Reviews the history of bibliography and the effects of online bibliographic services on bibliographic practices. Several of these practices examined (1) delimitation by date span; (2) regional and national delimitation; (3) selectivity; (4) internal organization; (5) citation practices; and (6) annotation styles. (35 references) (MES)

This bibliographic essay discusses a variety of items from the literature on the evaluation of reference services and reference personnel. A model for the evaluation process is presented on which the literature review is based. (Contains 48 references.) (LRW)

Develops model of the reference interview which explicitly incorporates human information processing, particularly schema ideas presented by Marvin Minsky and other theorists in cognitive processing and artificial intelligence. Questions are raised concerning use of content analysis of transcribed verbal protocols as methodology for studying…

Provides overview of the establishment and acceptance of reference service in American library practice and outlines and documents changes in focus and emphasis by citing textbooks on reference services. Highlights include beginnings in 1876, communications and counseling, the 1970s, reconsiderations, and new emphasis and new models. Ninety-four…

Identifies interacting principles of theory of library service and indicates nature of library policies, activities, and professional values upon which implementation of principles rests. Library users ("worthy" and "needy"), hierarchy of service functions (stimulation, guidance, instruction, information services, access,…

Reviews theory and research findings concerning service organizations, develops a model of the library reference process, and summarizes the results of a partial test of the model in five academic libraries in northern California. The roles of clients and service providers are explored, and variables that influence service outcomes are discussed.…

Discusses sources of conflict between teaching and nonteaching librarians and identifies theoretical and practical contributions of library instruction to reference service. Arguments against library instruction, library applications of learning theory, improving reference services, conflicts in reference department, and future of library…

Introduces four models of data library development for meeting information needs for machine-readable data files--University of Florida facility, University of British Columbia Data Library, Data and Program Library Service at University of Wisconsin, and online numeric Kentucky Economic Information System at University of Kentucky. Four…

Discusses the need for the library profession to learn not only how to identify information needs, but also to create new services and delivery patterns around them. The existing literature on information needs and information seeking behavior is briefly reviewed, and a research agenda for the 1990s is summarized. (51 references) (Author/CLB)

Presents a model that can accommodate staff preferences when determining a reference desk schedule using a microcomputer, the Lotus 1-2-3 spreadsheet software, and the linear programing software LP83. (eight references) (MES)

This two-part publication reports on a study of consumer information delivery by library and non-library networks, which involved an extensive literature review, a telephone survey of 620 library networks, the development of an assessment model for the effectiveness of network information delivery, the development of an in-depth guide for…

Notes the applicability of communication science theory to the reference process, particularly in areas involving human behavior, and discusses the roles of both verbal and nonverbal communication (body language, paralanguage, proxemics, and environmental factors) in the reference interview. Forty-one references are provided. (EJS)

Explores the significance of expert system design for library reference services and library education, focusing on model logic and modeling for query analysis. The approaches of some graduate library schools are reviewed. Appendices included a decision-support module, a reference module component, and a typology of queries and reference tools.…

Proposes that the concept of the traditional reference desk as the center of reference services in academic libraries is a tradition that should be examined in light of new technologies and changes in the way people find and use information. An alternative or supplementary model is delineated. (Author/CDD)

Explains the concept of diagnosing information needs as part of the role of the school library media specialist. Topics discussed include the diagnostic process, i.e., the reference interview; information psychology; theories of information transfer; a model for diagnosing information needs; and implications for practitioners and for research. (19…