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by Nadia Bagdasar, MLIS Candidate, San Jose State University Community analysis is one of the most important tools library professionals have at their disposal. Not only does it help
gauge the makeup of a community, but the knowledge acquired also becomes crucial for all aspects of library services. Results
of analyses influence marketing campaigns, allow public services librarians to better understand their customers, and, most
importantly, help collection development staff best plan and direct their collections. This information becomes even more
important in the face of planning for ethnic minorities in the community. Libraries can learn an enormous amount about population
groups, such as the generally underrepresented Arab Americans, through community analysis. Taking a well-formulated plan for
general analysis and directing it specifically towards Arab Americans can reap a wealth of usable, constructive information.
Couple this with effective knowledge management and collections may stand a better chance of hitting their intended mark.
Ideas for well-formulated Arab American community analysis are proposed here, as well as suggestions on how to best use results
for the benefit of public library collections.
Library management looks more and more to the business world for ideas because it benefits immensely from them. Total quality
management, hierarchical organizational structure, retail store interior design, and marketing practices are but a few examples
of business ideas that have proven successful in the library sphere. One of the more recent additions to this list is the
practice of knowledge management. According to the most referenced definition created by the Gartner Group in 1996, “Knowledge
management is a discipline that promotes an integrated approach to identifying, managing, and sharing all of an enterprise’s
information assets” (Butler, 2000, p. 32). However, the discipline is now so widespread that a universal definition has yet
to be agreed upon, making the concept a little harder to grasp. Despite the existing arguments, the essence of the theory
remains the same: this type of management is strategic and involves all of an organization’s sources of knowledge, whether
they spring from staff, technology, traditional paper documentation, or even the customer base.
The implications of knowledge management for collection development practices in a public library setting are huge, especially
when those collection practices target a specific ethnic minority. The significance increases further still when working with
a minority that is generally underrepresented in library collections, like Arab Americans. The ability to systematically harvest
all of the pieces of knowledge about Arab Americans that exist in an organization, to communicate them, and then exploit them
for the benefit of collection development procedures (and, ultimately, the ethnic population in question) is an obvious, yet
underutilized, formula for success. The enforced sharing of knowledge inevitably results in the discovery of new ideas and
information from otherwise overlooked sources. What is more, incorporating the knowledge gleaned from in-depth community analysis
into knowledge management practices creates an even stronger base for precise collection development technique. This paper
will identify the best methods of community analysis to employ for Arab Americans and examine what implications the results
have for knowledge management and, ultimately, collection development planning for this minority.
It is estimated that there are 3 million people in the United States who trace their ancestry to Arab roots. Although the
2000 United States Census reported that only 1.2 million people claimed Arab descent, major issues with identity within that
population interfere with the report’s accuracy (U.S. Census Bureau, 2003). The Arab American Institute estimates that the
census actually resulted in an undercount of three times the actual number (“Arab American Demographics,” 2005). Most of the
population is located in the major metropolitan areas of New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Detroit, and Washington, D.C., and
a majority of these individuals are native-born, with 82% having obtained citizenship (Suleiman, 1999). 75% of Arab Americans
are Christians, more than 40% earn college degrees, and 42% work in managerial or professional occupations (Hendricks, 2005;
Nydell, 2002). Finally, the average income of Arab Americans surpasses the national average by about 8% (Brittingham & de
la Cruz, 2005).
With regard to information-seeking practices, Arab Americans tend to look within their own communities for information sources.
This is best exemplified by the plethora of groups and associations that spring up addressing the population’s needs (Majaj,
2002). It becomes more difficult to identify their information-seeking behavior (ISB) outside of this internal realm because,
in a country that labels Arab Americans as racially white, their actions become harder to distinguish from the rest of the
general population. Thus, collection development staff must be proactive in identifying their information needs by intensifying
plans for community analysis.
