Intercultural Communication: A Global Reader--Review and Evaluation

Jandt, F.E. (Ed.). (2004). Intercultural Communication: A Global Reader. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.

Intercultural Communication is a handbook of readings on the interplay of language, culture, and identity on a global scale. While the focus of the book is on intercultural communication, as the title suggests, the book is as much a sociological examination of globalization and the changing relationships between nations as it is a treatise on communication. Consequently, the scope of this work is quite broad. It covers several broad topics on communication between cultures, and narrows down towards the end of the book to talk specifically about globalization and the relationships between the developed and developing parts of the world. Consequently, this work covers a myriad of issues from a variety of cultures, and contains enough on each that there is depth to every topic covered. Thus, this work succeeds in achieving both breadth and depth of scope, making it a particularly useful resource.

This work is written for an undergraduate audience. The language is fairly simple, and the readings are relatively straightforward. Thus, this work would be accessible to a large portion of the general public. Researchers in the field of communication may find this work useful, and the overall scholarship of its constituent articles is good. However, most serious researchers or professionals in communications would desire to seek other, more in-depth resources to meet their needs. The entries in this work are deeper than an encyclopedia, but not as rigorous as would be found in a typical scholarly handbook.

Even though it is ten years old, this work still remains relevant. The topics that it covers include issues of national identity, dying languages, conflict in the Middle East, fallout from nineteenth and twentieth century colonialization, and globalization as a result of leaps forward in communications technology. Each of these topics are still relevant in today’s world. Even though the information this book has to offer is a bit dated, and the perspective on any of the given topics may feel a little old, the overall themes and subjects covered in this work remain highly relevant and timely in the modern field of communications. As a result, this remains a work that could be used to reach a better understanding of modern communications.

The authority of this work is also quite sound. The lead editor holds a doctorate in the field of communications and has spent decades performing research on intercultural communications around the world. Furthermore, he has taught on communications at several prestigious institutions (Jandt 2004, pg. viii). Thus, the lead editor of this work is quite qualified to oversee the editing and compilation of this handbook because of his decades of education and hands-on research in international and intercultural communication. Moreover, the authors selected for this work are all respected in their field and writing about their own cultures (Jandt 2004, pg. ix). Thus, each is well suited to speak on their particular area of expertise, and relay that information in this handbook. All of this lends this work a good deal of authority.

 The documentation of Intercultural Communications is its weakest point. Like many undergraduate handbooks, most of the articles have had their bibliographies excised from the text and put elsewhere, probably online. Therefore the documentation of this work is inconsistent. Several articles retain their full bibliographies, some have partials, and a few have absolutely no references whatsoever. This lack further removes this work from being useful for a serious communications researcher or professional, and even weakens its utility for the undergraduate student.

Finally, this work is designed specifically to present an unbiased take on the topics being presented. Jandt writes that he chose authors for each part of this work from around the world. Furthermore, no author writes on a topic that is outside of their own culture. Thus, no authors are imposing their own viewpoints on the cultures or perspectives outside of their own. This removes much of the danger for bias inherent in writing a text on intercultural communication because it ensures that one viewpoint is not being imposed on every aspect of the issue, but rather allows multiple peoples and cultures to speak for themselves. This lends a good deal of weight to the words in this text, and makes it that much more powerful of a tool for providing and introduction to intercultural communications.  

Communications Module Synthesis

In examining the ACRL EBSS website, I found two main things. The first is that the site is poorly maintained. I noticed the same thing that many of my classmates commented on, which is that not all of the links work, and even some that do no longer direct to the pages they are supposed to. I clicked one link that was supposed to lead to collection development suggestions from the University of San Diego only to find that USD has since remodeled its website, and the linked page no longer existed. Furthermore, some of the information presented in the site itself has not been updated since before I graduated high school. While I think this is partly understandable, given that some of the standards are still quite relevant seven years later, I do wish that there was a more frequent review done by the web master for ACRL EBSS. Overall, the site needs to be revisited and updated.

