Freedom dreaming to STEM: A conceptual model for Black youth's racial and STEM identity development through social media

Social media use has become increasingly enmeshed in the lives of youth. Although investigations in this area have tended to focus on risk (e.g., cyberbullying) and negative outcomes (e.g., in mental health and academic functioning), a growing body of literature suggests there may be positive developmental outcomes associated with Black youths' social media use. Social media may offer Black youth a means of resisting negative experiences, expand their opportunities to create and explore, and facilitate the integration of their racial and STEM identities. Aligned with PYD perspectives and PVEST, we suggest this dynamic process occurs iteratively within youth and bidirectionally between youth and their environment (online and offline) over the course of development. In this article, we present a conceptual model to guide future investigations to address gaps in the literature and elucidate the linkages between social media use, racial identity, and STEM identity among Black youth. We begin by reviewing two frameworks that provide the theoretical foundations for our model. We then discuss our outcomes of interest: racial identity and STEM identity. Given its rapidly evolving nature, we then proceed with a discussion about how social media may be operationalized, noting limitations in the current literature and highlighting the unique ways in which social media differs from offline contexts. Subsequently, we present our conceptual model, which we situate within distal, proximal, and individual offline influences. We also propose processes that may link social media use to positive identity outcomes. We conclude this article with recommendations for future investigations.

Addressing hygiene needs of housing insecure populations: A qualitative analysis of Seattle and King County's mobile hygiene station intervention

Objective

To evaluate the Seattle Public Utility mobile hygiene station program, a program deployed using public funds in response to the large-scale closures of public hygiene facilities due to COVID-19.

Study design

We conduct a qualitative analysis using semi-structured interviews.

Methods

We interviewed four Seattle Public Utility (SPU) and Public Health Seattle & King County (PHSKC) employees involved in the design, deployment, and management of the hygiene station intervention. Data were also collected from communications and reports released through SPU/PHSKC web sources.

Results

Our analysis revealed factors affecting the implementation of the hygiene program included the rental of hygiene trailers, community partnership to mediate between housed and housing insecure populations, funding source and cost-effectiveness, geographic location of the units, and maintenance of the units to continue population hygiene support.

Conclusion

The SPU/PHSKC hygiene station was designed to support the housing insecure and homeless by compensating for the large-scale closures of public restrooms and showers. Several logistical and financing challenges need to be addressed to ensure the continuity of the program.

Caring for the community: An academically based community service course in LIS

The field of Library and Information Science (LIS) has historically struggled to connect theory and practice in its graduate education, specifically when it comes to building partnerships with diverse stakeholders in public library communities. One possible technique for bridging the gap of stakeholder experiences is academically based community service (ABCS) courses. ABCS courses attempt to directly focus on research-practitioner partnerships to solve real-world problems by involving the community to democratically co-design the curriculum. In this paper, we present a reflective case study of an ABCS course on integrating participatory design methods to co-design new digital learning activities for youth in an urban public library. By conducting 10 co-design sessions and 26 semi-structured interviews, we examined a partnership between a university and a library, and how this ABCS course impacted different stakeholder participation. Our findings highlight how ABCS courses require systematic structural endeavors from higher education and care between all stakeholders within a library setting. This work contributes to a growing body of work that calls for more courses in LIS education with greater civic and democratic engagement between graduate students, university partners, and library stakeholders.

Teaching undergraduates to develop concise and compelling scholarly communication through storytelling

Purpose

This article reviews current librarian instructional approaches for poster and oral presentation assignments and showcases a new approach using the Pixar Pitch outline.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors adapted the Pixar Pitch framework to aid students in synthesizing complex information and improving their communication strategies.

Findings

Librarians are frequently involved in teaching strategic searching and topic development in instruction sessions for students preparing to communicate research through posters and presentations. Students need to understand how to communicate effectively and prepare information for various audiences, skills closely linked to several threshold concepts in the ACRL Framework for Information Literacy. However, this area remains less taught by librarians. This article presents one approach for librarians to become involved in this instruction.

Originality/value

There is currently minimal research on using the Pixar Pitch within higher education; most use appears in publications in the communications field.

