The Reference Interview

Ione HooperLIS 503

Fall 2003

Dimensions of the interview:

A communication event; communication means to: impartparticipateshareconveyreveal

involves verbal & non-verbal behavior

Dimensions of the interview:

librarian must start with assumption that client can make her/his needs clearclient should start with assumption that librarian is competentdifficulties arise when these basic assumptions fail to hold leads to impatience & frustration in both

parties

Interview structure

establish rapportget general information, big pictureget specific informationintervenegive info, advice, instructions

end, including feedback or summary

Successful interviews based on:

mutual, demonstrated respectclear understanding of request check for understanding by paraphrasing,

restating query (“so what you’re saying is…”), verifying key words

active listening skillsunderstanding purpose of query, how information is to be used use neutral, open-ended questioning techniques

appropriate closure

Open questions

Allow the user to say what is wanted, and what aspect of the topic is important to him or herAn open question is content free – it does not impose your assumptions on the userWhen you ask closed questions you have to guess what the user wants and make assumptions – so it’s easy to be wrongAn open question encourages the user to talk

Open questions--examples

How may I help you?What information would you like on that?What aspect of X are you interested in?What kind of help would you like?What have you done about this so far?What other help would you like?

5 easy questions

Instead of asking:Do you need any help?Have you looked in the catalogue?Do you want to know A or B?Do you want me to do C?Is it this? Is it that?

Ask:What can I help you do today?What have you done so far?What would you like to know about X?What kind of help would you like?What else can you tell me about X?

Neutral questions*developed by Brenda Dervin, University of Ohio

To find out how the client sees his/her situation:Can you tell something about the

topic/problem you’re working on?Where would you like to begin with

this topic?Where do you see yourself going with

this?

Neutral questions

To assess the gapsWhat would you like to know about X?What would you like to find out about

this topic?What are you trying to understand?What aspect of this situation/project

interests you most?

Neutral questions

To assess the kind of help wanted: What sort of information (results, book,

article) would help you most? How would you like the information to help

you? How do you plan to use this information? If you could tell me what you're trying to do,

perhaps I could help. If you could have exactly the information

you wanted, what would it be?

Neutral pre-search interview questions

Please describe briefly the problem that you are working on. What have you done so far? What steps have you taken to get help with this problem? If you have found anything helpful so far, what was it? (e.g., journal article, names of experts, names of institutes or research centres) What would you like to find out about this topic as a result of this search? If we could find the perfect journal article for you, what would it be called? How do you plan to use the information that you get from this search? What will it help you do?

Follow up questions

Does this help you? How will this help you ? What else do you need to find out? What else would you like us to do ? Does this completely answer your question? If this isn't it, get back to me and we can find something else. If you don't find what you're looking for, be sure to ask me or anyone at the desk.

Essential information:

what information is needed (specifically)how much is neededhow the information is to be useddegree of sophistication requiredtime frame (to search, & for use)format requiredwillingness to pay for additional services

Other essential communication skills:

Approachability: appearing willing to provide assistance appear relaxed be sensitive to others’ needs honestly enjoy social interaction proactively offer help

Awareness of nonverbal communication maintain eye contact minimize gestures, don’t mimic client keep tone of voice even maintain composed face look interested smile

Encouragers

uh-huhgo onthat’s interestinganything else?

Causes of communication accidents

not acknowledging the clientnot listeningplaying 20 questionsinterrupting at inappropriate timemaking assumptionsnot following up

Common misunderstandings

Client asks for something specific but gets the term wrongClient asks for a source that is not the best oneClient asks for a general topic when they want something very specificThere’s a problem of mishearing what was said (e.g. Tolkien book / talking book)Client has misheard what someone else has said, like a teacher (e.g. Go to the library and consult Eric – as in a person – instead of the database ERIC)’

The question as greeting

Think of the initial question as a greetingS/he wants to know first – am I in the right place? Is this person available and listening?S/he wants to establish contact before investing in a description of the problemThe larger the institution, the more important it is to establish contact

Special situations

Disabled Clients leave the client in control don’t make assumptions about the client’s abilities or needs treat the client as an individual maintain appropriate nonverbal behavior don’t underestimate the client don’t assume the client wants special materials know the facts about specific disabilities know the limitations of your library don’t pretend the disability doesn’t exist encourage the client’s independence use follow-up questions encourage feedback

Special situations

Cross-cultural communication use body language that suggests approachability,

respect, willingness to help restate or paraphrase to allow client to correct you do not assume a smile means agreement silence or lack of eye contact may mean agreement

or demonstration of respect keep questions simple and wait for an answer apologize for misunderstandings

Special situations

Problem patronsdescribe the situation objectivelyexplain the consequences of the

problem behavior for other clients and staff

specify how you would like the problem behavior to change

specify consequences of appropriate behavior, and of continuation of inappropriate behavior