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The phrase most suitable for our inaugural issue on a new platform is ‘deceptively simple.’ It 
could equally be called ‘what have we done,’ or ‘we’re not in Kansas anymore.’ Because we 
most decidedly are not. We’ve been on quite a journey of discovery as we worked with Ted 
Polley at the Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) to set up Hypothesis (and 
note, its subtitle is now Journal of the MLA Research Caucus) in this new virtual space.  
 

Thank you to the IUPUI University Library, which provides the OJS (Open Journal Systems) 
platform, and to Ted, who has been there for a million questions, and whose sage advice and 
experience has been so crucial to this lengthy process. To members of the MLA Research 
Caucus, whose enthusiastic support has been what kept us going through thick and thin and 
etc., thank you as well! 
 

You’re invited to check out our new About the Journal page to see what we’ve got going on: 
readily available content and instructions, indexing information (did you know when you publish 
with us, you’ll be indexed in CINAHL and other databases?), and our brand new, shiny 
submission portal. Options here now include several new types of content, which we’re excited 
to tell you about below. 
 

Perhaps most exciting is that we’ll now have the ability to provide DOIs for journal content and 
spread the word about our articles using the individual PDFs generated by publication. Up to 
this point, finding a particular piece meant downloading the entire publication, and scanning 
through its pages - no more! We will soon be working to import all back issues to this new 
platform, as well. Following publication of this issue, we’ll be seeking additional participation in 
putting together issues, including peer review, copyedit, and promotional activities to encourage 
growth, increased use, and more content submissions. 
 
Introducing the inaugural Hypothesis: Failure! Column 
 
Conceptualized and edited by Heather Holmes, this is content well overdue. Years past, an 
outgoing MLA President called for sharing our stumbles and bumbles, based on the ancient 
notion that those who fail to learn about the past are doomed to repeat it. Failure is not failure in 
the hide-your-head and never emerge sense. After you get over the initial despair and 
frustration, it’s informative, educational, sometimes (eventually, wincingly) humorous - in a word, 
important to our authentic sharing in an ever-evolving profession. If you have failures (and 
lessons learned) you’d like to share, we would love to know about it.  
 
Contents of this issue 
 
The goals of the Hypothesis: Failure! column are described above, and in Heather Holmes’ 
introduction, but it’s hard to say too much about this column. Mention to others of this new 
effort finds an immediate response of ‘it’s about time!’ and agreement about the importance of 
sharing our lessons learned. Our first column submission, Library renovation: From setbacks 
to success, is an account from Elaine Wells (SUNY Optometry) of lessons learned amid a 
library renovation - something that many of us can relate to, and learn from.  

http://www.ulib.iupui.edu/digitalscholarship/people/tedpolley
http://www.ulib.iupui.edu/digitalscholarship/people/tedpolley
https://journals.iupui.edu/index.php/hypothesis/about
https://journals.iupui.edu/index.php/hypothesis/about/submissions
https://doi.org/10.18060/23802
https://doi.org/10.18060/23802
https://doi.org/10.18060/23802
https://doi.org/10.18060/23629
https://doi.org/10.18060/23629


As we do every year, we recognize the wonderful research undertaken and presented by MLA 
members at the annual meeting. The MLA 2019 Research Caucus Awards include research 
on: emerging roles for academic, medical librarians; burnout amongst health information 
professional; nursing librarianship and distance education; wellness behaviors amongst health 
sciences librarians; a systematic review of institutional repositories; and the use of e-books by 
medical students and residents. 
 

For the first time, we have recognized the creators of research-related training with the new 
MLA 2019 Research Caucus Research Training Quality Awards. Offerings were evaluated 
for quality of content, topical currency, and fit to the audience. We awarded three trainings this 
year - one on the use of metrics in research evaluation, another on community health 
assessment tools, and a third on the involvement of libraries/librarians in offering research data 
services to their communities. 
 

Angela Spencer (Saint Louis University), Elizabeth Mamo (Rochester Regional Health), and 
Brooke Billman (College of American Pathologists) have authored the Benchmarking study of 
hospital libraries, updating our previous understanding of hospital closures in a volatile 
healthcare environment, and including information about staffing, services, and budgets. 
 

Research Roadmap Part 2: Disseminating your research, authored by Katherine Akers 
(Wayne State University), Kris Alpi (Oregon Health & Science University), Jon Eldredge 
(University of New Mexico), Heather Holmes (Medical University of South Carolina), Kim Powell 
(Emory University), and Margaret Hoogland (University of Toledo) concludes this 2-part 
publication with advice about sharing your work at conferences and the process of research 
writing and submitting that work for publication. 
 

It’s been a year of quality training efforts! Margaret Hoogland shared her thoughts about the 
IMLS-funded Research Training Institute experience in A year in review: MLA RTI Fellow 
reflection. Look for reflections authored by other RTI Fellows in future issues.  
 
In summary 
 
As editors of Hypothesis: The Journal of MLA’s Research Caucus, we hope you enjoy this issue 
and join us on this journey: submit, read, and share what you find in our pages. 
 
Erin D. Foster, MSLS  
Co-editor, Hypothesis  
Data Services Librarian  
Ruth Lilly Medical Library  
Indiana University School of Medicine  
Indianapolis, IN  
 
Carol L. Perryman, PhD  
Co-editor, Hypothesis  
Associate Professor  
School of Library and Information Studies  
Texas Woman’s University  
Denton, TX  
 

https://doi.org/10.18060/23672
https://doi.org/10.18060/23827
https://doi.org/10.18060/23805
https://doi.org/10.18060/23805
https://doi.org/10.18060/23693
https://doi.org/10.18060/23630
https://doi.org/10.18060/23630

