Search results

1 – 10 of over 32000
Book part
Publication date: 8 October 2018

Amy Hatfield Hart

This chapter explores specializations within academic librarian practices, focusing on librarian research and collaboration. Academic librarian roles are transitioning from…

Abstract

This chapter explores specializations within academic librarian practices, focusing on librarian research and collaboration. Academic librarian roles are transitioning from service providers to specialists, researchers, and collaborators. Roles have shifted to incorporate interdisciplinary research and collaboration; embedded librarianship; research data management expertise; information literacy instruction; and core curriculum development. In order to understand this shift in roles, a mixed methods research project undertaken with a Purdue University researcher and Purdue Libraries faculty that prompted the development of a research diagrammatic metaphor modeling the components of librarian-faculty collaboration. The model demonstrates the dynamics and roles in academic collaboration and interdisciplinary research. A generalization of the model applied to two librarian-faculty collaboration scenarios exemplifies how these components facilitate engagement and project management. Potentially the model could be operationalized to understand disciplinary differences and provide a framework of accountability for both faculty and librarians engaged in research projects.

Details

Challenging the “Jacks of All Trades but Masters of None” Librarian Syndrome
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78756-903-4

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 24 November 2015

Marianne Sorensen and Kathleen DeLong

This chapter provides a current and changing demographic profile of academic librarians working in a research library that is a member of the Canadian Association of Research…

Abstract

This chapter provides a current and changing demographic profile of academic librarians working in a research library that is a member of the Canadian Association of Research Libraries (CARL). Also examined is the changing mix of librarian and other professional staff. The profile is derived from the wealth of data generated from the 8Rs Studies, conducted in 2003–2004 and 2013–2014, respectively. The results show that the retirement and recruitment of librarians, alongside the restructuring of some roles and the attrition of others, have resulted in a noteworthy turnover of CARL library staff and a slightly larger, younger, more diverse, and more highly educated librarian workforce.

Details

Library Staffing for the Future
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78560-499-7

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 19 March 2024

Kristy Padron and Sarah M. Paige

Many librarians are asked questions about copyright and intellectual property. They may be expected to advise on copyright or provide copyright education as part of their duties…

Abstract

Purpose

Many librarians are asked questions about copyright and intellectual property. They may be expected to advise on copyright or provide copyright education as part of their duties. Others may be “voluntold” to take on copyright, which may come as an unexpected addition to their workload. This case study provides suggestions for librarians to increase their copyright knowledge and create copyright education programs.

Design/methodology/approach

This case study showcases two copyright education programs created by a librarian in a college and another in a university. The librarians collaborated to learn more about the state of copyright education within academic libraries and explore their commonalities and differences. This case study introduces two copyright education programs and summarizes the state of copyright education within library and information science (LIS) and academic libraries.

Findings

The following themes within the two copyright education programs were identified through a case study: the complexity of copyright, the engagement (or lack thereof) across a college or university, the necessity of including copyright in information literacy instruction and the calls for professional development with copyright.

Research limitations/implications

This case study covers two differing institutions so its conclusions may not be applicable to all libraries or educational settings.

Practical implications

Many individuals who are in disciplines or occupations that regularly work with copyright may generate ideas for creating and providing continuing education within their organizations.

Originality/value

Library or education professionals can use the case study’s conclusions to inform and support their ongoing work with teaching and learning about copyright and intellectual property. By doing so, they can better support their students, faculty and institutions.

Details

Reference Services Review, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0090-7324

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 29 February 2024

Khurram Shahzad, Shakeel Ahmad Khan and Abid Iqbal

The objectives of the study were to identify the effects of blockchain technology (BT) on the university librarians, the impact of BT on the university library services and to…

Abstract

Purpose

The objectives of the study were to identify the effects of blockchain technology (BT) on the university librarians, the impact of BT on the university library services and to reveal the challenges to adopt BT in the university libraries.

Design/methodology/approach

A systematic literature review was applied to address the objectives of the study. Around 25 studies published in peer-reviewed journals were selected to conduct the study.

Findings

The findings of the study revealed that blockchain technology (BT) has positive effects on the university librarians as it assists them in digital resources management, provision of integrated library services, effective records management and continued professional development. The study also displayed that BT has a positive impact on the university libraries through effective information management, user privacy, collaboration, technological innovation and access control. Results also revealed that technical issues, financial constraints, security problems, skill issues and sociocultural issues created challenges to adopt BT in the university libraries.

