ASK?AWAY USERS GROUPOctober 19, 2006

AGENDA

Seeking Synchronicity: Evaluating Virtual Reference Services from User, Non-User, and Librarian Perspectives

Seeking Synchronicity: Evaluating Virtual Reference Services from User, Non-User, and Librarian Perspectives

• $1,103,572 project funded by:

– Institute of Museum and Library Services

• $684,996 grant

– Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey and OCLC Online Computer Library Center $405,076 in kind contributions

Seeking Synchronicity: Evaluating Virtual Reference Services from User, Non-User, and Librarian Perspectives

Project duration10/1/2005-9/30/2007

Four phases:I. Focus group interviews*II. Analysis of 1,000+

QuestionPoint transcriptsIII. 600 online surveys*IV. 300 telephone interviews*

*Interviews & surveys with VRS users, non-users, & librarians

Librarian and User Facilitator Comparisons

Facilitators

89

274

600

14192

33

283

464

98 81

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

GreetingRitual

Defference RapportBuilding

Closing Ritual NonverbalCues

Librarian

Users

Face-Work in Chat Reference Encounters

Presented by Marie L. Radford

andLynn Silipigni Connaway

Library Research Round TableJune 24, 2006

ALA, New Orleans, Louisiana

Review of Behaviors

• Greeting Ritual – Scripted & Non-Scripted

• Rapport Building• Deference – Showing Respect• Compensation for Lack of NV Cues• Closing Ritual

– Scripted & Non-Scripted

Source: Close Encounters of the Chat Kind: Interpersonal Communication in Virtual Reference

GREETINGS

• Thank customer for waiting.• Use your own name.• Inform customer that you are backing up their

library and are not at their library.• If you can’t find their script, type your own

greeting or make a local script.

Rapport Building

Admitting lack of knowledge:

– I don’t know this term. Could you tell me what it means?

– I don’t know what you mean. Could you be more specific.

Use I Statements

• I think that you will have more success if you do X.

• I have used this strategy before and it works!

Encouraging the User

• User: I need 30 adjectives that describe the weather.

• LIbrarian: How many do you have so far?• User: I have 20……foggy, cloudy, rainy.

Are those OK?• Librarian: Yes. Those are really good.

Empathy

• Be empathetic when users express frustration:

“Yes it is frustrating when technology doesn’t work.”

“Yes that website is difficult to use.”

Deference

• I am sorry that you had to wait so long.

• I am sorry that I can’t help you with that. You will have to visit your local library.

• Do not mirror rude behavior

Dealing with Rude Behavior

• Check list:

Don’t mirror rude behavior!Apologize when appropriate.Dealing with impatient users.Dealing with complainers.Don’t take it personally!

Source: Close Encounters of the Chat Kind: Interpersonal Communication in Virtual Reference

Compensation for Lack of Nonverbal Cues

• Mirror customer’s style—use abbreviations, smileys, etc.

• Use punctuation for emphasis

• Use ellipses…….. to signal that more is coming so patron doesn’t log off prematurely.

Closing Ritual

• Ask if they need anything else.

• Look for clues like “Well….. thanks.”

• Always give a closing – bye!

• Respond to user’s compliments; don’t just send a script.

Recommendations

• Training in basic interpersonal skills• Awareness that user may need lots of

reassurance– Recognizing this– Providing reassurance

• Awareness of appropriate self-disclosure– When to disclose– Acknowledgment of user’s self-disclosure

• Humor – importance of acknowledgment

Source: Close Encounters of the Chat Kind: Interpersonal Communication in Virtual Reference

More Recommendations

• Greetings & Closings.– Beware negative closure!– Beware robotic scripts!

• Inclusion (use of we, let’s, etc.).• Take cue from user & mirror their relational

strategies.• Don’t B afraid 2 use informal language,

abbreviations & emoticons as appropriate.

Source: Close Encounters of the Chat Kind: Interpersonal Communication in Virtual Reference

Endnotes

• This is one of the outcomes from the project Seeking Synchronicity: Evaluating Virtual Reference Services from User, Non-User, and Librarian Perspectives.

• Funded by IMLS, Rutgers University and OCLC, Online Computer Library Center.

• Project web site: http://www.oclc.org/research/projects/synchronicity/