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==Roles and responsibilities== [[File:Norske avdeling i 3. etasje ved Nasjonalbiblioteket, mars 1946 (8556326307).jpg|thumb|Librarians at work, [[National Library of Norway]], 1946]] Traditionally, a librarian is associated with collections of [[book]]s, as demonstrated by the etymology of the word "librarian" (from the Latin ''liber'', "book").<ref name=eb>{{cite web | title=Library | website=Encyclopedia Britannica | url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/library | access-date=14 March 2021 | archive-date=8 March 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308093618/https://www.britannica.com/topic/library | url-status=live }}</ref> A 1713 definition of the word was "custodian of a library", while in the 17th century, the role was referred to as a "library-keeper", and a librarian was a "scribe, one who copies books".<ref name=etymology>{{cite web | title=Librarian | website=Online Etymology Dictionary | url=https://www.etymonline.com/word/librarian | access-date=14 March 2021 | archive-date=6 May 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210506060341/https://www.etymonline.com/word/librarian | url-status=live }}</ref> The role of a librarian is continually evolving to meet social and technological needs. A modern librarian may deal with provision and maintenance of information in many formats, including [[book]]s; electronic resources; [[magazine]]s; [[newspaper]]s; audio and [[video recording]]s; maps; [[manuscript]]s; photographs and other graphic material; [[bibliographic databases]]; and [[Internet]]-based and digital resources. A librarian may also provide other information services, such as [[information literacy]] instruction; computer provision and training; coordination with community groups to host public programs; [[assistive technology]] for people with disabilities; and assistance locating community resources.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Lo|first1=Patrick |title=Effective School Librarianship: Successful Professional Practices from Librarians Around the World|last2=Rogers|first2=Heather|last3=Chiu|first3=Dickson K. W.|date=2018|publisher=Apple Academic Press|isbn=978-1-315-14957-8|edition=1|language=en|doi=10.1201/b22444 |oclc=1019663034}}</ref> The Internet has had a profound impact on the resources and services that librarians of all kinds provide to their patrons. Electronic information has transformed the roles and responsibilities of librarians, even to the point of revolutionizing library education and service expectations.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Katz|first=Linda S |title=The Image and Role of the Librarian| date=2003-06-27| publisher=Routledge| isbn=978-0-429-23626-6 |language=en|doi=10.4324/9780203820742}}{{page needed|date=April 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Love |first1=Johnnieque B. |title=The Enhanced and Changing Role of the Specialist Librarian |journal=The Reference Librarian |date=1 March 2003 |volume=37 |issue=78 |pages=149โ165 |doi=10.1300/j120v37n78_10 |s2cid=219622873 }}</ref> ===Positions and duties=== <!-- This section is linked from [[Library science]] --> [[File:Digital services librarian desk.jpg|thumb|A librarian's workspace at [[Newmarket Public Library (Newmarket, Ontario)|Newmarket Public Library]] in 2013. iPad, PC, eReader and laptop computer are required tools]] [[File:2018_Oodi,_Central_Library,_Helsinki,_Finland_(45606702064).jpg|thumb|Patrons at [[Helsinki Central Library]]]] Specific duties vary depending on the size and type of library. Olivia Crosby described librarians as "Information experts in the information age."<ref name="become">{{cite web |url=http://www.becomealibrarian.org/ |title=Become a Librarian! |access-date=2008-09-01 |publisher=Central Jersey Regional Library Cooperative |archive-date=2008-08-31 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080831094017/http://www.becomealibrarian.org/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Most librarians spend their time working in one of the following areas of a library: [[Archivist]]s can be specialized librarians who deal with [[archives|archival]] materials, such as manuscripts, documents and records, though this varies from country to country, and there are other routes to the archival profession. Collection development or acquisitions librarians monitor the selection of books and electronic resources.