Originality/value

The study has offered theoretical implications for future investigators through the provision of innovative literature on the prospectus and challenges associated with blockchain in the context of librarianship. The study has also provided practical implications for management bodies by offering recommendations for the successful adoption of blockchain in the university libraries. Additionally, a framework has been developed to adopt BT successfully in the university libraries for the delivery of smart library services to library patrons.

Article
Publication date: 14 February 2024

Nina Mayesti, Chen Hao Huang, Aviazka Firdhaussi Azmir and Diah Melati Adzani

This study aims to determine the extent of virtual reality (VR)/augmented reality (AR) adoption in university libraries in Indonesia and identify librarians’ views of library…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to determine the extent of virtual reality (VR)/augmented reality (AR) adoption in university libraries in Indonesia and identify librarians’ views of library readiness. The assessment centers on two crucial dimensions: library readiness, gauged by commitment and efficacy, and librarian readiness, appraised through cognitive and affective aspects.

Design/methodology/approach

The research features a survey-based quantitative method. A sample of 259 librarians from university libraries, all members of the Indonesian Higher Education Library Forum, responded to the online survey.

Findings

Indonesian university libraries, especially in Central Java, express strong interest in VR/AR despite low current adoption. Librarians believe in their commitment and efficacy for adoption, with improvements needed in budget procurement and human resources. Librarians are optimistic about innovating academic activities with VR/AR, despite concerns about collaboration, data governance and human resource insecurity. The research underscores the simultaneous influence of librarians’ and libraries’ readiness on VR/AR adoption, emphasizing their interconnectedness and mutual support within library management.

Practical implications

There are practical implications for library institutions in Indonesia in terms of understanding the attendant opportunities and challenges when preparing organizational ecosystems. These findings provide a broad overview of VR/AR adoption in university libraries in Indonesia and contribute to understanding the specific needs and interests of universities in Indonesia considering adopting VR/AR. In addition to preparing adequate infrastructure, libraries should ensure the availability of adequate human resources.

Originality/value

In the Indonesian context, this study, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, makes the first attempt to examine the librarian’s view as part of library management to face the dilemmas that may arise during the adoption of VR/AR despite university libraries’ commitment and efficacy to enable this technology. This research also identifies librarians’ cognitive and affective readiness as individual characteristics and resources able to influence adequate adoption.

Details

Digital Library Perspectives, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2059-5816

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 August 2000

Wanda V. Dole, Jitka M. Hurych and Wallace C. Koehler

The library profession has been concerned with ethical issues since its beginning. Ethical issues raised in the early years dealt primarily with librarians’ responsibility to the…

4122

Abstract

The library profession has been concerned with ethical issues since its beginning. Ethical issues raised in the early years dealt primarily with librarians’ responsibility to the employer or patron. The focus later shifted to questions of professional identity, organisational environment, and social responsibilities. Rapid technological change and the advent of the information age are forcing the library profession to rethink its mission and responsibilities. This paper expands research on a survey of librarians’ ethical values reported by Dole and Hurych (forthcoming) at the 1998 EEI21 Symposium. In the 1998 study, they conducted a survey of North American librarians and librarians at a conference in the Crimea (Ukraine) to examine the values considered most important by each group and to identify differences in the priorities of values assigned by the groups studied. They found that all three groups held similar values. The current study replicates the 1998 survey among librarians throughout the world. Additional professional and demographic data were collected during the second iteration to support consideration of professional training, library experience and type, and professional responsibilities as possible factors contributing to value formation.

Details

Library Management, vol. 21 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-5124

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 April 2001

Rajinder Garcha and John C. Phillips

This study was conducted to learn about the involvement of US academic librarians in local as well as national faculty union activities; their reasons for joining unions; and the…

593

Abstract

This study was conducted to learn about the involvement of US academic librarians in local as well as national faculty union activities; their reasons for joining unions; and the benefits they have gained because of their memberships in their unions. It was concluded that librarians who were members of unions generally earned higher salaries than those who were not. Since librarians had on several occasions worked closely with the teaching faculty on various union activities, several close bonds and relationships among them had occurred. Moreover, librarians viewed union membership as a vehicle to become more involved in decision‐making processes at their institutions.

