Who do they think we are? Addressing library identity perception in the academy

CARL Conference | April 6, 2014

Margot HansonCalifornia Maritime

Academy

Annis Lee AdamsGolden Gate University

Who do they think we are? Addressing library identity perception in the academy

When you tell people on a plane or at a dinner

party that you’re a librarian, what reactions

do you hear?

Source: EpicTube

Research question

What are academics writing in online higher education forums about libraries and librarians?

Value of Academic LibrariesOakleaf, M. (2010). ACRL.

“When academic librarians learn about their impact on users, they increase their value by proactively delivering improved

services and resources to students...; to faculty preparing publications...; to

administrators needing evidence to make decisions. Indeed, the demonstration of value is not about looking valuable; it’s

about being valuable.”

IthakaHousewright, R., Schonfeld, R., & Wulfson, K. (2013). Ithaka S+R US Faculty Survey 2012.

Libraries = purchasing agent

$

Academics Online: Their Interests and FoiblesMeyer, K. A., & McNeal, L. (2011). The Internet and Higher Education.

“Like so many others, these academics like to discuss

their jobs, their research, and professional lives and are

especially interested in the institutions where they

work.”

The Online Disinhibition EffectSuler, J. (2004). CyberPsychology & Behavior.

“Everyday users on the Internet—as well as clinicians and

researchers—have noted how people say and do things in

cyberspace that they wouldn’t ordinarily say and do in the face-

to-face world.”

Trolls just want to have funBuckels, E., Trapnell, P. and Paulhus, D. (2014) Personality and Individual Differences

“Both studies revealed similar patterns of relations between trolling and the Dark Tetrad of personality: trolling correlated positively with sadism,

psychopathy, and Machiavellianism, using both enjoyment ratings and

identity scores…Thus cyber-trolling appears to be an Internet manifestation

of everyday sadism.”

The Nasty EffectAnderson, A. A. et al. (2013). Journal of Computer- Mediated Communication.

“Online communication and discussion of new topics…has the potential to enrich public deliberation. Nevertheless…online incivility may impede this democratic goal.

…Impolite and incensed blog comments can polarize online users based on value predispositions utilized as heuristics when processing the blog's information.”

Popular Science“Why We're Shutting Off Our Comments”by Suzanne LaBarre, Sept. 24, 2013

“Comments can be bad for science. That's why, here at PopularScience.com,

we're shutting them off.

It wasn't a decision we made lightly...we are as committed to fostering lively, intellectual debate as we are to spreading the word of science far and wide. The problem is when trolls and spambots overwhelm the

former, diminishing our ability to do the latter.”

Godwin’s Law

“As an online discussion grows longer, the

probability of a comparison involving

Nazis or Hitler approaches 1”

What experiences have you had?

Do you comment online?

Content Analysis

“Content analysis is particularly well suited … to answering the

classic question of communications research; Who says what, to whom, why, how,

and with what effect”

“The study of recorded human

communications.”

Babbie, Earl. (2007). The practice of social research. Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth.

Publications Analyzed

● EBSCO serials list category for higher education

● Online● Comments● Library articles

Do you read

OR

?

Criteria for Selecting Articles for Analysis

● About academic libraries or librarians

● Have comments

● Published between 2011-2013

● Freely available articles

Search Each Publication

Search instructions for Inside Higher Ed:● Use general search box [library]● Narrow by tag <Libraries> (for 2012-2013)● For 2011, manually look for library articles● Narrow by year● Narrow by content type <articles>

Search instruction for Chronicle of Higher Ed:● Use general search box [library]● Narrow by tag <Libraries> (for 2011 & 2012)● For 2013, manually look for library articles● Narrow by publication date <Less than 3 years>● Narrow by content type <articles>

PRICE OF A BAD REVIEW: ACADEMIC PRESS SUES LIBRARIAN

Lawsuit [10 articles]

ON MISTAKENLY SHREDDING A PRIZED COLLECTION

Collection Development [9 articles]

OUT OF FEAR, COLLEGES LOCK BOOKS AND IMAGES AWAY FROM SCHOLARS

Copyright [8 articles]

Digitization/Preservation [7 articles]

GIVING DIGITAL PRESERVATION A BACKBONE

CITATION BY CITATION, NEW MAPS CHART HOT RESEARCH AND SCHOLARSHIP’S HIDDEN TERRAIN

Scholarly Communication [7 articles]

LIBRARIANS OR BARISTAS?

