Designing Information Services for Small Businesses in Public Libraries: The Need

for an Interdisciplinary Approach

France Bouthillier, Ph.D.

GSLIS

McGill University

ALISE 2005

France Bouthillier McGill University

Interdisciplinary Approach:

Collaboration with other researchers from various disciplines

Application of various concepts and theories from a number of disciplines for framing questions, methodologies and analysis

France Bouthillier McGill University

Interdisciplinary research is

trendy and essential

but

how does it look

from a conceptual perspective?

France Bouthillier McGill University

Context

Business information services in public libraries are controversial in spite of their long history

They are almost non-existent in the province of Quebec

There is a need to investigate SB managers’ needs for information and library managers/staff perceptions to design appropriate service models

France Bouthillier McGill University

Research Questions

How public libraries can contribute to the economic development of their communities?

What would make SB managers interested to use business information services in public libraries in the age of Internet?

What factors are perceived as critical by library managers/staff?

France Bouthillier McGill University

Methodology

Inventory of business information services in 5 countries

Survey among Quebec public libraries Two case studies in Montreal involving semi-

structured interviews with SB managers(22) and library managers and staff (6)

Three economic sectors were selected: IT, aerospace, pharmaceutical

France Bouthillier McGill University

Conceptual Framework

1. Information Science – Value-addedness

2. Information Behaviour – Recorded patterns in the fields of management and info science

3. Sociology – Cultural capital and structuration theory

4. Management – Marketing of services

France Bouthillier McGill University

Rationale

Small business managers are social actors Public libraries are social institutions The use of services is determined by

perceptions of their value and quality The use of information services is related to

the use of information

France Bouthillier McGill University

Value-addedness

Taylor argued that users of information services are looking for value-added services:

Ease of use Adaptability

Noise reduction Time savings

Quality Cost savings

France Bouthillier McGill University

Information behaviour patterns

Research on managers’ information seeking behaviour, for 20 years, reveals that they prefer informal sources and face-to-face communication. However, public libraries are perceived as useful sources and perceived environmental uncertainty influences use of information

France Bouthillier McGill University

Cultural capital

Bourdieu argued that: social agents have different cultural capitals they exchange resources to maintain and/or

increase that capital, position of power, and to delineate their differences

the concept of habitus is useful for explaining cultural differences

France Bouthillier McGill University

Cultural capital

Habitus are durable dispositions that are internalized and incline individuals to do certain things = cultural practices

Managers’ educational and professional background can reveal cultural practices towards information consumption

France Bouthillier McGill University

Structuration Theory

Giddens argued that social structure is the result of the use by social agents of rules and resources (authoritative and allocative)

Concepts of knowledgeability and routinization are useful to understand library staff behaviour and perceptions

France Bouthillier McGill University

Marketing of services

Zeithalm et al. identified service quality dimensions:

Tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, courtesy, empathy, competence, security, access, communication, customer understanding

France Bouthillier McGill University

Conclusions

Small business managers are not an homogeneous group of users – several patterns of info consumption

Many factors may influence their use of public libraries – habitus, knowledgeability, value-added and quality dimensions

Personnel competencies and quick turnaround are key

France Bouthillier McGill University

Conclusions

Library managers and staff are mostly concerned with print collections

They are not aware of industrial differences SB managers are perceived as very rational

with little information resources

France Bouthillier McGill University

The value of an interdisciplinary framework

Prepares the researcher for unexpected results

Helps to address complex and complicated problems

Supports a range of research strategies and provides a range of explanations

France Bouthillier McGill University

Thank you!