Objective -This study was designed to assess users' reactions to two newly re-designed spacesone intended for quiet study and the other for group study -in the busiest library branch of a large research university. The researchers sought to answer the following questions: For which activity (group work, quiet study, and lounging or relaxing) do the users feel the space is most effective? Which furniture pieces do users prefer and for which activities? How are these spaces being used?Methods -Researchers used a mixed-methods approach for this study. Two methods -surveys and comment boards -were used to gather user feedback on preference for use of the space and users' feelings about particular furniture types. A third method -observation -was used to determine which of the particular areas and furniture pieces occupants were using most, for Evidence Based Library and Information Practice 2014, 9.3 5 which activities the furniture was most commonly used, and what types of possessions occupants most often carried with them.Results -User opinion indicated that each of the spaces assessed was most effective for the type of activity for which it was designed. Of the 80% of respondents that indicated they would use the quiet study space for quiet study, 91% indicated that the space was either "very effective" or "effective" for that purpose. The survey results also indicated that 47% of the respondents would use the group study space for that purpose. The observation data confirmed that the quiet study space was being used primarily for individual study; however, the data for the group study space showed equal levels of use for individual and group study. Users expressed a preference for traditional furniture, such as tables and desk chairs, over comfortable pieces for group work and for quiet study. One exception was a cushioned reading chair that was the preferred item for quiet study in 23% of the responses. The white boards were chosen as a preferred item for group study by 27% of respondents. The observations showed similar results for group study, with the three table types and the desk chair being used most often. The lounge chairs and couch grouping was used most often for individual study, followed by the tables and desk chairs.Conclusion -By combining user feedback gathered through surveys and comment boards with usage patterns determined via observation data, the researchers were able to answer the questions for which their assessment was designed. Results were analyzed to compare userstated preferences with actual behaviour and were used to make future design decisions for other library spaces. Although the results of this study are institutionally specific, the methodology could be successfully applied in other library settings.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the effect of an electronic noise-monitoring device (NoiseSign) at reducing noise levels in quiet study areas in an academic library. Design/methodology/approach – Surveys and decibel-level measurements were used to measure the perceived and objective noise levels, respectively, in both an intervention and a control area of two major branch libraries. Patrons’ perception of noise was measured with a passive paper and online survey, which asked patrons to rate the current noise level and their desired noise level. The actual noise measurements were collected twice a day with a hand-held decibel reader for 60 seconds and then corroborated after the intervention with automatically logged decibel readings from the noise monitor device in the two intervention areas. The authors conducted one-way ANOVA’s to determine if the results were significant. Findings – The NoiseSign had no statistically significant effect on either actual noise levels or user perceptions of noise in the library. The surveys comments and anecdotal observation of the spaces while doing measurements did reveal that noise in the quiet study areas was not the primary source of complaints. Originality/value – In spite of many proposed solutions to reducing noise in libraries, there has been very little research in this area. This is the first study to examine the effectiveness of using a noise-monitoring device in reducing noise levels at an academic library.

As higher education diversifies worldwide, academic librarians must adapt their information literacy initiatives to meet the needs of new populations. This paper explores the implementation of information literacy instruction and library services for diverse adult learners, in response to Cooke’s (2010) call for case studies on the relationship between andragogy and information literacy. Based on librarians’ success in reaching a previously underserved continuing education department, a variety of practical techniques for working with diverse students and instructors are discussed, with a focus on how learners’ characteristics inform the approaches. Effective techniques from adult education theory and information literacy practice are discussed in the context of outreach to continuing education learners. Librarians adapt instruction and communication strategies for students with varying levels of language, library, and technology skills; teach outside usual “business hours”; teach online; integrate information literacy outcomes in course curricula; tailor communication to students and instructors; and continually develop entirely new workshops based upon the content specific to continuing education programmes. Through these efforts, this unique group of students and instructors has been provided with previously unrealised access to information literacy training and library services. Challenges in outreach and teaching remain; however, the groundwork has been laid for a sustained liaison relationship. Future work will include systematic evaluation of successes and changing needs so that structured information literacy efforts, tailored for continuing education students, can evolve over time.

The open access movement has been growing steadily over the past 20 years. Recently, many national funding agencies in North America have required recipients of grant funding to make their articles open access. On the surface this produces a potential conflict for management researchers; management faculty members are expected to publish in prestigious journals, but the discipline views open access journals as being of lower quality (Hahn & Wyatt, 2014, p.98). As such, the question arises: is it possible for management researchers to comply with open access policies while still publishing in highly-ranked journals? This article will compare publishing policies from top management journals to funding agencies' open access requirements in order to determine which journals meet these conditions. Journals will be drawn from several established journal lists such as the University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) 24, the Financial Times Research Rankings, and Thomson Reuters' Web of Science Journal Citation Reports. Results show that 80% of journals in the sample set are compatible with open access funding mandates. Of the journals which are compatible, 48% require an article processing charge (APC) and 52% permit self-archiving in an acceptable time-frame. In addition to discussing open access publishing opportunities in management, this article will highlight opportunities for management librarians to develop their services and act as resources for faculty navigating this framework.

The dominance of commercial publishers (Larivière, Haustein, and Mongeon 2015) has led to a discussion in Canada focusing on alternative models for supporting independent, non-commercial, scholarly journals. Although small in number, these journals represent an important contribution to Canadian and global scholarship. They also act as a counterbalance to the increasingly for-profit nature of scholarly publishing. Despite their importance, there exists no definitive list of journals of this nature in Canada, making analysis and understanding of their characteristics difficult.In order to address this gap, the researchers undertook an analysis of the websites of 485 Canadian, independent, scholarly journals. Independent was defined as journals which are not affiliated with a commercial publisher. The researchers gathered data for each journal on their access type (e.g., closed, open access), subject area, size and composition of the editorial team, and any affiliation(s). This data was then analyzed to create a portrait of these journals with these themes. The researchers found that most of these journals were affiliated with at least one organization, with over half being associated with two or more. They also discovered that affiliations varied depending on the discipline and that the size of the editorial team was correlated to the access type. Journals were predominantly in the humanities and social sciences, and the majority were open access (OA) without article processing charges (APCs).While the focus of this study is on Canadian journals, this article provides a framework for other researchers to examine non-commercial, independent publishing in their own countries. Its results also provide preliminary data which may inspire future avenues of research, particularly into models for non-APC, open access journals as well as the editorial board structure and size for independent journals.