A Field Trip to Library User Land

Transcription

1 A Field Trip to Library User Land Denmark s Electronic Research Library 1

2 A Field Trip to Library User Land DEFF Denmark s Electronic Research Library Based on four inspiration workshops: Brugerkaravanen en guided tur til brugerland by DEFF in cooperation with Changepilot For DEFF Programme Committee Meeting the User Karen Harbo, chairperson For Changepilot: Rebekka Høy Biegel, John Lassen Translation: Bernt Møller, Aarhus School of Business and Social Sciences, Aarhus University For more information about the project Brugerkaravanen and or contact Karen Harbo, har@asb.dk Layout/illustrations: Nicolaj Bak, Print: ClausenGrafisk Denmark s Electronic Research Library 2

3 Contents Prologue from library logic to user logic Before you go Principle 1: Users run nothing Principle 2: Remove the blinkers Principle 3: Focus on the question Principle 4: Meet ordinary people Principle 5: Focus on context Principle 6: Improve people s lives Principle 7: Don t go to the zoo, go to the jungle User-centered tools Photo Diary Observation in work context Think-aloud observations Basic Interview Value Wheel Interview at a place that means something to the user Find interview yourself The meaning of physical surroundings see the world as players The meaning of language listen for metaphors Categorization Analysis Insights International students Master s Students Students in University College Researchers at the Humanities Bibliography 3

4 The book you hold in your hand is a short and easily accessible collection of principles, tools and insights enabling you to continue to seek new insights into the people who are the future of your library: USERS! It is a handbook containing a collection of texts from a year 2010 journey of discovery in Danish library user land. This expedition was termed Brugerkaravanen (which means caravan setting out for library users). Looking at Brugerkaravanen as one joint caravan, it consisted of 110 library employees, divided among 16 mini-buses which together have visited 32 locations where the users live their personal and professional lives in the cities of Copenhagen, Aarhus, Odense and Aalborg.! User ahead 4

5 Prologue From library logic to user logic Karen Harbo, DEFF Programme Group Meeting the User and John Lassen, Changepilot Why get started? Is anything wrong with the service at our libraries? Isn t it easy to navigate in the physical and virtual library? Isn t it enough purely and simply to become better at what we are doing? And will we improve by looking at people in the real world? We must become better at what we do: Be a library. But what does it mean to be a library? What does really mean something for those who use libraries, and perhaps more important, what means something to those who do not use the library? What could improve their lives? If we know the answer to it, and can develop solutions that match, then we have come really far in relation to creating libraries that thrive and deliver the goods in the future. The journey to user land is not just another charter trip, where you get some sun on your body and face standing in the same queues, taking the same photos and eating the same tourist-menus as the other tourists. The journey is rather a journey of discovery an expedition where we curious and open-minded fight our way through the wilderness to get new insights and experiences that can change our view of the world. The vision of the journey is to stimulate the development of libraries so they increasingly meet the needs of users and the users are perceived as relevant and attractive learning partners. 5

6 Before you go Fundamental principles of humancentered innovation To understand the below descriptions of the method, it is very important to know the principles that apply to the explorer when he or she moves outside the library reserve and into library user land. 6

7 Human Centered Innovation 7 principles that take us from library logic to user logic Users run nothing Remove the blinkers Focus on the question Meet ordinary people Focus on context Improve people s lives Don t go to the zoo, go to the jungle 7

8 Principle N o 1 Users run nothing I would like fgs hf ghdfw fd hsdcgdsd qehgf but are still quite central 8

9 Before you go The often used term user-driven innovation gives birth to the idea of innovation driven by the users. It is a big mistake and the reason why we prefer the less known concept of human-centered innovation. When we meet people, we do not ask them to tell us what they want. To most people it is very difficult to break with conventions and put new words on totally new innovations. We try instead to get further beneath the surface by trying to uncover what it is that drives people. What they dream about and what kind of life they live. What lies behind their spontaneous response. It is our job to interpret what we see and hear, thus allowing it to become an excellent starting point for new products/processes/services. 9

10 Principle N o 2 Remove the blinkers and see a brand new world 10

11 Before you go The effect of using qualitative methods inspired by ethnography and anthropology is that we forget what we already know. This is particularly true when we make observations and interviews in areas where we basically are experts. We know why the books are lined up as they are. We know why a student cannot just lend the book having just been returned but has to wait until the book has passed through the lending system. We know it all, and our own knowledge may in fact be the biggest obstacle for us being able to see new approach angles. So the first thing we should do is to mentally remove our blinkers and put on new glasses. We try to see things with new eyes. Try to put ourselves in the users place, curious about how things appear when you are a lay user and not an expert. 11

