Academic Library Literature Research Articles

Satisfaction with Remote Work Options Among Academic Library Employees: Implications for Recruitment and Retention

This article discusses results from a study of U.S. academic library employees’ satisfaction with their remote work options, the conditions under which they would consider leaving their position for one with remote work or better remote work options, and the extent to which they agree or disagree that remote work options can play a positive role in academic library employee recruitment and retention. The study’s Qualtrics-hosted survey was distributed through 18 listservs serving a range of library professional areas and was open for responses for one month in the autumn of 2022. The survey results reveal that 47% of participants were satisfied with their job’s remote work options or lack thereof and that approximately 83% of participants who do not have remote work options expressed dissatisfaction with their lack of options compared with approximately 43% of those who do have some remote work options. Also, approximately 27% of participants indicated that they would consider leaving their current position for one with remote work options or more remote work days, and a smaller percentage would even consider leaving for less pay. Further, 97% believed that providing employees with remote work options could play a positive role in academic library recruitment and retention. These findings address a gap in the academic library literature and may serve to inform recruitment and retention strategies among libraries.

Continuous professional development of LIS professionals in academic libraries: channels, challenges and motivation

Purpose Continuous professional development (CPD) plays a crucial role in the library workplace by equipping library and information science (LIS) professionals with the skills and technical knowledge to bridge the theory-praxis gap, assuring that library practitioners and their organisations continue to innovate and stay successful and tailored to the requirement of their users. The aim of the study was to investigate the channels of CPD for LIS professionals working in the university libraries of Northern India. Also, it explored the motivations and barriers related to the LIS professionals’ CPD. Design/methodology/approach The study adopted a quantitative research design followed by the survey research method. The study population included LIS professionals working in the university libraries of Northern India. Data was gathered from 177 respondents via the census sampling method. Findings LIS professionals engaged in CPD activities through multiple channels. Intrinsic factors primarily governed the motivation for CPD. Similarly, time and finance were significant challenges for LIS CPD. Lastly, most libraries were headed by in-charge librarians (non-professionals). De-professionalisation, or the deliberate de-skilling of professional roles, threatens the basis upon which librarians establish their credibility as professionals. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, the study is the first of its kind from the perspective of a developing country, adding to the CPD literature in academic libraries.

Reevaluating Space and Place in Academic Libraries

The concepts of space and place as they relate to libraries has been a popular topic of discussion in Library and Information Science (LIS) literature for decades. In that time, libraries have been heralded as spaces and places of discovery, safety, escape, fear, control, wonder, community, learning, work, and relaxation among many other designations. Focusing on academic libraries specifically, the presenters explore the ways we have thought about academic libraries as spaces and places in the past in LIS and ask what is missing from the conversation. Through a critical analysis of the extant literature in two prominent LIS scholarly databases, the presenters first seek to answer the question, “How has space and place been framed in academic library literature?” Based on the findings of the initial analysis and the gaps identified, the presenters then ask, “What perspectives or frameworks could potentially address existing gaps in the literature?” Of particular interest is the affective relationship between people and the spaces in which they function and how better understanding of such relationships can deepen our understanding of academic libraries as spaces and places.

What makes a “happy” workplace for librarians? Exploring the organizational functions of academic libraries in South Korea

Academic libraries are facing the need to closely examine the effectiveness of current organizational functions in response to rapid changes in technology and the information environment. The purpose of this study is to explore the functions and issues of the academic library organization in South Korea based on the librarians' perceptions. We conducted a literature review about the changes in the role of academic libraries and organizational functions. In-depth interviews with 19 librarians and a content analysis of those interviews were conducted. As a result, we identified organizational characteristics pertaining to 1) internal functions of the library, such as communication, leadership, motivation, and team system, and 2) external functions, such as collaboration with external administrative departments, and utilization of personal networks. We also discovered mutual relationships among the functions. In particular, leader's support is important to continuously motivate librarians and increase the effectiveness of the team system, resulting in a positive effect on the reputation of the academic library. This study contributes to the academic library literature by comprehensively and empirically exploring functions affecting the services of academic libraries.

Autonomy and control in the wish to die in terminally ill patients: A systematic integrative review.

