The public library, exclusion and empathy: a literature review

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a review of the literature within the fields of public librarianship, social exclusion and empathy. Design/methodology/approach – The cross-disciplinary review involved the consultation of material from disciplines including library and information management, politics, social policy and social sciences, cultural studies, psychology, management and organizational theory. It was structured according to the following themes: exclusion, inclusion and social policy, social inclusion in public services and the cultural sector, the role of public libraries in social inclusion and professional empathy and the public library service. Findings –The concept of social inclusion remains at the core of public library policy and strategy, and is embedded in contemporary social theory. Conflicting views have emerged as to the perceived and actual role of the public library in combating social exclusion, with a need expressed for research to be conducted that bridges the gap between the “philosophical” interpretations of community librarianship and the more practical, “real world” studies, in order to fully understand the concept of community librarianship. A critical link is made between social inclusion and public librarianship to professional empathy. Research limitations/implications – The paper provides an edited version of the overall literature review, yet it is felt that it would be of theoretical and practical relevance and value to the professional and academic communities. Originality/value – Empathy is a relatively new concept in librarianship research, and prior to the study of which this review forms a part only limited findings have been available

Health literacy practices in social virtual worlds and the influence on health behaviour

This study explored how health information accessed via a 3D social virtual world and the representation of ‘self’ through the use of an avatar impact physical world health behaviour. In-depth interviews were conducted in a sample of 25 people, across 10 countries, who accessed health information in a virtual world (VW): 12 females and 13 males. Interviews were audio-recorded via private in-world voice chat or via private instant message. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. The social skills and practices evidenced demonstrate how the collective knowledge and skills of communities in VWs can influence improvements in individual and community health literacy through a distributed model. The findings offer support for moving away from the idea of health literacy as a set of skills which reside within an individual to a sociocultural model of health literacy. Social VWs can offer a place where people can access health information in multiple formats through the use of an avatar, which can influence changes in behaviour in the physical world and the VW. This can lead to an improvement in social skills and health literacy practices and represents a social model of health literacy

Developing the scales on evaluation beliefs of student teachers

The purpose of the study reported in this paper was to investigate the validity and the reliability of a newly developed questionnaire named ‘Teacher Evaluation Beliefs’ (TEB). The framework for developing items was provided by the two models. The first model focuses on Student-Centered and Teacher-Centered beliefs about evaluation while the other centers on five dimensions (what/ who/ when/ why/ how). The validity and reliability of the new instrument was investigated using both exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis study (n=446). Overall results indicate that the two-factor structure is more reasonable than the five-factor one. Further research needs additional items about the latent dimensions “what” ”who” ”when” ”why” “how” for each existing factor based on Student-centered and Teacher-centered approaches

Talking together : consumer communities in healthcare

Consumer involvement in computer mediated communities (CMCs) is increasing particularly in high involvement services such as healthcare. This paper examines the role of CMCs as providers of patient information and support and the subsequent effect on the relationship between 'informed' consumers and health care providers. The evolving dialogue between consumers in virtual communities provides one key axis along which professional service consumption will evolve. The challenge for service consumers is to develop frameworks that facilitate robust dialogue and exchange of information and emotional support to complement their rising authority. The parallel challenge is for the established medical profession to recognise the consequences of this evolving dialogue and develop approaches to service delivery that effectively engage with consumers on the basis of this increasing authority

Munchausen by internet: current research and future directions.

The Internet has revolutionized the health world, enabling self-diagnosis and online support to take place irrespective of time or location. Alongside the positive aspects for an individual's health from making use of the Internet, debate has intensified on how the increasing use of Web technology might have a negative impact on patients, caregivers, and practitioners. One such negative health-related behavior is Munchausen by Internet

Negotiating conflict and negativity in an online\ud Community for recovering heart pateints

When an online community has been set up to support members living\ud with heart disease, it has a responsibility to provide a safe environment in terms of\ud emotional security and accurate health information. Unfortunately, in online\ud communities as in communities generally, relationships developed among\ud members can sometimes go awry. Situations can arise where private exchanges\ud between members exacerbate public discord and conflict erupts: occasionally with\ud both sides having legitimate reason to feel aggrieved. At this point, a usually selfregulating community can polarise and request the moderator's intervention. What\ud happens when the moderator is perceived to be doing nothing about the situation\ud and members of the community take matters into their own hands? This paper\ud discusses the implications and challenges of conflict in a therapeutic community.\ud It acknowledges that sometimes the situation can be too complex for simple\ud resolution and that in such circumstances, one or both of the conflicted parties\ud may have to withdraw from the site for a period of time

Why Should I Provide Social Support? A Social Capital Perspective of Individual Helping Behavior in Healthcare Virtual Support Communities

The phenomenon of online social support has been studied for years. However, little is known about the factors that drive individual online helping behavior. While the Information systems literature provides rich insights into the determinants of online social support, the emphasis has been exclusively on the provision of informational help. By contending the need to expand our investigation to different types of support, this paper studies individual provisions of both informational and emotional social support in healthcare virtual support communities (HVSCs). Drawing on social capital theory, the structural, relational, and cognitive dimensions of social capital are conceptualized as the social support determinants. The results show that the social capital dimensions can be both facilitators and inhibitors of the two types of social support. This study can contribute not only to the literature on HVSCs, but also to studies of other types of virtual communities such as electronic networks of practice

How Trust Is Formed in Online Health Communities: A Process Perspective

People are increasingly looking for health-related information and support to empower their self-management and decision making. Online health communities have not only become an important alternative source of patient-centered information but also appear to serve an emotional support role in connecting patients who have similar medical conditions. Trust is critical to sustain their continuous use and enhance their involvement. This is because each community member is typically identified only by a pseudonym, important personal information is often revealed, the quality of information provided by others varies, and the consequences of acting on incorrect advice can be severe. Using semi-structured interviews and data from postings, this study qualitatively explores the trust development between users of forum-based online health communities. Based on data from a wide range of medical conditions, we formulated a three-process framework for establishing trust that conceptualizes how users build trust through the text-based medium and how they progress from one process to another. We contribute to theory by extending existing variance theories in trust to a hybrid process theory which explains the dynamic progression from one state to another. It suggests several design foci that can enhance user experience of these forums