12 Principle N o 3 Focus on the question sometimes the quickest detour 12

13 Before you go One of the pitfalls when working with human development is that we begin to find solutions in the same moment we see a challenge. The challenge is to focus on the question. To refine the question. To find more questions. If we begin by developing answers to the first question that pops up, then we risk to have a really good answer but perhaps the wrong question. We must therefore learn to remain in the question until we are sure that we have formulated a correct question, one which is important for the users. 13

14 Principle N o Meet ordinary people 4 they are the ones that need exceptional solutions 14

15 Before you go With a view to designing exceptional products/ processes/services, we must meet ordinary people. These are common people and not a specific segment that we develop for. We must meet them, know them, find out what really matters to them. Based on this we can create exceptional solutions. 15

16 Principle N o 5 Focus on context abc Library there is so much more than libraries 16

17 Before you go Qualitative studies focus on how something works in use. We observe, for example a visit to a library. And that is extremely important. But what happens before the visit and what happens after the visit is equally important. The context surrounding the visit where you come from/ where you are going. The decision to go to the library is taken before the visit takes place, and the value of the visit is realized afterwards in everyday life. 17

18 Principle N o 6 Improve people s lives 18

19 Before you go If we were to pick a single principle to develop for, then it should be this! The goal of what we re doing is to improve people s lives. Nothing less. 19

20 Principle N o Don t go the zoo go to the jungle 7 ZOO CLOSED 20

21 Before you go A known trend researcher says: To understand how a lion hunts, do not go to the zoo, go to the jungle. Human-centered innovation is forcing us out there where we meet the user in his own element, not in ours. 21

22 User-centered tools 22

23 User-centered tools The purpose of qualitative methods Why move from library logic to user logic? We constantly meet our users. Don t we know them already? What should we do differently and what difference does it make? Nobody wakes up in the morning thinking of himself as a user. We wake up as mothers, fathers, lovers, librarians, football players, enemies, etc. But never as users. All agencies have users. Some places call them guests or they are called clients, visitors, or something else. In the library community we find a large group of people who potentially could be users and a large group that actually is users. It is important to keep in mind that when we use the term users, we think of people who either use or could potentially use library services. Some will misunderstand, suggesting that we should ask users what they want. We should not. If we want to be successful, we must base our case on their lives: What means something to them? How can we improve their lives? That is the very essence of using qualitative methods. To move from library logic to user logic means to change position and experience what it is to be a library user. A significant example was when three foreign students were asked to think aloud. It became clear to everyone what problems were facing the students, how difficult for instance it is for a foreign visitor to find his way in a huge unknown library building. Two methods: Interviews and observations and a matter of time...! In general there are two different qualitative methods, we can take advantage of: interviews and observations. It may be a good idea to start by observing, and then ask clarifying questions to the areas arousing your curiosity. 23

24 The qualitative methods are the fundamentals of ethnographic and sociological work. Ethnographers have weeks, months and sometimes years, to do observations. Library employees do not. They have an hour sometimes, if they are lucky and some more hours for concrete projects! Therefore, we tested methods that allow us to go home with users and observe them 24 hours a day without having to spend much more than an hour... The fly on the wall Sometimes, when observing users, you might wish that you were a fly on the wall. And sometimes you may well succeed in making observations without the people you observe discover it. But how did they react if you were absent even if they did not know you observed them? We do not know. We can never be a fly on the wall. We are always having an influence on what is done or said, in one way or another. User studies are thus not an exact science, but a way to get under the skin of humans. To see the difference between what they say and what they do. A method where you look at people as they actually are instead of how to make them fit into a questionnaire. Ethics It is important to protect the people who have accepted to contribute to the study of library user life. We therefore ask specifically for permission to record an interview, take photos, accept subsequent use, etc. Besides, it is important to emphasize that they can always say no if there are questions they do not want to answer. It is important to consider what sort of impact an intervention on our part will have on the participants lives. We have a solemn responsibility to protect their openness and the relationships that are affected by their in volvement. For example, to some it might be challenging to be very 24

