Current Opportunities for the Effective Meta-Assessment of Online Reference Services - considerations in planning of on-line library reference services

Library Trends, Fall, 2000 by Thomas A. Peters

ABSTRACT

THE AUTHOR SUGGESTS THAT CURRENT CONDITIONS ARE nearly ideal for the effective meta-assessment of online reference services (ORS), in part because expected patterns and modes of service have not yet been established for emerging and evolving online environments, and in part because the distance between theory and practice regarding reference service in general is at its perigee. Meta-assessment is defined as the deliberate examination of the elements, basic conditions, and needs of a thing (service, event, system, and so on) that transcend particular instantiations of that thing. Meta-assessment does not assess particular programs but rather the conditions under which all online reference services must exist. Meta-assessment occupies the conceptual space between the philosophy of reference (i. e., the examination and articulation of first principles) and the assessment of a particular reference service program. The basic conditions for the evaluation and assessment of ORS are articulated and explored. The impact of "rogue" ORS (i.e., ORS that are not affiliated with any particular digital library) on the process of meta-assessment is examined. Several parameters of the basic conditions for reference service in any form and any environment are enumerated. Although the widespread recurring assessment of specific ORS may be a few months off, the window of opportunity for the effective meta-assessment of ORS in general may be closing.

INTRODUCTION

If environments are understood as places and spaces in which human beings pursue their wants and needs, technological developments are interesting because they change existing environments and create entirely new ones. The digital revolution has fostered many new environments that generally fall under the rubric of cyberspace. The digital libraries movement involves both substantial environmental change and the emergence of new service environments. New technologies at least encourage (and perhaps force) humans to re-examine what they think about environments, the horizons visible at the edges of known environments, and what new environments seem to offer and encourage.

Technological changes are affecting the environments and environmental conditions related to reference service. The emergence of digital libraries and other online environments force us to re-think the philosophy of reference. If assessment is defined as the deliberate process of comparing the reality of a service against both its stated goals and the realm of the possibilities for such a service, the process of assessment currently faces formidable challenges. It is extremely difficult to assess digital library public services, especially online reference services, in part because we do not really know yet what types of demanded services will emerge from users of digital libraries as they settle into these new online environments. We should not assume that simply transporting traditional real-world library services into the digital realm will be either necessary or sufficient.

One is reminded of the transformational processes of bringing water from the town well into individual homes. Simply delivering the same old water indoors seems at first to be a great leap forward--a triumph of the technological arm of civilization. As the first wave of enthusiasm for the home delivery of water subsides, however, homeowners begin to demand new services. They want their water to be heated, treated, filtered, and fluoridated. Although some of these new demands for services may have been predictable, some probably were not even imaginable to people who formerly trudged to the central village well to draw their water. When water was delivered into the home, a new service environment emerged. Similarly, just as the central library served as the font of information for an often geographically defined community of users (civic, educational, or corporate), when digital libraries began to deliver information directly into residences and workplaces, some of the demands for new DL services may have surprised and astounded both librarians and library users. For example, people will queue for services at the town well and the reference desk at the community library, but apparently they are unwilling to queue and wait patiently for similar services when delivered into domiciles, offices, and classrooms.

We should not assume that a digital library service must, by definition, be associated directly with a full-service digital library. It is possible to conceive of, and implement, a digital service (e.g., reference) without having it be part of a full-blown digital library. In online environments, information services typically associated with robust real-world libraries could float free from their tethered moorings. The economics of online information services may undergo a substantial alteration in the near future. Another reason online reference services may be difficult to assess is that "rogue" reference services have burst onto the scene (e.g., AskJeeves.com and WebHelp.com) that are not affiliated with any specific digital library. Suddenly the field of reference is flooded with a host of players who apparently are attempting to play the same game under various conditions and rules. How can we assess the value and worth of these rogue reference services? How will they affect the development of ORS within full-service digital libraries? Should we use the same criteria and standards that we would use for ORS that are affiliated with some sort of full-service DL? In the vast deserts of online environments, there probably is room for both types of ORS. Online reference service may be further subdivided into a wide variety of specialized services. Some of these specialized services may be amendable to commercial for-profit models while others may not.