21. Have you ever had a prank
question in answerland before?
Text DAWNLOWEWINC132 to 22333 to join the session,
then text yes, no or other to answer
22.
23. 10:04:39 patron: Hello!
10:04:43 Librarian: Hi! How can I help you?
10:05:36 patron: Hi I'm trying to find an article related to market research.
Can you help me?
10:05:53 Librarian: Sure! Any specific topic related to market research?
10:08:09 patron: Well, topic wise I guess I'm trying to look for businesses that
use marketing research and strategies in order to target consumers who
wouldn't even be interested in their industry.
10:09:28 Librarian: Ok. I'm going to try the Business Source Premier database
(which you can access from the library home page under "Databases A-Z" or
by choosing "Resources by Subject" and then "Business"
10:10:38 Librarian: First, I found that the standard phrase (subject heading)
for market research is "marketing research."
10:10:53 Librarian: Now I'm working on coming up with terms for the idea of
targeting consumers who wouldn't be interested in the industry
24. Prank or completed?
Respond at PollEv.com/dawnlowewinc132
Or text DAWNLOWEWINC132 to 22333 once to join, then 1 for prank, 2 for
completed
27. • 4:04:16 patron: Please help me.
• 4:04:23 Reference Desk: Hi there- how can I help?
• 4:05:44 patron: I'm stuck upstairs in the library and can't get down.
• 4:05:58 Reference Desk: do you need to use the elevator?
• 4:06:43 Reference Desk: if that is the case, I can come up to help you- let me know
where you are.
• 4:07:50 patron: i'm upstairs
• 4:08:39 Reference Desk: can you meet me near the elevator?
• 4:10:53 patron: i told you im stuck
• 4:11:12 Reference Desk: where?
• 4:12:28 patron: upstairs
• 4:13:30 patron: im getting hungry
• 4:13:35 patron: please
• 4:15:42 Reference Desk: please respect my time. I'm happy to help you with research
questions.
• 4:18:59 patron: i need help i have a bad knee and can't move. or even get out of my
chair.
• 4:19:05 patron: im asking for help
28. Prank or completed?
Respond at PollEv.com/dawnlowewinc132
Or text DAWNLOWEWINC132 to 22333 once to join, then 1 for prank, 2 for
completed
31. • 9:17:12 patron: Need a marriage record for a son of mine.
• 9:17:42 Librarian: Hello - I'm a a librarian in Salem, and I can help you
in obtaining the marriage record.
• 9:23:57 patron: My name is redacted and the record I am looking for
is for also redacted.
• 9:24:24 patron: OK got the link.
• 9:24:47 Librarian: This page lists the fees:
• 9:24:48 Librarian:https://public.health.oregon.gov/BirthDeathCertific
ates/GetVitalRecords/Pages/fees.aspx
• 9:25:17 patron: Got that link too. Is that it for this chat?
• 9:26:00 Librarian: I think you have all the information you need to
order the record. Do you have any other questions I can help you
with?
• 9:26:21 patron: No. Thank you very much.
32. Prank or completed?
Respond at PollEv.com/dawnlowewinc132
Or text DAWNLOWEWINC132 to 22333 once to join, then 1 for prank, 2 for
completed
35. • 4:37:33 patron: what did washington d c do in ww2
• 4:37:44 patron: :^0
• 4:37:50 Librarian: Hello, I'm Librarian, a librarian in Oregon. I'm reading your question
now.
• 4:38:05 patron: B-)
• 4:38:53 Librarian: Can you give me a little bit more information about your question? Are
you wondering about the United States involvement in World War 2?
• 4:39:34 patron: no i have to research what role washinton dc played in the war
• 4:39:54 patron: then i have to write a paragraph
• 4:41:34 Librarian: OK. So, are you looking for information about policies or politicians
located in Washing DC had about WW2?
• 4:42:23 patron: do you like white vans
• 4:42:41 patron: how about cany
• 4:42:49 patron: candy
• 4:42:54 patron: choclate
• 4:43:08 patron: nutter butter
• 4:43:13 patron: ice cream
• 4:43:23 patron: mike and ike
36. Prank or completed?
Respond at PollEv.com/dawnlowewinc132
Or text DAWNLOWEWINC132 to 22333 once to join, then 1 for prank, 2 for
completed
39. 2:16:16 patron: im a student in in need of info on the ocean zones
2:16:48 Librarian : Hello, my name is Librarian and I am happy to help you.
