User Experience (UX) is gaining momentum as a critical success factor across all industries and sectors, including libraries. While usability studies of library websites and related digital interfaces are commonplace, UX is becoming an increasingly popular topic of discussion in the community and is emerging as a new specialization for library professionals. To better understand this phenomenon, this paper reports the results of a qualitative study involving interviews with 16 librarians who have “User Experience” in their official job titles. The results show that UX Librarians share a user-centered mindset and many common responsibilities, including user research, usability testing, and space/service assessments, but each individual UX Librarian is also somewhat unique in how they approach and describe their work. As a whole, the research sheds light on an emerging library specialization and provides a valuable snapshot of the current state of UX Librarianship.
Full paper available at http://www.craigmacdonald.com/research-2/
UX Librarians: User Advocates, User Researchers, Usability Evaluators, or All of the Above?
1. UX Librarians:
User Advocates, User Researchers,
Usability Evaluators, or All of the
Above?
Craig M. MacDonald, Ph.D.!
Assistant Professor!
Pratt Institute, School of Information!
ASIS&T Annual Meeting | November 9, 2015!
2. UX is everywhere
With rising consumers demand for more engaging
and desirable technologies, User Experience
(UX) has become a critical area of focus across all
industries and sectors.!
!
With digital/virtual services now commonplace
throughout the library world, libraries are facing
similar challenges.!
Usability studies have been standard practice for over
two decades, but discussions of “UX” have only
recently begun to emerge.!
3. 2007: A Turning Point
1. The Designing Better Libraries blog was
launched (dbl.lishost.org).!
2. Brian Matthews at Georgia Tech became the
first User Experience Librarian in the United
States.!
“Essentially, my job now is to study users and to make
recommendations to library admin and department heads.
I'll also work with others to develop targeted communication
strategies and to do a little brand-work. The biggest challenge
will be getting all departments/units to trust me—you say the
word assessment and people freak out.”!
4. Emergence of #LibUX
SLA UX Caucus (2008)!
Aaron Schmidt’s UX Librarian column for Library
Journal (started in 2010)!
Session on “Holistic UX” at 2013 Computers in
Libraries Conference!
Article on “UX Thinking” by LITA president!
Three Publication Venues:!
Weave Journal of Library UX Journal (Oct 2014)!
Designing for Digital Conference (Feb 2015)!
UXLib Conference (Mar 2015)!
5. An opportune time
Many libraries are likely considering creating a
position, or perhaps an entire department, dedicated
to improving library experiences.!
But is every library really ready to add a UX Librarian to
their staff?!
Do we have enough knowledge about what UX Librarians
actually do?!
!
The goal of this research is to better understand the roles
and responsibilities of UX Librarians so that libraries
can make more informed decisions about whether adding
a position would be beneficial.
6. Full Picture of UX Librarianship
Part I: Scope of UX Librarianship (this paper)
What UX Librarianship is!
What UX Librarians do!
Who becomes a UX Librarian!
How UX Librarians learn UX!
Part II: Organizational UX Factors (in progress)
How and why UX Librarian positions were created!
Challenges of being a UX Librarian!
Benefits of having a UX Librarian on staff!
7. Defining UX (1)
Don Norman is credited with coining the term
“User Experience” when he held the title “User
Experience Architect” at Apple Computer in the
mid-1990s. (Norman, Miller, & Henderson, 1995)
At the time HCI was mainly focused on usability,
typically considered a combination of ease of learning
and ease of use. (Lindgaard & Parush, 2008)
Over the last decade, HCI has seen a renewed
interest in UX, which is framed as a design
philosophy of “designing for pleasure rather than
absence of pain.” (Hassenzahl & Tractinsky, 2006)
!
8. Defining UX (2)
There is still no widely accepted definition of UX;
there is emerging consensus that it is the result of
the user’s emotion, their past experience(s),
their goals and needs, and their external
context. (Lallemand, Gronier, & Koenig, 2015)
UX Design (or Experience Design) is about
creating a seamless and harmonious experience
for end-users.!
Thus, it is an adaptation of User-Centered Design that
requires close collaboration between engineers,
developers, graphic and industrial designers,
marketers, salespeople, and others.!
9. UX in Libraries
Everything we currently know about UX Librarianship
comes from a 2009 interview with Brian Mathews. (Dorney,
2009)!
Mathews described his role as “looking at the big picture” and
discussed leading a range of projects around gathering user
feedback on various library services.!
• Did not explicitly mention the library website.!
ARL SPEC Kit 322 (2011) on Library UX reported nearly all
responding libraries were gathering data on user
engagement, with surveys the most common (LibQual).!
!
Otherwise, not much else is known about how exactly UX
work is done in library settings.!
10. Identifying Participants
Searched the Web, LinkedIn, and Twitter for
librarians whose primary professional role was
explicitly related to (or described as) UX.!
!
Created a list of 74 librarians and their contact
information.!
!
Narrowed down to 25 potential participants
representing a variety of library contexts and
geographic areas.!
!
11. Semi-Structured Interviews
Interviews were approx. 45 minutes long. !
Conducted remotely via Skype and Google
Hangouts.!
