Lessons from Collaborative Library Ethnographies

Celia Emmelhainz @celiemme Qualitative Research Librarian

IFLA 2016 * Columbus, Ohio

Ethnography as Method

International Ethnography• Ex: anthropologists and librarians collaborated to study libraries and the information economy in rural Romania (Klimaszewski, Whipple, Nyce, etc)

Ethnographic Toolkit•Spatial observation•Usability testing (web)• Informal observations / fieldnotes•Web survey•Mapping Exercises•Diaries / Photo Diaries•Participant Observation• Interviews / Focus Groups•Digital Observation (Social Media)

Tools: Fieldnotes

(Image: Dunne 2016, dx.doi.org/10.1080/13614533.2016.1168747)

Tools: Cognitive Mapping

(Image: Donna Lanclos, http://www.donnalanclos.com/?p=21 )

Tools: Photo Diaries

(Image from Judi Briden, “Photo Surveys,” (p. 40-47), in Foster & Gibbons 2007, Studying Students)

Caveat – Why Bother?

• Choosing a “cool” method isn’t useful• Ask good questions that aren’t answered by existing literature

• Then, pick a method from your toolkit appropriate to what you want to learn

Example: Web Survey of Study Abroad Students

Workplace Observation

Interviews

Focus Groups with Library Workers

Example: Digital ethnography

Questionnaires and Observation at a National Library

Challenges of Collaborative Ethnography• Inequality

• Lack of time, money, resources

• Different priorities, different rewards

Ethnography to Anthropology

Need to move beyond observation to why and in what context (McCracken)

Strengths of Collaborative Ethnography

• Positionality / complementing each other

• Catching errors and spurious interpretation

• Capacity building among young librarians

• Move beyond surveys to discuss and understand wider cultural shifts in libraries

Further Reading:Read this full paper: http://escholarship.org/uc/item/4z38w8q1

Related work:

Andrew Asher and Lynda Duke. 2012. College Libraries and Student Culture.

Nancy Foster and Susan Gibbons. 2007. Studying Students.

Mindy Whipple and James Nyce. 2007. “Community analysis needs ethnography: an example from Romania.”

Andrew Asher, at AndrewAsher.net

Donna Lanclos, at DonnaLanclos.com

Grant McCracken, at cultureby.com