Details

Library Review, vol. 50 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0024-2535

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 October 2004

Muhammad Ramzan

The paper presents the extent of information technology (IT) utilization in libraries in Pakistan together with librarians’ level of knowledge in IT and their attitudes toward IT…

2107

Abstract

The paper presents the extent of information technology (IT) utilization in libraries in Pakistan together with librarians’ level of knowledge in IT and their attitudes toward IT in libraries. Primary data were collected through a questionnaire survey of 244 librarians working in libraries in Pakistan. The study revealed not only a low level of IT usage, but also a low level of IT knowledge among librarians. Analysis of relationships revealed that IT utilization in libraries, librarians’ awareness of the potential of IT, recency of attaining professional qualifications, and knowledge in IT had a significant relationship with librarians’ attitudes. The findings of the study also revealed that the level of IT utilization and the librarians’ level of knowledge in technology are good predictors of librarians’ attitudes toward application of IT in their libraries.

Details

The Electronic Library, vol. 22 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0264-0473

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 August 1944

THERE is, of course, a man (if he isn't a woman) behind the librarian. When the librarian leaves his office or the counter, the man steps forth. What sort of creature is he? A few…

Abstract

THERE is, of course, a man (if he isn't a woman) behind the librarian. When the librarian leaves his office or the counter, the man steps forth. What sort of creature is he? A few professions stamp themselves so deeply on their followers that they have even developed something approaching a type of physical feature. The military man, the lawyer, and the parson are the outstanding examples. The teacher is a particularly pronounced type, but not a physical type; it is in manner, way of speaking, etc., that he advertises his calling. The librarian has no outward signs. If someone says “So‐and‐so looks like a librarian,” he is probably thinking in terms of the old‐time librarian, spectacled, round‐shouldered, peering, and surrounded by an astral aura derived from the immemorial dust that time has dropped gently on his books. The modern librarian, at any rate the public librarian, has long shaken off these out‐worn signs of his craft. He might be anybody or somebody, and carries with him no smell of the midnight oil or suggestion of ancient and ponderous lore. Yet no man can live among books, work on books, think on books, and contact all sorts of people in their relation to books, without effects on his mind, his outlook, and maybe his habits. It was a good idea, therefore, of the Editor to try and discover something of the man behind the librarian, by means of that ubiquitous, if often irritating, instrument, the questionnaire. The number sent out was thirty‐one, and twenty‐two replied; far too limited an enquiry on which to found any dogmatic conclusions, but as the librarians questioned were of both sexes, of different types of libraries, town and county, large and small, it may be considered perhaps as affording a useful cross‐section of the profession in its unprofessional aspect. There were ten questions; these are given below, with a brief summary of the nature of the answers.

Details

Library Review, vol. 9 no. 8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0024-2535

Article
Publication date: 11 January 2008

Gitte Balling, Lise Alsted Henrichsen and Laura Skouvig

The purpose of this article is to discuss the stereotype of the librarian and to point to the fact that changing the public view of the librarian requires more than just talking…

2579

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this article is to discuss the stereotype of the librarian and to point to the fact that changing the public view of the librarian requires more than just talking about it. Librarians themselves need to take action. A way to change the image of the librarian could be a new form for reading groups: digital reading groups initiated by libraries.

Design/methodology/approach

This article presents a Danish project concerning digital reading groups and the experiences made so far by the involved groups e.g. librarians and readers. The article introduces a historical view on the stereotyped librarian and uses a case study to illustrate the situation today.

Findings

The historical conditions that constitute the Danish librarian stereotype show a discrepancy between the role and function of the modern librarian and the way the librarian is seen in a wider public. The applied case study, concerning digital reading groups, shows that digital reading groups work both as a way for the librarian to communicate with the reader in a more dialogical fashion, as a way for the public library to test new promotion tools which point in direction of Web 2.0 and as a more flexible promotion offer to the busy reader. Consequently, the digital reading groups offer a model that can bridge the gap between the librarian stereotype, the librarian and the library user.

Originality/value

This article is based on experiences made in connection with a Danish literature promotion project where digital reading groups are launched for the first time. It shows how public libraries can use literature promotion on the internet, not only to reach new users, but also to change the librarian stereotype and upgrade the librarians in direction of Librarian 2.0.

Details

New Library World, vol. 109 no. 1/2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0307-4803

Keywords

1 – 10 of over 32000