Abstract
Purpose - Librarians respond to staffing L-net, Oregon’s statewide reference chat service, in different ways. We created a survey to look for ways to improve our statewide service and improve the experience of chat librarians (as well as patrons). Design/methodology/approach - We surveyed L-net librarians to learn their thoughts and satisfaction with answering L-net chat questions. We collected anonymous survey data via PSU’s web survey software (Qualtrics). Our survey instrument was a mixture of qualitative and quantitative questions. The survey consisted of 29 questions.Findings - While the literature has many articles regarding patron satisfaction with chat reference, there is a dearth of articles regarding librarian satisfaction with chat. We found that nearly a quarter of our librarians said they did not enjoy answering chat questions on L-net. 76 percent indicated they had received written abuse. Swearing was the number one complaint at 28 percent, followed by sexual comments and rude remarks which tied at 17 percent. One obvious problem seems to be the anonymity of the service and the way chat can serve as an outlet for youth learning boundaries. Research limitations/implications - The response rate could have been higher.Practical implications - We could develop best practices specific to the lack of visual cues. In the literature review and in our survey responses, we noticed that librarians experience lower job satisfaction specifically as a result of their lack of visual cues in chat mode. With face to face reference, we can readily observe the patron’s age level, the nuances of facial expressions and body language that help us better answer their questions. In chat, we lack those visual cues. Are there ways to counterbalance this shortcoming? Consider if we developed best practices to ensure that we are doing a thorough reference interview, but quickly so that we don’t "lose" our patrons. Originality/value - While many studies have been done on patron satisfaction, few have studied librarian satisfaction in staffing virtual reference.
Purpose - Librarians respond to staffing L-net, Oregon’s statewide reference chat service, in different ways. We created a survey to look for ways to improve our statewide service and improve the experience of chat librarians (as well as patrons). Design/methodology/approach - We surveyed L-net librarians to learn their thoughts and satisfaction with answering L-net chat questions. We collected anonymous survey data via PSU’s web survey software (Qualtrics). Our survey instrument was a mixture of qualitative and quantitative questions. The survey consisted of 29 questions.Findings - While the literature has many articles regarding patron satisfaction with chat reference, there is a dearth of articles regarding librarian satisfaction with chat. We found that nearly a quarter of our librarians said they did not enjoy answering chat questions on L-net. 76 percent indicated they had received written abuse. Swearing was the number one complaint at 28 percent, followed by sexual comments and rude remarks which tied at 17 percent. One obvious problem seems to be the anonymity of the service and the way chat can serve as an outlet for youth learning boundaries. Research limitations/implications - The response rate could have been higher.Practical implications - We could develop best practices specific to the lack of visual cues. In the literature review and in our survey responses, we noticed that librarians experience lower job satisfaction specifically as a result of their lack of visual cues in chat mode. With face to face reference, we can readily observe the patron’s age level, the nuances of facial expressions and body language that help us better answer their questions. In chat, we lack those visual cues. Are there ways to counterbalance this shortcoming? Consider if we developed best practices to ensure that we are doing a thorough reference interview, but quickly so that we don’t "lose" our patrons. Originality/value - While many studies have been done on patron satisfaction, few have studied librarian satisfaction in staffing virtual reference.