Cover Letter

Tine Walczyk, PhD student, and Dr. Barbara Schultz-Jones respectfully submit this

application for the 2010 College of Information Student/Faculty Research Grant. Through a

research mentoring relationship, this team plans to delve into cultural competence within US

library education. The study outlined below is designed to collect additional data on the topic and

provide a point of comparison for previous classwork/research conducted by Ms. Walczyk. As a

result of this study, Ms. Walczyk will have enough data to prove the validity of her current

survey and interview instruments with the aim of pursuing a pilot study.

Ms. Walczyk conducted a qualitative analysis project this past fall looking at western

bias present in US librarians, a topic she became aware of through her own professional/cultural

experiences internationally. In 2009, she was part of the People-to-People Library Science

delegation to South Africa visiting different types of libraries including the National Library of

South Africa. In 2006 on an ALA scholarship, she attended FIL (Guadalajara International Book

Festival). Finally, she previously traveled internationally in a software trainer capacity.

Dr. Schultz-Jones recently presented Cultural Competence in International School

Libraries and Library Education as part of a panel presentation at the Association for Library

and Information Science Education (ALISE) annual conference, January 12-14, 2010. She

regularly teaches two courses which are taught on-location at an international school library, one

of which is an “intensive study of resources and services in selected special clienteles and classes

of users” (Courses). She has successfully taken five classes of LIS students on these field

experiences, with this summer’s group going to Kiev, Ukraine. Finally, she has attended,

presented, and spoken at conferences internationally.

An Assessment of Cultural Competence Factors in Relation to a Study Abroad Experience with Library and Information Science Students

Tine WalczykChristine.walczyk@unt.edu

10015 Lake Creek Pkwy, #818Austin, TX 78729

512-445-5802

Barbara Schultz-Jones, Ph.D., Assistant ProfessorBarbara.schultz-jones@unt.edu

College of Information, Department of Library and Information Sciences1155 Union Circle #311068

Denton, TX 76203-5017940-369-8081

Proposal Narrative

Introduction

Many standards in librarianship originate from the United States, from either the

American Library Association (ALA) or the Library of Congress (LoC). Among these are LC

Subject Headings, LCCN, Dewey, and the emerging RDA. Each of these standards influences

collections and information retrieval at the cataloging level. This influence is pervasive and

dictates how materials are categorized and organized. These standards are routinely adopted

around the world as “best practices”.

ALA has also established criteria for librarians and paraprofessionals within the US. Are

these “the” best practices? Are western biases being instilled into librarianship? How do these

ingrained ways of operating affect western librarians in their interactions with other countries?

What biases do western librarians exhibit that cause them to be at odds with their international

community? How can building cultural competence in library schools mitigate these biases?

Statement of Problem

Increasingly, we live in a global environment; “A true international perspective is crucial

to achieving strong research results and creating understanding among cultures” (Arboleda,

2001, p. 162). Learning to approach people from different countries and cultures can only make

for better prepared librarians. Western bias must be reduced within the field of librarianship;

likewise, cultural competence at the cognitive, interpersonal, and environmental levels must be

developed (Monteil-Overall, 2009). This study provides a groundbreaking opportunity to study

these factors of cultural competence during its establishment/expansion in library and

information science (LIS) students who are engaged in a study abroad program. Comparing LIS

students before and after visiting an international library provides a dataset to start this

exploration and may possibly lead to the foundation for requiring an international experience or

courses in cultural competence in western librarianship programs.

Background and Literature Review

In the fall of 2009, a class-project study using participant observation and interviews was

conducted. In this instance, the researcher served as complete participant. An interview guide

was constructed and informal interviews were conducted. A call for interviewees was sent out

after the experience. Three participants volunteered to be interviewed. These post-experience,

consented interviews were conducted within two weeks of returning. They were transcribed and

coded, resulting in rich data.

A structured analysis was conducted of participant interviews conducted after the

international experience. Six main themes were found: acknowledged environmental factors

influencing their perceptions, situations being better than expected, situations seemingly

surprisingly not different from their accustomed norm, situations of departure for US practice,

personal and professional stereotypes, and noticeable changes within the participant as a result of

the experience. Each participant showed a degree of change in their world view as a result of the

trip. Not only did their opinions of what they thought the conditions might be like but they also

gained an adjustment to viewing their present situation in the United States.

