Purpose The purpose of this study is to inform special collections and archives professionals about the perceptions and needs of a previously understudied group – members of the general public who are not already actively using archives and special collections. Survey methods are used to capture societal values and public expectations about archival outreach, processing metrics and care for culturally sensitive materials. Design/methodology/approach A survey was utilized to quantify public sentiment on archival practice, with two blocks of experimental randomized questions fielded to determine the effect of two treatments on members of the general public in the United States (N = 800). Block one was used to determine perceptions on resource expenditures, while block two gauged attitudes regarding archival outreach. Findings Results show a strong preference among the public for the preservation of cultural heritage items over business records, as well as an overwhelming willingness by the public to engage in archival outreach if provided the opportunity. Originality/value Despite paradigm shifts that realigned institutional archives with public engagement and outreach, there have been few, if any, empirical studies of perceptions of archives by members of the public who are not already engaged with archives. In order for archival institutions to truly engage and serve the public, archival professionals and scholars need to understand how the public actually views archives and their work. While this survey study cannot provide nuanced insights into individual user needs and experiences, it quantifies questions asked in past qualitative studies on archival participation and provides new paths for future research.

PurposeThis analysis of chat reference transcripts assesses differences in how librarians and graduate assistants (GAs) incorporate teaching strategies in responding to chat reference inquiries in social sciences, health sciences, humanities, STEM and business/economics at a large, public R1 university in the United States.Design/methodology/approachResearchers with disciplinary assignments in five different subject domains conducted qualitative analysis of a purposive sample of 982 transcripts of chat interactions during four semesters in 2021 and 2022.FindingsSome form of information literacy instruction (ILI) occurred in 58% of the transcripts, with slightly less teaching occurring in social sciences inquiries than in other subject areas. Of transcripts that included teaching strategies, search procedures predominated, followed by a mix of concepts and procedures, and the least with concepts only. Chat providers taught concepts specific to social sciences, health sciences and humanities, but not to STEM or business.Research limitations/implicationsThe study compares transcripts at one institution; findings may be most applicable to large, research institutions that seek to incorporate ILI in online reference services.Practical implicationsChat reference training should include best practices for ILI relevant to specific subject domains for providers without background in those disciplines and recommendations for referrals to subject specialists.Originality/valueExisting ILI literature does not address the question of how chat providers teach concepts rooted in a specific subject domain or offer a comparison of teaching strategies employed in different disciplines, by librarians versus GAs or staff.

PurposeThis study surveyed the entrepreneurship community on a large university campus in 2016 and in 2020 to identify and understand its information habits and needs. User needs can inform service design and assessment, as well as inform approaches to reference interactions. Librarians are encouraged to conduct similar surveys to better understand this niche population.Design/methodology/approachInvestigators employed repeated cross-sectional design, a longitudinal research approach that draws on samples of non-overlapping or minimally overlapping cases over time. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected using online survey instruments. Data collected included demographic information, venture characteristics, participation in institutional activities such as accelerator programs and credit courses, general startup research behaviors and needs, and details of a specific instance of business or market research as well as interaction with the library and access to training. Triangulation of semantic and episodic was applied to draw reliable conclusions about respondent behavior.FindingsIn both surveys, over half of respondents were students and 75% of respondents were engaged in startup activity, most at the early stages. While respondent demographics, type and purpose of information sought remained constant between the two surveys, awareness and use of the library rose on several metrics. Coding revealed insights into respondents’ attitudes toward and strategies for secondary business research. Information obtained during the research process had a moderate impact on their ventures. These findings informed the development of library research and instruction services, programs, and collections for entrepreneurs.Originality/valueThe repeated cross-sectional design of the study is unique and shows trends in the community over time. The mixed-methods approach provides a robust and nuanced portrait of the community. These findings informed the development and assessment of library research and instruction services, programs and collections for entrepreneurs.

PurposeThis article explores the affective dimensions of academic librarians’ experiences during the forced pivot to emergency remote teaching because of the Covid-19 pandemic.Design/methodology/approachThrough semi-structured interviews with librarians at 18 university libraries in Ontario, Canada, the researcher prompted study participants to reflect on how their work and that of other librarians in their organization changed during the period of focus, including the main challenges and opportunities experienced for information literacy instruction.FindingsThis study finds evidence of stress and anxiety among academic librarians teaching during the Covid-19 pandemic, including lack of confidence and skills with eLearning and work-life balance challenges. At the same time, the data show strengths and successes fueled by resilience, collaboration and a growing culture of care, which in many cases, resulted in strong expressions of pride by interviewees on what was achieved during this global health crisis.Originality/valueThis study is one of few adopting a qualitative research methodology to explore the affective dimensions of academic librarians’ experience of information literacy instruction during the Covid-19 pandemic. Its implications are instructive for future pedagogical approaches and workplace culture among information literacy teams, including communication, collaboration, flexibility and leadership support.