Furthermore, I noticed that most of the information on the site was geared towards collection development, and not necessarily reference work. While the lists of resources and journals could prove useful to a reference librarian, the bulk of the wiki was dedicated to providing standards and context for creating a sound collection of communications material. Thus, while I think the site has merit for any librarian, it is certainly not a resource that I would recommend for patron use.

The first article we read, on “Information Literacy and Communication Research” I found both insightful and refreshing. As I state in my Reddit review of the article, I was taken with two main aspects of it. First, the article was published in 2013 meaning that it is up-to-date. I am pleased with this because it means the article is still of relevance, and the conclusions the authors reach are not using antiquated search or information seeking strategies. Second, this study was finally done by people who seem to understand that the best way for undergraduate students, or anyone for that matter, to learn how to use library resources is to do so in the context of what they are already learning. At every point in the program, it was designed to seamlessly bring the library into the research work the students were performing and thus aid them, rather than hinder or frustrate them, in writing their research paper. I am confident that the overwhelmingly positive results the researchers report come in no small part from designing an information literacy program that directly aids the students in their work, rather than a program that is wholly divorced from the students’ coursework. As an aspiring reference librarian, this is the type of information literacy program that I hope to one day run.

The second article, on the ambiguity of communication and finding good communications resources, was interesting. I did not realize that the boundaries of the discipline were so poorly defined, nor that there was so much infighting as to what should and should not be included under the heading of “communication”. Moreover, I did not realize that there was such debate over which journals should actually be accepted in the field of communications proper, and which describe subjects that reside predominately outside the field of communications. This was an insightful article because it helps me to be more aware that in communications finding the right sources may not always be a clear-cut process. There could be very good information on a topic I am searching in a resource that is, at least ostensibly, totally unrelated to that field. Especially if I ever do work in the field of communications, knowing that it is an ill-bounded discipline will help me to perform more targeted searches and also to cast a wide net to see what else could be brought in.

I opted to examine the Communication and Mass Media Complete database by performing a simple search for the keyword “librarian”. I am familiar with EBSCO, and am generally impressed with the quality of their databases, so I was not all that surprised that I found this one to be of usefulness and good integrity. What did surprise me, though, was the amount of material the search returned. There are almost three hundred articles discoursing on various topics related to librarians. What this brought up to me is something that I intuitively grasped, but had never specifically thought about: the role of communications in the work of librarians. As librarians in general, and especially as reference librarians, most of the work we do has to do with communicating information. Thus, the field of communications has a lot to offer us as we learn to better communicate and perform our tasks. I would argue that it is of no small importance for the discerning librarian to familiarize themselves with some of the principles of communication to help aid in their professional development.

Finally, I was disappointed that there was no sub-Reddit on communications. I have come to enjoy browsing the humanities sub-Reddits, and I was a bit let down we did not get to do that this week.  

Handbook of Sociology--Review and Evaluation

Smelser, N.J. (Ed.). (1988). Handbook of Sociology. Newbury Park: SAGE.

The scope of Smelser’s Handbook of Sociology is relatively broad. It covers the major topics of theory, inequality, organizations, and social change. Although this is not an exhaustive list of fields under the sociology umbrella, the articles in each section do contain information that touches on many of the theories and ideas in sociology. This handbook is somewhat less broad than others examined on other subjects, but the scope is still wide enough that it could be useful to any sociologist, regardless of how they have specialized in their discipline.

The audience intended for this handbook is upper-level undergraduate students and masters students. The language in the text is geared towards an individual with a good background in the discipline, however it is not totally opaque to a reader with only minimal background in sociology. The topics presented in the articles, however, assume that the reader is well-acquainted with both the discipline and its history. Consequently, the reader with no background in the field would struggle to fully utilize this text. On the same token, however, a Ph. D in sociology would probably find this work somewhat pedestrian. The material contained within it is excellent, but the articles are designed to give the reader a broad understanding of the topic. This could help a serious researcher or post-doctorate find new resources or act as a quick reference guide, but this text would probably do little to meet their more extensive needs.

