A Technology Plan prepared by Barbara J. Hampton, 2003
in partial fulfillment of the requirements of ILS 537-70
under the supervision of Dr. Mary Brown
at Southern Connecticut State University
While the use of direct access to information sources via the Internet continues
to grow exponentially, often, the first source of information remains personal
acquaintance. Searchers find human interaction pleasant, personalized, and efficient,
yet seem to bypass the librarians who might also offer these qualities (Hampton,
2003; Young & Von Seggern, 2001). Generally reluctant to receive formal
bibliographic instruction, users have indicated a preference to "figure
it out" while searching (Hampton, 2003). With domain experts (such as in
a law library or medical library), users apply specific search strategies combined
with subject-matter expertise which they may doubt the librarian possesses;
yet they, too, turn first to trusted individuals, though not librarians (Hampton,
2003; Kulthau & Tama, 2001; Sutton, 1994; and Wilkinson, 2001).
With data-mining (France, Yen, Wang, & Chang, 2002; Gargano & Raggad,
1999; and Mudrock, 2002) and artificial intelligence (Balleste, 2002; and Smith,
2002) applications, librarians can add value to the information services they
provide by providing "just-for-me" information guide services, as
described by Kulthau & Tama (2001). Information about searches can be regularly
harvested (without identifying information) as a guide to collection development.
Additional features specific to a given user could be "turned on"
at the option of the user. At the beginning of a search session, a user could
be given the option of searching through an individualized shell, with intelligent
agents asking "Would you like some recommendations of good websites and
other resources about __________?) If a user chooses to maintain a personal
search profile, words could be interpreted according to the context most often
chosen by that user. For the search term "IRA, a user whose profile indicates
an interest in politics would be pointed first to information on the Irish Republican
Army; an investor would be pointed first to information on Individual Retirement
Accounts.
For many users, the librarian currently serves more to deliver the requested
item than to guide the user along an efficient and effective path towards information.
By providing the added value service of a professional information guide, the
public library can better compete with commercial internet information sources
and engender increased loyalty and support for the library as a community service.
Virtual assistants on library computer systems and data mining of patron preferences
hold the promise of blending the power of electronic searching with personalized
search guidance.
Southbury, Connecticut, is a mid-sized suburban town with a population of diverse
incomes, education, and ages. Interstate 84 bisects our town which has grown
from a farming community of about 2,000 to a bedroom community of about 20,000
in the past 35 years. Several retirement condominiums, assisted living facilities,
and nursing homes are located in town, creating a large segment of the population
in retirement or with disabilities. Some local families date back to the first
European settlers in the area in the 1600's. Others are here as corporate transients,
expecting to be relocated within a few years. These groups have raised the average
educational and wealth levels of Southbury and fostered a technologically sophisticated
community.
The Southbury Public Library has approximately 8,000 registered users and has
begun work on a new library building. Collister Library is the private library
of South Britain Congregational Church, with membership of approximately 300,
which is in transition from a jumbled collection of church books to an organized
religious information center.
To change the image of the librarian with these user groups from that of a delivery
service to that of a personalized information guide, users will be provided
several opportunities to make a personal connection with the access services/reference
librarian. Efforts will be focused initially on new library patrons as a means
to manage the size and budget implications of the project and to provide opportunities
for evaluation and revision of the plan prior to institution-wide adoption.
Individuals new to the town are estimated to be approximately 500 annually,
of whom approximately 200 register at the Public Library. An unknown number
of church members will choose to become registered patrons of Collister Library
during its first year of automation.
Goal I: Users will become personally acquainted with the access services/reference
librarians.
Action I: Each newly registering user will be personally introduced to access services/reference librarian on duty, who will provide patron with a Welcome Packet, including user guide, map, internet access and NetLibrary information, and pathfinder (see Activity II). User will be offered a brief (10-15 minute) tour of library by the librarian.
Goal II: Users will see personal information interests affirmatively
reflected in library acquisitions.
Action II: Each newly registering user will be asked to identify "favorites" (titles, authors, series, topics, genres, and functions of particular interest at the library) via a questionnaire as part of registration. The access services/reference librarian will offer to assist the patron in locating current holdings from this list and will provide one or more relevant or popular pathfinder guides as part of the Welcome Packet. Other users will also have the opportunity to prepare a "favorites" list.
Goal III: Users will be offered search method guidance contemporaneously with a particular query.
Activity IIIA: Librarian will develop print and online versions of pathfinder guides for popular search topics. Pathfinders will be retrieved online through menu links and in response to site search function.
Activity IIIB: Access services/reference librarian will investigate feasibility of adding a virtual reference agent to OPAC services (Smith, 2002).
Goal IV: Data will be harvested from all search queries (in person, telephone,
and online). At option of patron, query topics will be identified by patron
and used to compile e-mail alert of new and recommended resources of interest.
Activity IVA: As supported by OPAC and subscription database services, access services/reference librarian will collect records of searches to identify popular areas for collection development, pathfinder creation, and user tips.
Activity IVB: Users contacting access services/reference librarian (upon initial registration and during subsequent reference interviews) will be offered e-mail alert service which will be matched to the users' "favorites" list (titles, authors, series, topics, genres, and functions of particular interest at the library). Using a relational database (such as Microsoft Access), the librarian will send monthly or quarterly alerts of new and recommended resources.
Activity IVC: Librarians will work with library networks to secure OPAC and subscription database services that provide artificial intelligent agents ("bots") to be used to offer real-time search recommendations and personal preference custom screens for users who choose to log on individually and create personal preference profiles.
