Presented by Marie L. Radford and Lynn Silipigni Connaway

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Seeking Sustainability & Singularity: Evaluating Virtual Reference From User, Non- user, & Librarian Perspectives Presented by Marie L. Radford and Lynn Silipigni Connaway American Society for Information Science and Technology Conference Austin, Texas November 3-9, 2006

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Seeking Sustainability & Singularity: Evaluating Virtual Reference From User, Non-user, & Librarian Perspectives. Presented by Marie L. Radford and Lynn Silipigni Connaway American Society for Information Science and Technology Conference Austin, Texas November 3-9, 2006. Authors. - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Transcript of Presented by Marie L. Radford and Lynn Silipigni Connaway

Page 1: Presented by  Marie L. Radford and Lynn Silipigni Connaway

Seeking Sustainability & Singularity:

Evaluating Virtual Reference From User, Non-user, & Librarian

Perspectives

Presented by Marie L. Radford

andLynn Silipigni Connaway

American Society for Information Science and Technology Conference

Austin, TexasNovember 3-9, 2006

Page 2: Presented by  Marie L. Radford and Lynn Silipigni Connaway

Authors

• Marie L. Radford, Ph.D.– Associate Professor,– Rutgers University, SCILS– Email: [email protected]– www.scils.rutgers.edu/~mradford

• Lynn Silipigni Connaway, Ph.D.– Consulting Research Scientist– Email: [email protected]– www.oclc.org/research/staff/connaway.htm

• Grant Website (Slides will be posted): http://www.oclc.org/research/projects/synchronicity

Page 3: Presented by  Marie L. Radford and Lynn Silipigni Connaway

Seeking Synchronicity: Evaluating Virtual Reference Services from User, Non-User, and Librarian Perspectives

$1,103,572 project funding• Institute of Museum & Library Services (IMLS)

– $684,996 grant• Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey &

OCLC, Online Computer Library Center – $405,076 in kind contributions

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Seeking Synchronicity: Evaluating Virtual Reference Services from User, Non-User, and Librarian Perspectives

• Project duration– Two-year project

• October 2005-November 2007

• Four phases– Focus group interviews– Analysis of 1,000+ QuestionPoint transcipts

– 600 online surveys

– 300 telephone interviews

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Phase I:Focus Group Interviews

• 8 Focus Group Interviews– 2 with VRS librarians– 4 with VRS non-users

• Screenagers– Rural– Suburban– Urban

• College students– Graduate

– 2 with VRS users• College students

– Graduate– Undergraduate

• Adults

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Participant Demographics8 Focus Group Interviews

• Total participants – 21 Librarians (25%) – 40 Non-users (48%)– 23 Users (27%)

• Total librarians– 13 Academic librarians (62%)– 3 Public librarians (14%)– 1 Government Librarian (5%)– 4 Unknown (19%)

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Participant DemographicsLibrarian Focus Group Interviews

• Ethnicity- Librarians– 20 Caucasian (95%) – 1 African- American (5%)

• Gender- Librarians– 14 Female (67%) – 7 Male (33%)

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Participant DemographicsUser Focus Group Interviews

• Ethnicity- Users– 15 Caucasian (68%) – 4 Asian (18%)– 2 African- American (9%)– 1 Hispanic/Latino (5%)

• Gender- Users– 13 Male (59%) – 9 Female (41%)

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Participant DemographicsNon-user Focus Group Interviews

• Ethnicity- Non-users– 18 Caucasian (45%) – 7 African- American (17.5%)– 6 Hispanic/Latino (15%) – 2 Asian (5%) – 7 Missing (17.5%)

• Gender- Non-users– 23 Female (57.5%) – 17 Male (42.5%)

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VRS Librarians: Positive Themes

• Interactivity– Opportunity to reach people and develop

relationships

• Providing accessibility– Access to librarians– Access to services and databases

• Opportunity to learn

• No geographic boundaries

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VRS Librarians: Negative Themes

• Performance/Staffing– Job performance– Human resource allocation– Issues about pressure and accountability

• Technological problems– Software– Learning curve for VRS librarians and users

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Non-User (Screenager): Major Themes

• Librarian stereotypes• Preference for independent information

seeking – Google– Web surfing– Trust own ability to evaluate web resources

more than librarians’• Preference for face-to-face interaction

– Value interpersonal interactions in Face-to Face

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Non-User (Screenager): Major Themes

• Privacy/Security concerns– Librarians as “psycho killers” – Fear of cyber stalkers

• Concern for accuracy of information– Chat takes too long

• Factors influencing future VRS use– Recommendation– Marketing– Ability to choose a trusted librarian

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Non-User Graduate Students: Major Themes

• Most students prefer face-to-face librarian interactions– Reliable– Developing a personal relationship with a

librarian

• Utilize internet tools for information– Library website, Google, other internet

resources

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Non-User Graduate Students: Major Themes

• Negative perceptions about VRS:– Sounds like a chat room, not professional,

fear of question unsuitability, technology/learning curve

– Fear of appearing stupid, or being negatively evaluated by the librarian.

– Privacy concerns/ transcripts revealed to professors

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Non-User Graduate Students: Major Themes

• Factors influencing future VRS use– Recommendation by librarian/colleague– Developing confidence in service’s use,

speed & access– Promotional campaign

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VRS Users: Positive Major Themes

• Convenience

• Research/Information retrieval independence

• Collaborative – share work

• Knowledgeable service provider

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VRS Users: Positive Major Themes

• Pleasant interpersonal environment

• Transcript of chat session

• Anonymity of VRS

• Immediacy of chat vs. email

• Allows multi-tasking

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VRS Users: Negative Major Themes

• Just another search engine• Generic responses• Distrust in information provided• Technical improvement suggestions• Face-to-face interaction preferred• Fear of overwhelming the librarian• Concerns about librarians’ lack of subject

expertise

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Future Directions

• Phases II, III, & IV – 1000+ Transcript analysis (in progress)– 600 Online surveys (in progress)– 300 Telephone surveys

• Build on Phase II, III, & IV results

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Implications for Future Research

• Study of Millennials– Implications for Library 2.0

• Services• Technology• Sources

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End Notes

• This is one of the outcomes from the project Seeking Synchronicity: Evaluating Virtual Reference Services from User, Non-User, and Librarian Perspectives.• Funded by IMLS, Rutgers University and OCLC,

Online Computer Library Center

• Special thanks to Jocelyn DeAngelis Williams, Patrick Confer, Julie Strange, Vickie Kozo, & Timothy Dickey.

• Slides available at project web site: http://www.oclc.org/research/projects/synchronicity/

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Questions and Discussion

• Marie L. Radford, Ph.D.– Email: [email protected]– www.scils.rutgers.edu/~mradford

• Lynn Silipigni Connaway, Ph.D.– Email: [email protected]– www.oclc.org/research/staff/connaway.htm