ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries N o v em b er 1 9 9 2 / 631 Academic reference service o ver electronic m ail B y A n n B risto w Tips f o r offering a p o p u la r a n d im portant service R eference service using electronic mail has b een a ro u n d for a w hile in academ ic li­ braries. The chatter o n electronic discu groups an d in m eetings at ALA suggests, h o w ­ ever, that it is not thriving. No one describes “h eavy” use o f such a service an d yet som e libraries decid e against initiating th e service b ecau se o f a fear that they will n o t b e able to han d le the volum e. An assistant director o f a large research library ask ed colleagues at a re­ cent ALA m eeting if o th er libraries h a d taken this “leap into the future” having just discov­ ered, she rep o rted , th at o n e o f th e libraries u n d e r h e r supervision h a d b e g u n to offer the service w ithout requesting h e r approval. She w as w orried. She n e e d n o t have been . At Indiana Uni­ versity in B loom ington, Indiana, w e b egan of­ fering this service in 1987 as p art o f the librar­ ie s ’ c o m p o n e n t o f a n elec tro n ic “A cadem ic Information Environment.”1 It appears from w hat m ay b e gathered informally that its use is, w hile n o t heavy, at least heavier than that o f other academ ic libraries that sp eak o f their experi­ ence. From May thro u g h July 1991 (a q u ieter time of year) the Main Library Reference D epartm ent w as contacted over electronic mail by 51 differ­ ent users and h ad a volum e of 330 questions an d replies. T w enty-one o f those users w ere faculty m em bers, 14 w ere graduate students, 15 w ere staff m em bers, an d o n e w as a n u n d er­ graduate. O ne graduate student w h o maintained his com puting account h ad m oved to W ash­ ington State an d contacted us from there; he s in ten d ed to continue to use o u r services from his n e w location. H e felt it w as still th e most convenient o p tio n available. T he greatest n u m b er o f inquiries concerned addresses, p h o n e num bers, prices, an d incom ­ plete citations (in various languages). A nother gro u p sought factual inform ation; o n e associ­ sioante instructor uses th e service to do u b le check “facts” cited in u n d erg rad u ate papers. Some sought a “start” o n a larger research problem . Very rare in o u r ex p erien ce is the “in ap p ro p ri­ ate” question— too large or too vague. S u r v e y in g e - m a il users In o rd er to try to get a better u n derstanding o f our experience, to identify o u r clientele, an d to co n sid er im provem ents an d m odifications, a very b rief survey w as sen t out to these users over electronic mail. Four questions w ere asked: 1) D o yo u d o a great deal o f y o u r w ork (including co rresp o n d en ce) using computers? O r w o u ld you characterize y o u r u se o f com ­ puters as occasional? 2) H ave you ever com e to the Main Library Reference D epartm ent an d asked a question in person? Have yo u ever tele p h o n e d a question to that location? 3) If y o u r answ er to question 2 w as posi­ tive, can you com pare the usefulness o f these w ays o f getting answ ers to y o u r questions? (D oes o n e fit in best w ith y o u r w ork habits, do you get b etter service using o n e over the other, etc.?) 4) C ould w e m odify th e design o r handling o f th e electronic service in any w ay that w ould m ake it m ore useful to you? T he first fact that o u r survey confirm ed is th at som e behavior over electronic mail is dif­ ferent. T he resp o n se rate w as 80 percent; 60 percen t o f the replies w ere received w ithin 24 A n n B ristow is h e a d o f th e R eference D epartm ent, M a in Library, I n d ia n a University, B lo o m in g to n 6 3 2 / C&RL News hours. That alone answ ered o u r first question: most (but not all) described them selves as us­ ing com puters o n a daily basis in m any as­ pects o f their w ork. Answers to the second and third questions are harder to generalize. A few stated that they only com m unicate w ith us over e-mail; a larger n u m b er reported using all th ree m ethods of comm unicating. The telep h o n e w as the least p o p u lar by far, valued only for “em ergencies.” Several n o te d their frustration w h e n asking questions in person and the interview is inter­ rupted by a ringing phone; it w as suggested that w e train everyone to use e-mail and ab an ­ d o n the phone. The ability to discuss and re­ fine a com plex question in perso n w as noted as very im portant by several. It was suggested that we train everyone to use e-mail a n d a b andon the phone. Answers to the fourth question w ere per­ fectly delightful. O ur services w ere described as “great”; w e w ere enjoined to “keep u p the g ood w o rk ”; half a do zen replied that they w el­ com ed the opportunity to say “thank you.” Very few had specific suggestions for im provements or modifications to the service. But they did have a great deal to say about tw o other issues. In resp o n se to bu d g et cuts an d w ith the advice o f a faculty comm ittee, the library had just severely curtailed a p o p u lar cam pus do cu ­ m e n t d e liv e ry s e rv ic e . M any re s p o n d e n ts w anted to know to w hom they could com plain about this decision and observed that it was an extrem