Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Ahead of Print.
Social inclusion of refugees and asylum seekers includes addressing their information needs. This research seeks to examine the role of public libraries in this process through the analysis of public librarians’ perceptions. Based on the constructivist paradigm, the case study method, and the semi-directive interview survey technique, 16 public municipal libraries in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area (Portugal) are studied. The results highlight that these libraries do not identify forced migrants as their users. Still, they consider that the information needs and behaviors and the use of libraries by these communities are similar to those of economic migrants, with emphasis on the relevance of free access to the internet, foreign language resources, Portuguese language and digital literacy courses, and help to interact with online platforms. The gaps include the existence of few Portuguese courses for foreigners, a limited practice in assisting with job and housing searches, promoting health literacy, and inclusive collaboration with schools, as well as space, financial, and human resources constraints. To overcome these difficulties, librarians emphasize the motivation to fulfill the inclusive social mission of the public library, the universal accessibility and informal environment of the library, and its action to promote social cohesion and social capital. The respondents consider that the mission of public libraries is adjusted to the goal of social inclusion of forced migrants, but that there is room for improvement in the training of librarians. This research points to the need for more initiative-taking public library collaboration with existing inclusion networks. In conclusion, we seek to alert to the urgency of the involvement of Portuguese public libraries in the social inclusion of forced migrants, which will also contribute to their institutional legitimization.
Information culture of university administration: Making personnel bureaucracy a professional bureaucracy
Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Ahead of Print.
This paper aims to diagnose the information culture of the university administration. Although university administrative work is commonly associated with bureaucracy, it is a bureaucracy of people in which employees demonstrate a set of competitive group information behavior focused on knowledge sharing and information use in day-to-day tasks. A group of 345 respondents, representing office staff from three institutions in Poland, answered the survey related to information culture. The research framework included 16 information behaviors, grouped by four levels of information and knowledge management and four types of information culture. The results were examined using statistical packages to perform the Kruskal-Wallis H test, Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient, and ordinal/linear regression analysis. Professional Bureaucracy culture is the dominant characteristic of the information behavior of university administrations, but its functioning is supported by three parallel information cultures included in the research model. The main limitation of the study is that it covers only lower-level employees’ information practices. The applied scale, based on professional stratification within the university administration, is highly sensitive regarding different institutional contexts covered in the information culture diagnosis. To support the development of Professional Bureaucracy, it is necessary to support internal openness of behavior (socialization), internalization of knowledge, and external networking.
This paper aims to diagnose the information culture of the university administration. Although university administrative work is commonly associated with bureaucracy, it is a bureaucracy of people in which employees demonstrate a set of competitive group information behavior focused on knowledge sharing and information use in day-to-day tasks. A group of 345 respondents, representing office staff from three institutions in Poland, answered the survey related to information culture. The research framework included 16 information behaviors, grouped by four levels of information and knowledge management and four types of information culture. The results were examined using statistical packages to perform the Kruskal-Wallis H test, Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient, and ordinal/linear regression analysis. Professional Bureaucracy culture is the dominant characteristic of the information behavior of university administrations, but its functioning is supported by three parallel information cultures included in the research model. The main limitation of the study is that it covers only lower-level employees’ information practices. The applied scale, based on professional stratification within the university administration, is highly sensitive regarding different institutional contexts covered in the information culture diagnosis. To support the development of Professional Bureaucracy, it is necessary to support internal openness of behavior (socialization), internalization of knowledge, and external networking.
Social inclusion of refugees and asylum seekers: The role of public libraries in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area
Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Ahead of Print.
Social inclusion of refugees and asylum seekers includes addressing their information needs. This research seeks to examine the role of public libraries in this process through the analysis of public librarians’ perceptions. Based on the constructivist paradigm, the case study method, and the semi-directive interview survey technique, 16 public municipal libraries in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area (Portugal) are studied. The results highlight that these libraries do not identify forced migrants as their users. Still, they consider that the information needs and behaviors and the use of libraries by these communities are similar to those of economic migrants, with emphasis on the relevance of free access to the internet, foreign language resources, Portuguese language and digital literacy courses, and help to interact with online platforms. The gaps include the existence of few Portuguese courses for foreigners, a limited practice in assisting with job and housing searches, promoting health literacy, and inclusive collaboration with schools, as well as space, financial, and human resources constraints. To overcome these difficulties, librarians emphasize the motivation to fulfill the inclusive social mission of the public library, the universal accessibility and informal environment of the library, and its action to promote social cohesion and social capital. The respondents consider that the mission of public libraries is adjusted to the goal of social inclusion of forced migrants, but that there is room for improvement in the training of librarians. This research points to the need for more initiative-taking public library collaboration with existing inclusion networks. In conclusion, we seek to alert to the urgency of the involvement of Portuguese public libraries in the social inclusion of forced migrants, which will also contribute to their institutional legitimization.
