Laura Radford, Jason C. Senkbeil and Meganne Rockman
The cone of uncertainty (COU) warning graphic has created confusion for people trying to make evacuation and safety decisions. The purpose of this research was to create several…
Abstract
Purpose
The cone of uncertainty (COU) warning graphic has created confusion for people trying to make evacuation and safety decisions. The purpose of this research was to create several alternative tropical cyclone graphics and present them to the public and college students via face‐to‐face surveys and polling.
Design/methodology/approach
Surveys depicting hypothetical landfall scenarios were administered in Pensacola and Jacksonville, FL. Respondents ranked five graphics in order of preference, and were encouraged to discuss their rankings. Following this initial field research, the most popular graphic of these five was compared to a graphic resembling the one used by The Australian Bureau of Meteorology. Comments were recorded for respondents favoring or disliking the Australian graphic in two separate analyses. A final graphic emphasizing post‐landfall hazards was also created as a suggestion for future research and evaluated directly against the most popular graphics from field research.
Findings
A graphic called the color‐probability‐cone was the most popular graphic in field research. There were subtle differences in graphic preference resulting from age and gender influences, with only one significant result. Comments from subsequent analyses reveal that the Australian graphic causes mixed reactions. A final analysis with a larger sample of college students revealed that the color‐probability‐cone was the most popular choice; however, comments reveal that many respondents who had used hurricane graphics before liked the specificity presented by the Australian graphic and the hazards graphic.
Originality/value
This research represents a possible initial step in the process of establishing a tropical cyclone warning graphic that is informative, visually appealing, and effective.
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The purpose of this paper is to provide a close, detailed analysis of the frequency, nature, and depth of visible use of two of Foucault’s classic early works, The Archaeology of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to provide a close, detailed analysis of the frequency, nature, and depth of visible use of two of Foucault’s classic early works, The Archaeology of Knowledge and The Order of Things, by library, and information science/studies (LIS) scholars.
Design/methodology/approach
The study involved conducting extensive full-text searches in a large number of electronically available LIS journal databases to find citations of Foucault’s works, then examining each citing article and each individual citation to evaluate the nature and depth of each use.
Findings
Contrary to initial expectations, the works in question are relatively little used by LIS scholars in journal articles, and where they are used, such use is often only vague, brief, or in passing. In short, works traditionally seen as central and foundational to discourse analysis appear relatively little in discussions of discourse.
Research limitations/implications
The study was limited to a certain batch of LIS journal articles that are electronically available in full text at UCLA, where the study was conducted. The results potentially could change by focussing on a fuller or different collection of journals or on non-journal literature. More sophisticated bibliometric techniques could reveal different relative performance among journals. Other research approaches, such as discourse analysis, social network analysis, or scholar interviews, might reveal patterns of use and influence that are not visible in the journal literature.
Originality/value
This study’s intensive, in-depth study of quality as well as quantity of citations challenges some existing assumptions regarding citation analysis and the sociology of citation practices, plus illuminating Foucault scholarship.
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Laura Saunders, Rachel Williams, Genevieve Galarneau and Gianna C. Gifford
The purpose of this study was to get a baseline understanding of the state of reference services in urban public libraries in the United States.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to get a baseline understanding of the state of reference services in urban public libraries in the United States.
Design/methodology/approach
The researchers surveyed all members of the Urban Libraries Council, a network of public library systems in urban centers across the country. The survey asked about their reference services, including how reference is offered, volume and types of questions and staff responsibilities. Participants were also asked how reference has changed in the past 5–10 years and what changes they anticipate in the future.
Findings
This study found that the vast majority of urban public libraries still maintain a physical reference desk, but most also offer reference services in other formats as well. Most libraries have seen numbers of reference questions decline. Reference staff members are engaged in instruction, programming and community outreach as well. Looking ahead, some libraries expect reference questions to continue to decline and demand for virtual services to increase.
Practical implications
Directors and reference staff of public libraries, especially those in urban and suburban settings, will find these results useful for benchmarking against their own experiences and for planning for future changes.
Originality/value
While discussions of changes in reference service and volumes of reference questions are plentiful, as are predictions of how these declines will impact reference services, there is little current research on the actual state of those services. This study fills a gap in the literature by providing a baseline overview of the reference services in urban public libraries.
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This study aims to explore the effectiveness and learning outcomes of two reference interview assignments – one in which students worked with a family member or friend and a…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to explore the effectiveness and learning outcomes of two reference interview assignments – one in which students worked with a family member or friend and a “practice-based” assignment in which students were paired with other graduate students working on a class assignment.
Design/methodology/approach
Students completed reflective essay and submitted a survey rating their perceptions of their patrons’ satisfaction, completeness of the answer and overall success of the transaction.
Findings
Students in both classes were successful and applied the skills and competencies of the reference interview, but students with the practice-based assignment had a more realistic experience and were somewhat less confident about their performance.