25 User-centered tools personal in an interview or a photo diary and meet the interviewer (ex. a librarian) subsequently in everyday student life. Some librarians have for this very reason agreed to exchange observers in such a way that visits are paid to other users than one s own. What if I do not see anything new? In the vast, vast majority of cases, we should not expect to see something we ve never seen before. The challenge is not to see something new, but to think something new about what we see. It requires patience and the use of different methods. Sometimes a little insight can make a big difference. Field notes Field notes are notes taken when one is in the field. It is also notes from small interviews where the interview is not being recorded or transcribed. When you write down when doing field work, it is crucial to remember that you never know in advance what the good quote / observation is. The main thing is that you write so soberly as possible without concluding. If the person interviewed says: I cannot live without rhythm!, then that is what you write down, and not He is very structured. This quote is much stronger in the further process of analyzing and categorizing the data. Taking good field notes from observations also require training. Have always in mind that the notes are the elements upon which further analysis is based. In the pile of field notes from Brugerkaravanen, a number of observations as gray in gray, plants and art appear. Observations of this nature are very difficult to use afterwards, whereas full information notes like The students are carrying their bags and bicycle helmets are much easier to work with. The difference is the level of detail. Practice makes perfect. 25

26 Observations Photo Diary Why? Ethnographers and sociologists use weeks or months on field studies. Being library staff, we do not have this much time. If we re lucky, we have a few hours at our disposal. So the challenge is how to achieve a broader understanding of the potential user s entire life without being physically present. What matters to the users? How do they actually spend their time and money etc? One way is to ask potential users to create a photo diary. In that way we can gain insight into their lives around the clock without spending much time on it. How? You make agreements with one or more users/potential users. If you for example are employed at a secondary school, you can make an appointment with 2 students from each grade. You don t necessarily have to choose only those who use the library much. You ask them to make a visual diary where they take pictures of everything from their daily lives. They may provide documentation for a full day or maybe a week or a month. The most important thing is that it becomes clear to them that nothing is too small to be 26

27 User-centered tools included. That is, they can take photos of everything such as what time they wake up, what they do when they wake up, what they eat, how they leave their room or where they slept, the trip to school, what they experience on the trip, etc. The longer period of time the users provide documentation for, the longer you need for categorization and analysis work. The simplest is that they put the photos into a power point and write some text to each photo plus text that ties the photos together. Alternatively, the images are stored in the form of titles that describe the contents of the images. The more text that describes the pictures and links between them, the more value the diary presents. You look through the diaries with really curious eyes. Probably you will not find pictures of something you have never seen before. Perhaps in a different order than you expected? Look out for what is very important in this person s life. Be curious and open-minded. Formulate questions which you can subsequently ask the participants in order to get extensive knowledge of their everyday lives. Invite the participants for a talk about their photos and the questions they have triggered in you. 27

28 Observations Observation in work context Why? What is it that makes life miserable to high school students? How could the life of a master s student significantly improve? To answer these questions, we must know more about how their workday is, where things always reach a deadlock, what gives value during the workday, and more. If we can support what gives value and eliminate that which is inconvenient then we ve done well. The method is good when you want to scrutinize the factors that play a role in working contexts. Some things may be documented in a photo diary, but many things are so natural for the people working there that they do not think that it may be interesting to others. 28

29 User-centered tools How? You can make this kind of observation with or without an agreement. If you want to make observations at a workplace, it is often a good idea to have an agreement in advance, whereas it is easier for you to look yourself at a school or university. Go out in the work context. Find a place where you can make observations in the cafeteria, at the main entrance, at a message board and more. You write down everything you see: who s coming, what they are doing, what they are talking about, how long they stay, where they go, what does not happen, places where people are and where there is nobody, etc. Look at the walls, what s hung up or pinned, what info is on the message board, what signs, plates and badges do you see, etc. Observe how people work. Do they sit alone, do they talk together, is there quiet or noisy, where are peoples belongings, etc. You can also make an appointment in advance and get a guided tour. Remember to ask if there are things you do not see. It may well be your guide finds uninteresting things that you find deeply relevant. It can also be very rewarding to ask if you can see one or more of the employee s offices and workflow. Remember to take pictures of everything if you are allowed to! 29

30 Observations Think-aloud observations Why? It is often very difficult to forget what you already know. Therefore it may be a real eye-opener to make think-aloud observations. You ask one or more library users to solve certain assignments while they think aloud during the execution of the assignment. Thus you find out what lies behind the users thoughts, what is difficult, illogic and what functions. How? Start by choosing one or more fields you want to examine. It may be e.g. computer systems used at the library, how to get library tickets or how to find certain books. You formulate the questions to be answered. 30

31 User-centered tools You may choose to use a scheme where you write what the user says, how long time he or she needs for solving an assignment, your reflexions, etc. Feel your way and find a method that suits you. Alternatively you may record the entire exercise and look it all through afterwards. Make appointments with users, preferably some who have not used the library or its systems before, if possible. Propose the first assignment, e.g. You have just arrived to town and would like to prepare yourself for the beginning of the term by finding the newest titles within your subject field. What do you do? Remember to make it clear to the users to always think aloud step by step and that you for once must not help them. Alternatively you can ask users from your own library about their doings, if they would like to think aloud and if you may follow them. 31

