Low Morale in Ethnic and Racial Minority Academic Librarians: An Experiential Study

Abstract

Library and information science (LIS) literature about workplace bullying and burnout in academic libraries continues to grow, and a recent study has revealed the experience of low morale in the same environment. Concomitantly, research focusing on continuing recruitment, promotion, advancement, and retention problems for ethnic and minority librarians; links between North American library values and workplace abuse; and historiographies on the historic marginalization of minority librarians has also appeared in LIS literature. Citing aforementioned developments in LIS literature and the racially homogenous participant make-up of Kendrick's 2017 study of low morale in academic libraries, this follow-up qualitative study focuses on racial and ethnic minority academic librarians to understand this group's experience of low morale. Emerging data validate the development, trajectory, and health-related consequences of low morale; center the load of additional impact factors; and highlight the impact of low morale on recruitment and retention efforts of racial and ethnic minority librarians employed in North American colleges and universities.

Quantitative analysis of workplace morale in academic librarians and the impact of direct supervisors on workplace morale

“…As previously noted, the sample sizes for the minority race groups may be too small to make any definitive conclusions about the impact of race on workplace morale. Kendrick and Damasco (2019) should be consulted for more current information on the workplace morale experience of minority academic librarians. The age and work experience of an individual were found to have a weak significant relationship to workplace morale.…”

Radical re-imagination: centering a BIPOC library workforce in an asset-based autoethnography

“…Although our study did not incorporate outside observers like Keenan and Evans (2014), the estrangement autoethnography format still resonates with our research goals: We applied an asset-based mindset to envision a library workforce and workspace that defies the dominant narrative imposed upon many BIPOC library staff. For many BIPOC librarians, the library workspace is riddled by low morale resulting from institutional, social, and political systems centered around race (Kendrick and Damasco, 2019, p. 182). We instead situated ourselves in an imagined landscape where the entire workforce identifies as BIPOC.…”

Voices of the Stacks: A Multifaceted Inquiry into Academic Librarians' Tweets

“…Job satisfaction, morale, and burnout among librarians and library workers have become favored topics among library and information science researchers (Colon‐Aguirre & Webb, 2020; Falcone & McCartin, 2022; Kendrick, 2017; Kendrick & Damasco, 2019; Martin, 2020). The recent surge in such studies reflects broader societal concerns about social justice and institutional accountability, especially in the US academy (Lopez, 2021; Rothman & Barraza Mendoza, 2021; Wilder, 2013).…”

“…In contrast, studies on vocational awe have emphasized the negative aspects of library employment and portray the library profession as exploitative and oppressive toward its members. Recent literature on academic librarians' job satisfaction and morale has delved into the phenomenology of workplace morale, examining the experience of low morale among librarians (Kendrick, 2017) and the extent to which marginalized groups experience it (Kendrick & Damasco, 2019). Furthermore, research has investigated the extent of “burnout” – the end state of low morale – among academic librarians (Colon‐Aguirre & Webb, 2020).…”