Grand Theft Library?

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Grand Theft Library?

• Overcoming Resistance to Video Games in the
  Library
•  
•  

Anthony Petryk - Carleton University
Library Laura (Pallister) Carter - Kingston
Frontenac Public Library   Ontario Library
Association Super Conference 2009  
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Agenda 

• 1. Introduction to gaming
• 2. Motivation for games in the library
• 3. Case Studies Kingston Frontenac Public
  Library
•                              Carleton University
  Library
• 4. Dealing with resistance to gaming initiatives
• 5. Common objections - and how to respond to them
• 6. Closing thoughts and discussion 

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Introduction to gaming

• Gaming can be card games, board games, console
  video games (Wii, XBOX, Playstation) or computer
  video games.
•  
• Wide variety of video games on the market
• First Person Shooter Call of Duty
• Racing Games Mario Kart Wii
• Role Playing Games Mass Effect
• Rhythm Games Dance Dance Revolution
• Sports Games Madden NFL 09 
• Simulation Sims, Nintendogs
•  
• This presentation will focus on video games.
•  
•  

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Introduction to gaming (continued)

• Pew Internet and American Life Project study from
  September 2008 indicates basically all American
  teens play some sort of game regularly, and half
  of them play everyday.
• Pew study from December 2008 indicates that 53
  of American adults play some sort of video game,
  handheld electronic game or computer game.  A
  third of players 65 and over play every day, and
  20 of younger adults playing daily.
•  

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Agenda 

1. Introduction to gaming
2. Motivation for games in the library
3. Case Studies KFPL and CUL
4. Dealing with resistance to gaming initiatives
5. Common objections - and how to respond to them
6. Closing thoughts and discussion 

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Motivation for gaming in libraries

• Playing games helps develop and maintain
  cognitive ability
•  
• Decision making - Spore
• Logical thinking - Puzzle Quest
• Problem solving - Legend of Zelda
•  
• Some newer games also help improve physical
  ability
•  
• Fitness - Wii Fit
• Hand-Eye coordination - Wii Sports
• Manual dexterity - Guitar Hero

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Motivation for gaming in libraries (continued)

• Games can also help teach basic life skills
•  
• Information retrieval - World of Warcraft
• Money management - Animal Crossing
• Reading - Elder Scrolls Oblivion
•  
• Gaming is frequently not a solo activity - it
  typically makes children/teens more social, not
  less.
•  
• Gaming teaches children and teens that it is okay
  to fail - you can modify your strategy and try
  again.
•  
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Motivation for gaming in libraries (continued)

• Games and gaming is now a research area in its
  own right
•  
• Computer Game Development
• Game Developer Research (CMP Media)
• Interactive Multimedia Design
• Simulation and Gaming (Sage Publications)
• Social and Cultural Studies
• Games and Culture (Sage Publications)
•  
• Also a growing body of game-related literature in
  education, psychology, etc.
•  

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Motivation for gaming in libraries (continued)

• Libraries can benefit from gaming initiatives in
  measurable ways
• Increased circulation statistics
• New membership from under-served populations
• Teens
• Seniors
• Financially disadvantaged
• Increased program attendance
•  
• Library should be an enjoyable destination that
  is responsive to user needs and requests - give
  them what they want!

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Agenda 

1. Introduction to gaming
2. Motivation for games in the library
3. Case Studies KFPL and CUL
4. Dealing with resistance to gaming initiatives
5. Common objections - and how to respond to them
6. Closing thoughts and discussion 

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Case Study KFPL               

• Decision to pursue Gaming at KFPL came out of
• Staff interest
• Perceived teen interest
• An awareness that gaming programs were extremely
  successful at other libraries
• Sent proposal to management, tied gaming
  initiative to the  KFPL Mission Statement The
  library is a major source of leisure activity.
• Cross-functional Gaming Committee formed in
  October 2007, asking two main questions
• "Where can we go?"
• "Do we want to go there?" 

