Library Experience Research Articles

The potential use of immersive virtual environments for collecting and archiving heritage gameplay activities in digital libraries

Purpose This paper aims to discuss and propose the potential use of immersive virtual environments (IVEs) for archiving and collecting heritage gameplay activities in digital libraries, which is expected to triangulate further discussions on the said knowledge scopes. Design/methodology/approach The key question of this paper is, how we can preserve and revitalize fading heritage game activities in digital libraries? To answer this, the paper is going to understand the applications of IVEs in heritage studies; the use of telepresence experiences in IVEs for activity-based collection; the creation of virtual and telepresence experiences in digital libraries; and a proposed use of IVEs for archiving heritage gameplay activities. Findings The applications of IVEs and/or other virtual technologies have certainly been gaining positive feedback about their ability to provide vivid images of artefacts and art pieces; perform a high level of interactivity between the exhibits and visitors; enhance visitors’ sense of immersion that evoke their memories of heritage issues; facilitate visitors’ learning process in libraries; increase enjoyment in digital libraries. As mentioned in the previous section, the activity-based historical collection, for instance, the heritage gameplay activities, can be preserved and archived vividly using IVEs. Research limitations/implications This paper is explorative, there is no empirical result for generalization. Originality/value This paper aims to provide librarians with valuable insight to apply IVEs for archiving and collecting heritage gameplay activities. Setting up a new type of digital library is affected greatly by the openness of librarians, visitors’ expectations and a whole lot of things that are happening around the technological world and digital culture. This paper addresses the applications of IVEs in heritage studies, the importance of creating virtual and telepresence experiences for library visits as well as proposing the use of IVEs for archiving heritage gameplay activities.

School librarian experience as an agent in fostering a reading culture

School librarian experience as an agent in fostering a reading culture

“Begging to be heard”: The Profession’s Exclusion and Marginalization of Neurodivergent Librarians

While libraries are increasingly implementing practices and services designed to serve neurodivergent patrons, such efforts have not yet been extended to neurodivergent library employees, resulting in a lack of research or best practices for workplace neuroinclusion. This research addresses that gap by investigating neuroinclusion in public and academic library workplaces and identifying barriers to and enablers of inclusion and empowerment. This work highlights the voices of neurodivergent librarians and their journey of negotiating identity and deploying embodied knowledge to navigate the barriers and enablers they encounter in their workplace and profession. This study will inform how libraries can alter their workplace environment, practices, and professional norms to improve the recruitment, retention, and advancement of neurodivergent librarians. Historically, neurodiversity research has been conducted on neurodivergent people from a medicalized perspective, focusing on diagnosis and characteristics of individuals and proposing interventions or changes to the individual or their behavior. This study instead centers neurodivergence by adopting a neurodiversity paradigm and critical disability approach to conducting research with and by neurodivergent people themselves, in accordance with their priorities and values. This study will expand library literature by attending to the various intersecting identities of neurodivergent people and analyzing the impact of professional norms and expectations on the workplace experiences of neurodivergent librarians. Through the development of this unique critical approach to ‘centering neurodivergence,’ this work will also contribute a new research paradigm for future research on neurodiversity. Furthermore, this dissertation will highlight neuroinclusive workplace practices that librarians can enact in their library workplaces.

Risk of Bias in Liver Imaging Reporting and Data System Studies Using QUADAS-2.

Purpose: Use a tailored version of the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies tool to evaluate risk of bias and applicability across LIRADS related publications. Method: A tailored QUADAS-2 tool was created through consensus approach to assess risk of bias and applicability across 37 LI-RADS related publications. Studies were selected from 2017 to 2022 using the assistance of experienced hospital librarians to search for studies evaluating the diagnostic accuracy of CT, MRI, or contrast-enhanced ultrasound for HCC using LI-RADS through multiple different databases. QUADAS-2 assessments were performed in duplicate and independently by 2 authors with experience using the QUADAS-2 tool. Disagreements were resolved with a third expert reviewer. Consensus QUADAS-2 assessments were tabulated for each domain. Results: Using the tailored QUADAS-2 tool, 31 of the 37 included LI-RADS studies were assessed as high risk of bias, and 9 out of 37 studies demonstrated concerns for applicability. Patient selection (21 out of 37 studies) and flow/timing (24 out of 37 studies) domains demonstrated the highest risk of bias. 6 out of 37 studies in the index domain demonstrated high risk of bias. 2 out of 37 studies showed high risk of bias in the reference standard domain. Conclusion: A significant proportion of LI-RADS research is at risk of bias with concerns for applicability. Identifying risk of bias in such research is essential to recognize limitations of a study that may affect the validity of the results. Areas for improvement in LI-RADS research include reducing selection bias, avoiding inappropriate exclusions, and decreasing verification bias.

