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Reference services

Reference and information services are valuable community services provided for free by New South Wales public libraries. A necessary part of learning to do reference work is understanding what it is and why it's important.

What you will learn in Module 1:

What are reference and information services and why are they important?
What are the information needs of your community and of individuals who use your library?
Do patrons understand what is available at libraries or know how to ask for the information they really need?

Module 1 provides an overview and a professional context for learning reference process skills.

Tough questions

Are reference and information services easy? Not exactly, but they are interesting, challenging and often fun. What's the challenging part? Working with people. What's the fun part? Working with people.

What are reference and information services? Why are they important?

The goal of reference work is to meet people's information needs and assist in answering questions they have. Reference work includes finding out what information people need and using library resources, as well as other authoritative resources to provide that information. Libraries have many roles to play. The reference process is a vital component of library service.

Libraries have a variety of information for everyone in the community but work especially hard to meet individual needs.
Libraries strive to provide equitable, objective service for all patrons.
Libraries promote the value of information for problem-solving in everyday life or for entertainment and enlightenment.
Libraries empower their patrons to discover information in new ways.
Libraries may be the starting point for information seeking, and may refer people to other agencies and organisations.

Library staff can reach out to people who have information needs but have not thought of using the library. This could include assisting patrons to engage with new technology. It is important to also take steps to ensure that all who contact the library are feel welcome and at ease using the library.

The NSW Library Act 1939 No 40 Section 10 has requirements regarding the services provided by local libraries

(1) A local authority must comply with and observe the following requirements in relation to any local library that is provided, controlled or managed by the local authority (either directly or under an agreement or other arrangement to which it is a party):

(e) Free basic reference services to members. Any person who is a member of the library is entitled to be provided free of charge with basic reference services (being any service classified by guidelines issued by the Council as a basic reference service), including assistance in locating information and sources of information.

Remote or online reference

Reference and information services don't always have to be provided face to face.

Online reference can be:

passive such as making electronic resources available,
interactive such as providing an email address to contact,
online form for patrons to ask questions,
real time assistance using chat, instant messaging, or a video call such as MS-TEAMS or ZOOM
enquiries may also arrive through various social media channels.

Reference methods may differ, but the goal remains the same: find and meet the patrons' information needs. The need to conduct an effective reference interview, to use skill in selecting search strategies and to be knowledgeable about print or online resources remains the same. The technology used to deliver reference and information services continues to change. It is important to keep up to date and continue developing skills.

Major Point: Libraries meet the information needs of the communities they serve.

Exercises for reference services

Document the answers to the exercise questions in this module. You may wish to discuss with your supervisor, colleagues or group at the end of Module 1.

1. Does your library have a strategic plan, mission statement, general policy, or reference policy that describes reference service polices, procedures, goals, or mission?

2. List the documents you have located relevant to your organisation.

3. How do these documents outline or discuss the value of reference or information service to your community? If not, ask staff members what they think is the value of reference or information service in your community.

Module 1 Answers and review

Community needs

What information is needed?

Meeting the information needs of the community calls for a variety of resources and a broad understanding of the kinds of questions that patrons may wish to have answered. The truth is out there – and a lot of people expect to find it at the library, or on the library website. A lot of people do not know where to find reputable information.

Variety of information needs

The people who live and work in our communities have many information needs including:

Business - business people need statistics, addresses, business incubator services and legal information.
Consumer information - people need to know the quality and features of the product before making a major purchase.
D.I.Y. - for people to gain the knowledge to repair cars, build cubbyhouses, or bake cakes etc.
Family history and local studies - about your family and your community.
Government - people need to understand their local government and the state and federal governments and know who their elected representatives and appointed officials are, and how to contact them so they can participate fully in making decisions.
Health - people need information on how to stay healthy and how to understand medical conditions they or their families have.
Literacy - baby rhyme time, adult literacy and writing classes.
Maker spaces - creative hubs, people meeting in the library to make things, coding, how to find online plans for 3D printing, making films, music and podcasts.
Personal enrichment - people want to know words to poems or songs, solve crosswords, how to locate travel guides, play games online, find the best websites for kids or enjoy the paintings of a favourite artist.
Readers' advisory - sometimes patrons want a good book to read. The readers' advisory interview uses many of the same behaviours as the reference interview. Approachability is the key.
School - students require information on resources available in the library or guidance in locating the best online homework sites and apps.
Work - individuals need access to resources about changing careers and obtaining jobs.
Technology - people need help in using devices, online government services and social media.

Reaching your community outside the library

The one place in the community that can provide various types of information to everyone is the library. Whether in person or remotely, libraries must develop information, reference and directional services consistent with the goals of their community.

Libraries are making internet resources available through their web guides, catalogues, eresources (subscription databases, ebooks, eaudio and emagazines) and various social media channels.

