نشریه مطالعات کتابداری و سازماندهی اطلاعات
سال بیستم شماره 4 (پیاپی 80، زمستان 1388)

One of the main tasks of associations of library and information science is to support the process of formal academic education for librarianship and planning and implementinginformal educational programs by holding educational courses, conferences, workshops, review sessions for different specialized subjects and establishing virtual and distance courses. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the function of Iran’s Association of Library and Information Science in the informal education of librarians and to determine their perspectives about the role of the association in this process. The methodology of the research is a survey with a descriptive-analytical approach. The study population is the members of the association who are residents of Tehran and Khorasan provinces. They were chosen through stratified sampling. Findings indicate that the members believed the association had been successful in holding informal educational courses for librarians. A T-test showed that, except for two factors, there is no semantic difference between the average scores of librarians resident in Tehran and in Khorasan provinces. An F-Test showed that except for three factors there is no semantic difference between the scores of the permanent, associate and student members when surveying the informal educational programs of the Association of Library and Information Science. The results also showed that there is a semantic relation between the two factors of “positive effect in job assessment and appropriateness of the days” and “the timetables for holding monthly conferences” with the factor of the ratio of education. On the other hand, the findings showed that there is a semantic relationship between the two factors “suitability of the subject of the programs with the job of the members and effective participation of the librarians in these programs” with the factor of job experience.

The present research is to comparatively study of the libraries of the University ofMedical Science and the University of Razi Kermanshah in terms of their humanresources and collections, in order to evaluate the extent to which they follow thestandards of Iranian university libraries.The methodology of the research is a survey. The status of the collections, annualincrease, professional and non-professional human resources, the number of studentsand the number of faculties in ten libraries were evaluated and then compared based on the standards for Iranian university libraries. Data collection tools were aquestionnaire and direct observation.According to the standards, the professional (specialized) human resources, whichthe evaluated libraries need, should be 118 staff while the findings of the researchshow that there are 45 (38.1%) specialized staff in theses libraries. Based on thestandard, the number of information sources needed should be 1,572,820 volumeswhile the findings of this research show that the number of the resources is only285,802 volumes (18.1%). Overall this means the collections of the libraries evaluatedlack 1,287,018 volumes (81.9%).

Skillful and expert librarians are able to educate students and help them do research.Some of the students have no information about librarians’ professional status, teachingroles, knowledge, tasks and also their interest in helping them. So they don’t effectivelyuse their guidance and they think finding information in a library is theirpersonal responsibility. The methodology of this research is a survey in which theperspectives of the students—those studying different courses in different degrees—of Allameh Tabataba’i University about academic librarians have been evaluated.Findings show that although the students think librarians are educated, they are notaware of the librarians’ educational background, roles, tasks and skills. At the end ofthe article, some suggestions are presented.

This study aims to investigate the information needs of sixty nomadic students ofthe Qashqa’i tribe, Amaleh Clan, Safikhani Family in Fars province, Iran, to presenta model for providing them with library services. The study population is both maleand female students who study in two boarding schools called Shahid Beheshti andMaleke Ashtar located in Shiraz.The methodology of the research is a descriptivesurvey. To collect the data for this study, a closed-ended questionnaire was arrangedby the researcher. The statistical method of the research is based on the descriptivestatistics. Most of the students stated that they were in need of books with sportand cultural topics. Finally a model was presented for providing the students withlibrary services according to their information needs and the equipments they havefor access to information.

Metadata is one of the most common methods for the organization and managementof information resources and for easy access to information, but it needs appropriatemanagement. The goal of metadata management is to provide, store and controlmetadata collections for the description, retrieval, preservation, ease of exchangeand more effective access to information. Metadata management systems determinethe effectiveness, flexibility and cost-benefits through a definite project. In the present research the importance of metadata in the organization of information resources along with different perspectives of metadata management in some fields like library and information science and information systems have been debated. Then the features, capabilities and effectiveness of the metadata management systems are discussed. Metadata management systems are derived into three categories regarding the structure of the collection: (1) Distributed metadata structure (2) Integrated metadata structure and (3) Composed metadata structure.

Researchers in the social sciences believe that theoretical knowledge–which is derivedfrom traditional research –is not enough to meet the needs of their professionallife. To solve this problem a strategy was applied in the researches entitled “actionresearch”. Action research is the process of systematic thought, research and activitywhich people apply in their professional life. In the present research the concepts,features and different aspects of action research have been evaluated. In additionthe typology of action research, based on the perspectives of some of the theoristsin this field, has been discussed. In this paper the problem of action research alongwith methods of solving it using fundamental conceptualization theory have alsobeen assessed.

Today, two new technologies have mostly influenced libraries and information centers: information technology and communication technology. The most important characteristic of information technology is the application of computers and library software in libraries. In this research the advantages and disadvantages of library automation, the influence of electronic technologies on information, measurement criteria for library software and the method of selecting and purchasing them have been debated and evaluated. Themost significant measurement criteria for library software are the capability of applying Persian script and language, security system, the capability of using library software, reliability, preservation and development of the software, along with flexibility and cost.

The motto “the customer is always right” has always been one of the fundamental principles applied by successful trade and service organizations. This principle is completely true for libraries as well. A library as an organization in which the quality of the services has a close link with research, development, cultural and the fundamental academic issues of the society, need to plan for presenting the best services. Communicating with users and providing them with personal service helps libraries reach their goals and effectively present their services. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is an appropriate strategy for identifying the needs of users and having a permanent and mutual relationship between libraries and users. This produces satisfaction for current users of the library and attracts new users. This article explains the concept of CRM, the features of CRM systems, its advantages in libraries and the necessity of applying the strategy in today’s libraries.

This research aims at analyzing the citation behavior of graduates of two departments(technical engineering and humanities) from 2000 to 2005, based on the referencesin the theses available in the library of IRANDOC (Iranian Science Institutefor Information Science and Technology). The methodology of the research was asurvey using citation analysis. The references of 400 theses of these two departmentswere selected through stratified random sampling to be evaluated. Findingsshowed that in total there were 18,353 citations to all information resources (including12,230 citations out of 213 theses in the humanities and 6,123 out of 187 thesesin engineering). Average citations found to be 57.41 per thesis related to humanitiesand 32.73 citations in the engineering. 85.88 percent of the theses in technical engineeringused English resources while 63.68 percent of theses in the humanities usedPersian ones. The least immediacy index of the resources was 3.31% while the mostwas 35.62%. The correlation between the year of published information sources andthe number of citations to them was also 0.94 and 0.69.

Marketing is known as the process of analyzing, planning and the implementation to do voluntary exchanges with target markets which ends in the reaching of organizational goals. Designing this program requires identifying the needs and expectations of the target market and exploiting some principles like pricing, communication, dissemination of information, and serving the market. Libraries and information centers, in order to have an effective role in today’s competitive environment, should become familiar with the technologies and principles of marketing correctly. In this way they can respond to the needs of potential and de facto users. Introduction to theconcept of marketing in libraries and information centers, the status of marketing in libraries, the method of planning for an effective marketing project, the challenges that libraries and information centers face in the 21st century and the importance of marketing in presenting the solutions are some of the topics which have been debated in the article.