User Perceptions and Virtual Reference Services

Abstract

As academic librarians embrace the Internet as an appropriate medium for information exchange, communication, and instruction, college and university students are also becoming more familiar and comfortable with emerging technologies, including both synchronous and asynchronous tools. Acceptance of Web-based products that provide speed, convenience, and anonymity cannot, however, be assumed, especially in a non-recreational context. Based on survey and interview responses, this paper discusses actual usage patterns and behaviors, what users in an academic setting expected to receive from an Ask a Librarian service, and the implications these findings might have on future virtual reference projects.