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Case Study KFPL (continued)

• Decided to go with console gaming
• Build a collection for lending
• Buy hardware and games for programming
• No new money in library budget, so explored
  alternate sources of funding.  Received a grant
  from the Library Strategic Development Fund
•  
• "The support of the Government of Ontario,
  through the Ministry of Culture, is gratefully
  acknowledged!"
•  
• Initially a pilot project only see what could be
  accomplished with the grant money

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Case Study KFPL (continued)

• Collections
• Selecting (staff, patron involvement, TAG)
• Purchasing LSC? Retail?
• Cataloguing
• Housing/Security
•  
• Programming
• With partners
• In-house
•  
• Publicity
• Grant
• Collections
• Programming

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Case Study KFPL (continued)

• Training
• General awareness of gaming initiative and goals
• Equipment and game training
• Evaluation
• Surveys
• Statistics (June 2008-January 2009)
• Currently 129 games in system
• 930 circs
• 2087 reservations ever
• Ongoing Funding

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Case Study CUL

• "Games in the Library" started as a request from
  the faculty to support teaching/research programs
  in two areas Computer Science and Industrial
  Design.
• Well-received by senior management due to the
  library's and university's most recent strategic
  directions
•  
• Carleton Library 2008-2010 Strategic Plan Sets a
  goal to "develop specialized library ...
  collections."
• Carleton University 2008 Strategic Plan Supports
  a new area of endeavour for the university - "new
  digital media ... such as digital game studies
  and cybercultural studies".
•  
•  
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Case Study CUL (continued)

• Formed a "Games and Immersive Media" working
  group
•  
• Project scope
• Contemporary collection
• Gaming lab
• Archive collection
• Membership from across campus 
• Faculty
• Computer and Communications Services
• Student Academic Success Center
• Library (Archives, Reference, and Systems)
• Formal project proposal due by Spring
•  
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Case Study CUL (continued)

• Initial reactions to the Games in the Library
•  
• Collections Department uncertainty about
  acceptance parameters, dealing with a new media
  type.
• Technical Services questions about testing,
  creating backups, details in item records, etc.
• Reference unease about budget reallocation,
  offensive content.
•  
• In general, a feeling that the project is moving
  ahead without sufficient consultation lack of
  communication that we're still at the project
  proposal stage.
•  

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Agenda 

1. Introduction to gaming
2. Motivation for games in the library
3. Case Studies KFPL and CUL
4. Dealing with resistance to gaming initiatives
5. Common objections - and how to respond to them
6. Closing thoughts and discussionscussion 

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Dealing with resistance to gaming initiatives

• So you have a mandate to move forward with a
  gaming initiative.  How do you get everyone on
  board?
•  
• Successful buy-in from both staff and users
  requires 
• Communication
• Involvement
• Repetition
•  
•         - Crit Stuart (Georgia Tech), Scholars
  Portal Day 2009  
•  

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Communicating with staff

• Demonstrate the demand from users (patrons or
  faculty)
• May be difficult to find hard data at first
• Talk about success stories at similar libraries
• From the library literature
• From conferences such as GLLS
• Create an internal FAQ
• Take an active role in debunking rumours
• Make sure front-line staff know enough about the
  project to answer questions from the public
•  
•   
•  

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Communicating with users

• Create polls and blog entries on public website
• Be ready to respond to negative comments
• Post a public version of the internal FAQ
• Create book displays about gaming
• Include fiction, nonfiction, and magazines
• Tailor some displays to gamers, some to general
  public
• Offer "Gaming for Beginners" workshops
• Use staff's personal equipment, if necessary
•   
•  

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Communicating with users (continued)

• Dedicate a highly visible space to the new
  collection
• Put up a "coming soon" sign well before the
  launch
• Attract external publicity (free publicity)
• Still a "story" for most journalists
• Invite politicians - great exposure for them too
• Stage the official launch in a high traffic area
• Be ready to do some damage control
•   
•  

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Involving staff

• Form workgroups with diverse membership
• Gamers and non-gamers
• Representatives from all departments
• Ask subject specialists to find related materials
  in the collection for course/subject guides and
  displays
• Wii with the staff in the lounge, or at a staff
  party
• Newbies prefer to watch then try it on their own
  in private

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Involving users

• Consult with special interest groups
• Teen Advisory Group
• Friends of the Library
• Student Gamer's Association
• Faculty with a teaching interest in gaming
• Ask users what titles should be in the collection
• Informally - at the circulation desk, etc.
• Formally - on request for purchase forms
• Send out a call for donations, or host a game
  exchange
• Ask users to help design new gaming programs and
  spaces

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Repetition

• Conduct a series of polls or surveys that build
  on each other.
• Do you play video games?
• Do you think the library should collect video
  games
• Which console(s) should the library support?
• Post progress reports and/or meeting minutes to
  your library blog and intranet
• Chat about the project informally.
• Start publicity well before the official launch
• Leave some time for people to digest the idea
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Agenda 

