Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Beyond The Library: The Role Of Academic Libraries’ Chat Reference In Answering Campus Questions, Erin Owens, Vanessa Arce, Darcy Del Bosque, Robin Fowler, Silvia Sheffield

Publications and Research

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic drove most users online, chat was establishing itself as a core service for asking library-related questions of many types, from basic directional and reference to research queries of a more sophisticated nature. This investigation seeks to provide insight into how academic libraries are seen not only as a source of library assistance, but also as a means of filling an information gap on a wider subject: the university campus at large. The study’s methods involved analyzing chat transcripts from five large four-year public universities during a two-year period (2019- 2021), noting the frequency of campus-related …