32 Interview Basic interview Why? An interview is a great tool to get more information about humans. It is a golden opportunity to ask clarifying questions to what you have observed. It is also extremely interesting to investigate the difference between what is being said and what actually happens. The schism between values and reality is often crucial knowledge. How? The brief introduction to a good interview consists of two points: Use open questions (Be aware, however, of Why... as it may well get people to adopt a defensive position.) Be genuinely curious. 32

33 User-centered tools Below are three ways to conduct interviews based on the above brief introduction to a good interview. If you want more in-depth knowledge of different interview techniques, then read Bernard, H.R. 1994, pp see the detailed bibliography at the back of this book. 33

34 Interview Value Wheel Why? The mission is to create products, processes or services that provide real value to people. Therefore we must find ways allowing us to get under the skin of users or potential users of libraries. One way is to interview them about what matters to them in their lives. To this end the value wheel may be a good support. In addition, the method requires minimal preparation and is very useful in a busy life, as it is apt at setting the framework for an interview. How? Find A3 paper and draw a star on it. See illustration. Seek out your potential users where you know they are. So if you are a librarian at the nursing school, go to the cafeteria during a lunch break. Then you ask a group being together if you may ask them some questions. Or maybe you want to know something about what matters in the academic staff of theology; in that case it may be expedient to book an appointment in advance. You can make the interview quite brief and general in 5-10 min. You can also go into more depth and spend min. Start by formulating a top-level question, such as Which areas are most important for you having a good life? The question could also read: What factors are a good day composed of? 34

35 qs dgsw tr User-centered tools øå nm f 65y hgf Based on the question, write the key word of the answers. One key word per leg of the star (spoke of the wheel). You then make more detailed questions for each key word. Finally you ask about how much each item is satisfied right now on a scale from 0-10, where 0 is not at all and 10 is completely satisfied. You now indicate the value as a point on the leg of the star. If it is 0, put a cross into the very center of the star, if it is 5, put a cross in the middle, and if it is 10, you put it right on the tip of the leg / spoke. You then draw a line from cross to cross and get in this way a good picture of the extent to which the values have been met. You can either record the whole interview digitally, allowing you to concentrate entirely on the interview and then listen to it afterwards. Or you can write notes afterwards. Last point is the analysis, where you based on the interview assess what matters most to the person or persons interviewed. If you have done several interviews, then check if there are topics or themes that recur or if there are items that have not been recorded by anyone. That is interesting too. Remember to take pictures of the interviewed and scan the value wheel or take a picture of it. 35

36 Interview Interview at a location that means something to the user Why? It might be hard to see the individuals behind the stereotype, for example a professor, an international student or a student from University College. It can be a good idea to meet at a location that means something to the persons being interviewed. Thus you start out on their home ground, and you get a valuable knowledge about them solely from the place they have chosen. How? Find out what you want to ask and make a list of questions. Thus you can always get around matters of the greatest importance. You decide how structured it should be. However, consider in advance whether it is OK that the conversation evolves, and that you may be taking questions in a different order than you imagined from the outset. Be careful how you formulate the questions. Open questions are perfect if you are open-minded and curious. Be aware that Why...? may seem pushing and often makes people go defensive and feel 36

37 User-centered tools the need for explaining themselves. It s not the role we want them to have. Closed questions are of course perfect if you need something clarified, for example Is it true that you told me that...? Consider how you will document the interview. It is very hard to write notes and at the same time keep focus on the interview. You may choose to record it on video, you can use a dictaphone, or you can ally yourself with someone else who takes notes as you go along. Make an agreement with the person you want to interview. Arrange to meet in a location that means something to him or her. It often gives a new angle on the interview and ensures that we as interviewers go beyond our immediate prejudices. Make clear to the person interviewed, how long you plan to use, what the results will be used for, etc. Start the interview by asking questions regarding the location where the interview takes place, what lies behind the choice, what the place means to him or her, etc. It s also a good ice-breaker, if needed. Start then the interview. Give yourself freedom to inquire more into something than you might have planned, if it turns out there s more substance to it. Remember to take pictures of the site and the interviewed person. After the interview it is convenient right away to write down what your head is packed with. What was said, what was most important, what recurs, etc. Transcribe the interview if you ve recorded it (and have time for it), otherwise see notes through. Find the general characteristics and themes of the interview. 37