2:17:11 Librarian : It sounds like you need information on Ocean zones, can you tell me a little bit
more about what you are looking for?
2:19:27 patron: do you know what my name is
2:20:32 Librarian : No, I can see your screen name but I'm guessing it's not your real name. Can you I
help you answer the question you have asked regarding ocean zones?
2:21:02 patron: yes
2:21:38 patron: I would like some fun
facts!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!(heart)
2:21:49 patron: I(heart) you
2:22:17 Librarian : The Smithsonian has an excellent website explaining ocean zones.
http://ocean.si.edu/ocean-photos/zones-open-ocean
2:22:32 Librarian : Can you please take a look at this and see if it is what you are looking for?
2:23:47 patron: this does not include the scientfic names of the zones
2:24:31 patron: That's okay honey (heart) :x
2:25:51 Librarian : Is there anything else I can help you with?
2:26:02 patron: kiss me!!!!!!!!!!!!
2:26:23 Librarian : Thank you for using Answerland. Have a nice day!
40. Prank or completed?
Respond at PollEv.com/dawnlowewinc132
Or text DAWNLOWEWINC132 to 22333 once to join, then 1 for prank, 2 for
completed
43. • 10:49:17 patron: There is an elk in my living room, what am I to do?
• 10:49:26 Dawn: Hello Patron Name
• 10:49:41 patron: It's always dark before the Dawn_x000D_
• 10:49:42 Dawn: I would suggest exiting the building and calling animal control
• 10:49:58 patron: Getting out of bed is the second hardest thing in the morning
• 10:50:01 patron: ;)
• 10:50:20 Dawn: It is always dark before the Dawn, and as poison once said, every
rose has it's thorn
• 10:50:34 patron: I've locked myself in the bathroom
• 10:50:41 Dawn: would you like the phone number to your local animal control?
• 10:50:43 patron: i'm too scared to walk past the elk
• 10:50:53 patron: he may say something offensive
• 10:51:23 Dawn: If it is a talking elk, I think you may have other issues than just an
unwanted house guest
• 10:52:02 patron: plus my phone is in the living room
44. Prank or completed?
Respond at PollEv.com/dawnlowewinc132
Or text DAWNLOWEWINC132 to 22333 once to join, then 1 for prank, 2 for
completed
47. Next time you get a questionable
question, what will you do?
Respond at PollEv.com/dawnlowewinc132
Or text DAWNLOWEWINC132 to 22333 once to join, then your answer
Greetings and initial questions from some of the 185 “prank” transcripts evaluated in my research.
224 records were collected, dating between October 1st, 2013 and April 30th, 2014.
37 records were removed due to no conversation being recorded. These are all answerland chats.
This is a pretty standard communication model
Schramm's Model
Schramm on the other hand, emphasized in 1954 that both the sender and the receiver take turns playing the role of the encoder and the decoder when it comes to communication.
image from http://www.tutorialspoint.com/management_concepts/communication_models.htm
However, this is how many patrons may see online chat services.
Server picture from: https://flic.kr/p/4HZ2A8
Read chat transcript here
Server picture from: https://flic.kr/p/4HZ2A8
How do you tell that you are being pranked ahead of time?
139 unique initial questions were presented. These range from random strings of characters, “fuewgfuwafiuwuefOUEWFBUWOES,” to questions, “hi i need help with our science project,” to greetings, “hi,” and some vague insults. The most common initial questions were, hello (16), and hi (15). “How do i find a book,” was a distant third with 5 uses. Another favorite seemed to be, “can [animal] fly?” with a combined 4 including birds, dogs, and pigs. 8 started with, “I need,” 7 started with the word are, 7 more started with the word can, and 9 started with the word what. Including the 5, “How do I find a book” questions, 17 queries start with the word, how. There was not pattern in the initial questions as to what type of prank each would become. A, “Hi,” could have led to a seeming legitimate need for information as much as a “fuewgfuwafiuwuefOUEWFBUWOES,” or, “Who is Albert Einstein?”
You have to do a reference interview to figure it out.
