Reference Services to Incarcerated People, Part I: Themes Emerging from Answering Reference Questions from Prisons and Jails

Incarcerated people face significant information poverty, both because of limited access to information resources and because incarceration itself produces information needs that cannot be easily met. Through a content analysis of reference questions directed to the New York Public Library's Co...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Reference and user services quarterly 2015-09, Vol.55 (1), p.42-48
Main Authors: Drabinski, Emily, Rabina, Debbie
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Access to information
Content analysis
Correctional institutions
Employment
Feature
Information literacy
Information Needs
Internet
Law Libraries
Librarians
Libraries
Libraries and readers
Library Personnel
Methods
Prisoners
Prisons
Psychological aspects
Public services (Libraries)
Reading Materials
Reference Services
Citations: Items that cite this one
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Summary:Incarcerated people face significant information poverty, both because of limited access to information resources and because incarceration itself produces information needs that cannot be easily met. Through a content analysis of reference questions directed to the New York Public Library's Correctional Services Program, this study articulates the particular information needs of these users. Information needs cluster around self-help and re-entry information, along with general reference queries that typically go unanswered due to the lack of access to the Internet and robust general libraries in correctional facilities. Understanding these needs offers insight for librarians and libraries seeking to better serve incarcerated populations.
ISSN:1094-9054
2163-5242
1094-9054
DOI:10.5860/rusq.55n1.42