Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Books Are Back!, Carol Tenopir

School of Information Sciences -- Faculty Publications and Other Works

MORE THAN 1000 LIBRARIANS, publishers, and vendors jammed into the 25th annual Charleston Conference in South Carolina, November 2-5. Created by College of Charleston librarian Katina Strauch, the meeting brings together everyone in serials and acquisitions.

This year several speakers focused on book collections--print-on-paper books housed in bricks and mortar. Add in the discussions on ebooks and you could feel the back-to-book backlash.

Information-Seeking Behavior Of Social Sciences And Humanities Researchers In The Internet Age, Xuemei Ge

Masters Theses

This study focuses on how Internet technology influences and contributes to the information-seeking process in the social sciences and humanities. The study examines the information-seeking behavior of faculty and doctoral students in these fields and observes and extends Ellis’s model of information-seeking behavior for social scientists, which includes six characteristics: starting, chaining, browsing, differentiating, monitoring, and extracting.

The study was conducted at Tennessee State University. Thirty active social sciences and humanities faculty and doctoral students were interviewed about their use of Internet resources, their perception of electronic and print materials, and their opinions concerning the Ellis model and how it …

Complex Syntax Lives On, Carol Tenopir

School of Information Sciences -- Faculty Publications and Other Works

ALL THE TALK OF SIMPLISTIC TEXTBOX interfaces as the goal leaves the impression that there is no need to know how to use special characters or syntax, that all systems are being dumbed down. Even library school students groan when they are first told to learn the complex commands of an "old-fashioned" power system like Dialog. They expect systems where the complexity is behind the scenes and everything is done for them. Despite these new attitudes, commands and complex syntax are still needed in online searching, even on the web.

Vendors And Search Engines, Carol Tenopir

School of Information Sciences -- Faculty Publications and Other Works

AT FIRST IT SEEMED INEVITABLE that free search engines would compete with fee-based online services. Now they work together.

Interface, Fall 2005, School Of Information Sciences

Interface Newsletter

Dr. Cortez launched the school year on a visionary step by leading a two-day retreat for school faculty and staff in August. Not only were goals and objectives reconsidered, SIS faculty mapped out a collective vision for the school and articulated an astonishing wealth of expertise and creativity. Since the retreat, additional initiatives have laid the groundwork for positioning the school globally. To support and illustrate the school’s role in the university’s pending capital campaign, faculty explored innovative scenarios for the school if we were to be endowed with substantial new financial resources. What follows are six examples of the …

Review Of Reading Abstract Expressionism: Context And Critique, Jennifer Benedetto Beals

Other Library Publications and Works

No abstract provided.

Inundated With Data, Carol Tenopir

School of Information Sciences -- Faculty Publications and Other Works

IN THE OLD DAYS, IT WAS DIFFICULT to gather information about the use of library collections. Door counts, circulation records, and tick-marks at the reference desk gave crude approximations. To obtain data about periodical use, patrons were asked to leave used periodicals unshelved, and librarians guessed how many articles were read.

Digital periodicals, ebook collections, and virtual reference inundate libraries with usage data. Some libraries collect it across systems, but most rely on data provided by vendors. If the data allow vendor comparisons, and are consistent and accurate, librarians learn more about their collections.

Identifying Successful Competitive Intelligence Practices Used In Nonprofits: A Survey Of Competitive Intelligence Strategies Used By Professional Fundraisers To Enhance Fundraising Success, Heidi H. Gillis

Masters Theses

Competitive intelligence is a popular technique used to gain a competitive advantage in for-profit businesses. This research examines the use of competitive intelligence in nonprofits, particularly how competitive intelligence is used or can be used to enhance fundraising success. A web based survey polled members of the Association of Fundraising Professionals on their uses of specific competitive intelligence strategies, particularly environmental scanning, use of focus groups and database research. It was found that non-profits are using some competitive intelligence methods, but find a lack of time, lack of funds, and lack of staff are prohibiting factors in implementing a full-scale …

Working For A Vendor, Carol Tenopir

School of Information Sciences -- Faculty Publications and Other Works

A combination of content creators, online vendors, other intermediaries, and librarians work to bring online information sources to end users. Although these interconnected parts are sometimes adversarial, the current information marketplace relies on interaction among them all. People have wondered what it is like on the other side. The author interviewed three veterans who started out in libraries. This article presents the interviews.

