Librarians as Researchers : Developing our Scholarly Identities

This book is designed to empower librarians to develop their research skills and embrace their identities as scholars. Many librarians, particularly those in academic libraries, are expected to engage in research and scholarly output. However, unlike disciplinary faculty, most librarians have not completed a PhD program, and many have never designed or participated in original research upon embarking on their career. This edited volume provides inspiration and support for academic librarians looking to develop or refresh their research skills and develop their scholarly identities. The focus of this book is toward empowering librarians as researchers, rather than librarians supporting student or faculty research. This book provides a venue for librarians to share their knowledge on different aspects of research as well as build community for other librarians to actualize their own identities as researchers. The existing literature and research in the realm of librarian identity development often touches on librarian identities in the face of emerging technologies and new library types, or how librarians can support research at their institutions. However, there is a gap in the literature around librarians developing their own identities as researchers. Librarians have a unique role in the scholarly community; we often sacrifice our own research interests so that we can provide support and instruction to others, whether it be faculty, students, or the public. But the library world holds immense opportunity for developing and executing original research. Additionally, conducting research is beneficial to librarians’ individual practice as well as the library community as a whole. This edited volume will provide guidance as well as actionable methods for librarians to develop foundational research philosophies, create communities of practice, and hone practical skills in a wide range of research areas.