ely valuable service. A nother signifi­ cant num ber o f respondents asked w h en more databases w ould be offered over the cam pus network; m entioned more than once w ere Books in Print, Dissertation Abstracts, ERIC, an d Psy­ chological Abstracts. Library users are typically too generous in evaluating services an d it is w ith that aw are­ ness that w e tried to read the replies. It took discipline, how ever, to rem ind ourselves o f that fact in reading the enthusiastic appraisal o f the service an d o f o u r p erfo rm an ce. Librarians som etim es w orry ab o u t the isolated, anony­ m ous nature o f th e electronic future. T he sur­ vey confirm ed w hat w e had already noticed: each user-nam e has its o w n personality and m ost are extrem ely polite. Half the replies w e send out routinely receive a “thanks again” within a few hours. It is just different, not less hum an, not dehum anizing. S o m e u s e fu l tips Apart from recounting o u r pleasure, there may b e a few observations and principles that can b e draw n from o u r experience an d from the survey that m any b e helpful to o ther libraries: 1 ) In o rd er fo r refe r e n c e se r v ic e u sin g e- rnail to b e g en era lly u sefu l it m u st b e p art o f a larger e le c tr o n ic fram ew ork : a cam pus in­ form ation system, an option w ith the online catalog, etc. Simply announcing an e-mail ad­ dress in a printed cam pus new sletter and w ait­ ing for business is no t likely to succeed. 2 ) T he service w ill b e u sed m o st b y p eo p le w h o h a v e in teg ra ted c o m p u tin g in to all as­ p e c ts o f th e ir w o r k a n d co m m u n ica tio n . An electronic reference service will not drive that choice bu t will b e a useful service to those w ho have m ade it. 3 ) D escrib e th e service as clearly a n d su c­ c in c t ly as y o u ca n . In our system a selection from th e to p m en u o f “R eference Services” prom pts another m enu asking w here to send the question (the Reference D epartm ent, one of 15 branch libraries, etc.). A few m onths after the survey described here, another option w as a d d ed at the bottom o f the top “Library Ser­ vices” m enu entitled simply “Ask a Librarian.” Q uestions addressed to that selection are for­ w ard ed to Reference an d the volum e o f q u es­ tions w e receive has tripled (over that described earlier). A higher percentage of questions are n o w referrals to Circulation o r other units but w e are receiving at least twice as m any “real” reference questions. 4 ) In clu d e a d escrip tion o f service param ­ eters (w h a t k in d s o f q u e stio n s ca n I u se th is se r v ic e for?). The screen a user is supplied in our system says simply “Enter the text of your question h ere.” W hat a “reference question” is may not be easily understood. We receive sev­ eral questions a w eek w ith n o text an d guess it is a user trying to figure out w h at this service is an d if it has any relevance or utility. We plan to ad d exam ples (m odified from those actually put to us) of directory an d factual queries. 5 ) D escrib e p ick -u p tim es: d o y o u p la n to c h e c k daily, h o u rly , ev ery day, ev ery “w o rk ­ in g ” day? T hough it m ay be hard to prom ise turn-around time, an idea o f h o w often you are looking at the m ailbox will give the u ser an (Cont. o n p a g e 63 7) Four Innovative Ways to Your Se 1 r . i als Budget Prices that remain steady. Cambridge Scientific In Response will not increase the price on any of its serials more than the U.S. rate of inflation — currently to the Serials less than 3.5 percent. So while other journal publishers are in 2 creasing prices as much as 30 percent, you can still access Budget Crisis a tremendous amount of published literature in as many as 41 specialized . fields with very little increase in cost.FREE allowance on document delivery. Free with Because we're keenly aware your new subscription to any CSA journal, you of the severe budget cutbacks will receive a generous allowance of $150 to $300 most libraries face, we’ve worth of full-text documents through CARL Systems’ chosen to limit the average UNCOVER 2 or Engineering Information Inc. Once your price increase on any of our allowance is used up, you will continue to enjoy substantial 41 serial titles to the U.S. discounts on full-text document delivery.inflation rate — currently less than 3.5 percent. Package discounts of up to 50% . Cambridge Plus, we will provide new Scientific has grouped its journals and databases subscribers with a substantial 3. into 13 major areas of science and technology. free allowance for full-text When you select an entire group, you will get a package document delivery service — discount of up to 50 percent off the individual subscription a subscription benefit unique rates. Those are noticeable savings. to Cambridge Scientific. Major budget cuts are a fact 4. Preferred rotes for networking. When you sub­ of life in libraries around the scribe to any of the CSA print journals, you auto world. The spiralling cost of matically qualify for substantial discounts on the serial titles has compounded magnetic tape version for your local or wide-area networks. this problem. So you’ll have campus- or company-wide access for less! For 1993, Cambridge Scientific Abstracts has decided to respond in four See for yourself the cutting-edge quality of the journals innovative ways to help Cambridge Scientific Abstracts has to offer. Call: libraries get the most of their serials budget. 