Scholarly Material Access Barriers for Reference and Instruction Librarians Seeking Non-English Research

Abstract

A Review of: 

Absher, L. U. & Desilets, M. (2024). English as the scholarly language: Diversity, equity, and inclusion implications for academic reference and instruction librarians. The Library Quarterly, 94(3), 296–315. https://doi.org/10.1086/730464 

Objective – To examine the use of non-English resources in academic libraries, specifically in reference and instruction. Research questions include: (1) Do academic librarians in the United States and Canada suggest non-English language resources in their reference and instruction practice, and to what extent? (2) What factors or cues prompt an offer of non-English language resources? 

Design – Literature review and subsequent survey. 

Setting – Online. 

Subjects – Academic librarians from Canada and the United States. 

Methods – A 32-question survey including demographics, language, educational background, collection development, reference activities, instruction, and librarian attitudes was disseminated in the winter of 2020-2021. 

Main Results – The survey respondents were primarily native English speakers. Regarding collection development, more than 75% of 131 respondents indicated that they purchase or acquire materials in languages other than English. When asked about areas of collection development, the highest areas of concentration were social sciences and humanities. More than 75% of participants stated comfortability in responding to reference questions regarding non-English materials; however, only 10% indicated they would seek out non-English materials without a specific request. 

Conclusion – Based on the survey responses, academic librarians use non-English resources reactively, primarily offering them only due to specific request. There may also be a disconnect between the perceived likelihood of patrons using these resources proactively and the actual practice of doing so.