ethnography for impact: a new way of exploring user experience in libraries
DESCRIPTION
Presented by Andy Priestner at the SCONUL Winter Conference at the Royal College of Physicians on 21st November 2014. A brief exploration of why librarians should be adopting ethnographic research methods in order to secure a more complete picture of user experience in their libraries. Incorporates details of three recent ethnographic research projects at Cambridge Judge Business School which have delivered many practical outcomes and directly impacted and improved service delivery.TRANSCRIPT
Ethnography for impact
a new way of exploring user experience
in libraries__________________
Andy Priestner(@PriestLib)
https://www.flickr.com/photos/chasblackman/8502151556/
Judge Business School, University of Cambridge -one of the top business schools in Europe
- very high-fee paying students (MBAs – 40k per annum)- students consistently rate our library service as excellent
But I KNOW its not perfect, and until recently I really didn’t know enough about the library experience of ourusers…
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mark_ch/5447151529
I, like most librarians, was more used to – and more comfortable with –sending out annual surveys, and
chiefly recording quantitative facts
My only qualitative approaches were comment boxes and, very
occasional, focus groups and usability studies
https://www.flickr.com/photos/64763706@N08/6850650385
As a result...
• too much of my service data was only coming from those people who filled in the library survey
• I was using too many closed or leading questions
• and routinely interpreting increases and decreases ‘blind’ rather than researching further
• largely ignoring qualitative feedback as it was ‘difficult’
• and when the comments boxes were left empty, as they so often are, I was not following up to find out more
• and I knew full well that self-reporting is largely unreliable and skewed
...so what was the answer?https://www.flickr.com/photos/rsms/1479448133/
Ethnography
a way of studying cultures through observation, participation and qualitative techniques
https://www.flickr.com/photos/collin_key/6080864794/
Ethnography - Malinowksi
Credit: London School of Economics
Conjured up the image of a white man ‘going native’ in the South Pacific
Ethnography - Malinowksi
‘The final goal is to grasp the native’s point of view, his relation to life, to realise his vision of the world’
(Malinowski – founding fatherof ethnography, 1925)
Credit: London School of Economics
‘The final goal is to grasp the user’s point of
view, their relation to life, to realise their
vision of the world’
https://www.flickr.com/photos/arthurjohnpicton/4387576057
Change just one word and highly relevant to libraries…
Ethnography
• Interest in context and culture• Explores personal and social• More holistic• Less structured• More detailed• Immersive• Breaks down preconceptions• Time-consuming• Embraces complexity
And offers a more complete picture(but I’m not saying ditch the quantitative data)
www.flickr.com/photos/droetker0912/5542920908
Once I’d decided to engage in ethnographic research: revised a post within my library service to incorporate this activity. Renamed as ‘UX Librarian’ as concerned with exploring and improving all aspects of User Experience (UX)
(I advocate a broader definition of UX - not just about websites and usability)
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mollystevens/5179946914/
Some ethnographic techniques
• Behavioural Mapping• Cognitive Mapping
• Diary Studies• Usability Studies
• Focus Groups• Affinity Diagramming
• Card Sorting• Directed Storytelling
• Touchstone Tours• Love- break-up-letter
• Graffiti Walls• Personas
https://www.flickr.com/photos/st3f4n/4046427260
3 Ethnographic Research Projects
@ Judge Business School
~ 1 ~Behavioural
Mapping
Behavioural mapping
Observing use of the Information Centre and mapping the results
(Our UX Librarian - Georgina Cronin)
Photo: Andy Priestner
The study (undertaken in a series of hour-long observation sessions) involved: mapping routes; volume of traffic; duration of stay; activities undertaken; interaction between users; choice of desks; staff assistance, food and drink consumed (we allow both); devices used; databases used; use of self-service.
As well as recording movement and activities on a map, information was recorded in a narrative log and colour-coded for later affinity sorting.