Preservice Librarians and Principals' Hiring Practice

Every year, principals face the challenge of hiring staff to fill the open positions on their campus and may only hire one or two school librarians during their tenure. School principals can build a cohesive team to help ensure student success by hiring staff with strong leadership skills. School librarian preparation standards suggest that school librarians be educated to serve as leaders (American Library Association, American Association of School Libraries, & Council for the Accreditation of Educators Preparation, 2019). Moreover, the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) advocates for the leadership role of school librarians in its mission statement (2018). Research indicates that transformational leadership behaviors apply to school librarians because they interact with the entire school community and may serve as change agents to positively transform their school’s culture (Smith, 2011). This study posits that principals often hire preservice school librarians instead of experienced school librarians. Therefore, there is a need to understand the relationship between the hiring criteria identified by principals and the leadership role specified in the school librarian standards. This mixed-methods study examines the criterion principals use to hire librarians and their alignment with the transformational leadership behaviors of preservice librarians.

Exploring the Impact of Generative Artificial Intelligence on Higher Education Students’ Utilization of Library Resources

In the field of higher education, generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) has become a revolutionary influence, shaping how students access and use library resources. This study explores the intricate balance of both positive and negative effects that GenAI might have on the academic library experience for higher education (HE) students. The key aspects of enhanced discovery and retrieval, personalization and engagement, streamlined research processes, and digital literacy and information evaluation potentially offered through using generative AI will be considered. These prospective advantages to HE students offered by using GenAI will be examined through will be examined through the theoretical framework of the Technological Acceptance Model (TAM) introduced by Davis et al. in 1986, which suggests that perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use are key factors in determining user acceptance and utilization of technology. The adoption of GenAI by higher education students will be analyzed from this viewpoint before assessing its impact on their use of library resources.

Evolving Perceptions of Intellectual Freedom and the Right to Read in Library Science Students: An MLS Program Self-Study

To understand the effect of library science coursework on student perceptions of issues related to intellectual freedom, researchers surveyed students at the start and end of their enrollment in a Master of Library Science program. When the results were compared, the percentage of graduating students who indicated that they might rethink purchasing a resource because of non–age-appropriate content and potential parent objection was significantly higher than that of beginning students. The percentage of graduating students who identified sexual content and profanity as potential reasons not to acquire an item was also significantly higher than that of beginning students. On the other hand, graduating students were less likely to classify their own personal views as potential reasons to avoid collecting a title. Finally, a greater percentage of graduating students were uncertain about the appropriateness of restricted collections for potentially controversial items than beginning students. In the second phase of the study, researchers interviewed program graduates with at least five years of professional experience in libraries to ascertain how their work experiences and environments had affected their perception of intellectual freedom, censorship, and the right of access to information regardless of age. These librarians were strong advocates for diverse collections despite increasing external pressure to censor resources, particularly items with LGBTQ content and characters. Most felt it necessary to have some type of restricted collections so that children did not check out material above their grade or age level.

Guest Speakers as Mentors: What Classroom Experiences Mean to Them

Resulting from the collaboration between five practicing professionals and an LIS faculty member, this article illuminates the experiences of librarians and archivists who engage with LIS students on a continuous basis as guest speakers in LIS classrooms. The phenomenological approach helps to elicit first-hand accounts that encapsulate practitioners’ priorities and concerns. The free-floating narratives are combined with an extensive literature review related to mentorship practices in professional fields; they are used to produce a blended viewpoint-analytical article that places empirical data in the context of the three-pronged framework of mentorship motivations, focusing on outcome-oriented, student-oriented, and personal-learning-oriented motivations. These types of mentorship motivations focus on transmitting professional knowledge, socializing LIS students to become responsible professional citizens, and learning about the state of the field and the workforce from students themselves. The article provides suggestions for future empirical research into the motivation of LIS professionals who choose to mentor LIS students through classroom engagements and other avenues.

