Reading summary - Agosto (2005)

Agosto, D., & Hughes-Hassell, S. (2005). People, places, and questions: An investigation of the everyday life information-seeking behaviors of urban young adults. Library & Information Science Research, 27(2).


This article describes the Everyday Lives Information Seeking (ELIS) behaviors of urban young adults.The following three research questions are asked in this article:

1. What types of information do urban young adults seek in their everyday lives? 
2. What information media do urban youth favor? 
3. What people sources do urban young adults favor when seeking everyday life information?

 Knowing how young people look for information is important for a library. As libraries move from physical book warehouses to information access providers and facilitators, having a working knowledge of how a key demographic prefers to access information becomes more and more significant. 

I really like that the teens surveyed for this project were mainly non-white. 27 teens participated, and 25 were African-American, 1 was Asian-American, and 1 was Caucasian. It's important to be mindful of the potentially diverse public a library serves, and collect appropriately. If a library doesn't serve the people in its area, it isn't doing it's job.

The Free Library of Philadelphia actually does make a concerted effort to collect teen materials featuring urban teens, but because of the disconnect between how teens are using the library and how the library is set up, many of the interviewed teens had no idea what was available. It is up to the libraries to understand a demographic and present to them in ways that are meaningful. Options considered are creating a more visible section of urban teen literature, creating visual displays featuring the literature, and practicing different shelving techniques.

The teens were relatively unlikely to consider asking librarians questions, considering them "ignorant," along with school teachers. The teens were not implying that the librarians and teachers were stupid, just that they lacked the information teens wanted most to get. They were ignorant of the fact that when teens ask about a book or topic, there is a whole unasked, and often unaddressed set of questions behind it. Even Boys and Girls Club employees are above librarians in the asking hierarchy. Ouch. And this is for a public library that sincerely makes an effort to be culturally sensitive and inclusive.

If a teen has a school project due about leaves, they don't just want a book about leaves. They want to be shown a host of resources. Perhaps a leaf-id phone app to use when they're out and about, or a computer program that gives video tutorials on leaves and leaf identification. Perhaps they want to be directed to a nature program where they work hands-on with trees. Cut and dried answers are the way of the past, and librarians need to be on the cusp of available resources and willing to take the time to instruct and share.

Other concerns about library use addressed by the teens had to do with environment. Waiting 20 minutes for a computer and having to sign in and only be able to use it for 10 minutes made them feel like they were "in jail." I can see that. I'd leave too. the teens also said that the library was too loud and too dirty. Libraries need to have more computers, better, more comfortable areas to use them in, and need to leave the policing of who is on what machine for how long alone. Libraries also need to present a better face to the community. I realize that many are dingy because of lack of funding. This is tough to combat. And I also realize that the day of the silent library is long over, but perhaps there could be dedicated comfortable quiet reading areas?

It does baffle me a bit to think that so many libraries seem to be designed for in and out, no lingering batches of patrons, when what we need are butts in seats, hands on books and resources. Community members are more likely to care about a service they actually find welcoming and useful.