To measure the changes in patron attitudes toward and user of professional librarian
reference services, the libraries need to conduct a broad-based investigation
of current attitudes and opinions. A brief (1 page) written and/or online survey
is the least expensive method with the greatest level of participation. Members
of the Friends of the Library group can be enlisted to individually solicit
participation from visitors to the library. This survey should ask patrons:
1. I personally met or spoken with a reference librarian at this library :
a. In the past month;
b. In the past three months;
c. In the past six months;
d. In the past twelve months;
e. Not at all during the past twelve months;
2. When I am looking for new information, I begin by:
a. Talking to a family member or friend;
b. Searching on the Internet in general;
c. Searching our library's catalogue and databases online;
d. Talking to one of our librarians;
e. Visiting the library and finding things on my own;
3. My greatest frustration in trying to find new information is:
A similar survey instrument
should be repeated after a new service method has been in place for at least
six months. Customer satisfaction cards should be available throughout the library
and online to monitor satisfaction and problems with particular transactions,
including searches, such as:
1. Of the materials I was looking for, what I found was:
a. Exactly what I wanted;
b. Not exactly what I was looking for, but very helpful;
c. Somewhat helpful;
d. Not much help;
2. Did a librarian help you with your search?
3. Did the librarian seem to understand what you needed?
a. Yes, immediately;
b. Yes, eventually;
c. No, not really;
4. The tips, guides, and
pathfinders from the library were:
a. Very helpful;
b. Somewhat helpful;
c. Not very helpful;
d. Not used for this search;
5. It would have been easier to find what I needed if:
Query logs, surveys, and customer satisfaction cards should be compiled to measure the effect of this program, to revise these approaches to be more effective, and to generate public support of budget items for further enhancements to in person and online personalized reference service.
Based on estimates of less than one newly registered user per day, the burden
of the personal welcome and tour by the access services/reference librarians
should not overwhelm the reference desk. (A portion of the new users will be
children or young adults whose needs will be served by those specialist librarians).
The time and expense of generating a welcome packet can be distributed across
several months prior to initiating this program. Paper and printing costs are
assumed to be approximately $0.10 per page (black and white). With 10 to 20
pages per packet for each of 200 new registrants in one year, this would total
$200 to $400. This cost could be (a) underwritten by the Friends of the Library
grants, (b) a part of the regular budget, or (c) incorporated in registration
fees (currently no charge for initial library card).
Depending on the popularity of the e-mail alert service (Activity IVB), the
time needed to compile subject links to new acquisitions and recommendations
and link these to e-mail lists will be controlled initially by frequency of
notices (assuming approximately 100 new titles per month across all categories).
By using e-mail delivery, paper, printing, and postage costs are eliminated.
For those not accessing e-mail, the monthly alert can be posted in print format
at the library.
While artificial intelligence-based programs are now in use in many commercial
Internet websites and available as turn-key programs which libraries could purchase
(Smith, 2002; Balleste, 2002; and France, et al., 2002), the cost is still an
obstacle for most public libraries. As a benchmark, the LifeFX Stand In virtual
assistant program is offered for $1,995, with a 30-day free trial (LifeFX, 2003).
Because Southbury Public Library uses the Bibliomation library cooperative as
its online public access catalogue service, a logical option for the personalized
online public access catalogue features described above would be YouSeeMore
the companion product offered with the integrated library software already in
use (TLC - The Library Corporation, 2003). Representatives from Southbury Public
Library should participate in planning and evaluation activities of the Bibliomation
cooperative to investigate and implement such services in the future.
Because of the extremely limited budget for Collister Library ($235 annually),
the availability of online services, including intelligent agents, is not anticipated
in the foreseeable future. All efforts should be directed at individual contact
between the librarian and patrons, both in person and via e-mail, using volunteer
services. At such time as South Britain Congregational Church develops church
website and e-mail service, some information guides could be offered online
through a library webpage, however, even without an online public access catalogue.
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France, T., Yen, D., Wang, J., & Chang, C. (2002). Integrating search engines with data mining for customer-oriented information search. Information Management & Computer Science, 10, 242-254. Retrieved November 3, 2003, from Emerald FullText database.
Gargano, M.L., & Raggad, B.G. (1999). Data mining: A powerful information creating tool. OCLC Systems & Services, 15, 81-90. Retrieved November 1, 2003, from Emerald FullText database.
Hampton, B.J. (2003). Choosing an information guide: Are information preferences affected by job status? Unpublished manuscript. Available at: http://members.aol.com/HFlex/FullData.htm
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Still, J.M. (1998). The role and image of the library and librarians in discipline-specific pedagogical journals. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 24, 225-231.
Sutton, S.A. (1994). The role of attorney mental models of law in case relevance determination: An exploratory analysis. Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 45, 186-200.
TLC - The Library Corporation (2003). YouSeeMore [product description]. Retrieved October 23, 2003, from http://www.tlcdelivers.com/tlccarl/products/pacs/youseemore.asp
Wilkinson, M.A. (2001). Information sources used by lawyers in problem-solving: An empirical exploration. Library & Information Science Research, 23, 257-276. Retrieved September 9, 2003 from Science Direct database.
Wilson, M. (2000). Understanding the needs of tomorrow's library user: Rethinking library services for the new age. APLIS, 13, 81-86. Retrieved September 8, 2003, from Academic Search Premier database.
Young, N.J., & Von Seggern, M. (2001). General information seeking in changing times: A focus group study. Reference & User Services Quarterly, 41, 159-169.
Question? Problems? Suggestions? Please contact page owner, Barbara J. Hampton.
Last revised 14 November 2003.