The timeliness of this book is lacking. This text was written some thirty years after sociology was formed as a discipline, and almost that much time has elapsed again since its printing. In terms of its usefulness today, it provides a good retrospective look at the historical trends and ideas in sociology. It also provides commentary on the theoretical and methodological framework of the discipline that could still prove relevant in today’s world. But any cutting-edge studies performed in this work, and any suggestions about the “modern” state of sociology, are quite outdated.

Despite being old, this work is fairly authoritative. The author of the work, Neil Smelser, is a member of the American Academy of Political and Social Sciences, former president of the American Sociological Association, and a professor emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley). Consequently, he is quite qualified to oversee the editing and compilation of a text that seeks to present a broad overview of sociology. His credentials show that both his understanding of sociology at large, and his connection to other sociologists, is quite strong. Moreover, the book is published by SAGE, a respected academic publisher that is known for producing good texts in a variety of disciplines. Thus, despite its age, this handbook does carry with it a lot of authority.

The documentation for this work is also extensive. Each article is meticulously cited and presents an exhaustive list of material used in its writing. In fact, if the reader were to open the handbook to a random page, it seems that there is about even chance of finding either text or bibliography. The works cited are from respected books and journal publications, which lends further weight to the quality and authority of this work.

Finally, this work is fairly objective. The topics are portrayed in a rational and even-handed manner, and each of the articles that make up this work are objective in both their tone and presentation of the given material. The only weakness that may exist in the objectivity of this handbook is that each major topic is covered only by a handful of articles. Thus, it is doubtful that both sides of any given debate are adequately presented in the work at large, even if each of its constituent parts remain relatively neutral. As a result, the discerning reader would find this work an excellent starting point, but would want to pursue further study in any of the given topics covered in this work. A starting point is, however, exactly what this work is supposed to provide.  

UC Berkeley. “Neil J. Smelser.” Center for Studies in Higher Education. Retrieved from http://www. cshe.berkeley.edu/neil-j-smelser 

Sociology Module Synthesis

I found the YouTube video on the introduction to sociology interesting, and I thought it provided an excellent introduction to the subject. I was particularly taken with its use of visual media. I admit that when I first started watching it I assumed that it was going to be a PowerPoint video, but instead it was a series of clips that went well with what the narrator was explaining. I thought that this helped hold the viewers’ interest better than mere words alone. This is the type of video resource that I would want to point users towards as a librarian. It balances information and entertainment quite well.

I liked the article that we read this week, although my issues with it are similar to those that I took with last week’s article. The author takes a set of respectable standards such as teaching students how to use the library and its resources, and unfortunately comes out with a mode of execution that fails to place library skills in the context of what the students are already doing. I think that good library work should be like a well-designed door handle: it is so well made that its use is natural and mostly unnoticed, and it does not hinder its user in accomplishing their task. I think library skills, and the help offered by reference librarians should be accomplished in a manner that does not distract or detract from the task the patron is trying to accomplish. Thus, even in teaching students how to use library resources that instruction must come within context, or students will not learn.

I was incredibly fond of the Library of Congress’s sociology resource page. It presents a good list of resources on a variety of sociology topics that would be useful for both the lay user and the serious researcher. The three that I looked at were all well designed and provided good information. The National Opinion Research Center was the site I thought would be most useful for those seeking to perform research in the field of sociology. It presented a long list of studies that have either been completed, or that are in process, and a brief summary of each. I admit that I was somewhat frustrated because I could not find the full version of any of the studies. Nevertheless, the descriptions alone could help a researcher narrow their topic, and also avoid overlapping work that others have already done. I will certainly add this site, and the Library of Congress’s sociology research list, to my arsenal as a reference librarian.

The ACRL ANSS site was not what I was expecting. I thought it was going to be predominately geared towards helping patrons find information in the social sciences, but it was more about providing social science librarians with both resources and information geared towards enabling them to be effective librarians. I poked through some of the meeting minutes, and it was interesting to see what ANSS is focused on and how they make decisions about moving forwards in the field. I also found it equally as interesting to read through the amount of standard meeting bureaucracy that exists even in an organization that is clearly designed to do nothing but help people access information. Although this is not a resource that I would recommend to patrons per se, it is certainly one that I will keep in mind for my own edification. I think that it provides an invaluable professional development resource for the social science reference librarian.