38 Interview Find interview yourself Why? Find interview yourself we called the method where librarians in a Brugerkaravanen mini-bus made small, spontaneous interviews with people they met without any agreement. Long in-depth interviews have their strengths. But in some situations it is more interesting to get opinions on a single or a few questions from a lot of people. In just one hour, one can see a good and wide section of people and compare their attitudes and opinions. How? What is it that might be interesting to know something about? Start by formulating the 2-3 most important questions. When you do not have an agreement with people in advance they rarely have time to talk for more than a few minutes. Choose the location for seeking out potential users. Get a digital camera that can record video or a cell phone. 38

39 User-centered tools If you have 5 min. you have enough time to speak to one person. Rather, plan to use half an hour for contacting several persons. Be prepared that some do not have the time or do not fancy interviews and some do not want to be recorded. You can alternatively ask if you can record the sound without filming. Remember to tell what use will be made of the recording and ask whether you can show the material to others (if necessary) or tell that it is for internal use only (if that is the case). For some it may be barrier-breaking to just use this method. But mostly it is a good experience, especially if you also give a smile to those who say no. When the interview session is over, write down all your thoughts. What has recurred in the interviews? What would you like to know more about? Then look through the films and make a more detailed analysis. Fragments of recordings are often very good at illustrating the points you have. 39

40 Variations in interview and observations The meaning of physical surroundings seeing the world as players Why? If you observe something that you know well in advance, it can be difficult to allow yourself to be surprised. It is much easier when you come to a totally foreign culture where everything is new and everything is done in a different way. How? A basic systematization of our world is to look at people and things as being essentially different. If one instead looks at the world in a new way, for example through so-called actor-network glasses this distinction will disappear. Here the world and everything in the world are perceived as players and the network as what connects them. Instead of looking at people and things, this distinction ceases and one looks instead at the various actors: human and non-human actors. This does not mean that humans and things are the same. What is interesting is how the different actors connect to each other. The thinking is not holistic, but we imagine that things can connect in many different ways. 40

41 User-centered tools An everyday situation may serve as an illustration: I drive my car on a school road and slow down at a speed bump. Who is responsible for this behavior? Is it me, a human driver, who is dominated by the power of a brainless artifact? Or is it the artifact the speed bump that compels me, a brainless human, to follow the law? When we want to know what a specific non-human actor does, we must then imagine what other human actors would do if this artifact was not present. In such an analysis we will discover that very little effort balances great weight, such as a speed bump replacing a traffic policeman. When observations are being made it often is extremely central and informative to also observe the artifacts forming part of the relations, the role they play and the impact they have. When artifacts are being designed, it is crucial to be aware of how to assign responsibilities to the artifacts that you develop. The advantage of assigning responsibility for artifacts is that artifacts are more reliable; they are not seduced or changed as people may be. Typical artifacts can be signs, boxes, furniture, doors, etc. but may also be the way the light is set, the sound in a room and where it comes from, decor and much more. 41

42 Variations in interview and observations Meaning of language listening for metaphors Why? The essence of metaphor is understanding and experiencing one kind of thing in terms of another (Lakoff, G. & Johnson, M., 1994). Language is an incredibly important source and also a creative factor. Explore the language! What are things called and what does it mean for culture, interaction, etc.? Which metaphors are used? How can it be interpreted? Language reflects the speaker s conceptual understanding of the world. Communication is based on the same conceptual system as that we use when we think and act, so language is an important source for understanding this system. If the observed person uses war metaphors when he refers to the configuration of his computer, then it surely is significant. 42

43 User-centered tools How? When we interview and observe, we can choose to see the world in different perspectives. It is often a good idea in advance to decide which perspective we choose. We cannot be objective. If we are aware of the glasses we use when looking at the world it is easier to allow for it in the analysis. A useful tool to sharpen listening skills is to listen for the language. What are the terms and, not least, the metaphors used? It tells a lot about the interviewed or observed person s approach to the world. 43

44 Categorization and analysis Categorization Why? You do not observe much or interview very many before you have a very large amount of data. The challenge is to get all the data you have cut down to the most central, possibly including some working questions for the next workflow. The first step is to categorize. How? When you want to categorize your material, you should go about it slightly differently depending on whether you have photos, interviews, texts, films, a value wheel, field notes, etc. Common to all this is, though, that you end up with a series of thematic headings all of which must be sorted and named. Before you begin, make sure that you have: lots of space, post-its, your printed photos, video clips, observation notes, interview notes, your collected thoughts, ie. all the material you have from your observations and interviews. Photos. Print all photos. Put them on a large table. Sort them according to criteria you think are significant: content, people, dates, etc. Once sorted, you give each group a title: 44