Pop up and mobile libraries are also ways to make resources and reference services available outside the library.

Major Point: The library is the one place in the community that can provide everyone with access to various types of information.

Exercises for community needs

1. How does the collection development policy or other relevant documents you have located describe the information needs of your particular community, i.e. what kinds of information the users of your library want or expect to find at the library (topics or subjects) and in what formats (books, videos, software, etc.)?

2. How do the library's policy documents describe serving the community with remote/online services?

Module 1 Answers and review

First contact

Who is the patron?

Everyone who lives, visits or works in your community needs information. Discovering the needs of each individual who visits the library (whether in person, by phone or online) calls for skills with library resources but also requires that you employ your best people skills starting from your first contact with the patron.

The first question

The first question a patron asks is often simply a conversation opener - a way to say hello. Sometimes patrons are really just trying to find out if you are an approachable, friendly person.

The patron is actually saying “hello I'm here, please pay attention to me”. Sometimes these opening statements are recognisable right away. The patron may ask “do you work here?” or “can you answer a question?”.

Sometimes, however, the first statement sounds like an actual specific question when actually the patron is still just sounding you out. You may get questions like “where can I find information about dogs?” or “do you have a history of Italy?” There is almost always a more specific need behind those questions.

Discovering that need will help you do a much more efficient and successful job of helping the patron. In the above cases the patron may be looking for the address of a Cocker Spaniel Club, how to get their dog microchipped, a map of Italy, the history of Rome or an evaluation of tour companies that go to Sicily.

First contact online

A patron's first contact with library reference services may be via the internet, library website or through other types of online or remote reference. ALA guidelines from the USA suggest that the library should provide prominent jargon-free links to all forms of reference services from the home page of the library web site and throughout the site wherever research assistance may be sought out. The web should be used to make reference services easy to find and convenient.

Guidelines for behavioral performance of reference and information service providers

Major point: A patron's first question may be a way to find out if you are approachable, and not an expression of the information need.

Exercises for first contact

1. View this recorded session by Dr Marie Radford for more helpful information on this topic.

2. List four key messages you learned from this video.

Misconceptions

Misconceptions about libraries may prevent patrons from stating their real information needs.

Confusion limits questions

Successful reference work requires finding the real information need of an individual although it's often not the first question expressed.

Patrons may ask for what they think the library has rather than what they really need or they ask for something easy because they don't want to bother you.

Patrons may also believe that what you see is what you get and be unaware of non-book sources or information services such as interlibrary loan as well as the range of online information sources.

Patrons may also be constrained by your language and cultural differences or their disabilities. Patrons may not have experience in how public libraries work. It is your role to provide an equitable service.

Patrons want to help

Patrons are trying to be helpful. They tend to ask questions in a way they think will help you answer them easily. This leads to a very common phenomenon - questions that are too broadly stated.

Patrons may not realise that information on any one subject can be found in many different forms, books, web sites, social media, magazines, dvds, microform and in many different locations in the library or online.

Although patrons often ask you for the book on something, if you knew the specific question it might be answered by another source – community information or a magazine for example.

Libraries can be confusing places

Patrons may also be confused by the physical arrangement of the library reflecting the many different forms of materials. For example they may not understand the reasons behind separating fiction and non-fiction, arranging non-fiction by Dewey Decimal order, setting apart audiovisual from other materials, or having databases which are not full text. Patrons may be unaware of special collections or local materials such as pamphlet and map files that aren't as obviously displayed as books on the shelves and only ask for what they can see is available. Not all materials are for loan.

Libraries can be confusing virtual places

Patrons may have several misconceptions about online reference services too. The library website may be confusing, and not clearly depict what services are offered. Patrons may need support to use the technology or in locating web information sites.

Major point: Patrons don't realise how libraries are organised and shouldn't have to when asking questions.

Exercises for misconceptions

1. If you were looking for information about a health issue how many different places in your library could you find that information? Places can include special collections, fiction, non-fiction, audiovisual material and online resources.

2.Thinking like a patron, have a look at your library. How easy is it to find the different health resources in your library?

3. Thinking like a patron, have a look at your library website. How easy is it to find the different health resources here?

4. Describe something new that you think your library could introduce to improve the use of library information resources.

5. Describe something that you personally could do to make patrons aware of the extent of the library reference services.

Module 1 Answers and review

Information needs

Why is it difficult to get to the information need?

If the patron's first question is often just a way to find out if you are approachable or reflects a lack of understanding of what your library has to offer, will the next question reveal the information need?

There are many reasons why a patron may choose not to express an information need or be uncomfortable doing so. Consider how difficult it is to discuss a serious personal problem with a complete stranger, perhaps with very little privacy, or to ask questions that you feel you should already know the answer to.

Steps in discovering the information need

Communicate the idea that the more information you have the better job you can do in getting the patron the material that will be the most help.