Personal autonomy and control are major concepts for people with life-limiting conditions. Patients who express a wish to die (WTD) are often thought of wanting it because of loss of autonomy or control. The research conducted so far has not focused on personal beliefs and perspectives; and little is known about patients' understanding of autonomy and control in this context. The aim of this review was to analyze what role autonomy and control may play in relation to the WTD expressed by people with life-limiting conditions. A systematic integrative review was conducted. The search strategy used MeSH terms in combination with free-text searching of the EBSCO Discovery Service (which provides access to multiple academic library literature databases, including PubMed and CINAHL), as well as the large PsycINFO, Scopus, and Web of Science library literature databases from their inception until February 2019. The search was updated to January 2021. After the screening process, 85 full texts were included for the final analysis. Twenty-seven studies, recording the experiences of 1,824 participants, were identified. The studies were conducted in Australia (n = 5), Canada (n = 5), USA (n = 5), The Netherlands (n = 3), Spain (n = 2), Sweden (n = 2), Switzerland (n = 2), Finland (n = 1), Germany (n = 1), and the UK (n = 1). Three themes were identified: (1) the presence of autonomy for the WTD, (2) the different ways in which autonomy is conceptualized, and (3) the socio-cultural context of research participants. Despite the importance given to the concept of autonomy in the WTD discourse, only a few empirical studies have focused on personal interests. Comprehending the context is crucial because personal understandings of autonomy are shaped by socio-cultural-ethical backgrounds and these impact personal WTD attitudes.

Collecting Young Adult Literature for Small College Library with Emphasis on African-American, Immigrants, and LGBTQ Literature

Young adult literature in academic libraries can serve as an introduction to diverse cultures for white, middle-class students who may not have been exposed to diverse communities before attending university. At the University of Evansville, young adult literature has been a recent addition to the collection. The collection policy was altered to include material that would appeal to a more diverse population that the University of Evansville is attempting to recruit and to provide material needed for the classes on diversity that are being introduced to the curriculum.

Supporting Today’s Students in the Library: Strategies for Retaining and Graduating International, Transfer, First-Generation, and Re-Entry Students. Ngoc-Yen Tran and Silke Higgins, eds. Chicago, IL: Association of College and Research Libraries, 2020. 275p. Paper.

This collection brings together research from the library and student affairs fields to present a thorough look at methods for increasing student success among populations with distinct needs and characteristics: international, transfer, first-generation, and re-entry students, with international and first-generation populations receiving the most attention. It is a welcome addition to the academic library literature. The theories of well-established student affairs scholars, such as George Kuh and Vincent Tinto, are highlighted in many chapters’ literature reviews and appear in the bibliographies of nearly all chapters. Familiarity with this literature is key in engaging outside units within the academy and building the kinds of partnerships suggested by many authors in this work. Common themes include robust partnerships with academic writing centers, collaborating with graduate programs to increase ESL students’ research and writing skills, and deliberately structuring assignments to aid student comprehension and skill development.

Library orientation practices in special libraries

PurposeThe library orientation session is an important marketing tool because it offers the first opportunity for library staff to connect with new clients (Craft and Ballard-Thrower, 2011; Rhoades and Hartsell, 2008). This paper aims to explore library orientation practices in special libraries and information centers with the goal of surveying current practices and identifying guidance for successful orientation program design and delivery.Design/methodology/approachThis study explored library orientation practices in special libraries and information services through an electronic survey. The survey questions were developed based on themes that emerged from case studies on library orientations from the academic library literature. These themes included reasons for library orientation program redesigns, the importance of partnerships in orientation design and delivery and the tools and techniques used in the delivery of orientation sessions.FindingsThe results revealed that library orientations are taking place in special libraries, but there is no consistent approach to library orientation delivery. Even within a single library, multiple approaches to library orientations are taken based on client availability, demand and information needs observations of library staff. Participants’ responses were analyzed to develop recommendations for special library orientations. These include developing partnerships (particularly with human resource departments), using technology strategically, considering the timing of orientations for new potential clients in relation to their start as new employees in the host organization, customizing library orientations based on client segment, engaging in ongoing outreach, and being flexible in design and delivery methods.Research limitations/implicationsThis study represents a starting step in an exploration of library orientation practices in special libraries. The key limitation of this study was the low response rate leading to small sample size. A larger sample of special libraries would be needed to produce a quantitative analysis of the prevalence of practices with an acceptable degree of statistical significance. Alternately, smaller samples of special libraries organized by characteristics such as size or type (e.g. corporate libraries, law libraries and medical libraries) could be conducted to determine if distinctive trends exist within these special library types.Practical implicationsThis study revealed information about key practices and challenges that can be used by special library practitioners seeking to implement or redesign a library orientation program in their library.Originality/valueWhile academic and practitioner literature exists detailing library orientation activities in academic and school libraries, there are very few papers on special library orientations. This study fills a gap in the literature by investigating library orientation practices in special libraries and information centers.

Reframing library student employment as a high-impact practice: Implications from case studies

The purpose of this paper is to discuss how academic libraries can directly contribute to campus student success initiatives through student employment programs. Case studies from the perspectives of two supervisors demonstrate how library student employment programs can intentionally incorporate the characteristics of High-Impact Practices. This paper builds upon a previously published systematic review of the academic library literature on student employment, which found a significant gap in the discussion of employment as a mechanism for learning and retention. This paper aims to address this gap by focusing on practical applications for creating more learner-centered student employment programs.

