After reading this article I would be very wary about setting up a Facebook page for the library with this age group. There is a sizable minority who might eventually resent the communication and view it as an intrusion.
I would be curious to see the comparison of these results if a similar study was replicated with a different age group--such as young adults/teens at a public library, adults, or senior adults. As a librarian I would most likely investigate the possibilities of other social networking sites such as the library fan page mentioned in this article or some other sort of interactive web page or blog.
I agree, Eleanor. I think that the use of a Facebook page is greatly affected by time, age and place. College students especially are just experiencing the most freedom from "authority figures" and would probably not be as receptive to having the academic librarians attempting to "friend" them..
ReplyDeleteI do think a public library would have a more positive reception across many age groups.
Loraine