This presentation reports the findings of an analysis of personal network data gathered from the novice librarian researcher participants of the summer workshop of the Institute for Research Design in Librarianship (IRDL), an institute designed to provide instruction in how to conduct a research project and establish a peer-network of like-minded library professionals to support each other throughout the research process. The first wave of data was gathered before the participants began IRDL, again at the completion of the workshop, at six months after completing the workshop, and will be gathered again at the one-year marker. The data gathered is about the people and the strength of the relationship in the personal research networks of each of the IRDL participants. During the presentation we will report on the observations of the research networks over time. Highlighted in the presentation is the use of the freely available, open source, web-based software used to gather the personal network data, EgoWeb 2.0. We will describe the process of customizing the survey software to ask questions about the names of people these novice researchers go to get or give advice or help related to research, how often they interact (related to research or not), modes in which the interactions take place, and whether or not the people in the network know each other. We will report the statistical results that the software computes, about density and closeness and provides a customizable visualization of the personal network.

1. The Personal Networks of
Novice Librarian
Researchers
Marie R. Kennedy
David P. Kennedy
Kristine Brancolini

2. Agenda
 Background on IRDL
 IRDL goals
 Assessment plan
(highlighting social network analysis)

3. Background on IRDL
 Grew out of a December 2010 survey
conducted by Brancolini and Kennedy *
 Surveyed academic librarians regarding their
research experience, research confidence,
and perceived barriers to conducting
research
*Kennedy, Marie R. & Brancolini, Kristine R. (2012).
“Academic librarian research:A survey of attitudes,
involvement, and perceived capabilities.” College &
Research Libraries 73(5): 431-448.

4. IMLS grant funds IRDL
 Funded by IMLS
Laura Bush
21st Century Librarian
Program, 2013-2016
 To create a learning
experience and support
network for academic
and research librarians

5. IRDL Summer Workshop
 Centerpiece of the program is a nine-day
summer research “boot camp” for
academic and research librarians
 Convened on the LMU|LA campus
June 15-26, 2014

6. IRDL goal
Increase the number of academic librarians
with specific research skills in conducting
and disseminating the results of research

7. Assessment plan for IRDL
Four-part assessment plan:
◦ Scoring of research proposals
◦ Social network analysis
◦ Mastery of curriculum content
◦ Confidence

8. Assessment plan for IRDL
Four-part assessment plan:
◦ Scoring of research proposals
◦Social network analysis
◦ Mastery of curriculum content
◦ Confidence

9. Research question
Does participating in IRDL have an effect
on the persistence (or loss) and social
support of people in the personal networks
of the Scholars?

10. Methods
Survey using EgoWeb 2.0
Repeated:
◦ before the summer workshop
◦ after the summer workshop
◦ six months after the workshop
◦ one year after the workshop

11. Methods (continued)
 Design
 Population
 Instrument

12. EgoWeb 2.0
Open-source survey software
Easily create social network data collection
instruments
◦ Generate lists of network members
 “Who is in the network?”
◦ Ask questions about network members
 “What are the characteristics of these people?”
◦ Ask about connections among network
members
 “How are they connected to each other?”

13. EgoWeb 2.0: Network Elicitation
Generate a list of
collaborators

14. EgoWeb 2.0: Network Composition
How do they impact the
respondent’s research?

15. EgoWeb 2.0: Network Structure
Are they connected to
each other?

16. EgoWeb 2.0: Data Processing
 Visually analyze each interview within EgoWeb or
export raw data to other analysis software
Adjust display
settings

17. Preliminary results
Time 1 toTime 3 comparisonsNumber of people with whom the Scholars had
research interactions
average range
T1 (pre-IRDL) 11.26 5-20
T2 (post-IRDL) 24.78 8-40
T3 (6 months
post-IRDL)
16.13 5-42

18. Stability in the network
Observe those network members
identified in only one wave, in two waves, or
all three waves.
 Purpose: Did participation in IRDL affect
their network composition?

19. Stability of total network composition
T1 T2 T3
abs. % abs. % abs. %
only one
mention 255 54% 570 63% 371 58%
onlyT1 andT2 72 15% 72 8%
onlyT1 andT3 7 1% 7 1%
onlyT2 andT3 116 13% 116 18%
allT 141 30% 141 16% 141 22%
Total 475 100% 899 100% 635 100%

20. Support
Personal friend Professional
colleague
Both friend and
colleague
abs. % abs. % abs. %
I'm usually asking
this person for
advice or help
12 67% 31 55% 25 37%
I'm usually giving
this person advice
or help
0 0% 1 2% 5 7%
It's pretty even;
I ask for help but
also give help in
equal amounts
6 33% 24 43% 37 55%
Total 18 100% 56 100% 67 100%

21. Visualization of the IRDL networks
Time 1, pre-IRDL
Density = 0.321
Max Degree = 4

22. Visualization of the IRDL networks
Time 2, post-IRDL
Density = 0.608
Max Degree = 27

23. Visualization of the IRDL networks
Time 3,
6 months post-IRDL
Density = 0.267
Max Degree = 6

24. Benefits of using EgoWeb 2.0
 Web-based
 Intuitive to program
 Easy for the respondent to use (UI)

25. Future research
 T4 of cohort 1
 T1 of cohort 2
 Is the network composition a predictor of
an IRDL Scholar disseminating results of
research?

26. Questions, comments, suggestions?
For additional information about IRDL: http://irdlonline.org
For additional information about EgoWeb: http://egoweb.info
Background article: Kennedy, Marie R. & Brancolini, Kristine R.
(2012).“Academic librarian research: A survey of attitudes,
involvement, and perceived capabilities.” College & Research
Libraries 73(5): 431-448.
Contact us:
◦ Marie Kennedy (marie.kennedy@lmu.edu)
◦ David P. Kennedy (davidk@rand.org)
◦ Kristine Brancolini (brancoli@lmu.edu)