Social inclusion of refugees and asylum seekers includes addressing their information needs. This research seeks to examine the role of public libraries in this process through the analysis of public librarians’ perceptions. Based on the constructivist paradigm, the case study method, and the semi-directive interview survey technique, 16 public municipal libraries in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area (Portugal) are studied. The results highlight that these libraries do not identify forced migrants as their users. Still, they consider that the information needs and behaviors and the use of libraries by these communities are similar to those of economic migrants, with emphasis on the relevance of free access to the internet, foreign language resources, Portuguese language and digital literacy courses, and help to interact with online platforms. The gaps include the existence of few Portuguese courses for foreigners, a limited practice in assisting with job and housing searches, promoting health literacy, and inclusive collaboration with schools, as well as space, financial, and human resources constraints. To overcome these difficulties, librarians emphasize the motivation to fulfill the inclusive social mission of the public library, the universal accessibility and informal environment of the library, and its action to promote social cohesion and social capital. The respondents consider that the mission of public libraries is adjusted to the goal of social inclusion of forced migrants, but that there is room for improvement in the training of librarians. This research points to the need for more initiative-taking public library collaboration with existing inclusion networks. In conclusion, we seek to alert to the urgency of the involvement of Portuguese public libraries in the social inclusion of forced migrants, which will also contribute to their institutional legitimization.
Information culture of university administration: Making personnel bureaucracy a professional bureaucracy
Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Ahead of Print.
This paper aims to diagnose the information culture of the university administration. Although university administrative work is commonly associated with bureaucracy, it is a bureaucracy of people in which employees demonstrate a set of competitive group information behavior focused on knowledge sharing and information use in day-to-day tasks. A group of 345 respondents, representing office staff from three institutions in Poland, answered the survey related to information culture. The research framework included 16 information behaviors, grouped by four levels of information and knowledge management and four types of information culture. The results were examined using statistical packages to perform the Kruskal-Wallis H test, Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient, and ordinal/linear regression analysis. Professional Bureaucracy culture is the dominant characteristic of the information behavior of university administrations, but its functioning is supported by three parallel information cultures included in the research model. The main limitation of the study is that it covers only lower-level employees’ information practices. The applied scale, based on professional stratification within the university administration, is highly sensitive regarding different institutional contexts covered in the information culture diagnosis. To support the development of Professional Bureaucracy, it is necessary to support internal openness of behavior (socialization), internalization of knowledge, and external networking.
This paper aims to diagnose the information culture of the university administration. Although university administrative work is commonly associated with bureaucracy, it is a bureaucracy of people in which employees demonstrate a set of competitive group information behavior focused on knowledge sharing and information use in day-to-day tasks. A group of 345 respondents, representing office staff from three institutions in Poland, answered the survey related to information culture. The research framework included 16 information behaviors, grouped by four levels of information and knowledge management and four types of information culture. The results were examined using statistical packages to perform the Kruskal-Wallis H test, Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient, and ordinal/linear regression analysis. Professional Bureaucracy culture is the dominant characteristic of the information behavior of university administrations, but its functioning is supported by three parallel information cultures included in the research model. The main limitation of the study is that it covers only lower-level employees’ information practices. The applied scale, based on professional stratification within the university administration, is highly sensitive regarding different institutional contexts covered in the information culture diagnosis. To support the development of Professional Bureaucracy, it is necessary to support internal openness of behavior (socialization), internalization of knowledge, and external networking.
Autism and disability sessions at state conferences for school librarians
Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Ahead of Print.
With 1 in 44 children in the United States meeting the criteria for an autism diagnosis , it is likely that most, if not all, school librarians will have some contact with a student with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). One potential avenue for such education is through professional development opportunities such as state library conferences, in which school librarians share information with one another in forums such as breakout and poster sessions, while also attending keynote and sponsored presentations. To expand upon previous research related to training of school librarians in the area of ASD, this content analysis examines state library conference programs to determine if information is being shared through such conferences about autism and disability. Conferences from nine states, over a 5-year period, were analyzed for key terms related to autism and disability. Findings reveal few opportunities for school librarians to learn about autism and disability through sessions presented at state conferences, despite a previously established interest and need.