Monteil-Overall (2009) developed a model to demonstrate how cultural competencies

could be developed in librarianship. She believed that “a primary goal in proposing a framework

of cultural competence for the LIS profession is to improve services to and increase library use

by diverse groups” (p. 190). This model (see Appendix) presented cultural competence as

deriving from three main factors: cognitive, interpersonal, and environmental. The cognitive

factors addressed how the individual thought of their own cultural and whether they felt

“connected” to it. Interpersonal factors were observed by how individuals interacted with and

responded to other cultures and cultural norms. Finally, environmental factors involved placing a

culture within its own setting in order to gain a full picture of its circumstances (Monteil-Overall,

2009). The application of this model to a study abroad experience offers the opportunity to

extend the original research.

Research Design and Methodology

In an effort to assess how an international experience designed to increase cultural

competence can mitigate western bias in librarianship, a qualitative research study is proposed.

Using qualitative methods, the researcher hopes first, to set a baseline for the cognitive,

interpersonal, and environmental cultural competencies presented in Monteil-Overall’s model

(2009); second, observe what biases arise during the experience and classify them according to

cultural competencies; and third, see whether they can be mitigated through international

exposure. Unfortunately, qualitative analysis is fraught with opportunities for researcher biases

or unintentional effects on the study. As a safe guard to these issues, multiple tools will be used.

“The use of more than one method is the best corrective against contamination ‘because each

method reveals different aspects of empirical reality’ (Denzin as quoted by Zinn, 1979, p. 217).

An extended case method will be used. As explained by Burawoy (1998), “the extended

case method applies reflexive science to ethnography in order to extract the general from the

unique, to move from the ‘micro’ to the macro’, and to connect the present to the past in

anticipation of the future, all by building on preexisting theory” (p. 5). Additionally, he explains

that reflexive science is “a model of science that embraces not detachment but engagement as the

road to knowledge” (p. 5). This method will allow the researcher to incorporate the full

experience of the intervention into the findings.

The research to be conducted is designed to resemble a qualitative pre and post test.

Immediately preceding and following the trip, participants will be “surveyed” at times

convenient to their schedules. During the experience observations will be conducted in situ.

These surveys, participant observation, and interviews will be conducted within the framework

of an extended case method. First, the participant survey will assess opinions and thoughts about

the Ukraine’s libraries by LIS master’s degree students before being exposed to them. Second,

“the goal for design of research using participant observation as a method is to develop a holistic

understanding of the phenomena under study that is objective and accurate as possible given the

limitations of the method” (DeWalt & DeWalt as quoted by Kawulich, 2005, Section 4). The

researcher will serve as an active participant in the experience and observations of other

participants will be conducted with their knowledge. This type of participant observation will

allow for real-time recording of observations and informal interviews. Third, formal interviews

will be conducted upon returning to the US to capture any changes/increase in cultural

competence that may have transpired as a result of the trip.

Approvals: Approval for this study will need to be obtained at multiple levels. First, since

this study will require the participation of human subjects, IRB approval will be secured. Second,

gatekeepers for the program include faculty members responsible for the Study Abroad

experience, the Ukrainian host librarians and administrators, and potentially any in-country

guides. Third, informed consent of the individual participants will be obtained through the initial

survey process.

Participant Population and Selection: UNT’s Library and Information Science

department offers a course entitled “Managing Library Automation Projects”. This course is a

three-week international field experience for students. This year they “have been invited by the

Kyiv International School in Kyiv, Ukraine to assess the system implementation of Follett's

library automation software product, Destiny. The project involves organizing the school library,

completing the migration of all bibliographic records and patron information, adding new

resources to the Destiny OPAC, and providing training to the school librarian and teachers”

(SLIS 5750, para. 25). This provides a unique opportunity to study international experiences of

US library students first-hand, as they become intimately aware of the daily workings of an

international library and its cultural setting.

A sample of at least half of the students will be selected from the class. Selection criteria

will consist of being actively working in a library and having not worked internationally

previously. All participants meeting these criteria will be given the opportunity to participate in

the study. All respondents will be required to participate in all three phases of the research.

Data Types and Collection: As a result of the research process, multiple data types will

be generated. Observation data in the form of direct observations, informal interviews, and

participant journal entries will be collected. Formal interviews will provide valuable data. All of

these data types will be paired with a priori survey data.

A survey will be distributed and collected by the faculty member (or their designate) and

not given to the researcher until after the delegation has concluded in order to avoid initial bias

of the researcher. Survey answers will be coded and used as data point 1. During each of the

three weeks in Kyiv, the researcher will record observations, conduct informal interviews, and

maintain a personal experiences journal. These data will be data point 2. Upon returning from

their trip, each participant will be interviewed and voice recorded. These interviews will be

transcribed. Coded answers will serve as data point 3. NVivo will be used to record and organize

each of the data points.

