Building and evaluating LibGuides

Building and evaluating LibGuides

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  BUILDING AND EVALUATING LIBGUIDES Chelsea Jordan-Makely September2012 What do the information professionals of tomorrow think of today’s research guides? A usability study of the University of Denver’s Library and Information Science LibGuide http://libguides.du.edu/lis
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  The rise ofLibGuides • 42,000 LibGuide users worldwide • 236,735 LibGuides • Pacific University: 72 subject guides
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  Benefits of usingresearch guides • Alleviate library anxiety (Cox, 1996) • Facilitate access (Cox, 1996) • Cut through excess of information (O’sullivan & Scott, 2000; Bunnell & Byerly, 2000) • Showcase library’s resources and librarians’ expertise (Cox, 1996; Morville & Wickhorst, 1996; Sugarman & Demetracopoulos, 2001) • As a curriculum tool (Sugarman & Demetracopoulos, 2001) • Reduce cognitive load (Little, 2010) • Checklist (Richardson, 2001, as cited in Vileno, 2007)
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  Shortcomings of researchguides • Guides may be more beneficial to librarians than to students (Reeb & Gibbons, 2004; Neilson, 2004; Vileno, 2007, 2010) • Difficult to use (Morris & Grimes, 1999; Reeb & Gibbons, 2004; Courtois, Higgins & Kapur, 2005; Vileno, 2010) • Questionable content and organizational schemes (Dahl, 2001; Dunsmore, 2002; Reeb & Gibbons, 2004; Neilson, 2004; Jackson & Pellack, 2004; Courtois, et al., 2005; Morris & Del Bosque, 2010; Vileno, 2010) • Time consuming to build and problematic to maintain (Morville & Wickhorst, 1996; Sugarman & Demetracopoulos, 2001; Morris & Del Bosque, 2010)
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  Evaluating research guides •Content analysis • Need • Organization • Content • Analytics • Usage • Usability Testing • “Provide data on whether participants can accomplish the tasks (effectiveness); do so in a reasonable amount of time and effort (efficiency); show how [it’s used] (context), and . . . their reaction to the product or service (satisfaction)” (Ward & Hiller, 2006, p. 154) • Surveys • Information-seeking behavior • Satisfaction
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  Usability Testing withMorae Morae software • Video of users’ computer screen • Audio and video of students themselves • Tasks: • Time on task • Mouse clicks per task • Success per task • Optimal path • Real-time observations and markers • Pre- and post-test questionnaires • Interview questions
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  Interview data Times a theme was mentioned Scope 50 Likes 48 Information-seeking behaviors 24 Suggestions 23 Dislikes 18 Themes Organization 16 Penrose Library 14 Naming 12 LibGuides 10 Appearance 7 Navigating/browsing 6 Subject Librarian 3 Other 1
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  Suggestions for LibGuidecreators • Begin by researching other LibGuides • Ensure that guide can be easily found • Get student input in regards to naming and organization; avoid jargon • Define scope (main page) • Use multiple access points to “signpost” • Create a new tab to bypass scrolling • Keep content to the center pane • Collaborate with faculty • Use resources with live links • Incorporate multimedia • Utilize tools for student and faculty feedback
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  THANK YOU! Questions? ChelsJMakely@gmail.com