<ref name="anders78">{{cite book|last1=Anders|first1=Rebecca|title=Careers in a Library|date=1978|publisher=Lerner Publications Company|location=Minneapolis|isbn=978-0-8225-0334-7|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/careersinlibrary00ande}}</ref> Large libraries often use approval plans, which involve the librarian for a specific subject creating a profile that allows publishers to send relevant books to the library without any additional [[vetting]]. Librarians can then see those books when they arrive and decide if they will become part of the collection or not. All collections librarians also have a certain amount of funding to allow them to purchase books and materials that don't arrive via approval. Electronic resources librarians manage the databases that libraries license from third-party vendors. School librarians work in school libraries and perform duties as teachers, information technology specialists, and advocates for literacy. Instruction librarians teach information literacy skills in face-to-face classes or through the creation of online learning objects. They instruct library users on how to find, evaluate, and use information effectively. They are most common in academic libraries. Media specialists teach students to find and analyze information, purchase books and other resources for the school library, supervise library assistants, and are responsible for all aspects of running the library/media center. Both library media teachers (LMTs) and young adult public librarians order books and other materials that will interest their young adult patrons. They also must help YAs find relevant and authoritative Internet resources. Helping this age group to become lifelong learners and readers is a main objective of professionals in this library specialty. Outreach librarians are charged with providing library and information services for underrepresented groups, such as people with disabilities, low-income neighborhoods, home bound adults and seniors, incarcerated and ex-offenders, and homeless and rural communities. In academic libraries, outreach librarians might focus on high school students, transfer students, first-generation college students, and minorities. Public service librarians work with the public, frequently at the [[library reference desk|reference desk]] of lending libraries. Some specialize in serving adults or children. Children's librarians provide appropriate material for children at all age levels, include pre-readers, conduct specialized programs and work with the children (and often their parents) to help foster interest and competence in the young reader.<ref name="anders78" /> (In larger libraries, some specialize in teen services, [[magazine|periodicals]], or other special collections.) [[File:ืชืืจ ืืกืื ืืื ืกืคืจื ืืช ืกืคืจืืืช ืชืืืื ืจืืืืจื.jpg|thumb|right|Librarian at desk in a high school library]] Reference or research librarians help people doing research to find the information they need, through a structured conversation called a [[reference interview]]. The help may take the form of research on a specific question, providing direction on the use of databases and other electronic information resources; obtaining specialized materials from other sources; or providing access to and care of delicate or expensive materials. These services are sometimes provided by other library staff that have been given a certain amount of special training; some have criticized this trend.<ref>{{cite journal |last=McKinzie |first=Steve |title=For Ethical Reference, Pare the Paraprofessionals |journal=American Libraries |date=October 2002 |volume=33 |issue=9 |page=42}}</ref> Systems librarians develop, troubleshoot and maintain library systems, including the library catalog and related systems. Technical service librarians work "behind the scenes" ordering library materials and database subscriptions, computers and other equipment, and supervise the [[library catalog|cataloging]] and physical processing of new materials. A Youth Services librarian, or children's librarian, is in charge of serving young patrons from infancy all the way to young adulthood. Their duties vary, from planning summer reading programs to weekly story hour programs. They are multitaskers, as the children's section of a library may act as its own separate library within the same building. Children's librarians must be knowledgeable of popular books for school-aged children and other library items, such as e-books and audiobooks. They are charged with the task of creating a safe and fun learning environment outside of school and the home. A young adult or YA librarian specifically serves patrons who are between 12 and 18 years old. Young adults are those patrons that look to library services to give them direction and guidance toward recreation, education, and emancipation. A young adult librarian could work in several different institutions; one might be a school library/media teacher, a member of a public library team, or a librarian in a penal institution. Licensing for library/media teacher includes a Bachelor or Master of Arts in Teaching and additional higher-level course work in library science. YA librarians who work in public libraries are expected to have a master's degree in Library and Information Science (MLIS), relevant work experience, or a related credential.