Enhancing User Experience in Small Academic Libraries: Leveraging Matomo Analytics as a UX Design Tool

Enhancing User Experience in Small Academic Libraries: Leveraging Matomo Analytics as a UX Design Tool

Features of Reference and Bibliographic Services for Students in University Libraries

Students are in a continuous process of communication, using various information environments and electronic resources of the Internet. But at the same time they do not interact with libraries enough, they do not know their capabilities. This paper highlights the issue of effective use of modern technologies to create forms and methods of reference and bibliographic services adapted to the information needs of students. The purpose of the article is to identify the experience of foreign university libraries aimed at attracting students and increasing their awareness of reference services on the basis of publications in English-language periodicals. Readers belonging to the Internet generation are an active segment of the target audience, and specialists of reference and bibliographic services should study their individual information needs and purposefully promote library resources and services oriented to the youth audience. One of the ways to solve these problems is to organize library cooperation programmes, where librarians integrate their knowledge and skills into the educational process, being in constant contact with both students and university lecturers. The article considers the key vectors of development of reference and bibliographic services in the conditions of modern society. It is concluded that students prefer a multi-level hybrid model of reference bibliographic service with the fulfillment of user requests (remotely and face-to-face) in the context of their personal preferences in combination with independent search using information resources of libraries.

Interim Leadership

Upon the departure of a library administrator, such as dean or director, a librarian may be asked to serve in a leadership position on a limited term or open-ended, interim basis. In such a position, an interim leader can feel isolated, overwhelmed, and unprepared to navigate the challenges of the role. With this in mind, this column focuses specifically on the needs and experiences of librarians serving in interim leadership positions. Topics addressed include roles and expectations, planning and transparency, relationships and support, and imposter syndrome. The column concludes with a summary of advice for interim library leaders and the rewards that may result.

Library design, amenities, and services for enhancing the reading experience

This study explored user perspectives on library design elements, amenities, and services that can potentially enhance the reading experience. Data were collected through a self-administered questionnaire with 537 students. The majority of respondents (86.8%) reported enjoying reading in library environments. Regarding design aspects, having an integrated layout with shelves, chairs and tables cohesively arranged in the reading room was most appealing. Users also favored the presence of other readers and collaborative table designs. Group-study rooms were viewed positively, with 51.2% strongly liking the option to use them and perceiving benefits for learning. While opinions were divided on introducing food services, most supported adding new technologies like 3D printers, art galleries, and museum exhibits. Chi-square analysis revealed significant associations between enjoying library reading and preferences for shared reading spaces with other users (p = 0.024) and group-study rooms. In conclusion, fostering a sense of community, scholarly exchange, and integrated space conducive to focused reading emerged as key factors for enhancing the reading experience in libraries.

Recognising a kaleidoscopic archive: working with London Missionary Society records in the geekosphere’

This article is an ultra-reflective account of an encounter with London Missionary Society (LMS) records through the Australian Joint Copying Project (AJCP) collections at the State Library of Victoria (SLV) and the home office as socially and materially informed research spaces. The genealogies of surrogate archives are little analysed, yet they have complex pasts worth investigating. As Jasmine Burns (JALSNA 33: 150–167, 2024), the librarian and metadata specialist explained, information about an archive’s ancestry is valuable as it illuminates the history and a pattern of use beyond the original author’s intent. The subsequent discussion shows how I inspect descriptive categories associated with the AJCP LMS microfilmed and digitised records in the custody of SLV, the London School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and the National Library of Australia, (NLA) showing how meaning was layered onto these records. Extending on the social historian Arlette Farge’s analogy of the archive as a kaleidoscope, I demonstrate the introductory process by which a historian determines absences and presences in the archive and to what extent the initial imperial categories used by archivists and librarians informed my research practices. By analysing the history of the LMS AJCP collection, I demonstrate how these Australian-Pacific artefacts contain layers of knowledge about historical cultures and relationships. The different agendas and experiences of librarians, archivists, and historians—all curators of historical records –have revealed or obscured encounter narratives concerning European and indigenous men and women.

