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‘Can you help me?’ Analysis of reference questions received in the National Library

The National Library of Australia offers reference services and access to its collections across seven different reading rooms around the building. With the impact of the Internet on research workflows and increasing digitisation of collection materials, the Library is evaluating whether its traditional grouping of reference services and reading rooms around collection formats remains valid.  

In an effort to understand how information needs are changing, every question received onsite in the National Library reading rooms was logged during a two-week period in March 2008. Reading room staff kept detailed statistics on every transaction and completed a brief questionnaire for every query that met the Association of Research Libraries definition of a reference question, i.e. ‘an information contact that involves the knowledge, use, recommendations, interpretation or instruction in the use of one or more information sources’.

Main reading RoomThe Library's Busy Main Reading Room
Photo: Loui Seselja, National Library

The results of this detailed analysis of user/staff interactions reveal some interesting insights into user expectations of library services. A total of 5814 separate interactions were recorded across eight service points (two in the Main Reading Room). Of all these queries, only 10 per cent met the definition of a true ‘reference’ question. Thirty-four per cent of the interactions between staff and users related to collection delivery, primarily due to the fact that access to items on reserve is mediated by library staff. It was also revealing to realise that 26 per cent of the interactions related to equipment/technical troubleshooting or instructing users how to use reading room equipment.

Another notable realisation was the dominance of family history queries. Of the true ‘reference’ queries that were documented over this period, 25 per cent were classified as family history, with no other topic standing out nearly as strongly. The majority of family history queries occurred in the Newspapers and Microforms Reading Room. It should be emphasised that only questions that were asked onsite were counted. Questions received via the telephone, chat, and by email were outside the parameters of this study.

When looking at the questions that were referred, it is interesting to note that only two per cent of all the questions received required consultation with an expert. Specialised knowledge of the collection was the major reason that a second staff member was called upon to assist the user.

The results of this survey provide concrete evidence of many of the trends that have been apparent to staff working in the reading rooms for some time.

  • Much of the activity in the reading rooms relates to collection delivery.
  • Users have high expectations of the technical support the Library will provide.
  • Users expect that staff they encounter in the Library will be knowledgeable about all parts of the Library’s collection.
  • A significant number of the people who seek reference help onsite are pursuing family history research.

With clear evidence that the bulk of the enquiries received onsite related to collection delivery, technical support, and family history, the National Library can adjust its services and training of frontline staff to reflect these expectations.

 

Aileen Weir
Manager, Virtual Reference Services, Reader Services