Library professionals have an extraordinary number of information-gathering techniques at their disposal. Each situation demands
a different technique or combination of techniques, but considerations of cost and staff time always remain at the fore. Knowledge
management actually plays a significant role in the planning phase of the assessment process, specifically when matching staff
members with the tasks that best fit their skill set or knowledge base (Westbrook, 2000). For example, if library management
decides to devise a questionnaire to distribute to the Arab American community, several factors will go into determining which
library employee is most qualified to do it. Among the considerations would be the level of exposure that staff member has
had with the Arab American community, on the reference desk or on a personal basis, or even what kind of diversity training
that employee has had in general. The point is that managing the process of choosing the most qualified person is based on
that person’s level of knowledge about the process; thus, knowledge management plays a role in community analysis.
It is important to note that the type of community analysis needed for precise and involved collection development goes beyond
the usual statistical and demographic information that is acquired in the process. This information is absolutely necessary
in the primary phase of community analysis, but truly effective community analysis is ongoing and multidimensional. Assuming
that all of the statistical information has already been gathered about Arab Americans in the community, it is then necessary
to gauge ideas, thoughts, and desires about information and its acquisition. The process must target both library users and nonusers in order to compare and contrast the information need in both groups (Worcester & Westbrook, 2004). This is a bit
more complex and the data gathering requires a lot of preliminary work, effort, and time. When assessing the needs of the
Arab American community, two models best fit the attempt: the key informant approach and the nominal group technique (Carter
& Beaulieu, 1992). A combination of the two is necessary to avoid bias and acquire a well-rounded pool of information. They
both require and benefit immensely from face-to-face meetings, which is important to a community such as Arab Americans that
places emphasis on social interaction.
The key informant approach takes into account the gatekeepers of the Arab American community, or those individuals who act
as primary information providers. Since Arab American ISB relies on these gatekeepers, then approaching them first makes sense,
especially if the community in general is more reticent about being approached for analysis. The possibility of such silence
or, more to the point, unresponsiveness does exist in this population because of the identity issues that it faces (see Barakat,
1993; Naber, 2000; Nagel & Staeheli, 2003). Key informants might also include sponsor groups or agencies, elected officials,
and professionals within the community. The primary methods of analysis are surveys and interviews, and these should be highly
geared towards acquiring the most information on the needs of the Arab American community. The biggest advantage of this method
is it saves on cost while simultaneously reaping a varied perspective and good rapport with the community. The biggest disadvantage
of this method is the possible bias it might harbor, since only a select number of community individuals are considered.
The nominal group technique looks beyond information gatekeepers to those individuals who are actually interested in participating
in the process of analysis and gathers a group of them together for reflection and brainstorming. The group is usually big
enough to split into subgroups, and each of these is given a topic to discuss. Participation is necessary, but there is no
shortage of it in such a setting because group members are motivated to play off of one another’s ideas. This technique is
usually the most creative and gives the idea of needs assessment a different spin (Thompson, 2003). The disadvantages include
the stress of handling such an operation for the group leader and the propensity of certain individuals to assert themselves
more than others, thereby dominating the entire process. All members, however, write down their ideas; if they aren’t heard,
then their opinions will at least be read (Dunham, 1998).
The types of information that public libraries can best benefit from in Arab American community analysis include: thoughts
on what Arabic collections in public libraries should contain, what sources Arabs tend to consult for information, and what
kind of community programming holds the most attraction. The nominal group method is perfect for the discussion of such topics
because of its encouragement of brainstorming and creative thinking.
In a time when the resolution of the digital divide is more important than ever for breaking down the barriers between the
haves and have-nots (Mason & Dodds, 2005; Norris & Conceicao, 2004), community analysis must also include methods of determining
technological literacy within a community. This is rarely done in the Arab American community. Any part Arabs may take in
general surveys about Internet use will not hold any distinguishing value for their population, as they tend to be lumped
in with whites as an ethnic group. Surveys written for key informants need to concentrate a significant number of questions
on this topic. Questions would be designed to uncover information about the availability of home Internet access, the extent
of Internet use (online shopping, research, news, etc.), and some personal opinions about how best to market the library’s
electronic resources to the have-nots.