With 1 in 44 children in the United States meeting the criteria for an autism diagnosis , it is likely that most, if not all, school librarians will have some contact with a student with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). One potential avenue for such education is through professional development opportunities such as state library conferences, in which school librarians share information with one another in forums such as breakout and poster sessions, while also attending keynote and sponsored presentations. To expand upon previous research related to training of school librarians in the area of ASD, this content analysis examines state library conference programs to determine if information is being shared through such conferences about autism and disability. Conferences from nine states, over a 5-year period, were analyzed for key terms related to autism and disability. Findings reveal few opportunities for school librarians to learn about autism and disability through sessions presented at state conferences, despite a previously established interest and need.
The role of identity moderators and perceived degree of identity separation in librarian professional identity development
Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Ahead of Print.
This paper examines in-depth processes of librarian professional identity negotiations impacting practitioners’ perception of, affiliation with, and behaviour within the profession. It outlines three key themes which moderate librarian professional identity and introduces the Relational States of Librarian Professional Identity, outlining variations of individual affiliation with the profession. This paper also offers a theoretical framework of identity negotiations with theoretical propositions relating to librarian professional identity development. Forty semi-structed interviews were conducted with practicing public librarians throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. Interviews were analysed with an inductive approach. NVivo was used to code and query interview data. Findings demonstrate identity negotiations as grounded in perceptions of profession through meaning ascribed to the profession and its manifestations (professional associations, etc.), respectively; and perceptions of practice as related to organisational/institutional contexts. Six theoretical propositions are offered detailing the relationship of the three themes moderating librarian professional identity and the Relational States of Librarian Professional Identity to this identity and its negotiations.
This paper examines in-depth processes of librarian professional identity negotiations impacting practitioners’ perception of, affiliation with, and behaviour within the profession. It outlines three key themes which moderate librarian professional identity and introduces the Relational States of Librarian Professional Identity, outlining variations of individual affiliation with the profession. This paper also offers a theoretical framework of identity negotiations with theoretical propositions relating to librarian professional identity development. Forty semi-structed interviews were conducted with practicing public librarians throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. Interviews were analysed with an inductive approach. NVivo was used to code and query interview data. Findings demonstrate identity negotiations as grounded in perceptions of profession through meaning ascribed to the profession and its manifestations (professional associations, etc.), respectively; and perceptions of practice as related to organisational/institutional contexts. Six theoretical propositions are offered detailing the relationship of the three themes moderating librarian professional identity and the Relational States of Librarian Professional Identity to this identity and its negotiations.
Autism and disability sessions at state conferences for school librarians
Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Ahead of Print.
With 1 in 44 children in the United States meeting the criteria for an autism diagnosis , it is likely that most, if not all, school librarians will have some contact with a student with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). One potential avenue for such education is through professional development opportunities such as state library conferences, in which school librarians share information with one another in forums such as breakout and poster sessions, while also attending keynote and sponsored presentations. To expand upon previous research related to training of school librarians in the area of ASD, this content analysis examines state library conference programs to determine if information is being shared through such conferences about autism and disability. Conferences from nine states, over a 5-year period, were analyzed for key terms related to autism and disability. Findings reveal few opportunities for school librarians to learn about autism and disability through sessions presented at state conferences, despite a previously established interest and need.
With 1 in 44 children in the United States meeting the criteria for an autism diagnosis , it is likely that most, if not all, school librarians will have some contact with a student with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). One potential avenue for such education is through professional development opportunities such as state library conferences, in which school librarians share information with one another in forums such as breakout and poster sessions, while also attending keynote and sponsored presentations. To expand upon previous research related to training of school librarians in the area of ASD, this content analysis examines state library conference programs to determine if information is being shared through such conferences about autism and disability. Conferences from nine states, over a 5-year period, were analyzed for key terms related to autism and disability. Findings reveal few opportunities for school librarians to learn about autism and disability through sessions presented at state conferences, despite a previously established interest and need.
The role of identity moderators and perceived degree of identity separation in librarian professional identity development
Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Ahead of Print.
This paper examines in-depth processes of librarian professional identity negotiations impacting practitioners’ perception of, affiliation with, and behaviour within the profession. It outlines three key themes which moderate librarian professional identity and introduces the Relational States of Librarian Professional Identity, outlining variations of individual affiliation with the profession. This paper also offers a theoretical framework of identity negotiations with theoretical propositions relating to librarian professional identity development. Forty semi-structed interviews were conducted with practicing public librarians throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. Interviews were analysed with an inductive approach. NVivo was used to code and query interview data. Findings demonstrate identity negotiations as grounded in perceptions of profession through meaning ascribed to the profession and its manifestations (professional associations, etc.), respectively; and perceptions of practice as related to organisational/institutional contexts. Six theoretical propositions are offered detailing the relationship of the three themes moderating librarian professional identity and the Relational States of Librarian Professional Identity to this identity and its negotiations.