45 User-centered tools ex. family, career, busy, etc. Write it on post-its. Take a picture of it. Shuffle the photos and try to sort them in an alternative way. Create new headlines. Continue until you cannot find more ways to sort them. Value Wheel. Write down all the headlines that have emerged in the value wheel. Write each heading on a post-its. Sort and categorize them. What recurs? What has been most important? etc.. Interviews. If you have transcribed your interview, print the transcription. Read the interview through. Give each passage (or line) a title, write it down in both the margin and on a post-its. Collect all post-its, categorize them and make new headlines for them. Film. Watch recorded fragments. Write the essence of each fragment down on post-its. Now it is time again to categorize, create new headlines, etc. 45

46 Categorization and analysis Analysis Why: The analysis is the very result of the qualitative work. That is the essence, the formulated insights, a starting point for the subsequent development process. How: You must use your categorization results, including a whole series of post-its with headlines. You put it all out on a large table. It is a very good idea to cover the table with white tablecloth paper, so you can write directly on it. You look across all the headlines. You may categorize once again. Create headlines once again. Draw the relationships between the different headlines. Identify the most important headlines, typically 3-8, and reflect on what the key headlines are telling you. Rephrase the headlines to a sentence that frames the essence of the relevant observations, quotes, photos, etc. The insights are thus formulated based on your data, but with you as a very important and active interpreter. 46

47 User-centered tools Find photos, quotes, film fragments, etc. that support your insights. Do it insight by insight. Formulate one or more working questions based on the insights. If solved, the questions will create real value. See Working question examples on the following pages (pp.51 ff in red types). These insights must be presented to someone film fragment and quotes are often very good at making the points clear. Then the development of ideas starts, where insights constantly provide the background. 47

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49 Insights Insights based on Brugerkaravanen spring 2010 Looking at Brugerkaravanen as one joint caravan, it consists of approx. 110 participants, divided among 16 buses which together have visited 32 locations. At each location at least one person have been interviewed/observed, an average of 3 persons per location. Our data thus derive from interviews /observations of approx. 100 persons. Miscellaneous observations are to be added to these figures. The following formulated insights are based on treatment of data for each bus. The people we have interviewed and observed are all (potential) users of education and research libraries and come under one of the following groups: International students Master s students Students at University College (mainly nursing students) Researchers at the Humanities 49

50 50

51 Insights International students Common to international students is that they all come here alone. They are cut off from the social context and security that they are part of at home. Additionally, very few understand Danish. Coming here is an active choice based on the belief that studying at a Danish (European) university gives better opportunities at home. Four selected insights about international students: Young people alone in the world Danish people do not communicate and do not like foreigners If only they had picked me up at the train station All places are closed on Sundays In my life the most important thing is relationships All quotations express in different ways a desire for more contact or how much relationships mean. The international students come all alone to Denmark, perhaps it is the first time they live alone, since in many countries, students usually stay at home during their studies. It is perhaps not easy to find new friends and become part of the Danish society. Perhaps that is exactly why relationships are that important as foreign students are lonely and vulnerable in a new country with a new culture. Working question: How can libraries be even more available for young people alone in the world? Ambition and work ethic?! A question mark as well as an exclamation mark follow the title Ambition and work ethic. This is because it is something that is very much present but not in a similar manner. The only thing that recurs is that the choice of 51

52 studying in Denmark (or Europe) is based on the belief that it provides better opportunities at home afterwards. In addition, ambition and work ethic are extremely different. It is expressed as different as, I enjoy everything but beeing in the class room, I always bring my laptop which makes it hard to concentrate (because she can play, be active on Facebook, etc.), but also Books are more important than bouldings, I m more focused in the library (so she is studying at the library). Working question: How can libraries support the fluctuating work ethic? The library is nowhere in my life The title is a quote from an interview with an international student and is not an unusual statement. But the interesting thing is that when we look at data from the international students (and it also applies to other groups we ve worked with), then the title only covers libraries as the physical location where they are searching for and borrowing books. Libraries do actually fill up quite a lot of their lives. Here are a few quotes that describe how: I meet friends at the library. I use the library s computer when I have forgotten my own laptop. But I forgot my password to the library system. (The last part of the sentence points to a completely different problem area.) We have many notes stating that the students come to the library to print. That is, libraries are actually used quite a lot for purposes that are very relevant to the students. But when they have to express it, then libraries 52

