Evaluation of the settlement of reference librarians in academic libraries in each of the theories of reference

Bigdeli, Zahed; Khademi, Rouhallah

doi:10.22059/jlib.2013.51134

Evaluation of the settlement of reference librarians in academic libraries in each of the theories of reference

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

Zahed Bigdeli ¹

Rouhallah Khademi ²

¹ Professor, Department of Knowledge & Information Science College of Education & Psychology

² PhD Student in Knowledge & Information Science College of Education & Psychology, Shahid Chamran University, Ahvaz, Iran

10.22059/jlib.2013.51134

Abstract

Aim: The aim of this study was to assess the status of reference librarians of university central libraries under the Ministry of Science, Research, and Technology and the Ministry of Health and Medical Education in each of the levels of theory and reference.
Methods: This study was of a descriptive survey type and used a researcher-made questionnaire derived from existing theories. Total of 133 questionnaires were returned by the reference librarians.
Results: Results showed a trend toward a Max Theory (Liberal theory). With the increasing
Education and work experience, librarians became more inclined towards Max theory. Reference librarians of libraries under the Ministry of Health gained higher scores on the Max theory.
Originality: So far, very few studies have examined the reference librarians from the viewpoint of reference theories. This research is new in term of addressing the situation of reference librarians at different levels of reference theories.

Keywords

Reference theories

Academic libraries

Reference Librarin