Principlism and the Ethics of Librarianship

Wilkinson, Lane

doi:10.1080/02763877.2014.853270

Cited by 5 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…One thing we should clearly do is make the examination of our ethical responsibilities as librarians part of our regular reference practice. This is in line with the call for a principlist approach in library ethics by Wilkinson (2014), in which individuals faced with an ethical choice make their decisions based on an evaluation of their principles and values. In addition, the authors would also argue that it is also important for librarians to be proactive in the education of students on intellectual property rights.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 60%

“…However, there is very little that deals specifically with the reference desk. If we take a principlist approach, as recommended by Wilkinson (2014), librarians must consider their core values and try to make ethical decisions based on a thorough analysis Besides privacy, intellectual property, and freedom of access to information, we should also care about the type of atmosphere we want to inculcate in the library. We want students to know that they can come to us for help.…”

Section: Best Practices From the Library Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

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Instructing College Students on the Ethics of Information Use at the Reference Desk: A Guide and Literature Review

Datig¹,

Russell²

2014

The Reference Librarian

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As educators and members of the academic community, reference librarians should take a proactive stance towards instructing students on the ethics of information use. The authors summarize best practices from the existing library literature, consider the context of ethical information use from a global perspective, and make an argument for the role of librarians. Our goal is to provide a guide for librarians attempting to successfully integrate ethical issues such as intellectual property and academic integrity into their reference instruction.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 60%

Section: Best Practices From the Library Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

Instructing College Students on the Ethics of Information Use at the Reference Desk: A Guide and Literature Review

Datig¹,

Russell²

2014

The Reference Librarian

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“…In a recent article in The Reference Librarian, Lane Wilkinson expressed a similar idea, stating that codes are "generally silent when it comes to moral decision making at the point of service" [8]. There are potential situations in which someone has to act quickly and does not have time to apply a complex, multistep model.…”

Section: Ethical Decision Makingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There are potential situations in which someone has to act quickly and does not have time to apply a complex, multistep model. He es pouses six principles for librarianship: ■ Competence ■ Diligence ■ Respect for autonomy ■ Fidelity ■ Respect for community ■ Justice I highly recommend reading Wilkinson's paper, which provides background on the philosophy of ethics as well as three case exam ples, including a medical case [8]. Models do not work as well in situations where imme diate decisions are required, as they often are in public service situations.…”

Section: Ethical Decision Makingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Emphasis on ethical awareness: why ethics? why now

Jones¹

2014

J Med Libr Assoc

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“…Practitioners of another profession, psychiatry, realized in recent years that they were not well prepared to cope with terrorism and they now need to promote applicable communication and research (Stoddard et al, 2011). Similarly, Wilkinson (2014) points out that librarians can incorporate principles of morality customarily employed by physicians. Is it time for librarians to do something similar by promoting research and awareness about the pros and cons of being proactive with our patrons?…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Requests About Explosives and Illicit Drugs: A New Paradigm

Barnett

2014

The Reference Librarian

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Addresses what reference librarians should do when patrons ask for information about explosives or dangerous drugs. Explores how reference librarians can possibly deter people from dangerous, unmediated searches by proactively providing information and actual examples on the dangers and risks of making and using these materials. What should you do when patrons ask you how to help them obtain information on explosives or illegal drugs? This is an old question first addressed in the library literature decades ago (Hauptman, 1976). Should we simply help patrons as we would for any other type of request, or do we have a higher duty to society in general and not help patrons obtain information that may potentially damage others? Hauptman visited 13 libraries, both academic and public, asking for information on constructing an explosive device, and none of them refused to supply the information on ethical grounds. Several years later Dowd (1989) performed a similar experiment. He also sampled 13 libraries, both academic and public, but instead of explosives he asked reference librarians if they would help him find out how to freebase cocaine. In his dress, speech, and manner he looked like a non-academic, and he tried to indicate that he was not engaged in scholarly research. Here too, no librarian turned him down. The help he received ranged from extensive to minimal. Despite the similarity of these two experiments, Hauptman, both in his original study and upon reflection 20 years later (Hauptman, 1996), and Dowd reached different conclusions. Hauptman concluded that supplying such information implies an abrogation of professional, social, and human responsibility, while Dowd affirmed the necessity for the unfettered dissemination of information. A day after the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995, a patron asked me for information on explosives. Maybe she was just curious about explosives. Perhaps she had plans for a copycat bombing. I decided that it was not my role as a librarian to ask her why she wanted this information. I directed her to several reliable books in our collection. These books, selected by professional librarians, explained the full scope of explosives, including their dangers, and necessary precautions in their manufacture and handling. I could have turned down this request. What might have been the result if I had? If this patron was actually planning on making explosives would she have sought less reliable information on explosive manufacture, thus exposing herself and others to risks? Moral dilemmas like this are nagging questions that are hard to deal with because we can never really know the exact intentions of the patron.

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Principlism and the Ethics of Librarianship

Cited by 5 publications

References 41 publications

Instructing College Students on the Ethics of Information Use at the Reference Desk: A Guide and Literature Review

Instructing College Students on the Ethics of Information Use at the Reference Desk: A Guide and Literature Review

Emphasis on ethical awareness: why ethics? why now

Requests About Explosives and Illicit Drugs: A New Paradigm

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