Katie Feldkamp

LIS 60030 – Final Project Report

17 August 2017

Far From Being a “Cultural Relic”

A Focus on Teen Services in the Public Library

1. Definition of your user group

My chosen information user group focuses on teenagers, ages twelve to eighteen, and I will use the
terms “teens,” “adolescents,” and “young adults” interchangeably throughout. More specifically,
though, I plan on looking at how public libraries are attempting to meet the needs of this particular
user group. Young adults make up approximately one fourth of library users (Hughes-Hassell, 2003),
and while public libraries have made progress over the years by making themselves more accessible
to this user group, there is still much that can be done. It begins with changing from the mindset of
what the library has and focusing more on what the library does. This means that instead of thinking
of library collections as the driving service design and delivery, we should instead be leading U.S.
teen librarians to think of potential impacts on teens’ lives as the driving force behind service design
and delivery (Agosto, 2016b).

2. The real-life contexts of the users

Roach (2013) says it best. He does not argue that brick-and-mortar libraries are a relic of the past;
rather, he urges librarians to engage a variety of subjects that impact libraries across their physical
and digital footprints, services and instruction, and collections (Roach 2013). He describes his
findings as follows:

This generation wants rapid access to information, a large quantity of information

sources, and aesthetically pleasing, easy-to-use interfaces. The information-seeking
behavior shows that these generations value interpersonal sources, such as friends
and parents, and they value online sources more than print resources. They also view
library spaces very differently from their parents and grandparents. They see the
library as a place for “hanging out, messing around, and geeking out.” These students
have a strong social view of information that will require libraries to rethink the study
space as a place for isolated individuals needing quiet places to an area for group-
based learning, multitasking, and socializing, including the use of mobile
technologies (p. 77).

3. Related theories, models, and approaches applied in related research about this user group

Some of the research studies explored the needs of the adolescent user group and what public libraries
could do to further help this user group. Howard’s (2011) study explored the question, “What do
twelve to fifteen year olds think of the public library?” using a two-phase research design. Another
question in the study considered the impact of the many twenty-first-century technologies teens had
available to them and if these factors influenced teens’ attitude toward the public library and their
overall level of public library use (Howard, 2011).

Hughes-Hassell’s (2003) study also sought to understand what motivates the development of public
library websites for young adults, what young adult information needs the pages target, how teenagers
are involved in creating and updating the sites, how the pages are promoted to teenagers, and what
barriers have to be overcome in the creation and maintenance of these sites. The connection was made
 that if librarians want to attract young adults to their collections and services, they must become
integral members of the online community. Furthermore, library Web pages must address the needs
of young adults on many levels – academic, social, and recreational (Hughes-Hassell, 2003).

Other research studies each had different approaches towards adolescent information behavior.
Walter’s (2005) research study focused primarily on the communication gap that was discovered
between librarians and teenagers during online tractions. In this article, she situates the discussion
within the overall context of library service to young adults. Within that context, she analyzes the
transactions using two different frameworks: the guidelines for effective reference performance and
the basic tenets of critical discourse analysis (Walter, 2005). Her results led to statistics in virtual
reference information behaviors.

Lastly, Howard’s (2011) research study explored the question, “What do twelve- to fifteen-year olds
think of the public library?” using a two-phase research design. Her study actually references
Walter’s (2005), reemphasizing that the research community has spent little time investigating either
the information needs or the information-seeking behavior of teens. Howard (2011) points out that
twenty-first-century teens have a wealth of multimedia options available to them. Her study looks at
what impact these factors have upon teens’ attitude toward the public library and their overall level of
public library use in two phases. Phase 1 involved a quantitative survey, which explored a wide range
of issues of relevance to an understanding of the information-seeking behavior of teens in their
selection of pleasure reading materials and use of the public library and provided essential
background context for the second phase of this study. Phase 2 used qualitative methodology (focus
groups) to illuminate and enrich the findings from the initial survey research (Howard, 2011).

