Face-Work in Chat Reference Encounters

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Face-Work in Chat Reference Encounters

• Presented by
• Marie L. Radford
• and
• Lynn Silipigni Connaway
• Library Research Round Table
• June 24, 2006
• ALA, New Orleans, Louisiana

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Presenters

• Marie L. Radford, Ph.D.
• Associate Professor,
• Rutgers University, SCILS
• Email mradford_at_scils.rutgers.edu
• www.scils.rutgers.edu/mradford
• Lynn Silipigni Connaway, Ph.D.
• Consulting Research Scientist
• Email connawal_at_oclc.org
• www.oclc.org/research/staff/connaway.htm
• Grant Website http//www.oclc.org/research/projec
  ts/synchronicity

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Seeking Synchronicity Evaluating Virtual
Reference Services from User, Non-User, and
Librarian Perspectives

• 1,103,572 project funded by
• Institute of Museum and Library Services
• 684,996 grant
• Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey and
  OCLC Online Computer Library Center 405,076 in
  kind contributions

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Seeking Synchronicity Evaluating Virtual
Reference Services from User, Non-User, and
Librarian Perspectives

• Project duration
• 10/1/2005-9/30/2007
• Four phases
• Focus group interviews
• Analysis of 1,000 QuestionPoint transcripts
• 600 online surveys
• 300 telephone interviews

Interviews surveys with VRS users, non-users,
librarians
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Phase I Focus Groups

• 7 so far
• 4 with non-users
• 2 with VRS librarians
• 1 with VRS users
• 3 more to come
• 3 more with VRS users

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Phase II 24/7 Transcript Analysis

• Generated random sample
• July 7, 2004 through June 27, 2005
• 263,673 sessions
• 25 transcripts/month 300 total
• 256 usable transcripts
• Excluded system tests technical problems
• 226 of these analyzed for todays presentation

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Classification Methodology

• Qualitative Analysis
• Development/refinement of category scheme
• Careful reading/analysis
• Identification of patterns
• Theoretical framework from Erving Goffman (1967)

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Interaction Ritual Essays on Face-to-Face
Behavior (1967)
Essay On Face-Work An analysis of Ritual
Elements in Social Interaction
Erving Goffman 1922-1982
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Face-Work

• Much of the activity occurring during an
  encounter can be understood as an effort on
  everyones part to get through the occasion and
  all the unanticipated and unintentional events
  that can cast participants in an undesirable
  light, without disrupting the relationships of
  the participants
• (Goffman, 1967, p. 41)

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Face Defined

• Positive social value person claims
• Self-image in terms of approved social attributes

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Establishing Face

• Face is located in flow of events
• Feelings about face reinforced by encounters
• If better face is established feel good
• If expectations not fulfilled feel bad or hurt
• Neutral experience expected, not memorable

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Positive Face

• One can
• Have face
• Be in face
• Maintain face
• Give face
• Save face

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Librarian Facilitators
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User Facilitators
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Librarian and User Facilitator Comparisons
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Wrong Face

• One can also
• Be in wrong face
• Be out of face
• Both result in feeling shame inferior
• Poise is ability to conceal shameface
• In wrong face, can still be confident if others
  hide this from you

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Librarian Barriers
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User Barriers
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Librarians and User Barrier Comparison
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Expectations

• To maintain an expressive order
• regulates the flow of events
• To go to certain lengths to save face of others
  themselves
• Otherwise seen as cold, heartless, ruthless.
• To do this willingly spontaneously because of
  emotional identification with others their
  feelings

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Kinds of Face-Work

• Rituals Greetings Farewells
• Corrective Process Repair Apology
• Avoidance Process Prevent Threats to Face
• Poise Control Embarrassment

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Face-Work in Chat

• Goffman provides a powerful way to frame analysis
  of chat encounters.
• Face, face-work, line of participants are
  located in flow of the transcript (event).
• Analysis identifies instances of face-work.
• Major categories see handout.

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Transcript Reading

• Positive VRS experience
• Duration 1 hour 11 minutes
• Academic User
• Question Boston drug company - diabetes
• Relational Work
• Enthusiastic user
• Helpful librarian
• Less than positive VRS experience
• Duration 39 minutes
• Middle school or high school student
• Question physics car acceleration
• Poor reference work
• Extreme negative closure

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Positive Transcript Example
U Where can I find the leading drug companies in boston doing diabetes treatment / prevention RD?
L I can probably give you a few sources to get started, but I may wind up referring you to a business and/or medial librarian specialist.
L Let's start witht eNortheastern library web page...
U ok great thanks
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Positive Transcript Example
L OK. I'm going to try the "co-browse" option -- that might let us see the same information at once...(if it's working!)
U wonderful
L since what you want to find are drug companies, I'll try to get you into a busienss database...
U perfect thank you
L Sorry, I thought there was a way you could search by sic code and get a ranked list of companies in a certian code.
U thats alright, seemed liek you were on the right track
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Negative Transcript Example
U Which way is ur car accelerating when youre thrown forward after hitting another bumper car?
L Is this a homework question.
L I'm not an expert on driving so I really can't answer that
U can u find a website or something
L I'm not sure what you are asking.
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Negative Transcript Example
U hello?
L I really don't understand how I can answer that for you.
U can i hav another librarian
L The information you gave you me does not help me find any resources to help you.
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Endnotes

• This is one of the outcomes from the project
  Seeking Synchronicity Evaluating Virtual
  Reference Services from User, Non-User, and
  Librarian Perspectives.
• Funded by IMLS, Rutgers University and OCLC,
  Online Computer Library Center.
• Project web site http//www.oclc.org/research/pro
  jects/synchronicity/

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Questions

• Marie L. Radford, Ph.D.
• Email mradford_at_scils.rutgers.edu
• www.scils.rutgers.edu/mradford
• Lynn Silipigni Connaway, Ph.D.
• Email connawal_at_oclc.org
• www.oclc.org/research/staff/connaway.htm