Changes in Reference Question Complexity Following the Implementation of a Proactive Chat System: Implications for Practice

Abstract

There has been longstanding debate about whether the level of complexity of questions received at reference desks and via online chat services requires a librarian's expertise. Continued decreases in the number and complexity of reference questions have all but ended the debate; many academic libraries no longer staff service points with professional librarians. However, convenient, proactive online chat services could reverse the trends. This paper provides results of a study of reference question complexity following implementation of a proactive chat service. The study reveals changes in the complexity of chat questions that may have implications for staffing online reference services.oincident with the rise of information literacy efforts and the simplification in the online environment, there has been a dramatic decrease in reference questions. According to ACRL's Academic Library Statistics, the number of reference transactions in doctorate-granting institutions declined 49 percent between 2000 and 2012, and nearly all the questions that remain are directional, basic search questions and questions related to library operations.1 These point-of-need questions, regardless of the medium over which they are conducted, served multiple purposes. At the most basic level, they provided support for the mechanics of library research, helping users navigate multiple information silos and the physical organization of the library. Although, on the surface, support for these questions related to the mechanics of library research, they also provided an opportunity for broad research support. The librarian had sufficient knowledge of the curriculum, the publication patterns of disciplines and subjects, and thesis and topic development to provide broad research support. In the case of student researchers, the librarian had the opportunity to reach the student at a teachable moment, reinforcing course content, guiding the student in formulating a research topic that was practical and appropriate for the given assignment, and then providing guidance in evaluating sources. The components of the reference transaction-support for the mechanical aspects of library research and the broader research expertise-were so tightly interwoven that many librarians assumed that, if information literacy instruction were integrated into the curriculum, doi:10.5860/crl.76.7.959 crl15-725

Let’s chat: the art of virtual reference instruction

“…A large percentage of questions were actually related to circulation and policy inquiries as well as technological issues. This finding is similar to the one outlined by Maloney and Kemp (2015) who identified 49% of the chat questions as nonprofessional. This has interesting implications with regards to how users view the virtual reference service.…”

“…Limitations of this study include the sample size which represents 17.4% of all virtual reference interactions during the period between September 2017 and April 2018. Previous studies also used similar methods and drew conclusions from samples (Desai and Graves, 2008;Dempsey, 2017;Dempsey, 2016;Maloney and Kemp, 2015;Smyth and Mackenzie, 2006), which seems normal given the nature of content analysis.…”

Lifting the Veil: Analyzing Collaborative Virtual Reference Transcripts to Demonstrate Value and Make Recommendations for Practice

“…12 Kemp and Maloney describe the uses of the READ Scale to evaluate the complexity of virtual reference questions. 14 Passonneau and Coffey (2011) made an important theoretical contribution to "Lifting the Veil." With their essay they offered a way of tackling a very large amount of data.…”

Beyond Reference Data: A Qualitative Analysis of Nursing Library Chats to Improve Research Health Science Services

“…A virtual chat service is a vital synchronous online service for library patrons (both face-toface and distance populations), and there are many studies on providing reference services to researchers through chat. Some studies survey academic librarians about their chat reference services and how they train staff to answer chats (Devine, Paladino, & Davis, 2011), while others explore the usefulness of having full-time librarians provide service through chat reference systems (Maloney & Kemp, 2015). Many chat analysis projects take a large-scale qualitative approach by analyzing datasets of academic chat transcripts to show overall improvements over time (Baumgart et al, 2016;Brown, 2017;Dempsey, 2019).…”