Workplace-integrated-learning: Preparing tomorrow's academic library workforce

In 2014, the University of Toronto Libraries (UTL) in partnership with the University's Faculty of Information (FI) launched a new internship program, the Toronto Academic Libraries Internship program (TALint). The program is designed to provide iSchool students with the opportunity to participant in a two-year paid internship at one of the University's libraries. In the course of running our TALint program, some unanticipated questions arose that challenged our assumptions about who, among a diverse student body, is drawn to academic librarianship as a potential career, what skills and competencies library supervisors are looking for in today's hire, and how students and faculty leverage (or not) student workplace experiences as a means of enhancing course-based learning?. Additionally, the university's recent emphasis on the discourse of workplace-integrated-learning (WIL) placed novel demands on the program's design and delivery warranting critical research engagement. The purpose of the following paper is threefold: (1) to introduce the concept of Workplace-Integrated-Learning (WIL) into the academic library literature, (2) present a case study of a WIL-inspired internship program, and (3) reflect on the outcomes of that case study with respect to best practices, policy implications and suggestions for future research into the changing face of the professional academic library workforce.

Comics and Critical Librarianship: Reframing the Narrative in Academic Libraries. Olivia Piepmeier and Stephanie Grimm, eds. Sacramento, CA: Library Juice Press, 2019. 338p. Paper, $45.00 (ISBN: 978-1-63400-080-2).

Comics and Critical Librarianship: Reframing the Narrative in Academic Libraries looks at comics librarianship in the context of critical librarianship. Piepmeier and Grimm describe critical librarianship as something that “comes from an intentional engagement with the political and social dimensions of libraries and librarianship, including ideas of neutrality, authorship and authority, and the histories of censorship and affirming cultural divides within our own professions” (4). The chapters held in this important book identify conversations in comics librarianship that are lacking when it comes to collection management and organization, outreach, instruction, how language and classification can affect how comics are seen in academia, and more. The authors contribute needed information to the conversation. This book is a timely and essential addition to academic library literature. The book is split into five distinct sections: the basics, collecting, organizing, teaching, and reaching.

Academic Libraries and Engagement: A Critical Contextualization of the Library Discourse on Engagement

This article argues that the concept of engagement as it is used in the academic library literature requires greater structure and depth if the librarian community intends to appropriate and advance the usage of a phrase that resonates loudly across higher education. In reviewing the literature around engagement as well as in introducing critical perspectives from outside the library literature, this literature review and investigation demonstrates that engagement is a variously defined and used term that is both difficult to nail down but is essential to the healthy participation of an academic library in its respective community. The external perspectives introduced stem from the behavioral, psychological, and conceptual organizational approach to student engagement, whose application to academic libraries could be strengthened with a more critical grounding in the compelling terms and discourses of engagement as they are understood by those outside libraries. The framework of intellectual capital is introduced as a productive way of capturing the differing definitions and usages of the terms ‘student engagement’ and ‘engagement’.

Providing Staff Training and Programming to Support People with Disabilities: An Academic Library Case Study

This case study explores services academic libraries provide to students with disabilities and the impact these can have on the success and experience of these students. The study focuses on staff training and outreach programming. The authors examine the academic library literature surrounding these topics, provide examples of programming initiatives at the University of Tennessee Libraries, and include a curated list of local and national resources for supporting people with disabilities. Strategies are recommended for working with local and campus organizations to provide training and resources within the library along with suggestions for strengthening support services for this growing population.

Seeing the trees through the forest

Purpose – Collaborative efforts in academic library collection management and development are frequent topics in library literature. This paper aims to analyse the nature of collaborative projects among Hong Kong academic libraries, with a view to whether further synchronisation of collection management is likely or not. Design/methodology/approach – By comparing collaboration, as defined in the academic library literature from the 1970s to the present, to the status of current collaboration in academic libraries in Hong Kong, the local outlook for collaborative collection decisions among an eight-member library consortium was analysed. The ramification of local weeding projects and collection management decisions without a joint storage facility and its associated communication benefits regarding collection management decisions are detailed. Findings – Hong Kong academic libraries will all need to communicate clearly to one another and agree on local strategies before they can expect to build up to see a...

Seeing the trees through the forest

Purpose – Collaborative efforts in academic library collection management and development are frequent topics in library literature. This paper aims to analyse the nature of collaborative projects among Hong Kong academic libraries, with a view to whether further synchronisation of collection management is likely or not. Design/methodology/approach – By comparing collaboration, as defined in the academic library literature from the 1970s to the present, to the status of current collaboration in academic libraries in Hong Kong, the local outlook for collaborative collection decisions among an eight-member library consortium was analysed. The ramification of local weeding projects and collection management decisions without a joint storage facility and its associated communication benefits regarding collection management decisions are detailed. Findings – Hong Kong academic libraries will all need to communicate clearly to one another and agree on local strategies before they can expect to build up to see any benefits from collaboration in collection management and development. Originality/value – Although many of the themes have been touched upon before, in an Asian context it is useful to emphasize that success in collaboration is not dependent on budgets and resources alone.

