Job Talk presentation on Emerging and Current Models of Reference Service for a LIS course on Academic Libraries and Scholarly Communcation

1. Emerging and Current
Models of Reference
Service
Caitlin Harrington

2. ● Teach users how to use the library and its
resources
● Answer specific informational queries
from users
● Recommend sources to users that fit their
needs or desires
● Promote the library within the community

3. Budget Cuts
Assessment:
● Physical presence
of librarians
● Modes of
communication
● Access points

4. Tiered
Virtual
Roaming

5. Subject Specialist
Librarian

8. Too specialized
for general
reference
Repetitive
questions,
unrelated to
research
Frustrated librarians and waste of
highly trained professionals

9. Tiered Model

10. First Tier
Students, Paraprofessionals
Second
Tier
Librarians

11. ●
Presence of librarians was
missed by students and
faculty
● Users failing to follow
through to second tier
● Users skipping first tier and
going directly to second tier

12. Information Desk
IT
Student
Success
Reference

13. Virtual Model

14. Asynchronous
● Email
Synchronous
● chat, IM, text messaging

15. Evaluation
● Chat transcript analysis
● Placement of widget on library website
● Evolution since early 2000s

16. User
Librarian
● Convenience of
service
● Increased
workload
● Users’ technological
experience
● Learning new
skill: risk-taking
and time
commitment
● Type of information
sought

17. Reference
Training
Access
Services
Technical
Services
Library
Systems

18. Execution
● Statistics
● Communicate issues and best practices
● Campus-wide marketing campaign

19. Nicol, E., & Crook, L. (2013). Now it's Necessary: Virtual Reference Services at Washington State University, Pullman. Journal Of Academic
Librarianship, 39(2), 161-168.

20. Roaming Model

21. Computer
Lab
Library
Faculty
Offices

22. Fall 2010, Iteration 1
● Answer question of any user that
approached them
● Respond to chat reference
● Visit users on campus this request a
librarian’s presence

23. 9% of total reference interactions
McCabe, K., & MacDonald, J. (2011). Roaming
Reference: Reinvigorating Reference through
Point of Need Service. Partnership: The Canadian
Journal Of Library & Information Practice &
Research, 6(2), 1-15.

24. Spring 2011, Iteration 2
● Streamline reference desk with roaming
reference
● Patrons at reference desk send chat to
roaming librarians
● Glitches cause loss of communication and
librarian’s attentions divided

25. Technological
Innovations
Streamline Service

26. Tiered
Virtual
Roaming