By Jolo Van Clyde S. Abatayo
Librarians are not just mere keepers of books. We have functions that you can’t imagine. We have responsibilities that you can’t easily grasp if your fervor doesn’t fall into this kind of craft. As a former research services librarian and reader services librarian, I really love handling reference interviews. To be honest, I consider it as my forte.
Did you know that we always conduct a reference interview? According to the Reference and User Services Association (RUSA), “reference librarians recommend, interpret, evaluate, and/or use information resources to help patrons with specific information needs.” From time to time, we are bombarded with so many questions and queries from various information seekers and to be able to accurately identify and retrieve their information needs, we do reference interviews or query negotiations (in-house, via telephone/mobile, or digital). The question is: is it just an ordinary Q & A portion? Nah! In order to effectively and efficiently do this, you need to follow the critical phases: (1) Manifest approachability, (2) Show interest, (3) Be an effective listener, (4) Do the fruitful interview, (5) Search and Explore, (6) Provide accurate answers, and (7) Never forget to follow up.
As I always mention to my
BLIS students, introverted or reticent fellas will surely find it hard to work
as a reference librarian because in this kind of position, you will always
handle public relations. Building rapport and being approachable are always
important when you conduct a reference interview. Most of the common and vital
things you need to do are the following:
· Initiate and set the tone
· It’s always free to smile
(genuine, not fake)
· Eye contact is necessary
(friendly, not lustful)
· Consider appropriate body
language (distance, hand gestures)
· Be welcoming
Your clients will feel
uneasy and incurious if you are not passionate about giving them
assistance. The eye contact must be consistent from the very beginning until
the end. My college instructor once said that if you find it hard to maintain eye contact, you can look at the person’s brows instead! Furthermore, as much
as possible, you need to make sure that your users find you accommodating, not
intimidating. Moreover, giving your full attention is a must too. Lastly, the
tone of your voice must be polite and relaxed all the time even if your clients
are very difficult to deal with. No shouting!
In query negotiation, listening skill is very important. Let your patron talk and explain, for you to analyze and comprehend what he/she really wants or for you to determine his/her real information needs. With that being said, a good listener doesn’t interfere. Here are the strategies you can do:
Paraphrasing. It is a useful technique that will help you discover a patron's real information need. You repeat back what the patron said in their own words without adding any thoughts or questions of your own. You mirror the patron's thoughts by showing the patron what the question looks like to you.
Sense-making. It is the process by which people give meaning to their collective experiences. It has been defined as "the ongoing retrospective development of plausible images that rationalize what people are doing". The concept was introduced to organizational studies by Karl E. Weick in the 1970s and has affected both theory and practice. It is an organized way to ensure that the librarian understands what the user really needs.
Neutral questioning is a big
YES! Don’t forget to ask open-ended questions for you to ascertain the true
core of the patron’s query. These questions will allow the patrons to elucidate everything they know about the topic and to describe
their information need clearly. Here are some examples of open-ended questions:
How may I help you?
Can you tell me more about
what you need?
What type of information
are you looking for?
How will you utilize this
information?
Also, don’t
forget to squeeze the query to get the last drop of the juice. In other words,
get the most specific demand by verifying a specific question through
paraphrasing and employing closed-ended questions to seal the deal! Lastly,
avoid making reckless judgments or jumping to conclusions real quick!
Answer-seeking or
information searching will work best if you will do it with your clients. Don’t
you ever forget to show them the process and the progress to instill in them
the essence of information literacy. You know not all the time your patrons can
access the library or can ask assistance from you and when the time comes that
they have to do it on their own, at least you are confident that they can do
it. With that, you are also empowering independence and lifelong learning. Here
are the important things you need to do as well:
Familiarize all sources of
information
Employ search strategies
and techniques
Learn to evaluate or
assess information
Utilize bibliographic and
ICT tools
Be an information savvy
Compile assistive-based
research materials
Build a strong linkage and
collaboration for referrals
Always remember that, as a
reference librarian, you need to provide “the right information to the right
users in the right place at the right time.” Don’t leave your patrons hanging
because it’s a great sin for librarians when they fail to provide answers to
the information seekers. Also, you must not forget the following:
Provide the most accurate
information
Teach them how to properly
cite the source
Uphold knowledge management and creation
Never Forget to Follow up
Don’t be too confident that
you have answered your clients’ questions. Don’t ever forget to make a
follow-up. In this way, you can evaluate if your client has everything
he/she needs already. Employ appropriate follow-up questions or statements. Here are
some of the examples of follow-up questions:
Does this completely
answer your question?
Do you have everything you
need?
Is there anything else I
can help you find?
In this part of the article, I'm going to provide the common problems in dealing with reference interviews. I am not
sure if all of you guys experience these too, but I know that some of you have
encountered the following:
· The Imposed Query. A process in which the imposer or end-user passes the question to
another who will act as the agent in the transaction of the query and then
return to the imposer with the answer or resolution (Gross 1998).
Example: A
parent arrives in the library asking for information for his/her child’s
homework assignment. In this case, the person who needs information is not
present may or may not be clear as to the actual information need. The
librarian will realize that the person asking the question may not be able to
clarify the question for the librarian, making it more complicated to help.
· Communication
Trap. In this pitfall, the librarian fails to ask the client any
open-ended questions or sense-making questions in order to find out the real
essence of the query. Also, another example of it is when the librarian
misinterprets the questions because the pronunciation of the keywords is
slightly different or the librarian hears the word and relates it to something
familiar to him or her. Moreover, your library users often find it hard to
explain their needs. They will often throw vague questions at you that’s why
asking open questions are vital for you to clearly understand their real
information needs.
Example: The patron is asking for materials on Socrates. But, the librarian has just been weeding in the sports section and hears, “soccer tees”.
· The Know-it-All. Some librarians
think that they are like walking reference materials. Some are too confident
and swaggering that’s why they tend to make assumptions and conclusions without
following the exact methods. Some clients also assume that if you are a
librarian, you always have answers to everything. It’s half-impossible and
half-possible! To be honest, we can give you the answers to your questions
because we’re trained to familiarize all the possible sources of information.
We have effective search strategies and techniques. We’re kinda like wizards
but we don’t use magic. We’re not perfect so stop it…. It’s just us (Kami lang
to).
That’s it for today, folks. If you want to know more about
librarianship, please wait for the next articles. I hope you have learned something
new today. If you are a librarian/information professional, continue doing
fruitful reference interviews. If you are a future librarian/information
scientist, start loving reference. If you are aspiring to become a librarian,
choose LIS and unravel its mysteries. See you on my next blog. Have a great day
or night or whatever!
References:
Eugene McDermott Library. (2020). Reference Guide for Library
Staff and Students. Retrieved last September 29, 2020 from
https://libguides.utdallas.edu/reference-guide-for-library-staff-and-students
Gross, M. (1998). The Imposed Query. Retrieved last September 29,
2020 from https://www.questia.com/library/journal/1G1-54467286/the-imposed-query
https://www.open.edu/openlearn/ocw/mod/oucontent/view.php?id=87005§ion=2.3
http://lindsay-oneill.com/portfolio/bookshop-branched-scenario/
https://www.bklynlibrary.org/bal
https://www.superoffice.com/blog/follow-up-email/
https://jeffshore.com/2017/09/want-better-closer-show-youre-interested/showing-interest/
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