Availability of Necessary Electronic Infrastructure to Support Open Access Initiative to Literature in Academic Libraries in Delta State, Nigeria

Rationale for the study is to ascertain the state of necessary electronic infrastructure that are available in academic libraries in Delta State, Nigeria which would be used to support Open Access to Literature Initiative. The research method adopted for the study was the descriptive survey design. The instrument for data collection was the questionnaire. The population consisted of 66 Librarians those working in dedicated IT units in the libraries. No sample was used because the population was small. The study revealed that a majority of the respondents are aware of the essential electronic infrastructure which will enable them benefit maximally from Open Access to Literature InitiativeOALI; and e-infrastructure facilities are available but in a poor state among others. The scheme is laudable considering the fact that libraries would be assisted in their collection development activities. This implies that funding bodies of libraries have much to do in term of making provision for the sustenance of OAI through adequate funding.

Collaborative Scholarship in Academic Library Literature: Who, What, and When

Academic librarianship is very much concerned with the scholarship of others, but what do we know about the scholarship of librarians? This empirical study examines the relationship between author demographics, article topic, and, in particular, faculty and librarian authorship collaboration in the academic library literature. Extensive data collection facilitated the analysis of trends, correlations, and frequencies. Significant findings were found regarding the number of authors, article type, and paper topic in the context of faculty and librarian authorship collaboration.

Globalizing children's literature in academic libraries using automatic acquisition

PurposeThis paper sets out to examine the use of an automatic acquisition plan to acquire international children's award book winners in academic libraries and to offer suggestions for promoting these resources.Design/methodology/approachThe paper examined the vendor's website, vendor‐created spreadsheets detailing award‐winning children's books from 2007‐2009, and book award websites.FindingsThe findings show that acquiring international children's award book winners using an automatic acquisition plan is an excellent starting‐point for developing international children's award collections. Featured awards favor works in English. Award books from all continents and regions are not available, but award winners chosen by ethnic and international organizations can be selected to broaden the ethnic and cultural diversity of the resources.Originality/valueThis paper details a beginning point for acquiring and promoting international children's award book winners for academic libraries in order to support multiculturalism and globalism by diversifying curriculum materials collection and providing vital resources for future educators and the larger campus community.

Preservation Needs of Children's Literature in Academic Libraries

A preservation needs survey of children's literature collections at the University of Colorado at Boulder Libraries is analyzed. The genre, the subject of a growing body of scholarship, has enduring value and is collected in universities to support programs in literature, education, art, cultural history, and more. Even well known children's literature titles prior to the twentieth century are now scarce; preservation of modern titles is not an unreasonable precaution. In this survey, older titles housed in special collections had many problems as a result of their provenance. Too brittle to be rebound and too rare to be replaced, yet too expensive to conserve, these volumes were boxed and placed in the palliative environment of an off-site storage facility. Cataloged online for the first time in preparation for their transfer, they are being used more heavily; their condition is monitored each time they are recalled. Out of copyright and usually short texts, the brittle titles are good candidates for in-house digitization. The survey found that the new titles in circulation cannot be subjected to simple re-binding. Processed and handled with consideration for their structure, the modern children's titles in the academic library setting will survive so long that replacements, when they are eventually needed, are not likely to be available.

Electronic women's grey literature in academic libraries

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to understand how electronic grey literature is being incorporated into Women's Studies collections at academic libraries.Design/methodology/approachThe electronic grey literature holdings of four American academic libraries at universities with graduate Women's Studies programs were collected and analyzed. This included: databases; digital special collections; web sites; and online course guides that the library had created for Women's Studies courses.FindingsWomen's Studies International and GenderWatch were the two most popular databases, being available at three of the four libraries studied. The most popular web sites were University of Wisconsin – Women's Studies Librarian (www.library.wisc.edu/libraries/WomensStudies/) and WSSLinks: Women and Gender Studies web sites (http://libr.org/wss/wsslinks/index.html). Recommended web sites were overwhelmingly multidisciplinary in nature and covered a variety of topics related to Women's Studies such as business, art, health, music, and philosophy. The digital collections with women's grey literature all dealt with historical topics and were either about a specific group of people or a specific person or place that had a tie to the university where it was housed.Originality/valueGrey literature is becoming an increasing popular topic in collection development and document preservation. However, there is little research on grey literature created by women. Specific databases and web sites that were found in the collections studied are mentioned so that other libraries may use the information to enhance their own collections.