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When attempts to find information fail,
patrons
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may choose
to approach the reference desk. If
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they do, the
librarian becomes the human
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interface or
mediator between the library and the
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users’ need.
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l |
The critically
important moment when users approach
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and engage the
librarian can be the point at which the
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complexities of
the library are gently
explained, fears
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are calmed, and information becomes accessible.
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If help is withheld, given grudgingly, hurriedly, or in a
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condensing
manner, the encounter becomes the point
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at which the
library appears even more inaccessible.
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Users can be
left feeling confused,
frustrated, and
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sometimes personally defeated or humiliated.
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- paraphrased from Radford (99)
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