Librarians and statistics: thoughts on a tentative relationship

Authors

  • Amy S. Van Epps Purdue University

Keywords:

statistics, librarians, LIS education

Abstract

Librarians are not trained as original researchers during library school. As a result, librarians as authors may succumb to common statistical misconceptions and use errors, thus it is important for librarians to know how to recognize them. A quick discussion of what a researcher should be aware to avoid poor methods and inaccurate use of statistics is included. A review of statistics and research methods courses currently offered in library and information science programs helps determine if the lack of training observed in earlier studies has changed. A list of recommendations for authors and reviewers of LIS literature is presented.

Author Biography

Amy S. Van Epps, Purdue University

Associate Professor of Library Science

Engineering Librarian

Downloads

Published

2012-02-09

Issue

Vol. 2 No. 1 (2012)

Section

Think Pieces

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