A qualitative investigation of patrons' experiences with academic library research consultations

Purpose - This paper aims to report the findings of a qualitative investigation of student patrons' experiences with research consultations provided by reference librarians at a comprehensive university located in the southern USA during 2014. Design/methodology/approach - Data were collected through recorded interviews with patrons who had recently experienced a reference consultation with one of eight professional reference librarians during a semester. The recorded data were transcribed verbatim and the transcripts subjected to content analysis. The qualitative data analysis model selected was that of a conventional, inductive content analysis. Findings - One principal finding demonstrates the need for marketing of the reference consultation service; participants were surprised at the service's availability. Other findings illustrate the value participants placed on individual attention from a librarian, perceived librarian expertise, the consultation environment and student/librarian engagement. Research limitations/implications - Limitations to this study include a small participant pool of undergraduate student patrons, mainly majoring in humanities disciplines. The findings therefore are limited in the confidence with which they can be generalized to larger populations. Practical implications - The reference consultation remains an integral part of the services offered by an academic library's reference department; libraries should market consultations accordingly. Academic libraries that do not operate on a subject specialist model should consider strategies for maximizing benefit when matching available staff to consultation requests. Social implications - This study provides evidence for the value of one-to-one reference service through research consultations provided to library patrons in academic libraries serving institutions of the type described in the research. Originality/value - A qualitative methodology, using content analysis of lengthy interviews with participants, provides considerable insight into academic library patrons' attitudes toward the reference consultation service.