Taking the Social out of Interaction: virtual reference and the digital divide John Mills Jake Wallis Charles Sturt University

‘I am not always comfortable in the library…I don’t think libraries are probably the most helpful institutions…there is a lot of this emotion in terms of not being comfortable…you do get put off.’

Library-User Interaction library as information warehouse users need answers librarians as bridge

Reference interview as solution! becomes part of professional practice standardised hierarchical interaction between library as organisation and user

To what extent was/is the reference interview successful in deciphering/understanding/assisting meeting of information needs?

Library-User Interaction Context Changes library as node within wider digital information environment users still need answers librarians as bridge – transaction style reference interaction eg virtual ref systems

To what extent is reference interview (transaction) successful in deciphering/understanding/assisting the meeting of information needs?

Library-User Interaction Context further evolves truly globalised information environment offers plethora of interaction users technologically empowered within this information marketplace library as information service provider users as informed information consumers users participate in information creation

Library goes digital virtual reference systems – transactional interactions (with benefits!)

Library 2.0 participation as Web 2.0 reasserts the ‘social’ interaction in the digital environment benefits from the open communication styles emphasised in the reference interview – reference conversations!

Reference interview evolves into distributed online interactions at point of need, for example: use of blogs to ‘push’ reference material and initiate conversation collaborative editing platforms such as wikis to facilitate user input in creating reference material

‘…blogs have the power to break down the institutional wall between libraries and their community members. “ in my view, the more human we look, the more we personalize our services, the more connected we will be to our patrons.” ’ Brookover, Why we blog, (2007)

The experience with the virtual librarian from AskNow! (via NLA) was different in a number of ways. My lack of familiarity with the process acted as a demotivator and resulted in my delaying use of this source until later in the searching experience. The valuable information gained resulted in a change of attitude and a feeling of confidence to use the service again. Some aspects of this process are inferior to the face-to- face interview. Without the natural flow of verbal and non-verbal reassuring, clarifying and constant communication, the process feels stilted, formal and intimidating.

The delay between question asked and answer given feels like an uncomfortable silence, with a pressure to respond quickly and positively, without having a chance to evaluate information passed on. Though, I was aware of the effort made by the librarian to follow the reference interview format, using language that was welcoming, clarifying the question, checking if information given was satisfactory, and welcoming me back to the service… though I would use the service again the personal nature of the interview holds the greater appeal. (Forrest 2007)

Are we becoming more successful in personalising services; how important is the human element? –We have created online spaces –Enhanced physical spaces through information commons, re-purposed library spaces to support information seeking –Re-recognised social importance of library

How confident are our users? How pervasive is library anxiety? Can we expect any more successful interpersonal interaction than what we currently have? Can a reassertion of our human face through Web 2.0 technologies and interpersonal connections jointly improve our position as information provider of choice?

How important is the social in interaction? Will skype and other technologies really put the social back into interaction?