53 Insights are nowhere in their lives because they have a very clear picture running through their mind of libraries. And this does not include copying or meeting friends. Also, international students who visit the libraries do have a linguistic challenge, which has proven unmistakable. It was hard to understand signs and boards and there was no relief if they tried to use the library search systems. In addition to that, it may be very difficult to find the behaviour that suits. They try to read it: If people look at you you know that you have to be quiet. Working questions: How do you make sure that it is easy to know one s way around, even if you do not understand Danish? How to go from The library is nowhere in my life to the library is everywhere in my life? Money means a lot No Danish, no job I eat lunch at home (instead of at university, to save money) The international students often have significantly less money than Danish students. They often come from countries where things do nowhere cost as much as in Denmark, and find it difficult to get a student job because they do not speak Danish. Working question: How can libraries respond to the reality that many international students experience a pressing personal financial situation? 53

54 You can get it if you want? Time is precious The organized life As the diary clearly illustrates (behind the backlight) I don t have massive amounts of time during the week for being a master s student but I manage and I m soon finished 54

55 Insights Master s Students If we look across the master s students, they all have already a higher education, they are all working and have a demanding career. They are older than regular students, and most thus have family and children. They experience criss-cross pressure of demands from many sides. Again, the people we ve met are very different. Yet, some features clearly recur. We witness the following three insights: We can do what we want and still have a bad conscience Conversations with the master s students and insight into their lives through various photo diaries reveal a furious pace. We witness the daily struggle to make ends meet. Both to have time for exercise, for family, for studying and of cause for work. This means that every minute is used. These students are accustomed to having what they want. And the experience is used here to struggle to achieve it all: Be in front professionally as well as to ensure a good, sound family. At the same time they also learn that they will reach or go beyond their limits as regards feeling guilty about not living the perfect life well enough. Here are a few examples from one photo diary: Winter will not really draw to its close this year. So even though it is the first spring morning, 5 km. by bike (could take a taxi but when should exercise then come in the programme?) is a cold experience. But here it s about optimizing the dress I remember that dull weather doesn t exist, but... With our setup, we have to act like two lean consultants to avoid rushing along and panicking. That is not good enough. Although a concept such as quality time sounds a bit hollow it is also crucial to prioritize efforts at home. 55

56 The master s students are well aware that the priority of another demanding task has consequences for others than themselves: It will affect everybody! My daughter has missed me, I ve also missed her. He (his son (ed.)) is sorry that I am so much away, and I miss you so much dad hurts. Working question: How do we relieve the master s students of their bad conscience? Ambition is the motivation for taking a master s The background for taking a master s is ambition. The students want to prepare themselves for the next job. Here are a few illustrations: The learning curve will break some day. I just want to be here in 20 years if it is an optional choice and not because I have no other options. Working question: How can libraries back talented employees up to qualify for taking steps up the career ladder? 56

57 Insights Libraries as a service function? Somebody must find out what we need as master s students and that it was part of the study programme at the right time. The master s students have no aspirations of being master s in information search. They cut to the bone, and if they hear something they do not right away see the relevance of, they close their mind to it. So even if there may be information about information search at the beginning of the course, no one listens if the timing is not pertinent. Master s students are used to master s what they want. And if they do not know the right and smart ways to search for information, they find solutions on their own initiative. Like most others we ve talked with, they believe that Google stands up to everything. Working question: How can libraries work with information and services so that master s students needs are met? 57

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59 Insights Students at University College University College covers a whole range of studies. We have met / spoken with a bioanalyst network student, a student teacher, ergo- and physiotherapists, but most of all, we have concentrated on nursing students, and they are the ones having given us the below insights. All the nursing students we have spoken with are women. Nursing Students go to school, they are not students The nursing students are to a much higher degree pupils than students. They have school timetable, several daily classes, achievement tests every tenth week, teachers going rounds during group work, etc. It is reflected when we inquire about the study environment, where they typically meet in the morning and go home in the afternoon. Working questions: How do libraries take into account that the nursing students are attending school rather than being students? The goal is to make a difference If no one (patient (ed.)) touches you, then you cannot be in this profession. As simple as that. One of the things that are repeated on the wall pictures from the caravan days is the nursing students desire to make a difference. One student says that she has worked at a hospital in Africa and tells that is why she decided to study to become a nurse: to go back and make a difference. Another student was quite upset when she saw (using the value wheel) that she did not make as big a difference now, as she wanted. Her comment was: It s just really hard to make a difference as long as you are in school, it is easier during the practical training. Fortunately, she had a part-time job in a nursing home where she felt that she, after all, made a little difference. None of the insights suggests that the nursing 59

