Conducting the Reference Interview

by Ross, Catherine Sheldrick; Nilsen, Kirsti; Dewdney, Patricia

• ISBN13: 9781555704322
• ISBN10: 1555704328
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2002-10-01
• Publisher: Neal Schuman Pub

Table of Contents

Preface	vii
Acknowledgments	xiii
Conducting an Effective Reference Interview	1	(42)
What is a (reference) interview?	1	(4)
Service orientation of libraries	5	(7)
Beyond 55 percent	12	(5)
Why didn't you say so in the first place?	17	(12)
The ill-formed query	22	(3)
Mental models	25	(4)
The helpful answer: two ways of thinking about information	29	(5)
Information as a commodity	29	(1)
Questions in contexts	30	(4)
Reference as an art of translation	34	(1)
There are no bad-guy users	35	(2)
Annotated references	37	(6)
Principles of interviewing	37	(1)
Bibliographic guides to the reference interview	38	(1)
When is a reference interview necessary?	38	(1)
Measures of information service effectiveness	39	(2)
The ill-formed query and users' mental models	41	(1)
Useful conceptual frameworks for thinking about information, mental models, etc.	41	(1)
Miscellaneous	42	(1)
Using the First 30 Seconds to Set the Stage for the Reference Interview	43	(24)
Being approachable	43	(4)
The library as a physical space	47	(3)
Establishing contact	50	(1)
Skills for the first 30 seconds:	51	(13)
The microtraining approach	52	(1)
Nonverbal attending skills: eye contact, smiling and nodding, pausing, posture	53	(5)
Acknowledgment	58	(3)
Minimal encouragers	61	(1)
Listening	62	(2)
Annotated references	64	(3)
General	64	(1)
Microtraining	64	(1)
Nonverbal behavior: general	65	(1)
Listening	65	(1)
Initial contacts and nonverbal behavior in the library context	66	(1)
Finding Out What They Really Want to Know	67	(42)
Some common problems	67	(16)
``Without speaking she began to type''	69	(2)
Bypassing the reference interview	71	(1)
Taking a system-based perspective	72	(3)
The unmonitored referral	75	(4)
Negative closure: how to make users go away	79	(4)
Skills for negotiating the question	83	(21)
Open and closed questions	83	(8)
Avoiding premature diagnosis	91	(2)
Sense-making questions	93	(9)
Reflecting content: paraphrasing and summarizing	102	(1)
Closure	103	(1)
Annotated references	104	(5)
Common problems in the reference interview	104	(1)
Works of relevance to the reference interview in general	105	(1)
Questioning skills	106	(2)
Reflecting content and feeling	108	(1)
Closure	108	(1)
Inclusion	108	(1)
Moving Beyond Negative Closure	109	(16)
Skills for working together	109	(11)
Inclusion: telling people what you are doing	111	(2)
Bibliographic instruction	113	(5)
Follow-up questions	118	(2)
Integrating reference interview skills	120	(3)
Tips for practicing	121	(2)
Annotated References	123	(2)
General	123	(1)
Inclusion	123	(1)
Follow-up questions	124	(1)
Exploring Special Contexts for the Reference Interview	125	(60)
Introduction to special contexts	125	(1)
The telephone interview	126	(10)
Interview skills for the telephone	127	(7)
Voicemail	134	(1)
Who gets priority?	135	(1)
The second-hand reference interview	136	(6)
The imposed query	137	(5)
The reference interview with children and young adults	142	(10)
``Got any books on fleas?''	142	(4)
Information literacy	146	(1)
The school assignment	147	(3)
Parents	150	(2)
Interviewing adults with special language-related needs	152	(5)
English as a second language	153	(1)
Cross-cultural communication	154	(1)
Interviewing people with disabilities	155	(2)
Interviewing users with consumer health and legal questions	157	(5)
The readers' advisory interview	162	(13)
Setting the stage for readers' advisory service	164	(2)
Conducting the interview	166	(9)
Annotated references	175	(10)
Telephone reference	175	(1)
The imposed query	176	(1)
Interviewing children and young adults	176	(1)
Cross-cultural communication	177	(2)
Coping with language and speech barriers	179	(1)
Answering legal or health questions	180	(1)
Readers' advisory	180	(5)
Performing the Reference Interview in an Electronic Environment	185	(34)
Introduction to electronic mediation	185	(2)
E-mail reference	187	(22)
Setting the stage	192	(4)
The e-mail reference interview	196	(3)
Using forms	199	(10)
Real-time chat and instant messaging	209	(4)
Conducting the real-time electronic reference interview	211	(2)
Annotated references	213	(6)
Bibliographies and discussion groups	213	(1)
Electronic reference	213	(6)
Establishing Policy and Training for the Reference Interview	219	(14)
The library context	219	(1)
Institutional policy and the reference interview	220	(4)
Typical policies	220	(2)
What should be in the reference service policy?	222	(2)
Training staff in reference interview skills	224	(7)
Independent learning	225	(1)
Group learning	225	(5)
Resistance to training---and some answers	230	(1)
Annotated references	231	(2)
Policies for reference staff	231	(1)
Training	231	(2)
Index	233	(9)
About the Authors	242