Scholarly Communication Education Initiatives · 69
Challenges
17. Please briefly describe up to three significant challenges the library has faced in educating
library users and staff about SC issues. N=50
[N.B. Categorization provided by the authors. If respondents provided more than one challenge
in a response, they were parsed out as separate challenges.]
Who Category of Challenge Description of Challenge
All Apathy Indifference to fact that a “problem” exists by library users and staff.
All Apathy Indifference within and outside the library to the topic. This includes authors
who sign publishing agreements without considering the content of the license,
and librarians and staff who don’t deposit their work in the institutional
repository.
All Busy Time constraints on faculty and staff.
All Content with status quo Even when people are interested, lack of incentive for them to change behavior.
All Populating IR There is a perception that open access repositories have failed as a concept,
producing little if any benefit to the institutions that have developed them.
Campus Campus Leadership Lack of larger university support for SC change—no involvement by university
governing bodies—lack of standing for librarians.
Campus Campus leadership The lack of designated central campus resources for significant scholarly
communication functions, such as for example a central authority on copyright
issues or a scholarly communication czar.
Campus Decentralized campus
structure
Decentralized university structure makes communication and collaboration
across various units very difficult. It is often the case that one unit is pursuing
an initiative relevant to scholarly communications about which no one else is
aware.
Campus Decentralized campus
structure
The mechanisms for contacting users (faculty) are limited to brochure mailings
and an occasional mass e-mail (which are limited in length and must go
through campus approval).
Campus Decentralized campus
structure
There is currently no scholarly communications committee and no campus-wide
copyright policy. Challenge for the scholarly communications program is to
overcome the decentralized structure to get both of these things going.
Campus Decentralized campus
structure
Transmission—Lack of an easily accessible network across all disciplines.
Faculty Apathy A low interest level.
Faculty Apathy Antipathy towards scholarly publication issues.
Faculty Apathy Apathy on part of faculty.
Challenges
17. Please briefly describe up to three significant challenges the library has faced in educating
library users and staff about SC issues. N=50
[N.B. Categorization provided by the authors. If respondents provided more than one challenge
in a response, they were parsed out as separate challenges.]
Who Category of Challenge Description of Challenge
All Apathy Indifference to fact that a “problem” exists by library users and staff.
All Apathy Indifference within and outside the library to the topic. This includes authors
who sign publishing agreements without considering the content of the license,
and librarians and staff who don’t deposit their work in the institutional
repository.
All Busy Time constraints on faculty and staff.
All Content with status quo Even when people are interested, lack of incentive for them to change behavior.
All Populating IR There is a perception that open access repositories have failed as a concept,
producing little if any benefit to the institutions that have developed them.
Campus Campus Leadership Lack of larger university support for SC change—no involvement by university
governing bodies—lack of standing for librarians.
Campus Campus leadership The lack of designated central campus resources for significant scholarly
communication functions, such as for example a central authority on copyright
issues or a scholarly communication czar.
Campus Decentralized campus
structure
Decentralized university structure makes communication and collaboration
across various units very difficult. It is often the case that one unit is pursuing
an initiative relevant to scholarly communications about which no one else is
aware.
Campus Decentralized campus
structure
The mechanisms for contacting users (faculty) are limited to brochure mailings
and an occasional mass e-mail (which are limited in length and must go
through campus approval).
Campus Decentralized campus
structure
There is currently no scholarly communications committee and no campus-wide
copyright policy. Challenge for the scholarly communications program is to
overcome the decentralized structure to get both of these things going.
Campus Decentralized campus
structure
Transmission—Lack of an easily accessible network across all disciplines.
Faculty Apathy A low interest level.
Faculty Apathy Antipathy towards scholarly publication issues.
Faculty Apathy Apathy on part of faculty.