Importance and Expected Benefits of Research

Of particular interest to the researcher are identifying changes in thinking (biases) that

occur as a result of participating in international experiences. Typical demographic factors,

cultural competency factors and many themes (nodes) will be derived through the analysis. Once

the factors and themes are identified and analyzed, they will be used to look at other dependant

variables including time in the profession, previous international experiences, funding source,

and purpose of participating. Each one of these variables may shed some light on which groups

of library students would benefit most from an international experience. As a result,

recommendations for future research on integrating cultural competencies into library education

will be substantiated.

In summary, this project seeks to actualize Monteil-Overall’s Cultural Competencies

Model during a library school international experience to provide a path for increasing the

“cultural awareness within the profession to meet the needs of a growing population of diverse

library users” (2009, p. 175). The plan to meet this goal includes:

1. Survey Design and Delivery: We will use Survey Monkey (www.surveymonkey.com) to develop the survey, deliver through paper and enter after the experience.

2. Survey Analysis: We will analyze the survey results using Survey Monkey’s quantitative facility.

3. In situ Observation: Researcher will take notes and conduct informal interviews during the experience.

4. Interview Design: We will use findings from the survey analysis to guide the development of an interview instrument.

5. Formal Interviews: After the completion of the experience, participants will be phone interviewed.

6. Interview Analysis: We will analyze the results of the interviews using a qualitative text software package, NVivo8.

7. Report Preparation and Dissemination: We will summarize the results from the various data sources in a report to be disseminated widely on the faculty member’s website and through journal article and conference submissions.

References

Arboleda, A. (2001). The Gutenberg syndrome: An illusion of international research. Journal of

Scholarly Publishing. 155-163.

Burawoy, M. (1998). The extended case method. Sociological Theory, 16(1). 4-33.

Kawulich, B. (2005). Participant observation as a data collection method. Forum: Qualitative

Social Research, 6(2). Art. 43.

Knowlton, S. (2005). Three decades since Prejudices and Antipathies: A study of changes in the

Library of Congress subject headings. Cataloging & Classification Quarterly, 40(2). 123-

145.

Monteil-Overall, P. (2009). Cultural competence: A conceptual framework for library and

information science professionals. Library Quarterly, 79(2), 175-204.

Schultz-Jones, B. (2010). SLIS 5750: Syllabus. Retrieved from UNT Blackboard website:

http://ecampus.unt.edu.

Schultz-Jones, B. (2010, January). Cultural competence in international school libraries and

library education. Panel presentation at the Association for Library and Information

Science Education (ALISE) annual conference, Boston, MA.

Schultz-Jones, B. (n.d.). Courses. Retrieved from:

http://courses.unt.edu/bjones/BSJCoursePage.html

Zinn, M. (1979). Field research in minority communities: Ethical, methodological and political

observations by an insider. Social Problems, 27(2). 209-219.

Project Schedule

Work Area Duration DeliverablesPhase ILiterature Review Month 1 Identification of factors for survey and interview

instruments.IRB Application Month 1 Submitted applicationResearch Methodology

Months 1-2

Design survey. Design interview questions.

Phase IIData Collection Months 2-

4 Deliver survey Maintain researcher notes Conduct in situ informal interviews Conduct formal interviews Prepare interview transcripts

Phase IIIAnalysis Months 4-

8 Report of cultural competency factors identified pre

and post experience. Report of themes. Validation/rejection of Monteil-Overall model

Phase IVDissemination Month 9

onward Journal article submissions, including Library Trends

and School Libraries Worldwide Submit “Contributed Paper” to various local, state,

national and international conferences and workshops (potentially including ALISE, IFLA, ALA, and REFORMA)

Access to research and modules on faculty website

Budget

The project proposed here is dependent on the availability of a population of students

participating in an international experience. As such, the largest portion of the budget is allocated

to the international travel necessary to participate in the same experience. Additional,

expenditures are directly related to the analysis of the data collected (NVivo license),

presentation of results (attendance at ALISE), and the nominal supplies necessary to copy, print,

and mail any necessary correspondence. Lastly, a minor stipend is being included for the

research to conduct the analysis and prepare the results for dissemination.

Appendix

Figure 1. Cultural Competencies Model (Monteil-Overall, 2009, p. 191). This figure illustrates the factors that are comprised within cultural competence.