| 'he purpose of this study was to identify the ways in which rural librarians without the Master of Library Science degree learn to define themselves as librarians. Elements in educational events, consulting encounters, and career circumstances were examined to determine significant factors contributing to the development of professional identity and self-confidence for individuals without the benefit of acculturation into the profession through the graduate school experience. A qualitative multicase investigation was conducted with 26 individuals serving communities of less than 5,000 in six states: Idaho, Iowa, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, and Utah. A purposive sample was used to identify effective rural librarians as potential interviewees. An interview protocol structured the 60 to 120 minute interviews conducted with each librarian. The interviews were audiotaped for later analysis. Three significant career events were identified: the hiring narrative, support from others, and the first library continuing education experience. Five significant education themes were identified: networking, relevancy of topics, characteristics of effective educational events, qualifications of effective educators, and negative educational experiences. The librarian identity is summarized in two schemes. One scheme defines the librarian role in terms of relationships with key others: community, officials, staff, users, and other librarians. The other scheme identifies five consistently mentioned attributes for effectiveness. These attributes are: communication and people skills, dedication, organizational skills, self-confidence and assertiveness, and leadership. Conclusions related to each finding are outlined and general conclusions include: (1) the second-class status of librarians without the MLS degree is manifest in behaviors and attitudes of others; (2) the librarian stereotype appears to have particular negative implications for rural librarians; (3) the autonomous and varied state programs for rural librarians appear to be uneven on a number of scales; and (4) the responsiveness of the 26 librarians in this study illustrates their willingness to be involved, and their eagerness to be consulted and to contribute their insights and experiences to the knowledge base of rural librarianship. Recommendations for further research in the area of rural librarianship are provided. A dozen practical applications to change the situation of rural librarians are included in the final chapter. |
