Wikipedia? Pretty Accurate

Recent research presents an interesting view on Wikipedia that challenges traditionally held beliefs, including those of Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales who stated that the site should not be cited for academic purposes (Clauson, 2008, p. 1815).  The epistemological approach by Fallis (2008) was an interesting study of the usefulness of Wikipedia compared to other available sites.  This methodology is different than the approach taken by Giles (2005) which compared Wikipedia to the Encyclopedia Britannica which found that they were comparable.  The methodology of Clauson (2008) evaluated the information on Wikipedia to an authoritative medical database and found that it, too, compared favorably. 

Royal and Kapila’s (2009) study from an LIS perspective found that Wikipedia performed well although there were some biases detected.  This conflicted with two other LIS studies, Cronin, 2005 and Gorman, 2007 (as cited in Fallis, 2008) that found Wikipedia unreliable.  Overall, the consensus was that Wikipedia was reliable, errors were corrected quickly, but that its information was incomplete. (see e.g., Clauson, 2008; but see Hjorland, 2011). 

The overall conclusion by Clauson is the best evaluation of Wikipedia:  that it serves as an excellent “point of engagement” (Clauson, 2008, p. 1815) for initiating research. 

References 

Brown, A. (2011).Wikipedia as a Data Source for Political Scientists: Accuracy and Completeness of Coverage. Political Science, 2:339-343. 

Clauson, K., Polen, H., Boulos, M.N.K., and Dzenowagis, J.H. (2008). Scope, completeness, and accuracy of drug information in Wikipedia. The Annals of Pharmacotherapy ,42 :1814-1821. 

Fallis, D, (2008). Toward an epistemology of Wikipedia.  Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 59: 1662-1674. 

Giles, J. (2005). Internet encyclopaedias go head-to-head. Nature, 438: 900-901. 

Hjørland, Birger. (2011). Evaluation of an information source illustrated by a case study: Effect of screening for breast cancer. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 62:1892–1898. 

Royal, C., & Kapila, D. (2009). What's on Wikipedia, and what's not … ?: Assessing completeness of information. Social Science Computer Review, 27: 138-148.

Homework!

It's been 17 years since I last went to school full-time.  School starts at the USF SLIS on January 7th this year and I am already behind.  How?  For the first week of school I have 28 reading assignments.  If they were all just 10 pages each that would only be 280 pages.  Easy.

Unfortunately, they're not.  Some are 30 page chapters, others are 15 page journal articles.

Oh well. I'm not complaining, just explaining.

Search behavior is an important field in library science.  LIS professionals are responsible for the classification, storage, and retrieval of information.  As each of these areas become more complex, search behavior and strategies are evolving into more sophisticated exercises with definable patterns (Ercegovac, 2008). 

A person’s search behavior or choice of strategy is based on four factors:  task, time, interest, and availability (Singer, 2012, p.1).  During a search, one factor can become dominant, affecting both the quality of the search and the behavior of the searcher. 

Rubin (2010) describes one model of search behavior in which individuals are classified into five different groups:  Horizontal Information Seeking, Navigators, Viewers, Squirreling Behavior, and Checkers.  Other researchers classify the way people search as strategies (Singer, 2012) and classify them as either steps or preferred methods.  

Academics focus on two competing models of search behavior or strategy (Baro, 2010).  According to Ellis (1989) a searcher uses six actions: starting, chaining, browsing, differentiating, monitoring, and extracting.  Kulthau’s (1994) Information search Process (ISP) utilizes six stages of searching:  initiation, selection, exploration, formulation, collection, and presentation.  

By understanding the way patrons search for information, we as librarians can tailor our services to meet their needs.  Of all the services we offer (eg., reference, job-search help, reading suggestions) I submit that the task of Information Literacy is the most important. 

Why?  With the proliferation of information now available on the web, most patron searches begin on the web (Zickuhr, 2012).  In addition, the mission statements of today’s libraries are now focusing on patron “self-reliance” (USF, 2007; Rubin, 2010).  Thus, if more people are becoming more self-reliant (as opposed to asking a librarian for the information directly) then I submit that our primary goal should be learning how our patrons search and our primary service should be helping them understand what is the best information to use. 