From a network model to a model network: strategies for network development to narrow the LIS research–practice gap

Purpose

The purpose of the empirical study was to examine whether strategies shown to work well in one model of network development for library and information science (LIS) practitioners and researchers could be applied successfully in the development of a new network and contribute to the narrowing of the research–practice gap in LIS.

Design/methodology/approach

Overall, 32 members of a new professional network were surveyed by a questionnaire following the completion of a programme of four network events held between 2019 and 2021.

Findings

The analysis demonstrates the transferability of the existing model of network development to a new network and that it can be successfully adapted for online delivery of network events and activities.

Practical implications

The criteria deployed for the evaluation of the new network could be used in other similar settings. Funding bodies can also use these findings as demonstration of the value of their investment in network grants.

Originality/value

This contribution on means of growing collaborative networks to narrow the LIS research–practice gap stands out in contrast with prior research that tends to focus the support of research productivity of academic librarians in North American universities for the purposes of career development. Here wider aspects of research engagement are considered of value for LIS practitioners from a range of sectors and institutions, beyond North America, for purposes that are broader than personal advancement.

Big data curation framework: Curation actions and challenges

Big data curation represents an emerging topic of inquiry but still in an early phase along its adoption curve. The term big data itself is a nebulous concept, and the differences between small data curation and big data curation are nuanced. The goal of this research is to provide a theoretical framework that identifies big data curation actions and associated curation challenges. This study is based on the practices of big data research and data curation by systematically examining literature. The outcome of the study includes the big data curation framework that provides overview of curation activities and concerns that are essential to perform such activities. The study also provides practical implications for libraries, archives, data repositories and other information organisations that concerns the issue of big data curation as big data presents a multidimensional array of exigencies in relation to the mission of those organisations.

A longitudinal comparison of public libraries’ posting activities on Twitter in April of 3 years, pre-, during, and post-COVID-19

The purpose of the study was to observe how public libraries’ communication on Twitter has been changed before, during, and after the COVID-19 outbreak. A total of 40 active, public library Twitter accounts were used for data collection and analysis. The tweets examined were a combination of original tweets ( n = 2623) and retweets ( n = 666) posted from other Twitter accounts on the public libraries’ Twitter feeds. A content analysis scheme was used to analyze topical aspects of the tweets. The study found that public libraries were more active in communicating information on social media during the COVID-19 lockdown period. Promoting library events/programs, communicating library operations to patrons, and highlighting library resources for literacy are common in public libraries’ Twitter communication throughout the 3 years period. The study also observed strong associations between the content types of posts and the contextual aspects of the libraries, including an emergency situation such as the COVID-19 lockdown, the size of the population served by the library, and the state in which the library was located. In other words, the study provides evidence that public libraries use different communication strategies on Twitter depending on factors such as community emergencies, service population size, or geographic location. The results of this study illustrate that through social media usage, public libraries demonstrate their competence as public agencies in managing their services, as well as their commitment to the core value of information access and service provision to users, even in the face of unprecedented crises.

'The show must go on!': Hustling through the compounded precarity of Covid-19 in the creative industries

The article offers a qualitative examination of compounded precarity in creative work during the Covid-19 pandemic. Drawing on repeated in-depth interviews with twelve creative workers operating in the creative industries in Ghana, we examine one of the most prevalent practices for navigating, coping with, and managing compounded precarity: that of hustling. We empirically identify and discuss three interrelated practices of hustling in creative work: digitalization, diversification, and social engagement. We present a new way of conceptualizing creative work in precarious geographies by theorizing hustling, and the associated worker resourcefulness, improvisation, savviness, hopefulness, and caring not merely as an individualized survival strategy, but rather as an agentic and ethical effort to turn the vicissitudes of life into situated advantages and opportunities, and even social change.

Research data services in libraries: a systematic literature review

Purpose

The purpose of this paper was to systematically collect and review all studies which have been conducted on research data services in libraries across the globe.

Design/methodology/approach

Six world-renowned scholarly databases were searched and Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines were used for the identification and selection of eligible studies. The studies were then assessed using a well-renowned framework for the quality assessment of research studies.

Findings

The results revealed that the libraries were engaged in providing different types of research data services such as identification, acquisition, management and preservation of research data. They also arranged training programs, supported the publishing and sharing of data and dealt with the licensing and copyright issues related to data.