1-800-843-7751 (Ask for Journal and Tape Services.) today to get your FREE catalog and FREE sample journals. Cambridge Scientific Abstracts • 7200 Wisconsin Avenue, Bethesda, MD 20814 U.S.A. Toll-free: 1-800-843-7751 • Overseas & MD: (301) 961-6750 • FAX: (301) 961-6720 N ovem ber 1 9 9 2 / 6 3 7 Since the initiation o f reference roving, three n ew dial-in services (Lexis/Nexis/Medis, D ialog/ Classmate, and Univnet), a Latin American wire service, and tw o CD-ROM databases (.Million D ollar Directory and N ational Newspaper In d ex on Infotraè) have b e e n added. Three Wilson databases (Humanities, Social Sciences, and Gen­ eral Science Indexes) w ere m o u n ted o n our NOTIS system an d th e UMI databases w ere m oved onto o u r MultiPlatter netw ork, along w ith PAIS an d GPO. H aving the roving service already in place, w e w ere able to effectively introduce the new systems to o u r patrons. C onclusion A poll o f the reference staff a year later indi­ cates that our staff unanim ously think reference roving is w orthw hile a n d sh o u ld b e contin­ ued. It m akes staff m ore accessible an d allows time for in-depth help o n an individual basis. Roving provides the opportunity for a pro-ac­ tive ap p ro ach an d a first-hand view o f how patrons use electronic resources. It also helps relieve the stress felt at the reference desk by allowing referrals to the reference rovers. Several recent articles, including Charles A. B unge’s “CD-ROM Stress” (LibraryJournal, April 15, 1991), em phasized that this proliferation of e le c tro n ic re s o u rc e s h as le d to th e rise of technostress in reference departm ents. Refer­ ence roving at B oston College’s O ’Neill Library has p ro v ed to be a successful ap p ro ach for dealing w ith these problem s an d m eeting our patrons’ needs. ■ (A ca d em ic reference cont. fr o m p a g e 6 3 2 ) idea o f h o w fast the service may o r m ay n o t be an d how appropriate to present need. (We have b een checking five times a day, seven days a w eek; b u t w e h ad n o t com m unicated this to o u r users an d a few have ex p ressed d isa p ­ pointm ent that they did not get sp eed ier re­ plies. They m ay have im agined som e ongoing constant m onitoring.) 6 ) P ick u p th e m e s sa g e s reg u la rly a n d m o n ito r th a t r e s p o n s e s h a v e b e e n se n t. In o u r case the office m anager assum es this task M onday th ro u g h Friday. She th e n gives the questions to the librarian o r staff m em ber on duty at th e Reference Desk. A nother m odel might be to rotate the responsibility on a w eekly basis to individual staff m em bers. W hatever the m odel, it is im portant that the expertise o f the staff b e utilized w h en appropriate. Any q u e s­ tion w e receive o n cinem a goes autom atically to o u r resident expert. O ne o f the benefits o f e- mail is that it allows you to take advantage of such expertise. It frees both librarian an d p a ­ tron from the lottery they each face in handling reference transactions over the telep h o n e o r in perso n — w h e n a n answ er to th e q u estio n is m ost often attem pted im m ediately by the p e r­ so n o n duty, w hatever subject o r language ex­ pertise they may o r m ay no t possess. 7 ) Cite th e so u rce y o u r “fact” co m e s from . This n e e d no t b e in correct an d com plete b ib ­ liographic form, unless that is requested. That associate in stru cto r w h o u ses us to d o u b le check facts his students use in their papers has rem inded us again that o n e w o m an ’s fact is an o th er’s mistake. Unless you plan to check the fact in six different sources (finding three different answ ers), pick a reputable source and say w h at it is. This principle is hardly unique to reference w ork in an electronic setting. That it’s w orth m entioning here probably reflects the fact that librarians a n d staff accustom ed to the generally unm onitored, oral, one-on-one style of m ost reference w ork may respond differently to w ritte n c o m m u n ic a tio n s w h ic h m ay b e view ed (an d review ed) by their colleagues. It is a goo d rem inder o f the form an d substance o f the answ ers w e give to all questions. 8 ) T h is se r v ic e w ill lik e ly stim u la te d e ­ m an d fo r oth er library services su ch as d ocu ­ m e n t d eliv ery , d atab ases b e y o n d o u r o w n lin e ca ta lo g s, a n d e x p e r t sy s te m s d e sig n e d w ith in s p e c ific ra n g es o f in q u iry . The re­ sponses w e received ab o u t the delivery service and additional databases over the netw ork w ere not m otivated only by local events but b y a vision o f th e total array o f services desired from the scholar’s o w n w orkstation. Even in the richest, m ost intelligent online environm ent, how ever, there is probably a use­ ful niche for a “reference” option. Such an o p ­ tion requires the user to kn o w only w hat she w ants to k n o w an d to answ er n o questions ab o u t h e r question before she can ask it! It is a service users appreciate. N o te 1D escribed in this journal by Miriam Bonham, “Library services through electronic mail,” C&RL News 48:9 (O ctober 1987): 537-38. ■