References 

Baro, E. E., Onyenania, G. O., & Osaheni, O. (2010). Information seeking behaviour of undergraduate students in the humanities in three universities in Nigeria. South African Journal of Libraries & Information Science, 76, 109-117. 

Ellis, D. 1989. A behavioral model for information retrieval system design, journal of Information Science, 15: 237-247. 

Ercegovac, Z. (2008). Information Literacy : Search Strategies, Tools & Resources for High School Students and College Freshmen. Linworth Pub. 

Kuhlhau, CC. 1994. Seeking meaning: a proeess approaeh to library and information serviees. Nowood, N.J.: Abex.

Lesk, M. (2005). Understanding Digital Libraries. Elsevier. 

Rubin, R. E. (2010). Foundations of Library and Information Science (3^rd ed.). New York: Neal-Schuman. 

Singer, K., Singer, G., Lepik, K., Norbisrath, U., & Pruulmann-Vengerfeldt, P. (2012). Search Strategies of Library Search Experts, http://arxiv.org/abs/1206.2465, accessed on October 28, 2012. 

University of South Florida. (2007). USF Libraries Strategic Plan: 2007-2012. Tampa, Florida. 

Zickuhr, K., Rainie, L., Purcell, K., Madden, M., & Brenner, J. (2012). Libraries, patrons, and e-books. Pew Internet & American Life Project, June 22, 2012 http://libraries.pewinternet.org/ 2012/06/22/libraries-patrons-and-e-books/, accessed on September 9, 2012.

New Series of Posts

Beginning today I will be publishing a series of posts based on the discussions we have as MLIS students.  I will try and cover those opportunities and challenges affecting the profession such as Web 2.0 functionality, the internet, Google, DRM, and others as they arise.

Even though they are conversations, I will endeavour to add the appropriate citations and references whenever possible.

23 Things Tech Post - Historypin

Imagine an interactive access point or gateway into your academic library's digital collection that is both interesting and tied to social networking.  One such site is called Historypin and it can be found at http://www.historypin.com.

Here is an example of London in the HistoryPin window.  Images are sorted by location, sometimes with several at one place, and easily accessible.  Once you find an interesting photo, you can click on it.

Here for example is a photo of Crosby Hall in Chelsea.  You can add descriptive data to the photograph.  For our purposes, however, the most important feature is the ability to hyperlink back to your collection.  This allows people to access your digital collection without having to duplicate it over several websites.

Here is the Historypin map for Tampa, Florida.

What's also exciting is that Historypin allows several types of multimedia images to be used.  Below is a movie clip about the destruction of the old Tampa Stadium in 1999.

Historypin is a powerful tool that can be used by libraries to create multiple access point into any number of digital collections.  It is an excellent example of Web 2.0 and how the internet can supplement, and not replace, libraries.

23 Things Tech Post - Bloglines

Today I had to set up my own RSS feed Bloglines account.  In the past, I was reluctant to use RSS (Really Simple Syndication) because I did not want to get inudated with information that I didn't need.  I have several email accounts now and they are starting to get clogged with useless information.  In fact, my primary Netzero account, which has been around for almost 8 years, is barely accessable because of all the SPAM and old push notifications, etc.

After reading about Bloglines, however, it seemed a good alternative to email notifications and Listservs.  You can go to http://www.bloglines.com/ and set up your own account very easily.  I've already got some library blog RSS feeds working!

Library Observation: USF Digital Collections

Today I interviewed Barbara Lewis, the Coordinator for Digital Collections, at the USF library in Tampa.  If there was ever an ideal image of the tech-savy, fearless librarian, she would be it.

The field of digital collections at an academic library could be the model for how public libraries can transition into the digital age.  Most of the major issues with modernization, DRM, digital media, and access have been addressed by those who work in this field.