4. Methodologies and techniques used in research for determining users’ information needs and
behaviors

Howard’s (2011) study investigated the attitudes and information needs of twelve to fifteen year old
residents to a public library in Eastern Canada. First she used a quantitative survey that analyzed the
overall satisfaction ratings and frequency of the use of the public library. Next she used focus groups
to illuminate and enrich the findings from the initial survey research. Based on a survey taken by
three hundred teenage public library users, it was determined that a quarter of respondents wanted
better technology, a more convenient location for the library, and better study areas; almost forty
percent wanted more up-to-date and diverse collections, but less than twenty percent wanted
improvements in library staffing. Teens also wanted a separate and colorful library space with a “teen
feel,” more computers, and comfortable places to sit and read. They also wanted longer borrowing
periods, and they wanted the library to make it easier for them to find books through genre or
thematic shelving arrangements (Howard, 2011). By implementing more technology and computers
in the library towards a space specific for teens, young adults could collaborate with peers on
homework assignments, organize school club activities and sports practices, as well as coordinate
participation in civic organizations and volunteer activities.

Roach’s (2013) article was not necessarily a research study, but it did hold an incredible amount of
helpful facts regarding adolescent information behavior. In his article, Roach (2013) explains that in a
2010 study, it was shown that seventy-five percent of teens own a cell phone, seventy-nine percent
have an iPod or other media device, ninety-three percent engage in online activities, and seventy-
three percent are present on social media. It is argued that researchers, as well as librarians, will need
to better understand and prepare for these users because even though these generations are very
comfortable with technology, they are not necessarily more capable of finding and using information
(Roach, 2013). Research shows that young people, for the most part, are merely adequate when it
comes to information seeking and use and, in fact, could use some guidance (Roach, 2013).
 Walter (2005) found that if teens could design their own library services, they would put less
emphasis on traditional services in favor of more homework assistance and improved access to the
Internet. Teens want libraries to offer more access to technology, longer hours, fewer restrictive rules
and fees, and more help with homework projects and research (Walter, 2005). This is where linking
homework assistance with virtual reference comes into play. More and more libraries are recognizing
this need and offering more help for teenagers online. Walter (2005) also looks to other literary works
which have documented the affective dimensions of information seeking behavior. It was noted that
there is anxiety and uncertainty that students experience when they are faced with the need to do
library research. She describes the information-seeking process as an effort to seek or create meaning
(Walter, 2005).

5. The information sources and services provided to and used by this user group

Agosto’s (2016a) article shows that libraries are increasingly moving toward viewing their
communities as their core focus, not their collections. Because of this, libraries have been broadened
their teen services even more over the past decade, with an ever-increasing focus on understanding
and serving individual communities’ information-related needs (Agosto, 2016a). In addition, she
argues the importance of “library as place.” Her study found that teens use teen spaces in libraries for
access to technology, for study space, as places for conducting leisure pursuits such as reading and
game playing, and as places to socialize with peers. The role of the physical library space is
particularly essential in economically disadvantaged communities, where teens often live in
neighborhoods with inflated crime and violence (Agosto, 2016a).

Agosto is not the only one to recognize this. It has also been brought up time and again the
importance of having a space specifically for all of these services – a space exclusively for teens.
Having a separate space designated for teens has had a profound effect on the popularity of the
library’s services as well as personal relationships with teen patrons (Hopkins, 2017). Libraries are
not what they used to be, and it is up to public and school libraries to help teens recognize that
change. The first step is looking at library services in a new light and realizing how design and décor,
as well as policies and practices, can make a world of a difference (Bolan, 2006).

Other services provided look to Hughes-Hassell’s (2003) study which discusses how librarians used
their young adult library Web pages to provide reference assistance, educational support, and
community information for teens, thus addressing the adolescent tasks of adjusting to new intellectual
abilities, adjusting to increased cognitive demands at school, expanding their verbal skills, and
establishing adult vocational goals. She even addresses one of Agosto’s past studies which
emphasized the importance of being user-centered for teenagers. She states that today’s youth are the
future of public libraries in this country. By developing young adult Websites that not only address
the developmental needs of teens but also respect their knowledge of Web technologies and Website
design, librarians can encourage teenagers to become lifelong supporters of libraries (Hughes-Hassell,
2003).

6. Related issues and considerations to better serve the users

A common trend found throughout my sources was that many technically-minded teens thought of
libraries as outmoded cultural relics with little relevance to their modern technology infused lives
(Agosto, 2016b). Even with new services being added to public libraries with this user group in mind,
they were not being advertised enough to bring in their desired audience. No matter how cutting-edge
or exciting or potentially impactful a new service may be, if its target audience doesn’t know about it,
it’s likely to fall flat (Agosto, 2016b). Another study adds that this particular user group is generally
 suspect within public and retail settings in the U.S., thanks in part to the relentless negative media
coverage of the age group, and to adult fear and misreading of their appearance (Chelton, 2002).
Because of this, despite the overwhelming presence of young people in public libraries, a lot of public
library staff end up finding ways to marginalize their importance (Chelton, 2002).

