Emily Crist (pictured below) and I completed work on this article right as the pandemic was emerging; we signed off on the corrected proof the first week of March 2020. This was part of a grant-funded project, and we were also expected to present our findings at a relevant professional conference as a condition of funding. We had a session proposal accepted at the Association of College & Research Libraries—New England chapter’s May 2020 meeting. However, that conference was postponed until May 2021. Personally, I have engaged with this particular project little in the past year since the research and data analysis was already complete and it already resulted in an article published in one of the field’s top journals, so there are some challenges as we get ready to pick up where we left off for the presentation. Nonetheless, I am pleased that we have the opportunity to see this project through to its originally envisioned ending.
Abstract (click on the cover image for full article)
To better understand, articulate, and improve the academic library’s impact on online populations, this two-phase mixed-method study examines library communication with online students and faculty. In phase I, online focus group participants responded to vignettes illustrating library communication scenarios. Results from phase I informed the creation of a questionnaire for phase II.
Results of both phases demonstrated that patrons’ lack of knowledge about how and when to communicate with the library can serve as a communication barrier, that online patrons highly value being able to access librarians, and that a range of outreach strategies hold appeal.
Citation: Faulk, N. & Crist, E. (2020, Apr.). A mixed-methods study of library communication with online students and faculty members. College & Research Libraries, 81(3), 361-377. https://doi.org/10.5860/crl.81.3.361
Creative Commons License: By Nick Faulk & Emily Crist, CC BY-NC
A couple of resources that informed us:
Benedetti, A., Jackson, J., & Luo, L. (2018, Mar.) Vignettes: Implications for LIS research. College & Research Libraries, 79(2), 222-236. https://doi.org/10.5860/crl.79.2.222
Creswell, J.W., & Plano-Clark, V.L. (2011). Designing and conducting mixed methods research (2nd ed). SAGE Publications.