(eds. Fisher, Karen. Sanda Erdelez. Lynne McKechnie. Theories of Information Behavior.)
Now you have a name for those feelings of dread whenever you have to ask a librarian for help. Or maybe it starts before then--maybe the hairs on your neck rise as soon as you step through the intimidating machines that scan for books you might steal. Perhaps your knees tremble when you meet the glaring beady eyes of the librarian, who makes you think about that Charlie Brown comic book you forgot to return when you were eight years old. Whenever the feeling arises, there is an actual term for it: library anxiety.
A professor named Constance Mellon found that when asked about their library experience, students talked less about finding information and more about the fear they felt inside the library. But where did this fear originate? Why does the public hesitate to approach a librarian? Why isn't the library space a welcoming place?
I would like to present a few images of libraries and librarians in popular culture that may help us understand the origins of library anxiety.
River City Library
The Music Man's Marian is perhaps the epitome of the librarian stereotype: the tightly-wound, hair-in-a-bun, shushing female librarian (complete with glasses)! Professor Harold Hill says it all: "the civilized world accepts as unforgivable sin any talking out loud with any librarian!" But clearly all a librarian needs is a good-looking con man to loosen up and dance on their antique furniture. Don't you love how everyone enters the library in a march? And how the men have to remove their identical glasses to dance?
The New York Public Library
Poor Alice! Imagine being attacked by incorporeal beings while wandering the labyrinth of musty-smelling shelves! If this is what lives in the library, it's understandable that people hesitate to spend any great length of time here. That chill you feel in the air? Not the air conditioning, dude--it's probably a hint that some ectoplasmic residual is coming your way. At least you know who to call . . .
Your local library?
Hopefully not. But just in case, you'd better brush up on your Dewey. Or just avoid the library altogether.
Sunnydale High School Library
Don't think school libraries are any exception to the rule. This particular library is built over the entrance to the Hellmouth. Pros? The cage of weaponry, the largest occult collection in print, and a resident Vampire Slayer. But is it worth the risk? Don't forget to factor in the distance, the time spent researching, and the likelihood of an apocalypse . . .
Conclusion
Obviously, these are extreme cases of people and events that cause library anxiety. But there are some valuable lessons for librarians:
1. If you sing and dance, the library becomes a happier place.
2. Library ghosts are crankier than librarians. Just let them play with the card catalog and they will calm down.
3. Refrain from wearing your barbarian suit to work. Oh, and leave the cleaver at home. I know RUSA doesn't state this in their ethics, but I guarantee this will increase your approachability.
4. Don't establish your rare books collection on a Hellmouth. Oh, and don't scan demons into your database. They really mess with your network.