The Google Scholar search for sociology and library returned many results that would be useful to a patron in the field of sociology, and more than a few for a sociology subject librarian, but very few that struck me as germane to the actual topics of sociology and libraries. Many of the hits were returned because they contained the word “library” in their text. However, this word could be wholly unassociated with the actual subject of the article. “Library of Congress” was the most frequent culprit for causing an article that had nothing to do with libraries nevertheless show up in the results. Consequently, I think that Scholar is an excellent engine to cast a wide net, or to try and gain traction with a topic in which a librarian or researcher lacks understanding. However, to actually find good information, I would much prefer to utilize more targeted resources that are indexed by subject, and not just by word.

Finally, I explored the sociology sub-Reddit. I read several of the top articles and found the information in them to be good. One of the aspects about Reddit that I have commented on briefly before, but really struck me this week, is how it can be used as a forum. I think that Reddit has the potential to be a good resource for asking questions and gaining answers.  The user would need to be discerning in weighing the results, but that does not mean this site should be completely ignored. I will continue to keep Reddit in mind as a useful tool in my arsenal as a reference librarian. Who knows, one day I may be one of the people asking a question on Reddit because I cannot find the information a patron is searching for. 

Encyclopedia of Geographic Information Science--Review and Evaluation

Kemp, K.K. (2008). Encyclopedia of Geographic Information Science. Los Angeles: SAGE.

The Encyclopedia of Geographic Information Science is a single-volume text that provides a broad range of entries on topics throughout the geographic information science (GIS) field. Consequently, the scope of this work is quite broad. The entries within the Encyclopedia do not only provide a definition and understanding of the topic being covered, many also explain how the topic is situated within the GIS field, and how it relates to other topics also covered in the Encyclopedia. Thus, this work presents not only a broad understanding of the GIS field, but it also helps the reader to create a mental map of how ideas and terms fit together and interplay with each other. The end result is far more useful, and gives a greater sense of scope, than if each of the entries had been written in a vacuum.

This work is written in clear, simple language and is presented in text that is slightly larger than the standard for reference works. Moreover, many of the entries are accompanied by pictures and graphics that either serve as examples illustrating their respective topic, or help graphically explain what the author is driving at. Consequently, this piece is easy to understand, even for the user that has no background or experience with GIS. In many ways, it seems to be an introductory encyclopedia that is designed to acquaint the reader with GIS topics, and it may not be as useful for a GIS professional seeking to deepen their knowledge of the field.

The timeliness of this work is acceptable, as it is only six years old, but with how rapidly tech is changing, it can no longer be considered as the cutting edge of GIS. Some of the entries mention technology that is already out of date, or that has changed significantly in the last six years. However, in spite of this, the basic workings of GPS systems and their applications have not changed too much in the last half decade. So although some of the material may feel a bit dated to the reader, the work still presents information on subjects and practices that are of current value.

The authority of the Encyclopedia is quite sound. The work is lead and edited by Karen Kemp, who holds a Ph. D in geography, and has sat on several academic counsels in the fields of GIS and geography. In addition to her academic credentials, Kemp also has extensive experience in the field working with GIS over the last thirty years (Kemp 2008, pg. xv). Thus, she is quite qualified to oversee the creation and editing of this Encyclopedia because she has not only the theoretical, but also the practical knowledge of the field. The contributors of the entries themselves are all from respected, accredited academic institutions and government agencies from around the world (Kemp 2008, pgs. xvii-xxii). Thus, this work was not only edited and established with good authority, each of the entries are also provided by individuals that are qualified to present information in the field of GIS.  This lends a great deal of authority to the Encyclopedia.

