Chat References in "Big 12" and ARL Libraries: An Analysis of Training, Policy, and Guidelines

Public and internal library chat policies serve to set expectations for library patrons, as well as the library professionals who provide chat reference. These policies, or their absence, shape how academic libraries train for and assess their chat services, as well as how they provide chat instruct...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of web librarianship Vol. 17; no. 1-2; pp. 1 - 30
Main Authors Salmans, Joshua, Barba, Ian
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published New York Routledge 03.04.2023
Taylor & Francis LLC
Subjects
Ask-a-Librarian
chat policies
chat services
chat training
compassionate computing
humanistic principles
Online reference work
Public libraries
Reference services
Virtual reference
Online AccessGet full text
ISSN1932-2909
1932-2917
DOI10.1080/19322909.2023.2203876

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Summary:Public and internal library chat policies serve to set expectations for library patrons, as well as the library professionals who provide chat reference. These policies, or their absence, shape how academic libraries train for and assess their chat services, as well as how they provide chat instruction. In a post-pandemic environment, academic librarians can expect increasing use of distance services including chat reference. This case study reviews the public chat policies of "Big 12" and Association of Research Libraries (ARL) libraries across 12 categories. It also reviews the chat transcripts of two subject librarians from August 2017 through May 2018 and again from March 2020 through December 2021, the latter coinciding with the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. This study provides a look at the purposes and efficacy of internal and public chat reference policies.
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ISSN:1932-2909
1932-2917
DOI:10.1080/19322909.2023.2203876