Vendor Communication, Carol Tenopir

School of Information Sciences -- Faculty Publications and Other Works

Do vendor reps provide librarians with the information they need in the way they need it? Do vendors feel they are communicating effectively with their librarian clients? A recent survey of North American and European academic librarians commissioned by Jim McGinty, vice chair of Cambridge Information Group, and carried out by consultants David Oglivie and Simon Inger may help improve this tricky, but important, communication process. McGinty presented the first results as the annual Miles Conrad Memorial Lecturer at the 2005 annual meeting of the National Federation of Abstracting and Information Services (NFAIS). Almost 200 academic librarians responded to his …

Shopping For Information: Industry Behemoths, Niche Sellers, And Boutique Shops Compete For Library Dollars, Carol Tenopir, Gayle Baker, William Robinson

School of Information Sciences -- Faculty Publications and Other Works

Both librarians and end users have more shopping options than ever when it comes to finding information. From small boutiques with specialized products to the one-stop shopping of megastores, the database marketplace of 2005 resembles retail shopping. But some worry that the information marketplace will be subject to the same uncertain market conditions of the retail world, where it's difficult for small stores to compete when megachains come to town.

Getting The User’S Attention, Carol Tenopir

School of Information Sciences -- Faculty Publications and Other Works

CAN WE DELIVER INFORMATION the way our users want it--cheap, fast, and good? According to Stewart Bodner, associate chief librarian of the New York Public Library, that's what users desire and what librarians and vendors must provide. But at least in the public library world, "convenience trumps quality every time," Bodner went on to tell the audience at the annual meeting of NFAIS (National Federation of Abstracting and Information Services) in Philadelphia this February. NFAIS brought together company representatives and librarians to brainstorm ways to redirect users away from Internet search engines and the open web and toward high-quality information.

Art In The Archives: A Survey Of Artists' Papers In Tennessee, Celia S. Walker

Masters Theses

This study is the first known survey of visual art materials housed in Tennessee's repositories. Little has been written about the arts materials in the state's repositories and no overview exists for art scholars. The purpose of the study was to create a profile of collecting in Tennessee of visual art materials in relation to policies, funding levels, and collection accessibility. It was determined that almost one-half of responding repositories in Tennessee maintain some visual art primary resources in their vertical files. The presence of collection policies and missions that speak directly to the need to collect art resources was …

Duplication Is Ubiquitous, Carol Tenopir

School of Information Sciences -- Faculty Publications and Other Works

This article discusses how Phil Davis, Life Sciences Bibliographer at Cornell University, found duplicate articles in Emerald/MCB University Press journals. According to Davis, he has found hundreds of examples of the same article published in more than one journal in at least 73 Emerald/MCB journals over 30 years. This article gives the details of his discovery and what he chose to do about it.

Interface, Spring 2005, School Of Information Sciences

Interface Newsletter

The University of Wisconsin (UW) caught the attention of Tennessee Volunteers this spring. Tennessee signed UW–Milwaukee coach Bruce Pearl as the new men’s basketball coach. From another UW campus (Madison) comes the next director of the School of Information Sciences, Professor Ed Cortez from the School of Library and Information Studies.

Review Of Franz Kline 1910-1962, Jennifer Benedetto Beals

Other Library Publications and Works

No abstract provided.

Teaching Student Searchers, Carol Tenopir

School of Information Sciences -- Faculty Publications and Other Works

In this article, the author discusses teaching library and information science (LIS) students about online searching. She discusses the many changes that have taken place over the years in terms of searching and also in terms of the role of the librarian in helping with searches. The author also mentions that although searching now has become a 24/7 activity, the sources have begun to be somewhat questionable, and regardless of accuracy, most patrons think that they can find whatever information they need online.

Google In The Academic Library, Carol Tenopir

School of Information Sciences -- Faculty Publications and Other Works

Whatever it does, Google Scholar will be wildly popular with students. Already students turn to search engines (and Google most often) as a first choice. Google Scholar seemingly answers their teachers' and librarians' main objections to the web-that the material isn't of high enough academic quality...