Held between July-September 2014.!
Covered 4 broad areas:!
1. Their background and type of UX work they do!
2. A current or recent UX project and their role!
3. History of their library’s focus on UX!
4. Challenges of doing UX in their library!
12. About the Participants (1)
Interviewed 16 librarians from:!
1 Public library!
2 Library consortia!
8 Academic library (small or mid-sized)!
5 Academic library (large)!
!
Geographic representation:!
• South: Texas (2), N. Carolina (2), Tennessee, Kentucky!
• Midwest: Michigan (2), Illinois!
• Northwest: Oregon!
• Northeast: New York, New Jersey, Maryland,
Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maine!
13. About the Participants (2)
All participants had official job titles that included
the term “User Experience.”!
8 participants had exact title of “UX Librarian.” !
2 participants held leadership positions within UX
departments.!
6 participants had job titles combining UX with other
aspects of library work. !
• Web development, instruction, assessment (2), technical
services, and marketing/outreach.!
14. Results: 4 parts
1. What is a UX Librarian?!
2. How do UX Librarians do their work?!
3. Who becomes a UX Librarian?!
4. How do UX Librarians learn UX?!
16. UX is broadly defined
14/16 participants defined UX as encompassing a user’s
entire experience with the library.!
Other 2 work for consortia with no physical location.!
!
Key quote(s):!
“The heart of UX is about user engagement” (P-09)!
“I like the idea of it being more encompassing and not just
evaluating how we're doing but looking at the whole
picture and making the experience better for people from
when they walk in the door to when they leave, virtually
or in reality.” (P-08)!
“[My job is] not thinking as a librarian.” (P-13)!
! What is a UX Librarian?
17. UX means doing research
15/16 participants described research as integral to
their work.!
6 did survey research (2 LibQual, 4 homegrown).!
General preference for qualitative research:!
Informal: “Tell Us” campaign; flip chart feedback!
Formal: Focus groups, observations/interviews!
!
Key quote(s):!
“Some of the richest data we get, and some of the most
surprising things that we learn, come from the questions
we didn't even know to ask until somebody mentions
something and we start to investigate that and just say
‘Tell us more about that.’” (P-11)!
! What is a UX Librarian?
18. UX is digital and physical (1)
10/16 participants described responsibilities related to improving
users’ digital and physical interactions with the library.!
3 were digital exclusive (incl. both consortium participants)!
2 were exclusively physical/services!
1 was doing outreach/instruction due to staff shortages!
Roles varied in both depth and scope, from being leaders of
library-wide committees to serving on committees to just
collecting data about the website and services.!
!
Key quote(s):!
“Virtually any aspect of the building or of a typical experience can
come through our department, from urinals and hand dryers in the
men’s bathroom all the way up to ‘we need to re-think the way we
consider our collection development strategies.’”!
What is a UX Librarian?
19. UX is digital and physical (2)
Digital: 13 participants !
Involved with the website, but nature and scope varied:
general maintenance/upkeep, web editor, managing
discovery service, creating LibGuides.!
3 mentioned being involved with library-wide website
re-design committee.!
!
What is a UX Librarian?
20. UX is digital and physical (3)
Physical: 12 participants!
3 mainly gathered general feedback about library
services and spaces.!
9 discussed specific projects aimed at improving the in-
person library experience; 10 total projects:!
• 6 were design and layout of specific spaces: study rooms,
reference department’s new collaborative learning space,
new research commons, renovation of first floor, new
information commons (outside library), new learning
commons.!
• 4 were more generally related to library space/services (e.g.,
a new touch-screen kiosk, new wayfinding system). !
What is a UX Librarian?
21. UX is not really design
12/16 participants conducted usability testing as part of their
work, though some did more than others depending on
the size/culture of the library.!
1 was in upper management, 1 just rejoined web team.!
2 said usability testing was not part of their responsibilities!
Preferred testing method was informal, guerilla style testing.!
Few (7/16) mentioned using design-oriented UX methods.!
Card sorting (4), sketching (2), paper prototyping (2) web
analytics (2), personas/scenarios (1)!
!
Key quote(s):!
“I'm not actually a designer, so I can identify the problem [but] I
don't always know how to fix it.” (P-08)!
What is a UX Librarian?
23. UX + other responsibilities
14/16 participants had other library responsibilities in addition to
their UX role; other 2 had combined UX and assessment roles.!
Reference & instruction (11), departmental liaisons (5), committee
memberships (3), technical responsibilities (1)!
Balancing these responsibilities with UX is a constant struggle for
many, especially those at smaller libraries (more in Part II).!
!
Key quote(s):!
“I think it keeps me honest [and] helps me see things first on the front
lines that our researchers are expecting, and seeing, and
experiencing.” (P-03)!
“[My boss] would really like it to be more of a position where I could
be spending more like 60 percent of the time on UX, but the reality
dictates that people come into the library and need help, so the
research, reference, etc., takes precedence most often.” (P-16)!
How do UX Librarians do their work?
24. Org. chart placement varies
12/16 participants were the sole individual with UX-related
responsibilities.!
6 embedded in another department, alongside other librarians!