One of the most interesting features of Digital Collections is the Online Exhibitions, a nearly seamless and intergrated display of mixed media and interdisciplinary work.
 

Library Observation: Prison Library

I have decided that one of the libraries I will be observing will be at a prison facility.  Prison libraries have a long history, one that is as long as our traditional public library model.  As early as 1825, correctional institutions in the U.S. have had libraries.  Originally the texts were all spiritual in nature but the idea was to help "reform" the inmate.  In the 1840s, Eliza Farnham began to innovate at the Sing Sing prison in New York where she introduced non-spiritual texts for the first time.  This, naturally, created an uproar.  Even though she was eventually forced out of her position due to community and national pressure, her efforts paved the way for prison librarianship.

Steadily, Farnham's ideas caught on and the prison library was seen not only as a tool for spiritual reform but also something to fit the recreational and educational needs of the inmates.

Today, correctionallibrarianship faces difficult issues as the prison system model shifts from rehabilitation to retributative to re-entry.  Tight budgets and behavior compliance are constantly in the background in trying to serve this needy population.

The ALA has published guidelines for prison librarianship with the most recent being the 1992 edition.  http://www.ala.org/ascla/asclaissues/librarystandards

Library Observation: Go Local?

I have been doing some thinking about our second major research project requiring us to observe two libraries and interview two librarians.  I actually did this inadvertantly one time when I was applying for library positions (they hired in-house).  I went to my local brach and asked some questions about the nature of today's library and the effects of e-books on lending.  I discovered a whole new "virtual" Pasco Public Library System (http://pascolibraries.org/) after my discussion which left me excited about the future of librarianship.  I also leanrned about Tumblebooks!

Our library branch is new, modern, neat, and clean.  This makes finding books a pleasurable experience.  This made me wonder about other types of libraries where the sensibilities of the public is not a major concern.  This is probably going to be my focus on this project in the future.

Ask A Librarian Chat in One Word: Awesome!

Yesterday I began my research for this week's discussion concerning the term "library" and whether it is outdated.  This led me to research all sorts of issues about the merging of the internet and the traditional library.  This time, in analyzing the term, I decided to do some research on mission statements.

I searched online for the USF libraries mission statement and found only one for the office of undergraduate research.  No good.

More searching kept leading me back to the libraries home page where the picture of "Dr. Drew", an SLIS graduate, kept flashing before me in the "Ask A Librarian" box.  Many regional libraries have this feature but I did not know it was an IM/Chat function(almost like buying insurance or a new cell phone).

I was instantly connected to "Renee".  I asked her if the USF libraries mission statement was online.  Within two minutes the webpage with the mission statement popped up before my eyes.  It was amazing!  I thanked Renee.  She asked me if there was anything else she could do for me and responded "no".  That was it.

This was a great example of why librarians are not obsolete.  With more information on the internet, it is necessary to have someone guide you in the right direction.  That's why librarians are "the best search engines."

First Library Visit

Thursday was the first day I had to do research for our Foundations class.  Week 6 requires that we have a completed library center report so I decided to get an early start.  We have to observe two different libraries using what our professor calls a "critical eye".  For me, that means coming from a well-informed point of view.

I have decided that I will try and observe a prison library which means learning on how they operate.  The ALA put out standards in 1992 for adult correctional institutions and there are several new books about prison librarianship.

The USF library is immense and somewhat intimidating but I was able to talk to "Nancy" a very helpful reference librarian.  As soon as I told her I was an MLIS student, she not only told me the information I needed but also taught me how to find the information.  "This is what you are going to have to learn," she said with a helpful smile.

Week one almost done!

The campus is still alive and electric with returning students. Yesterday, I ventured to the library to start my first bit of research for an assignment. More on that later.

First week of class!

Classes started on August 28th for us at the USF MLIS programs.  So far, our Foundations of Library and Information Science class (LIS 5020) has about 15 students.  I'm excited and nervous about this semester.

I am writing under the pseudonym Dedalus.