What's So Special About Special Libraries?

Murray, Tara E.

doi:10.1080/01930826.2013.865395

Cited by 8 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 5 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Key to their practice is a need to constantly prove their value to their parent organization, whose mission and administration structure determines the library's budget and possibilities for action. Additionally, special librarians work surrounded by professionals in different areas, which makes networking and collaboration with other librarians a paramount concern (Murray, 2013). Finally, special libraries tend towards small staffs, with librarians performing multiple job functions that may include administration tasks, public service, technical tasks and archive management (Davis & Saunders, 2020).…”

Section: A Community Informatics Storymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Some are independent entities, and some are smaller units within academic or public libraries, but most are part of specialized organizations such as corporations or public service institutions. These libraries tend to be highly familiar with their users, providing high levels of service such as customized information selection and analysis (Murray, 2013). User instruction – including information literacy – has not typically been a primary concern in special libraries.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

How librarians and firefighters built a special library in Champaign, Illinois, USA: a community informatics story

Bohórquez

Ruan²,

Williams³

2022

DTS

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

PurposeThis paper aims to understand how a special library helped firefighters in Illinois navigate the digital revolution by evidencing the elements and forms of work that made its innovative services possible.Design/methodology/approachThe authors examine the history of a special library through a community informatics lens, drawing from sociomaterial perspectives to highlight forms of work often invisible in digital innovation. Data was collected through documentary revision, oral histories and semi-structured interviews. Deductive-inductive coding and constant comparative analysis was used in the analysis.FindingsA historical narrative of the library between 1990 and 2021 highlights three sociotechnical innovations that assisted firefighters through the digital revolution: the facilitated collection, the co-created collection and the inside-out library. To develop these innovations the library drew from institutional relations, personal relations, grants, labor, knowledge of firefighters and technology. Various forms of articulation work brought these elements together to create innovative services.Originality/valueThe role of special libraries in addressing the digital divide has not been sufficiently detailed so far; this paper is a contribution in that direction. It also has practical value for professionals working in specialized libraries and information centers.

show abstract

Section: A Community Informatics Storymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

How librarians and firefighters built a special library in Champaign, Illinois, USA: a community informatics story

Bohórquez

Ruan²,

Williams³

2022

DTS

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The SLA (2016) produced a document entitled "Competencies for Special Librarians of the 21st Century" originally in 1996-1997. This document described the knowledge, skill, understanding and attitudes needed to do jobs effectively in a special library environment (Murray, 2013). In 2015, SLA (2016 refined the competencies for librarians working in special libraries.…”

Section: Literature Review Essential Competencies For Librarians Working In Special Librariesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Mahmood et al (2005) defined a special library "as an academic library, created in a special institution to accomplish the organization's goals and aims" (p. 132). Murray (2013) defined special libraries as being different from other types of libraries, from basic procedures to the principals of information services. Special libraries vary due to their characteristics, size and concerning their parent organizations.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Professional competencies for librarians working in special libraries: the case of Pakistan

Khan

Parveen

2020

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Purpose The purpose of this study is to identify the core competencies for librarians working in special libraries. It also measures the competencies of librarians working in special libraries of the Punjab Province against the checklist developed by the Special Library Association (SLA) Task Force. The study also identifies the training needs of librarians working in special libraries and the problems they face in acquiring SLA competencies. Design/methodology/approach A peer-reviewed questionnaire based on the list of competencies for special librarians prepared by the SLA Task Force was used to collect quantitative data from a targeted population. An online survey was administered to approach the population working in special libraries of Punjab Province. Collected data was analyzed statistically through SPSS software. Findings A review of literature highlighted the various competencies for librarians working in special libraries (Figure 1). The findings of the study showed that the competencies identified by SLA Task Force are imperative for librarians working in special libraries of Punjab Province. The results showed that librarians working in special libraries of Punjab possessed an intermediate level of competencies identified by the SLA. However, they had a good level of basic professional and interpersonal skills. The study highlights the training needs of librarians working in special libraries to enable them in acquiring relevant competencies. Research limitations/implications The study measures the competencies of librarians in special libraries of the Punjab Province. During the data collection phase, it was observed that there were some libraries where the non-professional/supporting staff was deputed, and due to this, data could not be collected from these libraries. Practical implications This study has practical implications for librarians and information professionals working in special libraries to acquire the relevant competencies identified by the SLA. This study has identified various competencies areas that are essential for librarians working in special libraries. Social implications Librarians working in any special library can use the results of this study as a checklist to improve their competencies level and work efficiently. Originality/value In contrast to other studies conducted on professional competencies of library professionals working in academic libraries, this study particularly identifies and measures the competencies of librarians working in special libraries.

show abstract

“…Library and information science education special libraries that have discussion rooms were headed by individuals whose academic qualifications were below matriculation, while four were headed by undergraduate and nine by M LIS professionals, respectively (Figure 6). Murray (2013) was of the view that despite the multiple characteristics, special libraries have a common characteristic, which is survival. As compared to academic and public libraries, special libraries are not viewed necessary, and special library professionals have to be ready to demonstrate the value of library to the parent organization.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Library and information science education as ignition source for services in non-academic special libraries

Ahmed

Soroya

2016

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Purpose The purpose of this study was to explore the number, difference and ratio of professionals and non-professionals heading toward non-academic special libraries (NASL). This study also explored the difference of provision of services based on educational qualifications. Design/methodology/approach Quantitative survey research method and questionnaire as a data collection tool was used to conduct the study. The questionnaire contained four educational levels against the 18 services variables. No list or directory being available, 71 special libraries were assured to be there in Lahore through snowball-sampling technique. Out of 71 questionnaires, 41 were returned and analyzed using Chi-Square test in Statistical Package for Social Sciences. Findings Findings indicated that 56 per cent of the libraries were headed by LIS professionals, while rest of 44 per cent of the libraries was headed by persons with no professional education. Chi-Square test’s p value indicated the significant difference in the orientation, reference service and document reservation service. The professionally qualified library managers were found better at providing librarians’ end services. Originality/value The present study is the first of its kind in Pakistan, which marked the vacant positions and indicated the differences of services based on level of education. It depicted the electronic, librarians end, and technical knowledge and multi-factor services and measured its variation on the educational grounds.

show abstract

What's So Special About Special Libraries?

Cited by 8 publications

References 5 publications

How librarians and firefighters built a special library in Champaign, Illinois, USA: a community informatics story

How librarians and firefighters built a special library in Champaign, Illinois, USA: a community informatics story

Professional competencies for librarians working in special libraries: the case of Pakistan

Library and information science education as ignition source for services in non-academic special libraries

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About