PurposeThis paper aims to present recently published resources on library instruction and information literacy. It provides an introductory overview and a selected annotated bibliography of publications organized thematically and detailing, study populations, results and research contexts. The selected bibliography is useful to efficiently keep up with trends in library instruction for academic library practitioners, library science students and those wishing to learn about information literacy in other contexts.Design/methodology/approachThis article annotates 340 English-language periodical articles, dissertations, theses and reports on library instruction and information literacy published in 2022. The sources were selected from the EBSCO platform for Library, Information Science and Technology s (LISTA), Education Resources Information Center (ERIC), Elsevier SCOPUS and ProQuest Dissertations and Theses. Sources selected were published in 2022 and included the terms “information literacy,” “library instruction,” or “information fluency” in the title, subject terms, or author supplied keywords. The sources were organized in Zotero. Annotations were made summarizing the source, focusing on the findings or implications. Each source was then thematically categorized and organized for academic librarians to be able to skim and use the annotated bibliography efficiently.FindingsThe paper provides a brief description of 340 sources from 144 unique publications, and highlights publications that contain unique or significant scholarly contributions. Further analysis of the sources and authorship are provided.Originality/valueThe information is primarily of use to academic librarians, researchers, and anyone interested as a quick and comprehensive reference to literature on library instruction and information literacy published within 2022.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to make visible the field's propensity to center whiteness even in engaging inclusive practices in information literacy classrooms. This paper offers abolitionist pedagogy as a means to understand and address these concerns.Design/methodology/approachThis paper uses interdisciplinary research methods in the fields of education, library science, feminist studies, Black studies and abolition studies to examine and provide an analysis of current information literacy practices by using abolitionist pedagogy to articulate how it is possible to expand information literacy instruction practices.FindingsCurrent information literacy practices and methods that seek to create inclusive learning environments for racialized and minoritized learners rely on a set of institutionalized practices such as critical information literacy and culturally sustaining pedagogies. An examination of these practices through an abolitionist pedagogical lens reveals how the field has engaged in reductive and uncritical engagement with these methods despite employing them to create inclusive spaces. Using abolitionist pedagogy as a lens, this critical essay examines the field's foundations in whiteness and illustrates pathways for transformative educational justice.Originality/valueThere has been much work on inclusive teaching practices that discusses challenging information literacy structures' reliance on dominant culture.? To date, there has been little to no scholarship on how information literacy practices could engage in abolitionist pedagogical praxis.

PurposeThe tenets of Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) allow librarians to assess their teaching effectiveness through an evaluation of student learning. For the author, the sudden reliance on digital primary source collections during the 2020 pandemic lockdown provided a catalyst to examine her digital primary source instruction as a research project. In this case study, the author aims to examine library instruction for a required course for third-year history majors.Design/methodology/approachThe author collaborated with a history professor to identify “bottlenecks” related to digital primary source research, and to design two new library instruction sessions with in-class activities and assignments to address these bottlenecks. The professor and author then evaluated the assignments to determine if students had understood and incorporated the methods modeled during the research instruction classes.FindingsTeaching undergraduate history majors digital primary source research skills that will lead to the habits of mind of historians cannot be done in one academic quarter, for it takes time to develop disciplinary ways of thinking. Providing select core concepts more systematically earlier in the history major curriculum could make the enculturation into the discipline less fraught and confusing later, so that students begin learning foundational skills in their third year to carry them forward into their senior year when they write their theses.Originality/valueLittle has been written on digital primary source library instruction, which intersects with a variety of other research literacies. Assessing library instruction through the lens of SoTL is relatively new for academic librarians and has not been used in evaluating student learning in the digital primary source environment.

PurposeThe purpose of the paper is two-fold. The first is to inform the readers of the racist origins of libraries in America. Readers will learn about historic instances of systemic racism in libraries and those that persist today. The second purpose is to give readers examples of antiracist actions they can take on an individual level, in concert with library administration, and on the institutional level.Design/methodology/approachThis paper gives an overview of systemic racism in librarianship. Part I outlines the history of libraries and their institutional oppression origins in America. Part II reviews some of the current racial issues in Libraries and Information Science (LIS). Part III gives the author's viewpoint on how to incorporate antiracist action within libraries and how to decenter whiteness at the national level.FindingsThe authors found that libraries were established on institutional oppression and systemic racism, which continue to this day to center whiteness and disadvantage BIPOC. Having said that, now is the time to make changes, decenter whiteness and remove systemic barriers through antiracist actions. These actions will help increase the number of BIPOC working in libraries and improve the retention and promotion of those BIPOC too. If the American Library Association (ALA) heeds this call to action, Critical Race Theory (CRT) will become part of the Master's of Library and Information Science (MLIS), BIPOC will be better funded and supported, and the credentialing stigma will be removed.Originality/valueThis article highlights concrete action that should be taken beyond individual bias awareness and into systemic changes. It advocates for more critical awareness and daily antiracist action within the LIS field.

PurposeThe postquarantine reopening of public libraries presents an opportunity for resetting the way libraries welcome patrons. Unfortunately, vestiges of inhospitable, white supremacist practices experienced in public libraries may accompany the “return to normal.” In addition to emphasizing policies and practices that are unwelcoming to patrons and staff from historically marginalized backgrounds, this article presents actions to be employed in an effort to transition the library to a place of belonging and hospitality for marginalized staff and community members.Design/methodology/approachThis paper draws on a synthesis of the literature on hospitality in libraries and antiracism as well as the author's experience from professional practice to critique the host-and-guest concept of hospitality, which results in us versus them actions that uphold racism, white supremacy and white privilege.FindingsBarriers and institutional practices that negatively impact patrons and library workers are illuminated. Recommendations for creating an antiracist “new normal” in public libraries are proposed.Originality/valueIn addition to contributing to the literature on hospitality in libraries, this paper expands the capacity and knowledge base of library staff to call attention to and dismantle barriers and uninviting practices in their own libraries. The paper further advances mutual hospitality as a supplement to antiracism principles as libraries work to eradicate white supremacy.