Picture from: https://flic.kr/p/7RfH3D
This is Sunshine. He is a very vocal cat who wants things. Unfortunately he has never learned to say anything except meow. It is a very expressive meow, but we still have to go through a reference interview to interpret it.
The final list of criteria to determine which of the transcripts had a reference interview were:
1. Reference interview initiated
2. Receptive and cordial listening
3. Providing information sources to the user
4. Verifying the completion, or not, of the query
5. Inviting the Users to return.
A wordle diagram created from the 185 transcripts analyzed. The words patron, joined, and disconnected have been removed.
Many of the words seen here could be legitimate information needs
124 demonstrated some reference interview
34 has question restatement
41 showed active listenting
40 provided sources to the patron – 9 of these followed up to verify resource usefulness
4 invited the user to return
So what is happening? How do we get pranks?
The transcripts lead me to three types of pranks
The started off well
The just testing
The Chatter
Picture from: https://flic.kr/p/8sjHyA
“The started off well” is a type of question that seems legitimate in the beginning, and something derails the conversation, or somehow changes the situation from a answerable session to a prank.
It is hard to tell with this type of question where it will lead. One could assume from that it will be a prank, but that could just be the patron testing the humanity of the librarian
Picture: https://flic.kr/p/6M5p4B
Just Testing
The similarities between this type of question and “the started off well” questions can be strong. The motivation of this type of question seems to be, again, to humanize the service. The largest difference in the two types of questions, is that the just testing questions do not have a possibility of legitimacy. The questions are often silly
Picture: https://flic.kr/p/7NmNMr
The chatter, aka the prankster
It is hard to determine the motivation on this type of transaction, whether it is boredom, testing the humanity of the service, or something else.
The librarian could play along with the patron, answering the questions, silly or not, that the patron asks. This could be entertaining to both the patron and the librarian. Depending on the questions being asked, it could also be a waste of time. This would be up to the individual to determine.
Photo: https://flic.kr/p/8obTC8
evaluate each question individually, and begin the reference interview process with each one to determine the motivation. Once the motivation is determined, the librarian can take the needed steps to either fill the information need, end the session, or to some other outcome.
Picture from: https://flic.kr/p/8mANmM
Determine motivation. Is the patron testing your humanity? Trolling? Having fun with you? Do they have a legitimate information need?
Picture from: https://flic.kr/p/aDP7Rc
When the reference interview fails:
Redirect back to the information need
Play along with the just testing – how do they know you are not a 90 year old man with magenta hair?
Don’t want to play along? Notify the patron of the purpose of the service, give them a chance, and if it doesn’t work out, say good bye
Picture: https://flic.kr/p/5hrEkA
Keep in mind the tracking options. If no conversation happened, mark it as disconnected. If there was a research need and it just took a while to get there, mark it as complete. As answerland does IP tracking, save the prank designation for full on pranks.
Picture: https://flic.kr/p/5cLMfD
A little practice. We have some transcripts from answerland, Read over and see if you think it was a completed question, a prank, or something else.
This will be done using poll everywhere, so get out your cell phone or device and lets do a little test. – Dawn’s account will only allow the first 40 responses.
https://flic.kr/p/bwise8
Poll Title: Have you every had a prank question on Answerland before?
https://www.polleverywhere.com/multiple_choice_polls/AetWVCbuOQ2y87x
Poll Title: Prank or completed?
https://www.polleverywhere.com/multiple_choice_polls/g3hEbmvQYzjrWPP
Poll Title: Prank or completed?
https://www.polleverywhere.com/multiple_choice_polls/g3hEbmvQYzjrWPP
Poll Title: Prank or completed?
https://www.polleverywhere.com/multiple_choice_polls/g3hEbmvQYzjrWPP
Poll Title: Prank or completed?
https://www.polleverywhere.com/multiple_choice_polls/g3hEbmvQYzjrWPP
Though I would have called it a prank.
Poll Title: Prank or completed?
https://www.polleverywhere.com/multiple_choice_polls/g3hEbmvQYzjrWPP
Poll Title: Prank or completed?
https://www.polleverywhere.com/multiple_choice_polls/g3hEbmvQYzjrWPP
Poll Title: Next time you get a questionable question, what will you do?
https://www.polleverywhere.com/free_text_polls/oxdVIHhNKkK1XrP