Posted by Scott W. H. Young on 2024-10-22
The latest issue of Weave—Volume 7, Issue 2—is now available on our website:
https://journals.publishing.umich.edu/weaveux/issue/323/info/.
The Fall 2024 issue features the following 3 articles:
Hearing Yourself Think: Ambient Sound in Library Study Spaces
By Eric Jeitner and Christy W Goodnight
In the professional literature of contemporary academic libraries, sound often becomes a binary discussion, either lauded as the byproduct of active group collaboration or scorned as an infringement on quiet study. We make an exploratory case for an alternative, middle consideration: low-level, ambient sound is a crucial component of ideal study space for some students. By examining a body of published evidence and drawing on the results of a year-long study, we present evidence that a sizable constituency of college students will seek out study spaces that contain “pink” ambient noise. This is a demographic that has been overlooked in the discussion surrounding how libraries negotiate sound within their walls.
Citation Guides that Students Want: A User Experience Study
By Lydia Dawe
We sought to determine whether the design and content of a university library citation guide enabled students and faculty to find information efficiently and effectively. Live usability testing revealed that students prefer compact pages with tabbed boxes, color-coded examples, and relatable language describing source types. Unmoderated faculty testing showed support for the prototype design. Findings explore what students seek from citation guides and how they categorize and label sources. This investigation reinforces the importance of well-designed citation guides to students and faculty and recommends iterative usability testing to ensure that library guides foster a positive user experience.
Revisiting “Structuring and Supporting UX Work in Academic Libraries”
By Shelley Gullikson
In 2020, Weave published my research article, “Structuring and Supporting UX Work in Academic Libraries” (https://doi.org/10.3998/weave.12535642.0003.202). In it, I examined various ways that academic libraries structure and support user experience (UX) work, and I identified some structures and supports that seemed to have a positive impact on both users and UX workers. Two years after applying those findings to restructure my own position, I did not feel I was having a positive impact. I wondered if I had misunderstood or misrepresented my research participants. I decided to check in with some of them to see where I might have gone wrong.
We're so excited to share this work with our community.
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The editorial team at Weave
Editor-in-chief: Scott W. H. Young
Scholarly editors: Berika Williams, Denise Quintel, Natalie LoRusso
Dialog Box editor: Jean Thrift
Copyeditor: Jennie Callas