• Introduction to gaming
• Motivation for games in the library
• Case Studies KFPL and CUL
• Dealing with resistance to gaming initiatives
• Common objections - and how to respond to them 
• Closing thoughts and discussion
•  

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Objection 1 Traditional materials

• "Libraries are about books and information -
  games don't belong there."
•  
• The same objection was raised when libraries
  started collecting magazines, movies, and music.
• This is an opportunity for libraries to take a
  lead role in immersive media.
•  
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Objection 2 Educational value

• "The research has yet to show that so-called
  'educational' games offer anything of value to
  teachers or students."
• This is a still a young research area.
• Most educational games are created as prototypes
  by researchers, not by the gaming industry.
• It is our role to support research, not stifle
  it.

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Objection 3 Inappropriate content

• "Games are simply too violent for my children."
•  
• Many popular games do not contain offensive
  content.
• Each games comes with a rating from the ESRB.
• The library can help parents/children select
  titles that are suitable for them.  

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Objection 4 Theft

• "Why buy games when they're just going to get
  stolen within the first week?"
• All materials that circulate a lot are at a
  greater risk of theft.
• Game discs can be kept behind the circulation
  desk, and equipped with security tags.

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Objection 5 Identity crisis

• "Librarians shouldn't jump on any new trend to
  try and keep their institutions relevant."
•  
• Perhaps libraries should become early adopters
  and experiment more.
• Video games have been around for decades now.
• Digital interactive media is likely to be
  ubiquitous in the future. 
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Objection 6 Funding

• "In the current economic climate our budget is
  just too tight to support a new initiative."
• In tough economic times, people are more likely
  to use the library - great time to launch a high
  profile service.
• Could money be reallocated from other budget
  lines for a pilot project?
• This initiative fits into the library's strategic
  plan.

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Objection 7 Favouritism

• "I've been coming to the library for 47 years,
  and I don't want games - I want romance novels. 
  Teens get all the attention these days..."
• We're not going to stop collection romance
  novels!
• The public library is for everyone.
• Many games help breach the generational gap.

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Objection 8 Financial need

• "People that borrow games already own a console
  to play them on, which means they can afford
  400 entertainment expenses.  The middle and
  upper classes doesn't need to borrow games - they
  can just buy them."
• Libraries also need to buy gaming equipment and
  offer programs for people who can't afford it.

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Objection 9 Changing workplace

• "This means more work for us at the Circulation
  Desk and in Tech Services."
•  
• Documentation is available on best practices for
  cataloguing and processing games.
• Working out all the details can be a fun project
  - if given enough time.
• Game consoles are no more complicated to operate
  than DVD players (or microfilm machines!).

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Objection 10 Disruption

• "With people playing games in the library, I
  won't be able to hear myself think."
•  
• Today's libraries should have both quiet
  study/reading areas and noisier interactive
  spaces.
• Gaming equipment is relatively portable - move it
  in and out of meeting rooms as necessary.
• Headsets can be included in the gaming budget.

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Agenda 

1. Introduction to gaming
2. Motivation for games in the library
3. Case Studies KFPL and CUL
4. Dealing with resistance to gaming initiatives
5. Common objections - and how to respond to them
6. Closing thoughtsts and discussion 

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Closing thoughts and discussion

• Try not to downplay people's concerns, especially
  about inappropriate content or lack of funding
• Unless they're already sold on the idea, most
  people do not respond well to a fanboi (or a
  fangrl)
• Many people will only get behind a new
  program/service once they see that it is
  successful
• Games are fun, but they're not for everyone
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•  

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Bibliography and Further Reading

• ALA TechSource Gaming, Learning, and Libraries
  Symposium - http//gaming.techsource.ala.org.
•  
• Children's Technology Review, published monthly
  by Active Learning Associates -
  http//www.childrenssoftware.com/.
•  
• Don't Bother Me Mom -- I'm Learning! How
  Computers and Video Games are Preparing Your
  Child For 21st Century Success and How You Can
  Help! by Marc Prensky, Paragon House, 2006.
•  
• Gamer Dad - http//www.gamingwithchildren.com/

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Bibliography and Further Reading

• Grand Theft Childhood The Surprising Truth about
  Violent Video Games and What Parents Can Do by
  Lawrence Kutcher and Cheryl Olson, Simon and
  Schuster, 2008.
•  
• Pew Internet and American Life Project -
• http//www.pewinternet.org/.
•  
• What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning
  and Literacy (2nd edition) by James Paul Gee,
  Palgrave Macmillan, 2007.
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