The documentation of this work is also sound. Each of the entries contains suggestions for further reading and research. These readings are from respected institutions, websites, and publishers, which further backs up the quality of the information contained within this encyclopedia. There are only two real weaknesses to the suggested readings and references. The first is that they are out of date, and suffer from the same timeliness issues as the Encyclopedia at large. The other is that there is no general bibliography that would allow the reader to extensively examine the articles, books, and research that went into the creation of each individual entry. That being said, neither of these weaknesses is great enough to impinge the overall excellent documentation of this work.

Finally, this work is quite objective. GIS as a discipline tends to be a field that is based on factual research and the manipulation of data, so it does not lend itself to a heavy bias as could be found in a history or sociology text. Furthermore, any bias that could come from having a team of contributors that failed to represent a global perspective is resolved in this work. The entries are contributed by individuals from several continents and backgrounds, thus solidifying its objectivity. 

Geology Module Synthesis

The geography module has been one of my favorites thus far. This is due in no small part to the inclusion of National Geographic as one of the primary resources explored. I thoroughly enjoyed looking through their website, and I was unaware of the array of resources they provide. There are three main categories, however, that stuck out to me. The first is information and news on topics in both physical and cultural geography. This information tended to be geared towards a primary or secondary level of education, but would act as a good online encyclopedia for a patron interested in an introduction to a particular topic. The second was information on photography. National Geographic is widely renowned for its phenomenal photography. Contained within the website are several blogs that offer tips and tricks for how to shoot good-quality photographs. This information would be helpful for patrons interested in photography, especially for those that desired to shoot animals or in remote locations. Finally, the website offered a decent section on trip planning with suggestions for destinations and ways to arrive there. Consequently, this would be a good resource for adventurous patrons seeking a starting point for a vacation or expedition. Frankly, I intend to use it myself for that very purpose. Finally, I thoroughly enjoyed the National Geographic YouTube channel. This related resource would be extremely useful for patrons wanting a general overview of a topic, and for younger patrons who desired something more dynamic than a traditional print resource.

The Atlantic Cities site presented a lot of good information on topics germane to urban environments. I was particularly taken with its presentation of news and articles on crime, poverty, and the utilization of resources. The site not only provided good information, it is also extremely well designed and easy to navigate. While the information it contains is not necessarily of scholarly research quality, it certainly would meet the needs of the lay user, and provides a good jumping-off point even for an individual seeking scholarly information. I have definitely added this cite in my arsenal of reference tools because it provides easy to read, good information in a site that is intuitive to use and navigate. This makes it perfect for users with a variety of interests, backgrounds, and technical expertise.

The article on “Creating an Online Tutorial” was interesting and of particular relevance to Kent State’s online SLIS program since it detailed the creation of a resource specifically for use with postgrads in an internet environment. I thought that some of the suggestions presented in the article were good, especially the authors’ recommendation for a pre-test to ascertain the user’s knowledge. Overall, however, I thought that the authors missed the forest for the trees. I have used resources like the one described in the article before, and given the choice, I would prefer not to. In making a post on the course Reddit, I was amused to see that I am not the only one that holds that opinion. Consequently, as a reference librarian, I will strive not to create resources like the one described in the article because they seem to be poorly utilized and generally disliked.

I admit that I had trouble getting access to the GeoRef resources as Kent seemed to only have physical copies of the articles that EBSCO returned. That aside, I was taken with one of my classmate’s postings that detailed an article describing how geology librarians are falling behind in expertise in the field because they have focused too much on user services. I think this is an important issue for us as reference librarians to be aware of, regardless of the discipline. Ideally, we should strive to balance the depth of our expertise and the depth of the services we provide, never sacrificing the quality of one for the benefit of the other. I think this would be a delicate balance to obtain, and is something that I definitely want to be aware of as I enter the library field.  

I liked the geography sub-Reddit because of its breadth. The home page offered the typical mix of decent links to popular sources and requests for jobs and advice. However, the links to the additional sub-Reddits in fields like GIS, urban planning, and cartography provide the user with an incredible amount of useful information. I spent some time examining the GIS and map sub-Reddits, and I was impressed with the information they provide. Similar to the Atlantic Cities site, this would not be a good academic or professional resource, but it certainly provides excellent information for the lay user.  

