Future Of Reference Service Research Articles

The Future of Reference Service: Treading into and Going beyond Digital Reference Service

The present paper is an endeavor to put light on the present bandwagon of digital reference service with a glimpse on the background and genesis of traditional reference service. The present online reference services include asynchronous transactions like e-mail, web forms, Ask-A type services and synchronous transactions like live chatting, video conferencing etc. Indisputably, though the method changes, the fundamental purpose of reference service remains and will remain unchanged. The digital reference process marks a line of demarcation for itself from the traditional one. However, there are some technological innovations like mobile apps, social networking, Live Chat with the online readers etc. which could rightly be said as the future of digital reference service which seem to be very beneficial for the people with special needs also.

Left to Their Own Devices: The Future of Reference Services on Personal, Portable Information, Communication, and Entertainment Devices

The mobile revolution, the fastest diffusion of technology in human history, is rapidly changing the future of reference services. Using personal, portable information, communication, and entertainment (PP ICE) devices to ask and receive reference information is not just another in the growing list of reference communication channels. PP ICE reference fuels mobile information experiences, which are integrated more closely with what one is doing and thinking at the moment. To be useful in the mobile era, library reference services need to overcome the reference desk mentality and the schedule fetish. Because of the mobile revolution, social search will rise again.

What Will Become of Reference in Academic and Public Libraries?

ABSTRACT Public and academic libraries continue to have a vital role in providing reference services. As more and more information is only available in electronic form, reference librarians need to reaffirm their core values. Some of the changes happening in reference include smaller reference collections, the disposition of printed reference books, and the increased use of electronic tools. Other topics include different service models for the reference desk, the changing nature of reference questions, and changes in staffing at the reference desk. Finally, the authors speculate about the future of reference services.

Print v. electronic reference sources: implications of an Australian study

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the evolving balance between the use of print and electronic sources for answering reference questions.Design/methodology/approachA review of the international literature from the mid‐1990s is conducted. A case study of reference questions received at the Northern Territory Library is undertaken, by auditing data held in the online reference information management system, RefTracker. Over 620 questions are categorised according to the sources used in responding to those questions.FindingsResults indicate that print and electronic sources are both important to the reference service at the Northern Territory Library.Research limitations/implicationsThere is great difficulty in assessing what constitutes a “correct” balance between print and electronic sources for responding to reference questions, and the current practice is likely to differ significantly between libraries. The results of the study are discussed in terms of their implications for the future of reference services and the education and training needs of reference librarians.Originality/valueFrom the results of this study, coupled with data gathered from the review of international literature, it is possible to identify trends and issues influencing reference services and collections.

Are Reference Desks Dying Out? Librarians Struggle to Redefine–and in Some Cases Eliminate–the Venerable Institution

ABSTRACT This article describes ways in which reference service is changing, including an evolution away from desk-based service, appointment-based reference, the use of social-networking tools, and physical presence outside of library buildings at alternate service sites; summarizes divergent views toward the future of reference service as expressed at the 2007 ACRL National Conference.

The Reference Question–Where Has Reference Been? Where Is Reference Going?

ABSTRACT This article describes the genesis for a seminal conference program at the ACRL National Conference of 2007, dealing with the future of reference service and the changes in technology that have affected reference over the past 30 years.

Success, Failure, Innovation and Uncertainty in Changing Times: A Selective Bibliography of Literature on Reference Services Since the 1980s

ABSTRACT A selective annotated bibliography of literature about reference services from 1984 to the present. The selected writings highlight how reference service has been challenged and changed over the last 20 years as a result of technological advances, shifts in information-seeking behavior, and inadequate monetary and human resources. This bibliography is meant to provide further reading on the topics covered by the articles in this issue on the current state and future of reference services.

Technology, cluelessness, anthropology, and the memex: the future of academic reference service

The future of the academic library and the future of reference service are inextricably interdependent. These include information technology, the role of the library as place, users’ values, and users’ naïveté about the complexity of information. Significant user values include immediacy, interactivity, personalization, and mobility. In order to develop services that respond to users’ need, librarians need to develop an anthropological understanding of their user communities. They also need to play a significant role in developing information systems. These need to provide personalized service. These ideas are not new; however, information technology has advanced to a point where they can be applied both practically and effectively. As librarians take a larger role in adapting information technologies to meet users’ information needs in ways that respond to their values, reference service must remain user‐centered; high‐tech and high touch are equally important.

The future of reference: an introduction

The Reference and User Services Association (RUSA) of the American Library Association held a program at the 2002 Annual ALA Meeting on “The future of reference services”. Five experts were asked to produce white papers on the topic and post them to the RUSA Web site (www.ala. org.rusa/forums/index.html) before the conference. At the program, the authors gave summaries of their major points and there was a general discussion of the topic. This forum was a part of a larger initiative by RUSA to help shape the future of reference. The papers and responses to them are presented here.

On the desirableness of personal relations between librarians and readers: the past and future of reference service

Presents a strong argument that the future of reference is part of an evolutionary process and that, by understanding the relationship of reference service to the library and of the library to its community, one can better understand how those relationships will evolve in the future. Notes that the four functions for reference librarians, as defined by Samuel Swett Green in 1876, remain the core of reference service today.

Reference futures: outsourcing, the Web, or knowledge counseling

Three possible scenarios for the future of reference services are described: outsourcing, the Web, and knowledge counseling. The ability to design reference services that users will continue to value in libraries of the future is limited by current professional reference practices. These limits are related to the failure to incorporate total quality management (TQM) principles into the design and practice of present day reference services. The following TQM principles are utilized to discuss the contrasts between TQM principles and current reference practices: focus on the customer, quality work the first time, strategic holistic approach to improvement, continuous improvement as a way of life, and mutual respect and teamwork. Finally, the roles that library organizations must fulfill to change the current professional culture are described.

Select Bibliography of Bunge's Publications Related to Reflections on the Past and Future of Reference Service

Select Bibliography of Bunge's Publications Related to Reflections on the Past and Future of Reference Service

The future of reference service

The future of reference service

The future of reference service: A response

Liste de questions que doit se poser un bibliothecaire de reference. Rappel de ce que ne doit pas etre un service de reference. Facon de considerer les statistiques. Qualites que doit avoir un bibliothecaire de reference pour aborder le futur

The future of reference service: A response

Malgre les changements que connaissent les services de reference, les bibliothecaires de reference resteront. Par ailleurs ils ont a se poser les problemes de la variete des outils informatiques, du financement de l'acces a l'information, des materiaux anciens, des connaissances a avoir

The Reference Department Budget in the High Tech Era

Machine-based information products, such as optical disc databases and microforms, compete with traditional print resources for limited budgets in today's reference departments. The authors surveyed the reference departments of 159 large academic libraries regarding their use of optical discs, and 19 libraries regarding their use of microforms. Despite the high cost of the first generation of optical disc systems, 55% of the reference departments reported using them. User response to the systems is generally very favorable. Problems noted by librarians included equipment failure, uneven database quality, and frequent need to service the systems. Respondents overwhelmingly felt that optical discs will play a significant role in the future of reference service. However, until equipment compatibility problems are resolved and system prices drop, prudent reference librarians will purchase optical discs selectively. The survey of 19 California State University libraries on their use of microforms revealed that...