Understanding the basis behind undergraduate' pre-existing perceptions of the library in order to improve library help services

Author/Creator ORCID

Date

2016-05

Type of Work

Department

University of Baltimore. School of Information Arts and Technologies

Program

University of Baltimore. Master of Science in Information Design and Information Architecture

Citation of Original Publication

Rights

This item may be protected under Title 17 of the U.S. Copyright Law. It is made available by the University of Baltimore for non-commercial research and educational purposes.
M.S. -- University of Baltimore, 2016
Thesis submitted to the School of Information Arts and Technologies at the University of Baltimore in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Information Design and Information Architecture

Abstract

Studies on the topic of library use by millennial students have called for more qualitative studies to support the quantitative data. This study used a survey and face-to-face interviews to collect qualitative data from freshmen students at the University of Baltimore, in order to better understand the mental model that students have of the library's information organization system as well as the basis of students'perceptions of the library and its services. The responses to the survey provided insight into students' basic understanding of the library online catalog's information organization system. Other findings from the survey and interviews generally support those in other similar studies and several new themes were identified in the students' perception of the library in relation to their academic work. Together, these insights offer suggestions into ways that librarians can better support students in terms of reference services and library information.