlands region of the UK in early 2002. These individual activities were very varied; involving different art forms, venues and partnerships, and featuring workshops, displays and performances and thus presented an interesting challenge in terms of creating a uniformly applicable set of performance indicators and data gathering instruments that could be used “in the field” by individual project managers. The specially created evaluation “toolkit” comprised a set of audience questionnaires and interview schedules as well as templates to gather reviews from co‐ordinators, and accounts of artists’ and partners’ experience of events and initiatives. The data gathered were assembled and analysed by LISU specialists.

The purpose of this paper is to report the findings of research into the extent and impact of restricted access by specific groups of staff to ICT‐based communications in UK further and higher education institutions.

An exploratory approach combining quantitative and qualitative methods. A questionnaire survey was distributed to all HEFCE‐funded institutions in the UK. Six institutions acted as case study sites for in‐depth qualitative investigation using documentary analysis and semi‐structured interviews.

Lack of hardware and network infrastructure posed less of a barrier than lack of ICT skills, lack of motivation either to use computers or to gain ICT skills, and line manager resistance to staff using computers or accessing ICT training in work time. Job function was the factor most associated with lack of access, with cleaning, catering and estates staff least likely to have access. However, there were also many examples of good practice to extend staff access, particularly with regard to ICT training. The research concludes that one of the main concerns for institutions is to “win the hearts and minds” of non‐desk staff and their managers. The development of an institutional communication strategy is identified as being of critical importance.

Provides a “snapshot” of the prevailing situation at the point of data collection rather than a longitudinal insight into developments in access over time.

The first comprehensive analysis of staff access to ICT in UK further and higher education. In addition to highlighting examples of good practice for dissemination across the sector, the research provides information about gaps in provision to inform the targeting of future initiatives.

Common Core State Standards Initiative mandates increased readings of informational texts within English Language Arts starting in elementary school. Accurate, age-appropriate, and engaging content is at the center of effective social studies teaching. Textbooks and children’s literature—both literary and informational—are prominent in elementary classrooms because of the esoteric nature of primary source material. Many research projects have investigated historical accuracy and representation within textbooks, but few have done so with children’s trade books. We examined children’s trade books centered on three historical figures frequently incorporated within elementary school curricula: Eleanor Roosevelt, Rosa Parks, and Helen Keller. Findings revealed various forms of historical misrepresentation and differing levels of historicity. Reporting such lacunae is important for those involved in curricular decisions. We believe children’s books, even those with historical omissions and misrepresentations, provide an unique opportunity for students to incorporate and scrutinize diverse perspectives as they actively assemble historical understandings. All secondary narratives, even historically representative children’s books, can benefit from primary source supplementation. We guide teachers interested in employing relevant and rich primary source material.

Global competition and advances in technology have enhanced the growing trend of virtual teams in order to execute business strategies. Thus, understanding the competencies needed for virtual leadership effectiveness is essential and vital to organisational success. The purpose of this paper is to identify and analyse the required competencies for virtual team leadership and its effectiveness in an organisation.

The study adopted case study methodology to undertake an exploratory study of a manufacturing organisation. Using a questionnaire that was designed following a focussed literature review to identify the specific virtual leadership competencies, structured interviews were conducted face-to-face with 14 respondents from two major virtual team groups. The interviews were designed to elucidate the opinions and perceptions of virtual team members with respect to selected characteristics of their virtual team leaders (VTLs). The responses obtained were analysed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis.

The study identified the competencies required for effective leadership in virtual teams in order to achieve the organisational project success. The performance of the two VTLs in the organisation was then assessed in the light of these identified competencies. The study also identified transformational leaders as important to be considered when selecting VTLs because they are known to achieve high-performing team. However, the study found that considering the virtual leadership competencies, the two VTLs were found to have not, on the whole, performed well because they are lacking in some of the leadership competencies required for effective leadership in a virtual team and this has led to their organisation not achieving the required success in virtual teams.

The study has implications for organisations’ virtual team project leaders. The identification of specific leadership competencies for virtual team leadership will enable organisations to be more informed when looking for effective leaders in their virtual teams in order to achieve high-performing virtual teams, which will lead to organisational growth and success. The study is expected to enhance the success rate of any typical organisation using virtual teams.

The study would be highly beneficial to both the potential and current stakeholder organisations considering virtual teams to execute business strategies. This study has also added to the body of knowledge by further exploring the leadership competencies needed for virtual teams.

State and national initiatives provide teachers opportunities for interdisciplinary units with increased significance of non-fiction in English Language Arts and decreased reliance on the textbook in history and social studies. In these three disciplines, beginning in elementary school, students are expected to scrutinize multiple trade books of the same event, era, or person to construct understandings. Trade books are a logical curricular link between these three curricula. The initiatives, however, do not prescribe specific curricular materials; teachers rely on their own discretion when selecting available trade books. Historical misrepresentations have been found to emerge within trade books to varying degrees, yet only a few empirical studies have been conducted. We empirically evaluated trade books centered on the Anne Sullivan Macy, Helen Keller’s teacher. Celebrated as the Miracle Worker, she remains a relatively obscure figure. As a child, Macy faced the desertion or death of every family member and struggled to overcome poverty and isolation. Macy’s story, thus, complements Keller’s in consequential ways. We report various historical misrepresentations within the trade books and provide ancillary primary sources for teachers interested in addressing the historical omissions.

This paper examines radical reform of the Chinese public accounting profession in the 1990s. In particular, the paper seeks to provide a more nuanced understanding of the sources, responses and processes of this radical institutional change that effectively paved the way for development of the Chinese accounting profession into the twenty-first century.

The empirical data that inform this study come from both archival materials (mostly in Chinese) and in-depth interviews. These data are analysed and interpreted from a neo-institutionalist perspective, drawing, in particular, on the concept of institutional logics and the concept of institutional work.

A state logic initially guided the development of the Chinese accounting profession but was seriously challenged in the 1990s following a series of high profile financial scandals. The findings reveal a shift to a new professional logic, which was made possible through multiple forms of institutional works instigated by various state actors.

Research into the radical reform of the Chinese public accounting profession in the 1990s was mostly quantitative in nature, focussing mainly on one reform programme, i.e. the disaffiliation of the accounting firms from their sponsoring agencies. This paper adopts a qualitative approach and is aimed at providing a deeper and more nuanced understanding of the institutional change process within its political and economic contexts.

Communications regarding this column should be addressed to Mrs. Cheney, Peabody Library School, Nashville, Tenn. 37203. Mrs. Cheney does not sell the books listed here. They are available through normal trade sources. Mrs. Cheney, being a member of the editorial board of Pierian Press, will not review Pierian Press reference books in this column. Descriptions of Pierian Press reference books will be included elsewhere in this publication.