Changing Library Mission/Future of Libraries [6 articles]

AT LIBRARIES, QUIET MAKES A COMEBACK

Changing Library Space [6 articles]

THE CUSTOMER IS ALWAYS RIGHT: MARYMOUNT ENLISTS STUDENTS TO MYSTERY SHOP

Responsiveness to Patron Needs [6 articles]

RESEARCH LIBRARIES INCREASE SPENDING ON DIGITAL MATERIALS

Budget [5 articles]

COLLEGE LIBRARIANS LOOK AT BETTER WAYS TO MEASURE THE VALUE OF THEIR SERVICES

Assessment [4 articles]

A HOLE LOT OF BOOKS

Off-site Storage [4 articles]

Staffing [4 articles]

TO LIBRARY, OR NOT TO LIBRARY

Most commented articlesThe Research BustChronicle of Higher Ed

Academic Publisher Steps Up Efforts to Stop Piracy of Its Online ProductsChronicle of Higher Ed

Price of a Bad ReviewInside Higher Ed

In Win for Libraries Over Publishers, Supreme Court Upholds Reselling of Foreign BooksChronicle of Higher Ed

Out of Fear, Colleges Lock Books and Images Away From ScholarsChronicle of Higher Ed

144

72

56

48

44

Contacted the 2 main reporters on libraries from each publication

1. How you do choose what library-related articles to write? Do you have a library “beat”?

2. Do the comments on a story have any influence on future publication decisions?

3. What trends or changes have you noticed in the evolution of online commenting?

Commenting Platform

Comments can be posted anonymously or signed

Commenting Policy

Both have commenting etiquette policies

Inside Higher Ed➢ All comments reviewed by editor

Chronicle of Higher Ed➢ Unclear if moderated, but seems not. They rely

on readers to flag spam and abide by their guidelines, etc.

It was hard not to get defensive and talk back

to the comments!

303 comments coded

79 “irrelevant” comments

Changing Library Environment [54 comments]

“P.D.A. in the Library” by Steve Kolowich. October 28, 2011. Inside Higher Ed.

Libraries/Librarians Need to… [46 comments]

“College Librarians Look at Better Ways to Measure the Value of Their Services” by Jennifer Howard. April 1, 2011. Chronicle of Higher Ed.

OUR Library is Doing it This Way… [34 comments]

“Short on Space, Libraries Look to One Another for Solutions” by Jennifer Howard. October 7, 2013. Chronicle of Higher Ed.

Library Cheerleader/Defender[33 comments]

“To Library, or Not to Library” by David Moltz. January 13, 2011. Inside Higher Ed.

We are Doing the Best We Can [30 comments]

“College Librarians Look at Better Ways to Measure the Value of Their Services” by Jennifer Howard. April 1, 2011. Chronicle of Higher Ed.

Funding Pressures[28 comments]

“Debate at N.Y. Public Library Raises Question: Can Off-Site Storage Work for Researchers?” by Jennifer Howard. April 22, 2012. Chronicle of Higher Ed.

Patrons Don’t Know How to Use the Library (Need for Info Literacy) [26 comments]

“Assessing Campus Libraries” by Steve Kolowich. November 30, 2012. Inside Higher Ed.

Faculty/Students Need to… [23 comments]

“College Librarians Look at Better Ways to Measure the Value of Their Services” by Jennifer Howard. April 1, 2011. Chronicle of Higher Ed.

Questioning Library Administrative Decisions[23 comments]

“Library Limbo” by Elizabeth Murphy. September 27, 2011. Inside Higher Ed.

Library is Invisible/Underutilized [22 comments]

“Scholars Increasingly Use Online Resources, Survey Finds, but They Value Traditional Formats Too” by Jennifer Howard. April 8, 2013. Chronicle of Higher Ed.

“The Customer is Always Right” by Kevin Kiley. December 3, 2012. Inside Higher Ed.

Higher Education is going to Hell in a Handbasket [21 comments]

Snark [20 comments]

“A Hole Lot of Books” by Kevin Kiley. May 18, 2011. Inside Higher Ed.

Fear of Digital Library Future/Fear of Change [16 comments]

“College Librarians Look at Better Ways to Measure the Value of Their Services” by Jennifer Howard. April 1, 2011. Chronicle of Higher Ed.

Libraries Should Never Discard Anything! [13 comments]

“Short on Space, Libraries Look to One Another for Solutions” by Jennifer Howard. October 7, 2013. Chronicle of Higher Ed.

Google is Easier/Databases are Awkward [9 comments]

“College Librarians Look at Better Ways to Measure the Value of Their Services” by Jennifer Howard. April 1, 2011. Chronicle of Higher Ed.

“College Librarians Look at Better Ways to Measure the Value of Their Services” by Jennifer Howard. April 1, 2011. Chronicle of Higher Ed.

Need to Demonstrate Value (Assessment) [8 comments]

Libraries are Unnecessary [7 comments]

“Assessing Campus Libraries” by Steve Kolowich. November 30, 2012. Inside Higher Ed.

Possible Further Research

● Public libraries● Longer period of time● Do library-related articles get more or

fewer comments than other topics?

Thank You!Any Questions?

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