meeting users where they are 1.1
TRANSCRIPT
Meeting users where they
are
Kate Lawrence, EBSCO User Research @bykatelawren
ce
Our Portfolio
“I don’t speak library-ese.”
EBSCO’s 2015 Library-Ese StudyLead Researcher: Khalilah Gambrell
208 Students
57%Public
30%Private
13%Community
60% - Intermediate Researcher 33% Novice
Start papers halfway between assignment date & due date.
Research
It’d about guidedself-serve. Because remember, it’s midnight.
Research is done close to midnight. 11pm typical peak hour.
Research roadblock? Friend or roommate.
Whoever is sitting next to me on the couch.
From the couch. At home. With the doorbell ringing
and the tv on and the dog barking.
CouchLate
FriendsSelf-Serve
The reality of student research
Worry, anxiety
Presearch*:Google
Presearch*:Wikipedia
Then, “Serious
Research”*
Search & gather first: “Consider the specific aspects of the topic that I might want to write on, then find research that either confirms my hypothesis or changes my mind about my paper angle.“
The ProcessFirst stop worry; then Google
*Source: "Finding Context: What Today's College Student Say about Conducting Research in the Digital Age," Alison J. Head and Michael B. Eisenberg, Project Information Literacy Progress Report, University of Washington's Information School, February 4, 2009
Basic
Search“Because it is easy & fast”
“Great for when you are not sure what you are looking for.”
“Gives a wide range of information on a general set of keywords.”
88% of surveyed students call this section “filters”.
High-comprehension terms
Abstract
Peer-reviewed
Primary source
InterlibraryLoan
Lower-comprehension terms
booleancatalog
HTML Full text
database
What’s next from EBSCO User Research:
Middle & high school study, full text links best practices, faculty study, paper on librarian-teacher active partnership