Research limitations/implications

The results of this study would be helpful for researchers and organizations, especially those engaged in educational activities, in understanding the current scenario of research data services in the world libraries. Furthermore, the findings offer valuable insights to library professionals regarding the types of research support services available globally. This would enable them to play an integral role in planning, designing and implementing such services in their libraries.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first of its kind that systematically collects and reviews the literature on research data services in libraries worldwide.

Google SEO score and accessibility rank on the American University Libraries’ websites: one comparative analysis

Purpose

This study aims to present a comparative study of university library websites (in the USA) from the standpoint of “Google SEO” and “Accessibility”. Furthermore, correlation analysis between these two done.

Design/methodology/approach

By opting for a webometric approach, the present study analyzed university library websites in the USA. The Lighthouse add-on for the Google Chrome browser has been used as a data collection tool, by writing and implementing a computer program in Bash language automatically (May 2020). Data analysis tools used were “Libre-Office-Calc”, “SPSS22” and “Excel”.

Findings

In all 81 university library websites in the USA, Google search engine optimization (SEO) scores have been observed the amount higher than 60 (Total Score = 100). The accessibility rank obtained lay between 0.56 and 1 (Total Score = 1). A weak correlation relationship between “SEO score” and “accessibility rank” (P-value = 0.02, Spearman Correlation Coefficient = 0.345) was observed. This weak relationship can be explained due to the impact of several components affecting Google’s SEO score, one of them being having a high “accessibility rank”.

Practical implications

Given the increasing automation of library processes, SEO tools can help libraries in achieving their digital marketing goals.

Originality/value

Accurate measurement of the Google SEO score and accessibility rank for the university library websites (in the USA) were obtained by Lighthouse add-on for Google Chrome browser. Moreover, data extraction by the implementation of one program computer without the direct observation of human resources is the innovation of this study.

Masculine men do not like feminine wording: The effectiveness of gendered wording in health promotion leaflets in the UK

Following mixed-methods sequential design and drawing on the message-audience congruence concept and homophily theory, across three studies in the UK, we examined the effect of gendered wording and endorser’s gender on the effectiveness of leaflets promoting walking. In Study 1, a mall-intercept study achieved 247 completed questionnaires. Results demonstrated that men and women indicated the highest behavioural intentions for communal wording presented by a male endorser. However, pairwise comparisons revealed that when the wording of the advert was agentic and the endorser was male, males indicated significantly higher scores of behavioural intentions compared with females. Attitude towards the ad for women was highest for communal wording/female endorser; for men it was for agentic wording/male endorser. In Study 2, consumers’ views towards the gendered content were explored in 20 semi-structured interviews. In study 3 we examined the impact of the respondent’s gender role identity on gendered content effectiveness. Overall, when controlled for level of gender role identity, only masculine males evaluated leaflets featuring communal wording negatively which suggests that wording matters only for masculine males, but not for other men and women. Theoretically, we identified that gender-based message-respondent congruence is not a necessary aspect of communications to be effective, except for one group: masculine males. Our study identified dominant gender role identity as a factor that explained respondents’ preferences for presented stimuli. Specifically, males who display masculine gender role identity differ in evaluations of communal wording from all other groups. Social and commercial marketers who target men and women with exercise-related services should consider the use of agentic wording endorsed by a male endorser when targeting masculine men to increase the likelihood of eliciting positive attitudes towards the communication. However, such distinctions should not be associated with differences in women’s evaluations or men who do not report masculine gender role identity.

Tracking student learning outcome engagement at the reference desk to facilitate assessment

Purpose

This paper presents a novel approach to associating patron interactions with specific student learning objectives (SLOs) incorporated into reference transactions in an environment where learning, as opposed to usage or user satisfaction data, is considered a benchmark of success.

Design/methodology/approach

As part of the routine process of recording reference transactions into a tracking database, reference librarians associated each of their patron interactions with library programmatic SLOs they perceived addressed through the teaching they incorporated into the interaction. Reporting functions of the transaction database software were utilized to uncover notable patterns of teaching.

