It Comes with the Territory: Handling Problem Situations in Libraries, rev. ed. / Edition 2

by Anne M. Turner

Overview

The mission of libraries is to meet the information needs of the people they serve--but daily, sticky situations arise that make this tough to do. Reports of peepers, use of the library by the homeless for sleeping, inappropriate Internet use by patrons; encounters with offensive personal hygiene, skateboarding in the stacks, the threat of violence, one's role as a babysitter for latchkey children, censorious complaints: Is there an upswing or are librarians just more sensitized? How do libraries meet these demands?

From the perspective of a working director, this thoroughly updated and revised edition is a commonsense guide to setting fair and appropriate behavior rules and training staff in how to implement them evenhandedly and with reasonably good humor. Issues surrounding street people, the mentally ill, and substance abusers, sexual deviancy and parental child abuse in the library; community censorship; confidentiality of library records; general security; and unaccompanied children, including protecting them and seeing to their emergency medical needs, are among the topics. Emphasis is placed on staff training and writing effective manuals.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780786418879
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Incorporated Publishers
Publication date:	05/26/2004
Edition description:	REV
Pages:	200
Product dimensions:	6.90(w) x 10.00(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Anne M. Turner, director of the Santa Cruz City-County Library System, lives in San Francisco, California.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Foreword to the Second Edition (Gordon Conable)     
Preface     

PART I: WRITING GOOD RULES
1. Making Behavior Rules     

PART II: PROBLEMS THAT PLAGUE US
2. Street People, the Mentally Disabled, Substance Abusers, and Other Symbols of Our Times     
3. Dealing with Angry People     
4. The Nasty Behaviors: Sexual Deviancy, Parental Child Abuse, and Sexual Harassment     
5. “It’s Free and It’s Safe”—Handling Problems with Unattended Children     
6. Censorship: Wizards, Sex, and Killing Animals     
7. E-Mail, Chat Rooms and Websites: Internet Use in the Library     

PART III: PRACTICAL ADVICE
8. Securing Our Buildings     
9. Writing Good Manuals     
10. Training Staff     

Notes     

APPENDICES
A. The Library Bill of Rights     
B. Guidelines for the Development of Policies and Procedures Regarding User Behavior and Library Usage     
C. Sample Procedures and Policies     

Index     

Editorial Reviews

practical...useful”—Booklist; “order this book immediately...interesting...entertaining and educational...outstanding...timely and useful—a must for all sizes and types of libraries”—Library Journal; “good...recommended”—Public Libraries; “Turner has revised and updated this classic guidebook that provides creative and sensible ways for handling sticky situations in public libraries”—SRRT Newletter; “highly recommended”—Public Services Quarterly; “well written...engaging...very helpful and timely”—Reference Quarterly.

From the Publisher

practical...useful

Booklist