<ref name="American Library Association">{{cite web|title=YALSA|url=http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/profdev/recruitment/recruitment.cfm|access-date=April 1, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110212033514/http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/profdev/recruitment/recruitment.cfm|archive-date=February 12, 2011}}</ref> ===Additional responsibilities=== [[File:Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden, 2020 Official Portrait (50298151842).jpg|thumb|right|[[Carla Hayden]], Current [[Librarian of Congress]]]] Experienced librarians may take administrative positions such as library or information center director or learning resource officer. Similar to the management of any other organization, they are concerned with the long-term planning of the library, and its relationship with its parent organization (the city or county for a public library, the college/university for an academic library, or the organization served by a [[special library]]). In smaller or specialized libraries, librarians typically perform a wide range of the different duties. Representative examples of librarian responsibilities: *Researching topics of interest for their constituencies. *Referring patrons to other [[community organization]]s and [[government]] offices. *Suggesting appropriate books ("readers' advisory") for children of different reading levels and recommending [[novel]]s for recreational reading. *Reviewing books and journal databases *Working with other education organisations to establish continual, lifelong learning and further education initiatives *Facilitating and promoting reading clubs. *Developing programs for library users of all ages and backgrounds. *Managing access to electronic information resources. *Assessing library services and collections in order to best meet library users' needs. *Building and maintaining collections to respond to changing community needs or demands *Creating [[Pathfinder (Library Science)|pathfinders]] *Writing grants to gain funding for expanded program or collections *Digitizing collections for online access *Publishing articles in library science journals [[File:Defense.gov News Photo 021203-A-7236L-008.jpg|thumb|right|A librarian pushes a book cart at Camp Delta, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba on December 3, 2002]] *Answering incoming reference questions via telephone, postal mail, email, fax, and chat *Delivering arts and cultural activities to local communities *Initiating and establishing creative digital activities to introduce children to coding, engineering and website building *Marking promotion and advocacy of library services * Assisting job seekers and local businesses *Making and enforcing computer appointments on the public access Internet computers.<ref>"''The librarian's Internet survival guide: strategies for the high-tech reference desk"'', Irene E. McDermott, Barbara E. Quint, p. 1-2, Information Today, {{ISBN|1-57387-129-X}}</ref> === Librarians and work-related stress === As user and community needs change over time, the role of the librarian continues to reflect these changes. Librarians assist and interact with vulnerable or at-risk populations regularly. It is proposed that librarians experience a moderate degree of work-related stress, and is reported that many experience harassment or emotionally challenging situations in their daily work.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Smith|first1=Daniella L.|last2=Bazalar|first2=Bryan|last3=Wheeler|first3=Maurice|date=2020-05-18|title=Public Librarian Job Stressors and Burnout Predictors|url=https://doi.org/10.1080/01930826.2020.1733347|journal=Journal of Library Administration|volume=60|issue=4|pages=412โ429|doi=10.1080/01930826.2020.1733347|s2cid=216228849|issn=0193-0826|url-access=subscription}}</ref> The public library in particular can often be described as having an emotionally charged atmosphere.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Rodger|first1=Joanne|last2=Erickson|first2=Norene|date=2021-05-16|title=The Emotional Labour of Public Library Work|url=https://journal.lib.uoguelph.ca/index.php/perj/article/view/6189|journal=Partnership: The Canadian Journal of Library and Information Practice and Research|language=en|volume=16|issue=1|pages=1โ27|doi=10.21083/partnership.v16i1.6189|s2cid=236603090 |issn=1911-9593|access-date=2021-09-21|archive-date=2021-09-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210921231647/https://journal.lib.uoguelph.ca/index.php/perj/article/view/6189|url-status=live|doi-access=free}}</ref> There is evidence to suggest that specialized librarians might experience similar conditions. For example, health science librarians report experiencing a mild to moderate amount of secondary traumatic stress that develops from working closely with patients who are experiencing trauma.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Becker|first1=Rachel W.|last2=McCrillis|first2=Aileen|date=2015|title=Health sciences librarians, patient contact, and secondary traumatic stress|journal=Journal of the Medical Library Association|volume=103|issue=2|pages=87โ90|doi=10.3163/1536-5050.103.2.006|issn=1536-5050|pmc=4404861|pmid=25918488}}</ref>
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