To do that you need to:

Make the patron feel comfortable
Be approachable
Be sensitive
You may need to go with the patron to a quiet place away from other patrons
Assure confidentiality of all information requests, including online or telephone request.

It may be difficult for patrons to convey their request for several reasons:-

Limited knowledge of the subject
English is not their first language
Other communication barriers
Limited access to communication technology
They are enquiring on behalf of someone else

Exercises for information needs

Answer the following questions about your library. Discuss your answer with your colleagues or teacher.

1. How is it possible to ensure privacy when assisting a patron?

2. How can you make patrons feel comfortable when working to find answers to information needs?

Module 1 Answers and review

Reference process

Need for a reference process

Finding and filling information needs is an ongoing process and you will need to keep learning and developing your skills in this area.

Any work in the library, including reference work, involves establishing rapport with the patron.

Discovering and meeting information needs is a process that involves finding the information need that triggered the initial question. The reference process involves open communication between you and the patron.

Filling the information gap

You can think of reference or information work as assisting people in filling gaps in their knowledge and solving problems. Patrons may have trouble expressing their information need or may be reluctant to do so. You need to discover the underlying question so you can help the patron.

For example:

Suppose a person comes into a public library asking for recipes for tomato sauce. It would be relatively easy to provide them with recipes. Would we then meet their information need? Suppose this person had just harvested their garden tomatoes and is overwhelmed by the amount collected. The information gap is what to do with all those tomatoes. While the person sees the problem as being solved by recipes for tomato sauce, if you discover this information gap, you may be able to really help by providing them with ideas of other things they might do with the tomatoes (drying or freezing them); making sauce or salsa; giving them to charity; or composting them. You would have done a much better job of meeting the information need that brought them to the library, even if they didn't clearly express the need in the opening question to you.

Major point: Finding the underlying gap in information or the problem to be solved behind the patron's opening question is an ongoing process.

Steps of the reference process

Solving problems and filling gaps in information is a process involving many steps.

The steps of the reference process include the following:

Making it easy for the patron to contact the library when there is an information need - outreach
Finding out what the information need is - the reference interview
Finding the information that will meet the need - reference search
Making sure the patron's need has been met - follow-up

In Module 2 and Module 3 you will find more material about behaviours and actions used in the reference process. You will learn how to conduct a reference interview to find the information need and follow-up to ensure that the need is met.

Module 4 and Module 5 introduce you to the next steps - the strategies and resources you will use once you've determined the need. Module 6 explains the professional ethics and responsibilities of the reference process. The steps of the process are summarised here.

Major point: Reference work is a process that includes mediation and follow-up.

Exercises for steps of the reference process

1. Refer to the scenario earlier in Module 1 with a patron coming to the library asking for tomato sauce recipes.

2. List the places you could source information for the patron.

Module 1 Answers and review

Staff role

Working with the patron

Library staff help patrons to be skilled information seekers.

Staff

talk to patrons,
discover their needs,
clarify what is required,
verify the details,
search for the required information, and
follow up to make sure the patron's needs have been met.

Staff are responsible for conducting library work with regard for professional ethics. See Module 6.

Competencies and guidelines for reference services

Professional competencies guidelines focus on the behaviours, the abilities, skills and knowledge that make reference and customer services librarians unique from other professionals.

Access: analysing and responding to needs for information services and understanding how services are designed and organised.
Knowledge base: staying aware of, applying and sharing new concepts in the library and information services environment.
Marketing/awareness/promotion: evaluating services, communicating about them to others.
Collaboration: maintaining positive relationships and working with patrons and colleagues within the library and beyond.
Evaluation and assessment of resources and services: understanding user needs, information services, trends, resources, methods of service delivery, and knowledge of information service providers.

Adapted from Professional Competencies for Reference and User Services Librarians.

The Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA), Australian Society of Archivist (ASA) and Records and Information Management Professionals Australasia (RIMPA) collaborated on the development of the Foundation Knowledge, Skills and Attributes relevant to Information Professionals working in Archives, Libraries and Records Management.

Working remotely

The skills and behaviours you are learning apply to all reference interactions regardless of where your customer is located. The model behaviours of approachability, interest, listening, inquiring, searching and follow-up are still required when working remotely. Reference interviewing is generally covered in Module 2. The specific online, remote and chat reference service behaviours, where face to face, non-verbal and visual cues are absent are also covered in Module 2. Telephone and email reference behaviours are covered in Module 3.

Major point: Library staff performance is critical in meeting a community's information needs.

Exercises for staff role

Who is involved in reference service in your library? A whole department? A reference librarian? Anybody who's available? Just you?
What is your role in the provision of reference and information services? Whether large or small, the reference service provided by the library is critical.
Identify everyone at the library who provides reference services.

Module 1 Answers and review