6 worked directly for the dean/director!
4/16 were located in dedicated UX departments, though each had
its own structure.!
Head of UX Dept. with web developer, assessment coordinator, and
graduate assistants!
Member of UX Dept. with server admin and led by assistant director
of the library (who also headed reference dept.).!
Only full-time member of UX Dept.; manages 2 student workers!
Head of UX Dept., manages 9 staff across 4 units (assessment,
outreach/user education, user spaces, web/mobile services)!
!
Key quote(s):!
“There’s no natural home [in the library] for UX yet.”!
How do UX Librarians do their work?
25. Internal consultants
16/16 participants described their role as an internal
consultant without any actual decision-making authority.!
To be successful in this role, participants had to navigate
their complex library culture (with some having more
success than others).!
!
Key quote(s):!
“[We are] there to help any department within the library that
needs help at any given time.” (P-10)!
“You're serving in an advisory capacity, right? So I'm not actually
empowered to make those changes… I [only] get to do the
research [and] say ‘this is where the problems are, these are
what I'd recommend as changes.’” (P-09)!
How do UX Librarians do their work?
27. No common background
All 16 had an MSLIS, but they came from 14
different universities.!
Undergraduate degrees spanned several
disciplines: English, history, politics, graphic
design, film/media, music, science, anthropology,
engineering, and education.!
Who becomes a UX Librarian?
28. Previous library experience
12/16 had previous library experience, but in many
different types of roles and in different types of
libraries.!
8/16 had significant experience outside of libraries,
but no commonalities!
Project management, customer service, design,
programming/IT, teaching!
Who becomes a UX Librarian?
29. Multiple pathways (1)
7/16 participants were new hires to their organization,
mainly followed normal job search process.!
1 was prompted to apply via Twitter!
1 got more interested in UX during library school and just
started searching!
!
Key quote(s):!
“Basically [the job] kind of fell…not into my lap, I mean it
took a long time to find a job, but once my manager here
saw that I had a diverse background [they] thought, ‘OK,
here's somebody who can look at this stuff in maybe a
different way.’” (P-16) !
Who becomes a UX Librarian?
30. Multiple pathways (2)
9/16 participants were internal hires, with very different stories
about how they got the job.!
Organizational leadership was key!
Staff turnover prompted some changes!
!
Key quote(s):!
“I hit up on the User Experience stuff and I was like, ‘This! This is
what I want to do!’ And [my boss] basically said, ‘Great, we need one
of those.’” (P-08) !
“…when my former supervisor retired, we had an opportunity to bump
me up to head of the department and ...to change focus a little bit
[from instruction outreach] and make it into User Experience.” (P-03) !
“…my then boss came to me and said ‘Hey do you want to be a User
Experience Librarian? It's kind of an extension of what you're already
doing.’ And I said OK because I thought I would like to still be
employed [laughs].” (P-11)!
Who becomes a UX Librarian?
32. Multiple sources of learning
9 from other UX Librarians!
7 from professional UX community!
6 from library school courses!
6 from on-the-job learning!
5 from previous non-library experience!
2 from additional non-library coursework!
How do UX Librarians learn UX?
33. Learning from others
Key Quote(s):!
“I went to a conference and somebody was talking about
having done [a sketching exercise] in a really low-key
way…and [I thought] ‘Oh that sounds like something we
could come up with a version of.’” [P-02] !
“I have some colleagues here [in the area] I can lean on for
ideas; we're all set up a little differently, but we have
common goals and interests.” (P-03)!
“[Corporate UX professionals] make a lot of assumptions
about the resources that we have available in our world in
terms of ‘Oh yeah, you just provide some incentives for
recruiting subjects.’…Seriously they're giving iPads to
everyone who comes in for an hour, and I'm like, ‘this
doesn't help me.’" (P-11) !
How do UX Librarians learn UX?
34. Learning by experience
Key Quote(s):!
“Our classes [at Michigan] would partner with different
companies and corporations to do UX design or
interaction design coming from the user’s
perspective…[so] I had some amazing opportunities to
work on some really good projects.” (P-09) !
“I realized that the interfaces we were teaching were
really clunky and I wanted to try to make
improvements, but I understood that our developers
weren't going to just take my word for it they wanted
me to do some testing around it. So I did that and got
more and more involved and engaged and really
interested in that work.” (P-03) !
! How do UX Librarians learn UX?
35. Summary/Key Findings
1. Most UX Librarians are better classified as
“UX Researchers” as their responsibilities
typically include user research, usability testing,
and space/service assessments!
2. Each individual UX Librarian is unique in
how they approach and describe their work,
stemming from differences in their
backgrounds, ability to balance competing
responsibilities, their organizational authority,
and their path to becoming a UX Librarian!
36. Next Steps
This research was the first in-depth investigation
into UX Librarianship and provides an
informative snapshot of the current state of UX
in Libraries.!
However, it only touched on some of the
organizational factors that often defined the
scope and impact of UX Librarians’ work.!
These will be discussed in Part 2 of this research:!
• How and why libraries created UX Librarian positions!
• Challenges of doing UX work in a library setting!