Photo: Andy Priestner
A visual representation of all the maps combined clearly shows the most popular route through the Information Centre, known as a ‘desire line’
https://www.flickr.com/photos/peterme/14037066/
Desire lines are everywhere, but you might not have known that this is what they are formally called
Key findings / impact
TRAFFIC:
Most users use the ground
floor in order to walk
straight up to the first floor
NOISE: Users are quieter
the fuller the space is, and
more irritated by noise
ACTIVITY: Huge variety in
duration of stay (some very
long stays) and in print /
digital use
• Re-siting our display screens so they are seen by more people
• Opening up our first floor entrance for direct access
• Sending staff print jobs elsewhere during busy periods
• Reducing staff noise (conducting 1-2-1s elsewhere, closing office door)
• Adjusting door springs
• Ensuring space redesign does not assume device-only culture.
• Offering more comfortable furniture
https://www.flickr.com/photos/96dpi/3906387641/
~ 2 ~Show-me
-round
Students guide us around the Information Centre space and explain the choices they make, what they like and dislike - recorded for later analysis
Photo: Georgina Cronin
Key findings / impact
WORKAROUNDS:
Users are failing to access key
services (WIFI, printing,
databases) and invent time
consuming workarounds
WORKSPACES:
Very definite ideas about
what makes a good
workspace
KIOSK TERMINALS:
Users felt these prevented
access to information and
didn’t use them
• Less front-loading of information and ensuring we repeat key access messages
• More joined-up dissemination of information with other depts
• More desks and desk space needed. Cushions purchased (see next slide).
• Recognition of two tribes –‘upstairs’ and ‘downstairs’ people with different needs
• Accepted they were not working as we anticipated and removed them in favour of full PCs
https://www.flickr.com/photos/96dpi/3906387641/
Photo: Ange Fitzpatrick
~ 3 ~Cognitive Mapping
Subjects were invited to draw a map of their research and learning landscape – sharing where and how they work
N.B. 1Most library use happens outside the library
N.B.2Ethnography often ‘follows the user home’ for a fuller picture of experience
https://www.flickr.com/photos/wrachele/8367457082
Example faculty map
Example student map
Key findings / impact
LIBRARIES:
Faculty members did not use
physical library / student
used many for different
purposes
BEDROOMS:
All subjects drew bedrooms
as key study areas
OVERALL LANDSCAPE:
Most subjects are regularly on
the move and using a variety
of research environments
offering varying degrees of
concentration/distraction
• Faculty members need more assistance with productive working methods – mobile tech, cloud computing, time management tools. We intend to offer more 1-2-1s/support in these areas
• Recognising that for this particular group of students our library service is only part of the picture – stop selling ourselves as a ‘one-stop shop’
• The variety of places from which subjects accessed our resources underlines how vital it is that we offer our services remotely and seamlessly
https://www.flickr.com/photos/96dpi/3906387641/
Today’s library services are so complex, accessed in many different ways and from many different places, that we must adopt ethnography to reveal the full story of user experience
https://www.flickr.com/photos/marcwathieu/2566147235
More infoFurther information
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mayoral/13848318454
The definitive ethnography handbook by Nancy Fried-Foster and Susan Gibbons
(available as a free PDF from www.ala.org)
Dr Donna Lanclos, anthropologist and library ethnographer at the J. Murrey Atkins Library at University of North Carolina, Charlotte
Blogs at:www.donnalanclos.com(@donnalanclos)
Co-devised‘Visitors & Residents’ in place of ‘Digital Natives’
Right: Donna’s library sleep map
A UK blog exploring ethnographyand user experiencein libraries
(run by myself, Georgina Cronin & Meg Westbury)
The new open access peer-reviewed journal of library user experience
www.weaveux.org@WeaveUX
UX in libraries - conference
‘UX in Libraries’ book by Andy Priestner & Matt BorgSummer 2015
Ethnography for impact
a new way of exploring user experience
in libraries__________________
Andy Priestner(@PriestLib)
https://www.flickr.com/photos/chasblackman/8502151556/