A Study of University Students' Awareness of Reference Services.

Abstract

Many studies have been carried out concerning communication problems in reference work; they emphasize negotiating questions and overcoming communication barriers between a reference librarian or information specialist and a library patron. Very little, however, has been written about the library user or nonuser who never gets as far as the reference desk. It is distressing that misunderstanding, ignorance, or ill-feeling may prevent persons who could profit by the help of the reference staff from consulting them. Some members of a university community who never use their library's reference services may, in fact, not need to do so, or they may have found through past experience that their library's staff cannot help them with their reference problems. It is also possible, however, that some people don't consult the reference desk because they are sensitive about admitting ignorance or confusion by asking a question, or because they are not aware that reference or information services exist and that they are entitled to use them. My impression, gained from experiences both as a student and as a library staff member, is that many students at the University of Chicago do not know what services are available from the Regenstein Library Reference Department, and, indeed, that some students are totally unaware of the existence of such a department. To determine whether this suspicion has any foundation, I designed and carried out a survey of undergraduates, graduate students, and professional school students to determine to what extent these students were

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