Transforming Academic Libraries: Navigating Change and Embracing innovation in the Digital Era

Academic libraries are undergoing a profound transformation in response to technological advancements, changing user expectations, and shifts in scholarly communication paradigms, prompting a reevaluation of roles, services, and structures This study sought to explore the transformative processes within academic libraries prompted by the digital era, addressing the levels of technological integration, user experience, services, data management, open access, and resource allocation, investigating the influencing factors on the incorporation of change and innovation, and examining the lived experiences of librarians navigating change and embracing innovation. This mixed-method design study explored the challenges faced by academic libraries in the face of technological advancements. It revealed that while a moderate level of technological integration indicated a willingness to adopt technology, a strong commitment to data management and open access underscored modern library practices. However, areas for improvement emerged in User Experience and Services and Resource Allocation, prompting recommendations for a holistic strategy that integrated technology, prioritized user experience, and optimized resource allocation. Staff resistance is identified as the primary factor influencing change and innovation incorporation. The study also highlighted key challenges faced by librarians, such as budget allocation, staff adaptation, resistance to change, technological infrastructure issues, and user-centric concerns.

Facial length and angle feature recognition for digital libraries.

With the continuous progress of technology, facial recognition technology is widely used in various scenarios as a mature biometric technology. However, the accuracy of facial feature recognition has become a major challenge. This study proposes a face length feature and angle feature recognition method for digital libraries, targeting the recognition of different facial features. Firstly, an in-depth study is conducted on the architecture of facial action networks based on attention mechanisms to provide more accurate and comprehensive facial features. Secondly, a network architecture based on length and angle features of facial expressions, the expression recognition network is explored to improve the recognition rate of different expressions. Finally, an end-to-end network framework based on attention mechanism for facial feature points is constructed to improve the accuracy and stability of facial feature recognition network. To verify the effectiveness of the proposed method, experiments were conducted using the facial expression dataset FER-2013. The experimental results showed that the average recognition rate for the seven common expressions was 97.28% to 99.97%. The highest recognition rate for happiness and surprise was 99.97%, while the relatively low recognition rate for anger, fear, and neutrality was 97.18%. The data has verified that the research method can effectively recognize and distinguish different facial expressions, with high accuracy and robustness. The recognition method based on attention mechanism for facial feature points has effectively optimized the recognition process of facial length and angle features, significantly improving the stability of facial expression recognition, especially in complex environments, providing reliable technical support for digital libraries and other fields. This study aims to promote the development of facial recognition technology in digital libraries, improve the service quality and user experience of digital libraries.

SYNERGIZING ACADEMIC ANIMATION AND AI INTEGRATION FOR ENRICHED LIBRARY EXPERIENCE

Libraries must maintain a harmonic balance between technology and the human aspect to ensure patrons receive the best possible service. This conceptual paper combines academic animation and artificial intelligence to create a library experience. This study proposes using animation to enhance patrons' library experience. Using artificial intelligence and machine learning in a natural language can enrich the library experience.

From the Concept of Storing Documents in Electronic Form to the Regulatory and Legal Basis of Creating National Archival and Library Information Resources