Findings

The most and least addressed programmatic SLOs were identified. The distribution pattern of SLOs addressed was found to be consistent over time. A correlation was found between the length of interactions and which SLOs were addressed in the interaction. Citation assistance was found to be often incorporated into complex research questions. SLOs addressed varied slightly by day of the week. The distribution patterns of SLOs addressed were found to vary greatly by the librarian.

Research limitations/implications

It is difficult to verify the quality of tagging data. Strategies for addressing such concerns include ensuring participating librarians agree on the importance of creating reliable data and ensuring they have solid and similar understandings of the program's SLOs.

Originality/value

This project demonstrates that actionable findings can be derived from tracking the specific programmatic SLOs being addressed in reference interactions. Formal assessment projects and other targeted efforts to improve learning in reference interactions in response to such findings are suggested as positive contributions to the overall reorientation of academic libraries toward measuring successful librarianship in terms of student learning.

The emerging digital infrastructure for research in the humanities

This article advances the thesis that three decades of investments by national and international funders, combined with those of scholars, technologists, librarians, archivists, and their institutions, have resulted in a digital infrastructure in the humanities that is now capable of supporting end-to-end research workflows. The article refers to key developments in the epigraphy and paleography of the premodern period. It draws primarily on work in classical studies but also highlights related work in the adjacent disciplines of Egyptology, ancient Near East studies, and medieval studies. The argument makes a case that much has been achieved but it does not declare “mission accomplished.” The capabilities of the infrastructure remain unevenly distributed within and across disciplines, institutions, and regions. Moreover, the components, including the links between steps in the workflow, are generally far from user-friendly and seamless in operation. Because further refinements and additional capacities are still much needed, the article concludes with a discussion of key priorities for future work.

Lessons for Vietnam on the use of digital technologies to support patient-centred care in low- and middle-income countries in the Asia Pacific Region: A scoping review (Preprint)

BACKGROUND

A rapidly aging population, a shifting disease burden and the ongoing threat of infectious disease outbreaks pose major concerns for Vietnam's health care system. Health disparities are evident in many parts of the country, especially in rural areas, and the population faces inequitable access to patient-centered health care. Vietnam must therefore explore and implement advanced solutions to the provision of patient-centered care, with a view to reducing pressures on the health care system simultaneously. The use of digital health technologies (DHTs) may be one of these solutions.

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to identify the application of DHTs to support the provision of patient-centered care in low- and middle-income countries in the Asia-Pacific region (APR) and to draw lessons for Vietnam.

METHODS

A scoping review was undertaken. Systematic searches of 7 databases were conducted in January 2022 to identify publications on DHTs and patient-centered care in the APR. Thematic analysis was conducted, and DHTs were classified using the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence evidence standards framework for DHTs (tiers A, B, and C). Reporting was in line with the PRISMA-ScR (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews) guidelines.

RESULTS

Of the 264 publications identified, 45 (17%) met the inclusion criteria. The majority of the DHTs were classified as tier C (15/33, 45%), followed by tier B (14/33, 42%) and tier A (4/33, 12%). At an individual level, DHTs increased accessibility of health care and health-related information, supported individuals in self-management, and led to improvements in clinical and quality-of-life outcomes. At a systems level, DHTs supported patient-centered outcomes by increasing efficiency, reducing strain on health care resources, and supporting patient-centered clinical practice. The most frequently reported enablers for the use of DHTs for patient-centered care included alignment of DHTs with users' individual needs, ease of use, availability of direct support from health care professionals, provision of technical support as well as user education and training, appropriate governance of privacy and security, and cross-sectorial collaboration. Common barriers included low user literacy and digital literacy, limited user access to DHT infrastructure, and a lack of policies and protocols to guide the implementation and use of DHTs.

CONCLUSIONS

The use of DHTs is a viable option to increase equitable access to quality, patient-centered care across Vietnam and simultaneously reduce pressures on the health care system. Vietnam can take advantage of the lessons learned by other low- and middle-income countries in the APR when developing a national road map to digital health transformation. Recommendations that Vietnamese policy makers may consider include emphasizing stakeholder engagement, strengthening digital literacy, supporting the improvement of DHT infrastructure, increasing cross-sectorial collaboration, strengthening governance of cybersecurity, and leading the way in DHT uptake.