Finally, I was enthralled with the number of academic institutions that the Google search for “Geography Librarian” returned. The site I chose to feature was from the UCSB geology web page, and talked about zip codes. In spite of being a generic Google search, many of the links that came back seemed to be of some quality. This reinforced to me the importance of knowing how and when to Google information. I read an article over a year ago where a reference librarian explained that, when stuck, he would Google his patron’s question and see what emerged. He commented that this is a viable search strategy for the discerning reference librarian. It is one that I will keep in mind.

A Handbook for the Study of Mental Health--Review and Evaluation

Horwitz, A.V. & Scheid, T.L.(1999). A Handbook for the Study of Mental Health: Social Contexts, Theories, and Systems. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

This work, A Handbook for the Study of Mental Health, presents a broad-spectrum look at a variety of psychological and sociological issues ranging from diagnosis of mental health to an examination of the policies that affect those who either have or work with those who have mental disorders. Consequently, the scope of this work is quite broad. It presents a variety of information on a plethora of topics dealing with mental health; however it does not dig too deeply into any one of those topics. The focus of the work is on the effects of stress and social factors on mental health (Horwitz & Scheid 1999, pg. XV). So, the broad scope of this work is narrowed somewhat by a focus on these two themes.

The authors state that the intended audiences for this work are, “Upper level undergraduates, and lower level graduate students,” (Horwitz & Scheid 1999, pg. XV). The authors accomplish this goal by writing a handbook that provides a good overview of issues in mental health, but keep the language and topics accessible to college students. Most of the articles that make up this work can be easily understood with only a little background in psychology. Even the layman should be able to read and grasp the majority of what is being presented. But this handbook also provides good depth of information that would give even the graduate reader material on which to build their own research, or to broaden their understanding of the field.

This work is dated. It was written in 1999, and thus it presents information and classifications that are out of date. Perhaps the greatest indicator of this is that the primary sourcebook used for the writing of the articles in this piece is the DSM-III-R. Since its publication, two more iterations of the DSM have been published, the most recent being the DSM-V-R. Thus, the primary diagnostic and classification tool referenced in this handbook is itself out of date. As a result, this particular work may not be terribly useful for the individual studying mental health issues in the present day.

While dated, this handbook still carries a good deal of authority. Its two lead editors, Horwitz and Scheid, are both respected academics from Rutgers University and the University of North Carolina Charlotte, respectively. Both are broadly published and have decades of experience in fields dealing with mental health (Allan V. Horwitz, Ph. D, Teresa Scheid). Additionally, the contributing authors are all Ph. D’s in the fields of sociology or psychology, and come from an assortment of well-respected universities and government institutions, lending even greater credence to the authority of this handbook. Finally, it is published by the Cambridge University Press, which is a well-known and respected academic publishing company. Consequently, this handbook is incredibly authoritative in the field of mental health.

In addition to having strong authority, this work is also well documented. At the end of the work is an extensive list of references used by each of the contributing authors in the formation of this work. The only down side to this style of documentation is that the references are not divided by author, nor are the book sections demarcated. This means that a reader wishing to access the references used by a particular author would have to locate the source in the list of all of the references used in the writing of the book. While unwieldy, this still does provide the reader with the documentation necessary to both affirm the reliability and academic rigor used in the writing of each article, and also provides a jumping off point for the reader to perform their own research.

Finally, this work is also relatively objective. It is written with the goal of providing the reader with a good overview of issues pertaining to mental health, and in doing so it balances a variety of viewpoints and issues. Because there is a heavier focus on how stress and society impact an individual’s mental health, there is a topical bias towards those two issues. However, this is clearly stated by the authors in their introduction to the work, and thus does not handicap its overall quality. As far as any other type of bias or leaning, this work appears to be relatively free of it.  

Rutgers Department of Sociology. Allan V. Horwitz, Ph. D. Rutgers Univesity Department of Sociology. Retrieved from https://www.rci.rutgers.edu/~avhorw/content.html

University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Teresa Scheid. UNC Charlotte Department of Sociology. Retreived from http://sociology.uncc.edu/teresa-scheid