Furthermore, even armed with the knowledge of how to better serve this user group, libraries are still
faced with a way to build teen patronage. Hopkins (2017) reasons that it is simply to consistently
advocate the lives and needs of teens, and to understand that teens are their own population in need of
their own ecology, by showing the community that teens are of value, and that they need as well as
deserve their own space, collection, and consideration. Agosto’s (2016a), study further emphasizes
this by indicating that the library’s teen services priorities should be: “Services that support both the
recreational and academic lives of predominantly middle school aged youth; a distinct acoustically
isolated teen space with a teen-friendly environment; and constructive activities as an alternative to
violence.”

7. Your major takeaways from the studies, along with practical applications and implications in
providing suitable sources and services to users within an information ecology context

From the studies, I have come to realize that public libraries have been trying to make serving teens a
central focus since about the middle of the past century. As such, it is a safe bet to say that teens will
continue to be a major focus of public library services for decades to come by implementing the
following two critical future trends (Agosto, 2016b). There has been a strong emphasis across the
articles on two major concepts moving forward. First, there needs to be a greater focus on the people
who come into the library, not the collections themselves, and second, a focus on moving library
services further into the digital world. Many U.S. teen librarians are broadening the spaces in which
they offer their services, moving further beyond the physical boundaries of library buildings into a
wealth of virtual spaces (Agosto, 2016b). When shown the full range of services that today’s public
libraries have to offer, teens have responded positively and become eager public library users
(Agosto, 2016a). Libraries that keep up or move quickly to advance their work to fit such trends will
do well; those that don’t, won’t (Agosto, 2016b).

8. Contribute your own recommendations

Overall, I would have to say that this series of assignments has been an enlightening one. It has
shown that the implementation of being teen-centered, having websites specifically for teens,
broadening literacy and learning goals, asking for opinions from teens themselves, and reaching out
to organizations outside the library walls have done wonders for libraries around the country. The
library is far from being the “cultural relic” is was when I was growing up. Don’t get me wrong, I
loved going to the library as a kid, but if they had offered even half of the services they do for teens
now, I might have left home to live there! In Agosto’s (2016b) article, she explores major changes in
services for teens both now and those expected in the future. The two most important shifts are the
increasing focus on what the library does over what the library has and the growing emphasis on
information and information services in digital forms and formats. In order to keep up with a world
that is constantly changing, it only makes sense that a place as sacred as a library would also move
forward with us.
 References

Agosto, D. E., Purcell, M., Magee, R. M., & Forte, A. (2015). Teens, libraries, and social media: Myths
and reality. Public Library Quarterly, 34(4), 318-327. doi:10.1080/01616846.2015.1106892

Agosto, D. E. (2016a). Hey! The library is kind of awesome! Current trends in US public library services
for teens. Public Libraries, (5). 30.

Agosto, D. E. (2016b). What’s next in U.S. public library services for teens? A peek into a promising
future. Public Library Quarterly, 35(4), 344-350. doi:10.1080/01616846.2016.1251806

Bolan, K. (2006). Looks like teen spirit: Libraries for youth are changing – Thanks to teen input. School
Library Journal, 52(11), 44.

Chelton, M. K. (2002). The ‘problem patron’ public libraries created. Reference Librarian, 36(75/76), 23.

Hopkins, A. (2017). Making a case for teens services: Transforming libraries and publishing: Advocacy
can come in many forms, but always focuses on the teens. Young Adult Library Services, (3), 43.

Howard, V. (2011). What do young teens think about the public library?. Library Quarterly, 81(3), 321-
344.

Hughes-Hassell, S., & Miller, E. T. (2003). Public library web sites for young adults: Meeting the needs
of today’s teens online. Library & Information Science Research (07408188), 25(2), 143.
doi:10.1016/S0740-8188(03)00004-5

Roach, J. (2013). The information behavior of a new generation: Children and teens in the 21st
century. Theological Librarianship, Vol 6, Iss 2, Pp 77-78 (2), 77.

Walter, V. & Mediavilla, C. (2005). Teens are from Neptune, librarians are from Pluto: An analysis of
online reference transactions. Library Trends, (2), 209.