60 students see the study as valuable in itself it is only a means to an end. Making a difference is not only being a professionally skilled nurse, it is also, cf. the above quote, to submit to sentimental commitment. Working question: How can libraries support the nursing students when it comes to making a difference and reaching the goal? The books we need are on the shelf where we cannot take them with us. The quote is in a somewhat absurd way quite significant. The books are there just like several of the services that they demand. But to little use. In the above quote because the books must not be taken home. And in the following quotations because the offers are given at the wrong moment: We had an introduction during first semester (to information search (ed.)) But the timing was completely wrong, people had everything else in their head, so many of them dropped out. Another girl who we talked with says that she wants... ongoing training in the use of libraries. A stressed librarian told us that we had been through it maybe three years ago. It would be great if we could see online, when library courses were offered. On the web we find all other information relating to our studies. Working question: How can we be sure that the library services offered are really useful? 60

61 Insights Researchers at the humanities Researchers at the humanities is actually the only group where only three mini-buses were needed. The reason being that researchers are pushed from many sides and do not see the benefits of a meeting with us (and indirectly contribute to the development of future libraries). We have visited researchers at their offices, we were shown round the institutes, we have read photo diaries which afterwards have been explained to us and have further even visited a professor of ethics at his home. Based on the data collected, we have formulated two insights. Young researchers (i.e. researchers before having obtained a permanent post) are under strong pressure The young researchers are doing everything they can to get a permanent position. Words like working for free are repeated many times. Hierarchy is apparently even more conspicuous than in the business world. In the business world it is often necessary to work together to achieve a goal. In academia, you are lone wolves. Remarkable was one interviewee coming with several statements in the style of: Well, I do not rank particularly high, you know... Another young researcher says: It is a tough time when you are put on hold and try to get in. Working question: How can libraries help to alleviate the tremendous pressure for young researchers moving towards the permanent position? Work and leisure time in one out of necessity more than want? It appears that young and old alike work both at work and at home and that the boundaries between work and leisure are very fluid. Here are some quotes from interviews with researchers: 61

62 I m not using my time at its peak if I do not check my mails in the morning or take work home. Young researcher. I m trying to get a social life but it s not that easy. Young researcher. Social needs are met in contact with colleagues and students. Young researcher. I will do the same, even when I retire. Older professor. I do not work at home but you are welcome to see my study room. That was how we were greeted when we visited the professor in his home. He claimed that he does not work at home. It turned out, however, that he worked for hours in the afternoons and evenings every day. But since work is also his hobby, it does not feel as work. As the above quotes and observations suggest there is an entirely different ease and spontaneity of the professor s way of getting work and leisure meet. For the young scientists necessity compels them to make ends meet, lest they lose their position. Working question: How can libraries be fully available for people whose work and leisure time is one i.e. who work (almost) as much at home as at work? 62

63 Work and leisure time merge I drop certain things, clearup really isn t important 63

64 Bibliography Recommended introductory texts Bernard, H. R. (1994). Field notes: how to take, code and manage them. In: Research methods in anthropology: qualitative and quantitative approaches. Thousand Oaks: Sage, pp Bernard, H. R. (1994). Unstructured and semistructured interviewing. In: Research methods in anthropology: qualitative and quantitative approaches. Thousand Oaks: Sage, pp Spradley, J. P. (2006). Participant observations. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Further reading Bishop, A. P., Van House, N. A. & Buttenfield, B. P. (2003). Digital library use: social practice in design and evaluation. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Blomberg, J., Burrell, M. & Guest, G. (2003). An ethnographic approach to design. In: Julie, A. J. & Andrew, S. (eds.) The human-computer interaction handbook. Hillsdale, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Inc. Bowker, G. C. & Star, S. L. (1999). Sorting things out: classification and its consequences. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Bærentsen, K. B. & Trettvik, J. (2002). An activity theory approach to affordance. In: Proceedings of the second Nordic conference on human-computer interaction. Aarhus, Denmark: ACM, pp Bødker, S. & Iversen, O. S. (2002). Staging a professional participatory design practice: moving PD beyond the initial fascination of user involvement. In: Proceedings of the second Nordic conference on human-computer interaction. Aarhus, Denmark: ACM, pp Callon, M., Latour, B. (1981). Unscrewing the big Leviathan: how actors macro-structure reality and how sociologists help them to do so. In: K. Knorr-Cetina and A.V. Cicourel (eds.) Advances in social theory and methodology: toward an integration of macro- and microsociologies. London: Routledge, pp Ehn, P. (1988). Work-oriented design of computer artifacts. Stockholm: Arbetslivscentrum. Greenbaum, J. & Kyng, M. (1991). Design at work: cooperative design of computer systems. Hillsdale, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Inc. Grønbæk, K. (1991). Prototyping and active user involvement in system development: towards a cooperative prototyping approach. Aarhus: Computer Science Department, Aarhus University. 64