Practical implications
The study offers some implications and suggestions for a more effective and realistic approach to teaching the reference interview.
Originality/value
There is a lack of literature on how to teach the reference interview and on the effectiveness of different types of assignments. This study addresses that gap and the results of this study will be of interest to Library and Information Science faculty, as well as library directors and reference managers who might offer training to staff.
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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…
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.
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To provide an analysis of the notion of “information poverty” in library and information science (LIS) by investigating concepts, interests and strategies leading to its…
Abstract
Purpose
To provide an analysis of the notion of “information poverty” in library and information science (LIS) by investigating concepts, interests and strategies leading to its construction and thus to examine its role as a constitutive element of the professional discourse.
Design/methodology/approach
Starting from a Foucauldian notion of discourse, “information poverty” is examined as a statement in its relation to other statements in order to highlight assumptions and factors contributing to its construction. The analysis is based on repeated and close reading of 35 English language articles published in LIS journals between 1995 and 2005.
Findings
Four especially productive discursive procedures are identified: economic determinism, technological determinism and the “information society”, historicising the “information poor”, and the library profession's moral obligation and responsibility.
Research limitations/implications
The material selection is linguistically and geographically biased. Most of the included articles originate in English‐speaking countries. Therefore, results and findings are fully applicable only in an English language context.
Originality/value
The focus on overlapping and at times conflicting discursive procedures, i.e. the results of alliances and connections between statements, highlights how the “information poor” emerge as a category in LIS as the product of institutionally contingent, professional discourse. By challenging often unquestioned underlying assumptions, this article is intended to contribute to a critical examination of LIS discourse, as well as to the analysis of the discourses of information, which dominate contemporary society. It is furthermore seen to add to the development of discourse analytical approaches in LIS research.
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Laura I. Spears and Marcia A. Mardis
The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which academic researchers consider the relationship between broadband access and children’s information seeking in the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which academic researchers consider the relationship between broadband access and children’s information seeking in the United States. Because broadband has been cited as an essential element of contemporary learning, this study sought to identify gaps in the attention given to the role of broadband in the information seeking environment of youth.
Approach
The researchers conducted a mixed method synthesis of academic research published in peer-reviewed journals between 1991 and 2011 that reported the information seeking of children aged 5–18 years. Quantitative and qualitative data were gathered from leading databases, analyzed separately, and conclusions drawn from integrated results.
Results
The results of this study indicated that broadband is rarely considered in the design of children’s information seeking published in peer-reviewed research journals. Only 15 studies showed any presence of broadband in study design or conclusions. Due to the small number of qualifying studies, the researchers could not conduct the synthesis; instead, the researchers conducted a quantitative relationship analysis and qualitative content analysis.
Practical implications
Given the focus of policymaking and public discussion on broadband, its absence as a study consideration suggests a crucial gap for scholarly researchers to address.
Research limitations
The data set included only studies of children in the United States, therefore, findings may not be universally applicable.
Originality/value
Despite national imperatives for ubiquitous broadband and a tradition of information seeking research in library and information science (LIS) and other disciplines, a lack of academic research about how broadband affects children’s information seeking persists.
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Brayden G King and Laura K. Nelson
Social movement scholars use protest events as a way to quantify social movements and have most often used large, national newspapers to identify those events. This has introduced…
Abstract
Social movement scholars use protest events as a way to quantify social movements and have most often used large, national newspapers to identify those events. This has introduced known and unknown biases into our measurement of social movements. We know that national newspapers tend to cover larger and more contentious events and organizations. Protest events are furthermore a small part of what social movements actually do. Without other readily available options to quantify social movements, however, big-N studies have continued to focus on protest events via a few large newspapers. With advances in digitized data and computational methods, we now no longer have to rely on large newspapers or focus only on protests to quantify important aspects of social movements. In this paper, we use the environmental movement as a case study, analyzing data from a wide range of local, regional, and national newspapers in the United States to quantify multiple facets of social movements. We argue that the incorporation of more data and new methods to quantify information in text has the potential to transform the way we both conceive of and measure social movements in three ways: (1) the type of focal social movement organization included, (2) the type of tactics and issues covered, and (3) the ability to go beyond protest events as the primary unit of analysis. In addition to demonstrating ways that the focus on counting protest events has introduced specific biases in the type of tactics, issues, and organizations covered in social movement research, we argue that computational methods can help us extract and count meaningful aspects of social movements well beyond event counts. In short, the infusion of new data and methods into social movements, peace, and conflict studies could lead us to a substantial shift in the way we quantify social movements, from protest events to everything that occurs outside of them.
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RACAL Instruments has launched several additions to its 1260 range of VX1bus switching modules. The series now consists of a range of units in configurations from matrices, trees…
Abstract
RACAL Instruments has launched several additions to its 1260 range of VX1bus switching modules. The series now consists of a range of units in configurations from matrices, trees and multiplexers, which operate at frequencies from DC to 18 GHz. Digital I/O modules complele the range.