Libraries have generally made the conceptual shift from collections based on “ownership” to more expansive models which incorporate “access” to information. A new set of…
Abstract
Libraries have generally made the conceptual shift from collections based on “ownership” to more expansive models which incorporate “access” to information. A new set of challenges is emerging as the capabilities of information technology create new potentials for publishing and new models for access. Coupled with significant changes in the scholarly communication arena, research libraries are now challenged to reconceive the prevailing notions of collection development activity and the closely related strategies of providing access. Describes critical technical, cultural, and economic factors in the 1990s, and details an emerging series of tensions which build on the ownership‐access dichotomy of the past.
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The University of Michigan Digital Library Program is a collaborative enterprise that has built digital content and an information infrastructure for the campus community. A…
Abstract
The University of Michigan Digital Library Program is a collaborative enterprise that has built digital content and an information infrastructure for the campus community. A near‐term strategy of project‐based activity has provided visible successes, opportunities for development and elaboration of skills, and a context in which to explore broader issues of the networked information arena. The program’s early focus on developing an architecture for digital collections and durable formats for information resources has provided a foundation on which to build future domain‐based, knowledge environments.
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William A. Gosling, Margo Crist, Brenda Johnson, Wendy P. Lougee and Beth Forrest Warner
The paper aims to discern, document, and analyze current staffing trends in college and university libraries.
Abstract
Purpose
The paper aims to discern, document, and analyze current staffing trends in college and university libraries.
Design/methodology/approach
The author gathered information from the literatures of library and information science and higher education.
Findings
The paper details six trends across public and technical services affecting librarians, non‐MLS professionals, and paraprofessionals. The presentation of trends is followed by a discussion of three concerns the author has about these trends.
Research limitations/implications
The paper covers trends in college and university libraries but does not specifically address community college libraries. Community colleges may have similar issues, as well as unique trends; further research is encouraged.
Practical implications
Library managers will be able to compare developments in their libraries to the profession‐wide trends. They will also be able to link to a large body of literature on the topic.
Originality/value
This kind of comprehensive look at academic library staffing does not seem to have been published recently.
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This paper sets out to explore the shifts in roles evident in the research library community, with illustrative case studies from the University of Minnesota Libraries.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper sets out to explore the shifts in roles evident in the research library community, with illustrative case studies from the University of Minnesota Libraries.
Design/methodology/approach
The approach takes the form of a review of environmental forces that are fueling changes in research methodologies and scholar behavior. Changes in research library roles are explored in the context of three case studies, highlighting new forms of engagement with the scholar community.
Findings
Three University of Minnesota Libraries' initiatives illustrate: the use of behavioral data to design a customized discovery environment for scholarship, new organizational constructs to engage the community in issues related to control of scholarship, and strategies to develop a virtual community in the field of bioethics.
Originality/value
The paper presents the original perspective of a University Librarian of a large research library and draws on earlier analyses of research behaviors, technology, and research library roles.
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The purpose of this research is to apply principles from the field of industrial and organizational psychology on organizational analysis and job analysis to better identify…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this research is to apply principles from the field of industrial and organizational psychology on organizational analysis and job analysis to better identify successful candidates for employment in an Information Commons.
Design/methodology/approach
Review of professional research, research from both library literature and industrial and organizational psychology, review of professional association surveys.
Findings
Library administration must invest time to articulate mission, value, and goals for the Information Commons before undertaking the organizational analysis. From the organizational analysis will flow the job analysis, job descriptions and hiring protocols.
Original/value
Core concepts of organizational analysis and job analysis from the field of industrial and organizational psychology are pertinent and useful to library leaders in planning, implementing and staffing new service models, such as Information Commons.
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The following is an annotated list of materials that discuss the ways in which librarians can provide library users with orientation to facilities and services, and instruct them…
Abstract
The following is an annotated list of materials that discuss the ways in which librarians can provide library users with orientation to facilities and services, and instruct them in library information and computer skills. This is RSR's 11th annual review of this literature, and covers publications from 1984. A few items from 1983 have been included because of their significance, and because they were not available for review last year. Several items were not annotated because the compiler was unable to secure them.
This paper discusses the importance of incorporating licensing issues in access policies for electronic resources in research libraries. The implications for patron understanding…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper discusses the importance of incorporating licensing issues in access policies for electronic resources in research libraries. The implications for patron understanding of basic legal issues and the role of the library in managing and acquiring these resources are investigated and discussed.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey of various research libraries was undertaken to examine what is provided to patrons in terms of conditions of use for electronic resources. Literature relating to the management and provision of electronic resources was examined.
Findings
It was found that few libraries provide key licensing information to their patrons. This has important consequences in terms of the patron's lack of awareness of restrictions on use, as well as the costs, complexity, and consortial involvement in acquiring these resources.
Research limitations/implications
A comprehensive international review of the trends and practices of research libraries regarding access policies and licensing issues would build upon this paper's findings.
Practical implications
Library patrons are not receiving adequate information about the resources they are using. If more research libraries would consider what licensing information is made available to patrons, there could be changes in patron understanding and perception of the library. This will impact the profile of the library in academia, and the changing role of librarians in collection development in the digital environment.
Originality/value
The paper will be of value to research libraries involved in the acquisition, management and delivery of electronic resources to its patrons, and to librarians involved in collection development and management.