The aim of the article is to study conceptual principles of storing documents in electronic form, in particular, electronic documents, digital documents and creating metadata for them, taking into account integration processes of grounding national information resources in archival and library spheres of activity. Additionally, to trace tendencies in the implementation of existing concepts, to identify the best Ukrainian practices, to highlight defects, and offer possible ways to solve problems. Research methods. This study uses the following methods: theoretical, as moving from the abstract to the concrete, reality reflection in thinking; empirical, as observation and comparison; complex, as system analysis, synthesis and modulation; special, as graphic and component analysis; prognostication. Scientific novelty consists in implementating a systematic interdisciplinary comparative analysis of the problem of storing documents in electronic form in archives and libraries, in order to determine the directions for solving this problem, using the definition of common requirements for similar information objects and processes, particularly, in the context of the initiative to create the National Electronic Library of Ukraine, in which it is offered to integrate information on objects of national heritage stored in archives, libraries, museums, as well as thereafter data from publishers. Main conclusions. Based on the results of this research, it should be stated that Ukrainian archivists achieved the greatest success in developing the overall system from creation the documents in electronic form to their transmission for permanent storage. An important issue is the development of the “long-term storage” system, the formation of which, in our opinion, should begin with the requirements for the information objects with which this system will be filled. This will significantly affect the structure and content of the metadata needed to manage this system. The successful experience of Ukrainian archivists and librarians should be used here. The most urgent task is to put the finishing touches to the Concept of creating the National Electronic Library of Ukraine according to the best domestic and foreign practices.

Black Students’ Experiences and Perceptions of the Library at a Predominately White Institution

abstract: In this study, researchers investigated the library experiences of Black undergraduate students at Penn State in University Park, a predominately white institution. Their goal was to improve services and spaces and to highlight and validate experiences with race, racism, and microaggressions on campus and in the library. Twenty undergraduate students were interviewed and asked to talk about their experiences and how these affected their perception of the University Libraries. Using the lens of critical race theory, which sees race as a socially constructed category used to oppress people of color, this study seeks to present a counternarrative to the prevailing dominant view of the library as a neutral space. Several consistent themes were identified. The themes included, but were not limited to, a low awareness of library services, lack of Black representation in the University Libraries, and a general lack of comfort within the library space.

THE ROLE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN DIGITAL ENVIRONMENT OF LIBRARIES

AI in academic libraries has been a topic of interest. In recent years. Artificial Intelligence has been making its way into libraries and transforming the way they operate Artificial Intelligence technology is being used to improve the library experience for patterns, enhance library services, and streamline library operations. The study found that some college and research libraries show interest engage with Artificial Intelligence most notably Delhi Centre Libraries. The library collection project collaboration starts with future uses from academic librarians but the study also indicated a lack of response are awareness of the current IA trend.

Library of the Auditorium of Military Affairs in 1918—1921: History and Development of the Holding

The solution of urgent tasks to develop modern approaches to the organization of military libraries functioning is impossible without using the existing achievements in the field of military librarianship. Retrospective analysis of the work of the Information Historical and Scientific Center — Military Historical Library of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation (IHSC — MHL GS AF RF) in the Soviet period can be used to improve the work of Russian military libraries at the present stage.Due to the lack of comprehensive studies on the history of the IHSC — MHL GS AF RF in the first years of Soviet power, this article attempts to fill this gap, in particular, to establish the sources of formation of the collection of the library, which changed its name. The aim of the study is to reconstruct the history of creation and formation of one of such sources — the library of the Auditorium of Military Affairs (later — the Department of Universal Military Training at the headquarters of the Petrograd District Commissariat for Military Affairs) in the context of the construction of the Workers’ and Peasants’ Red Army (WPRA) in 1918—1921, as well as to analyze the dynamics of the library holding.The relevance of the issue under study is conditioned, on the one hand, by its insufficient research, and on the other hand, by the demand for the historical experience of military libraries to develop principled approaches to their reform. The source base of the research is represented by the materials of Russian archives (the Russian State Military Archive, the Central State Archive of Literature and Art of St. Petersburg, the Current Archive of the IHSC — MHL GS AF RF), documents of the main and central bodies of military administration of the RSFSR, publications in the periodical press.The research has broadened the understanding of the fate of military book collections of the Russian Empire after its collapse and the initial stage of formation of military librarianship in Soviet Russia. The fate of some nationalized book collections before they were added to the holding of the library of the Auditorium of Military Affairs has been established. The documents revealing the main directions of the library’s activity have been introduced into scientific turnover; its organizational and staff structure has been analyzed; the interrelation of the library’s history with the history of the Red Army in the first years of Soviet power has been traced. The results obtained show that the impressive book collection accumulated by the library of the Auditorium of Military Affairs is now a part of the holding of the IHSC — MHL GS AF RF.