This paper examines in-depth processes of librarian professional identity negotiations impacting practitioners’ perception of, affiliation with, and behaviour within the profession. It outlines three key themes which moderate librarian professional identity and introduces the Relational States of Librarian Professional Identity, outlining variations of individual affiliation with the profession. This paper also offers a theoretical framework of identity negotiations with theoretical propositions relating to librarian professional identity development. Forty semi-structed interviews were conducted with practicing public librarians throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. Interviews were analysed with an inductive approach. NVivo was used to code and query interview data. Findings demonstrate identity negotiations as grounded in perceptions of profession through meaning ascribed to the profession and its manifestations (professional associations, etc.), respectively; and perceptions of practice as related to organisational/institutional contexts. Six theoretical propositions are offered detailing the relationship of the three themes moderating librarian professional identity and the Relational States of Librarian Professional Identity to this identity and its negotiations.
Collaborative technology practices in social science early career scholarly research workflows
Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Ahead of Print.
Supporting scholarship as it is practiced by scholars depends on having tools which match the workflows of those scholars as they conduct research. Collaboration is an essential part of research and can occur through the stages of the research process. For early career scholars, work tends to be solo as they work on their dissertation. However, there is some evidence that their work does not occur in isolation. This is a qualitative study of early career scholars’ collaborative scholarly research workflows. It examines the role of collaboration in early career scholarly workflows, the types of tools used for collaboration, whether these tools support or hinder, and how collaborative tools support information practices and scholarly knowledge. Collaborative technology practices are seen throughout workflows and in some cases enable or hinder collaboration. There is not a strong interconnection between tools to support the scholarly workflow. This study identifies which tools are used for scholarly collaboration and the gap in functionality of tools for scholarship.
Supporting scholarship as it is practiced by scholars depends on having tools which match the workflows of those scholars as they conduct research. Collaboration is an essential part of research and can occur through the stages of the research process. For early career scholars, work tends to be solo as they work on their dissertation. However, there is some evidence that their work does not occur in isolation. This is a qualitative study of early career scholars’ collaborative scholarly research workflows. It examines the role of collaboration in early career scholarly workflows, the types of tools used for collaboration, whether these tools support or hinder, and how collaborative tools support information practices and scholarly knowledge. Collaborative technology practices are seen throughout workflows and in some cases enable or hinder collaboration. There is not a strong interconnection between tools to support the scholarly workflow. This study identifies which tools are used for scholarly collaboration and the gap in functionality of tools for scholarship.
Collaborative technology practices in social science early career scholarly research workflows
Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, Ahead of Print.
Supporting scholarship as it is practiced by scholars depends on having tools which match the workflows of those scholars as they conduct research. Collaboration is an essential part of research and can occur through the stages of the research process. For early career scholars, work tends to be solo as they work on their dissertation. However, there is some evidence that their work does not occur in isolation. This is a qualitative study of early career scholars’ collaborative scholarly research workflows. It examines the role of collaboration in early career scholarly workflows, the types of tools used for collaboration, whether these tools support or hinder, and how collaborative tools support information practices and scholarly knowledge. Collaborative technology practices are seen throughout workflows and in some cases enable or hinder collaboration. There is not a strong interconnection between tools to support the scholarly workflow. This study identifies which tools are used for scholarly collaboration and the gap in functionality of tools for scholarship.
Supporting scholarship as it is practiced by scholars depends on having tools which match the workflows of those scholars as they conduct research. Collaboration is an essential part of research and can occur through the stages of the research process. For early career scholars, work tends to be solo as they work on their dissertation. However, there is some evidence that their work does not occur in isolation. This is a qualitative study of early career scholars’ collaborative scholarly research workflows. It examines the role of collaboration in early career scholarly workflows, the types of tools used for collaboration, whether these tools support or hinder, and how collaborative tools support information practices and scholarly knowledge. Collaborative technology practices are seen throughout workflows and in some cases enable or hinder collaboration. There is not a strong interconnection between tools to support the scholarly workflow. This study identifies which tools are used for scholarly collaboration and the gap in functionality of tools for scholarship.