Journal Literature of LIS 1

Kimberly Curran
LIS 600
Assignment #3
October 13, 2016
The Journal Literature of LIS: Library Trends

Library Trends is an academic journal that focuses on trends affecting the library and

information science profession. It began publication in 1952, by the University of Illinois Library

School, which has since been renamed the University of Illinois School of Library and

Information Science, and continues to be published today on a quarterly basis. The journal

examines current trends and the effects they may have on the future of the profession, as well as

uses historical data to examine past trends and the ways they have informed the profession today.

This paper reviews volume 10 of Library Trends, published from 1961 to 1962, and volume 60,

published from 2011 to 2012.

Each of the four issues in each volume of Library Trends focuses on a particular topic

within the profession. Volume 10 breaks from this pattern somewhat in the structure of the first

two issues. Issue 2, Future of Library Science: Demographic Aspects and Implications, contains

a number of articles exploring the ways that changing demographics could affect libraries and

their services, including “Large Public Libraries,” “School Libraries in City School Systems,”

and “Educational Trends in Rural and County School Libraries” (University of Illinois Library

School, 1961-1962). Meanwhile, issue 1, Population Trends – Prologue to Library Development,

is dedicated entirely to outlining the demographic research that informs the articles in issue 2,

including trends in population growth in urban and suburban areas, school enrollment and

completion by age and gender, and – briefly – race (1961).

Library Trends, volume 10, issue 3, Current Trends in U.S. Periodical Publishing,

concentrates on contemporary shifts in periodical publishing practices. It features articles such as

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“The Economics of Periodical Publishing,” “Periodicals in the Visual Arts,” and “Indexing,

Abstracting, and Translation Services,” which addresses some accessibility issues in periodicals

(University of Illinois Library School, 1961-1962). Issue 4, Urban University Libraries, contains

articles exploring how shifting demographics in urban areas affect urban libraries and their

services. Some articles included in this issue are “The Development of the Urban University

Library,” “Library Cooperation in an Urban Setting: The Pittsburgh Story,” and “The

Urbacultural Opportunity” (1962).

An example of the way Library Trends contributors analyze trends and make predictions

about the future needs of libraries can be seen in the volume 10 article “Audio-Visual Materials.”

This article looks at the different kinds of audio-visual materials libraries provided in 1961 and

uses analysis of then-current trends to discuss the future of these materials in libraries. While the

inclusion of maps in library collections takes up a surprisingly large section of the article, author

James Nolan does predict a move toward libraries including more music recordings in their

collections, particularly if technology were to continue to move toward a form of audio storage

more durable and easy to store than vinyl records, and more films, particularly if videotapes were

to become a more popular film medium in subsequent decades (Nolan, 1961). He advocates that

libraries consider the impact these potential demands will have on their services and adjust their

planning and budgeting accordingly (1961). Nolan’s predictions closely parallel the

technological changes that did take place, and an argument could be made that his comments

within the article about microfilm and miniaturization eventually resulting in books so small they

take up almost no space is similar to what we’re seeing now with e-books and the proliferation of

digital resources.
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Volume 60 of Library Trends was published from 2011 to 2012. One of the major themes

of this volume is information literacy, which is explored in the articles contained in issues 2 and

3. John Crawford, in his introduction to issue 2, describes information literacy as the skills and

techniques individuals need in order to utilize “the wide range of information tools as well as

primary sources” necessary for “molding information solutions to their problems" (University of

Illinois School of Library and Information Science, 2011-2012, p. 257). These include not only

issues of general information literacy and library policy, but also more specific applications, such

as health information literacy and issues surrounding lifelong learning. A sampling of the articles

contained in these two issues includes “Reconnecting Information Literacy Policy with the Core

Values of Librarianship” and “Think Global, Act Local: Expanding the Agenda for Media

Literacy Education in the United States,” as well as “Information and Health Literacy in the

Balance” and “Helping the Non-Scholar Scholar: Information Literacy for Lifelong Learners”

(2011-2012).

Issue 1 of volume 60 focuses on past and present trends in library architecture and the

effects it can have on a library’s efficacy, with such articles as “Collections to Connections:

Changing Spaces and New Challenges in Academic Library Buildings,” “The Emergence and

Challenge of the Modern Library Building,” and “Sustainability as a Driving Force in

Contemporary Library Design” (University of Illinois School of Library and Information

Science, 2011-2012). Issue 4 features articles that use the acquisitions data for five small

Midwestern libraries dating from the first half of the twentieth century to examine trends in the

provision of diverse literature, and other information resources that diverged from the

mainstream thought of the time. These included articles like “Evolution in Children’s Science
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Books: Recommendations and Library Collections, 1863–1956” and “Canonicity and the

American Public Library: The Case of American Women Writers” (2012).

One such article from issue 4 is “Hidden in Plain Sight: Gay and Lesbian Books in

Midwestern Public Libraries, 1900-1969.” This article explores the prevalence of books with gay

and lesbian themes or characters in these libraries in the mid-twentieth century, particularly in

light of the library’s mandate to combat censorship, and the likelihood of individuals turning to

their libraries for answers and validation about their identity (Passet, 2012). Passet ultimately

concluded that these libraries acquired only a small percentage of the available literature, but that

this was likely due to a combination of complacency, prevailing cultural norms, and the materials

largely being marketed in such a way as to make their diverse themes nearly invisible (2012). It

was found that the libraries with the greatest amount of diverse material also had staff with the

most formal training, allowing for the interpretation that increased LIS training among library

staff is part of the bridge from the slightly more diverse collections then to the intentionally

inclusive collections of now (2012). Moving forward, as these materials become even less niche

and librarians continue to embrace the ALA’s guidelines concerning censorship and diversity,

inclusive collections will likely come to be far more normal than radical.

The Library Trends journal examines current and contemporary trends in the library and

information profession and analyzes them in order to look toward future library services and uses

historical data to examine the evolution of past trends in their historical context. Reviewing these

articles, it’s clear that technology will continue to evolve and libraries must strive to evolve with

it to continue providing up to date and relevant services to their users. In the same way, cultural

norms will continue to change, and librarians must work to fulfill their ethical obligation to

provide information resources and materials for all members of their diverse communities.
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Bibliography

Nolan, J. L. (1961, October). Audio-Visual Materials. Library Trends, 10(2), 261-272.

Passet, J. E. (2012). Hidden in Plain Sight: Gay and Lesbian Books in Midwestern Public

Libraries, 1900–1969. Library Trends, 60(4), 749-762.

University of Illinois Library School. (1961-1962). Library Trends, 10.

University of Illinois School of Library and Information Science. (2011-2012). Library Trends,

60.