Respected authorities on today's rapidly changing reference landscape Marie L. Radford and R. David Lankes have brought together a pioneering collection that delivers creative, proven guidance to LIS professionals in public, academic, and special libraries and information centers. In addition to featuring current research trends and philosophical approaches to reference, the editors present a wide-range of exciting new reports from the field. Reports include the practical information you need to replicate these groundbreaking programs in your library, and includes the institutional context, a...

Offering analysis applicable to all types of library situations, this book describes a number of theoretical frameworks for understanding interpersonal communication; uses examples from all different types of library interpersonal encounters; combines theory with decades-long empirical research; and offers an in-depth examination of the reference encounter.