• 18 January 2016, 13:29

Theme:

"User Experience (UX) and Social Science Libraries in the Digital Age"

The Social Science Libraries in the 21^st century collect and provide access to information resources to promote economic development and to empower citizens for a participatory society.  The digital age has rapidly transformed the way information is organized, delivered, accessed, and used throughout the academic, business and information world. Furthermore, the advent of the web 2.0 technologies and services using social networking tools, mobile applications, online education, and open source information materials, are increasingly redefining the dynamics of how people learn, access, present and  process information onsite and remotely. Thus understanding the nature, provenance and scope of information and how users interact with this information ecosystem should inform the conceptual framework and the practice of social science libraries. In the role of collaborator and stewards of information, the Social Science Libraries have evolved from the service model established in print-only era. Crucial areas to take into consideration include commitment to open access to information in support to enable social participation for national development, focus on capacity building for social change, emergence of interdisciplinary investigations, data related methodologies and tools, and the role of social media and Web 2.0 connecting the users with the libraries. In addition to specific practices that impact library operations, we invite theoretical framework on what constitute social science libraries in the 21^st century and perspectives from different global regions.

The Social Sciences Libraries Section and the Asia and Oceania Section invites applications for a panel presentation from librarians and library educators whose projects explore aspects of our theme. Such studies may focus on specific time period(s) or geographical location(s).

Topics

Possible topics relevant to the program theme might explore:

• Formal and informal practices reconfiguring social science library operations addressing user experience
• Open access initiatives and institutional repositories
• Use of social media and Web 2.0 as new channels to connect with stakeholders
• Dynamic online collections and its impact on library operations
• Hiring practices and capacity building
• New areas of growth for the social science libraries; for example collaboration between libraries and government development initiatives.
• New literacies for social sciences
• Archival issues of social media

Submission Guidelines

Proposals should include:

• An abstract of paper (approximately 500 words).
• A summary of the author(s) details (name, institution, position, email) and brief biographical statement of no more than 50 words.

Proposals should be submitted electronically to:

Kayo Denda
Email: kdenda@rutgers.edu no later than 1 March 2016 and indicate ‘IFLA proposal’ in the subject line.

Selected presenters will be notified by 15 March 2016.

Papers should reflect the 2016 conference theme “Connections. Collaboration. Community.”

Full papers

The deadline for the final version of the full papers accepted for the session is 1 May 2016. Papers should be in English (or in one of the official IFLA languages, with an English translation attached).  The language of the session will be English. Presenters will have 20 minutes in the program session to deliver their papers, and time will be allowed for an open forum to allow audience interaction.

Important Deadlines

1 March 2016	Proposals should be submitted
15 March 2016	Selected presenters will be notified
1 May 2016	The deadline for final version of the full papers

Please note

At least one of the paper’s authors must be present to deliver a summary of the paper during the program in Columbus, Ohio. Abstracts should only be submitted with the understanding that the expenses of attending the conference will be the responsibility of the author(s)/presenter(s) of accepted papers.

All papers that are presented at the WLIC 2016 will be made available online via the IFLA Library under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license.

Authors of accepted papers must complete the IFLA Authors’ Permission Form.

All expenses, including registration for the conference, travel, accommodation etc., are the responsibility of the authors/presenters. No financial support can be provided by IFLA, but a special invitation letter can be issued to authors.

Congress Participation Grants

List of opportunities for support is available on our Conference Participation Grants webpage.