In conducting Arab American community analysis, it is necessary to formulate some best practice guidelines. This is a good
idea in general, but becomes even more so when dealing with any ethnic minority, especially one to which the library’s functions
and services are not completely understood or utilized (Carpenter, 2002). The type of information that a library wishes to
gather in the community assessment discussed here is more of a personal, and quite possibly sensitive, nature. Methodology
for the key informant and nominal group approaches requires some proactive initiative on the part of the librarians, but it
must be tactful and inviting. Librarians must start with the gatekeepers and other key figures of the community, to let the
needs assessment idea take root. Arab Americans are a very misunderstood social group, and that is the case now more than
ever. Hollywood usually villianizes them, the news media usually lumps them into a homogenized whole, and western society
tends to erase them in its documentation (Haddad, 2004; Naber, 2000; Samhan, 2001). Again, knowledge management plays an important
role here. In order to write questionnaires, surveys, and interviews with extreme sensitivity and caution, different viewpoints
must be accumulated from all possible sources within the organization; from that pool, the very best practices that the organization
is capable of can be defined and utilized.
According to S. McCoy (personal communication, April 29, 2005), former branch librarian at the Oakley branch of northern California’s
Contra Costa County Library system, sensitivity is always crucial in community analysis. This library system is in the midst
of revamping its service model; in essence, decentralizing its main branch in the city of Pleasant Hill so that it becomes
just another community branch rather than the hub of the entire library system. McCoy was heavily involved in the strategic
planning activity surrounding this whole process. She was a member of a task team that met periodically in the course of a
year to brainstorm certain aspects of the plan, and key to the brainstorming sessions were the results from a newly conducted
analysis of Pleasant Hill’s community. The primary methodology here included the creation of focus groups in Pleasant Hill
consisting of key community members and library stakeholders. A list of potential participants was drawn up and each person
was contacted, either by letter, phone, or electronic means. Once the focus groups were in place, meetings were held at the
library, primarily to discuss past and future library use. In addition to the focus groups, surveys (both on paper and on
the library’s website) were completed by 931 community members; consultant teams went out into the community and casually
engaged people in recreation and retail areas in conversation; and a community-wide forum was held for anyone wishing to attend
(Anderson Brule Architects & Williams, 2003). McCoy was pleasantly surprised by the community’s support and response to the
analysis. It not only benefited the strategic planning process, but it also prompted collection development staff to revise
the existing plan and helped public services staff better understand their clientele (see Appendix for complete interview schedule).
The Contra Costa County example serves as a good model to learn from because the tactics employed worked, and worked well.
Although the analysis targeted the entire community, the methodology can be reiterated and applied to a single group within
a community, such as Arab Americans. The most relevant and applicable part of Contra Costa’s methodology for Arab American
community analysis was the initially reserved approach it employed. Best practice decisions dictated that the library be cautious
in its proactive technique, soliciting group members, but doing so politely and usually in writing as opposed to face-to-face.
Personal interaction is set aside for later when all contributing parties have become significantly acclimated to the whole
process. This is necessary to start the dialogue with the Arab American community, especially since their representation in
public library collections is generally abysmal. They will need some coaxing, and they will need to be convinced that their
opinions matter.
Librarians are in the knowledge business. One of the basic tenets of knowledge management is the ability to connect people
with people and people with information (Corral, 1998). Public libraries are already deeply embedded in this practice, but
they fall a bit short in managing the process in the most efficient, organized manner. This is in part due to the relative
novelty of the knowledge management concept. The emphasis on management over development in collection planning took root
not too long ago, within the last 20 years, as library funding began to diminish (Branin, 2003).
The first thing to keep in mind is that “knowledge acquisition is the starting point of knowledge management in libraries”
(Shanhong, 2000). If done right, community analysis is one of the best methods of this type of acquisition for public libraries
because it enriches their stores in the three major knowledge categories: internal, customer, and market (Butler, 2000). Studying
Arab American community analysis results increases the staff’s general knowledge about varying aspects of this ethnic group
– everything from the numerical (population figures) to the behavioral (information need) – and thus, the library’s internal
knowledge is enhanced. The ideas that Arab Americans have about the library, specifically about how it should function for
them, are important perspectives to try to understand. This information can only come from them; it exists nowhere else but
in the customer’s knowledge base, and library professionals tap into it in the process of analysis. Finally, community analysis
gives us a better idea of the other places that Arab Americans go for their information. Information seeking for this ethnic
group does not usually start at the library. By discovering what the competition is, the library takes a big step towards
augmenting its knowledge of the market. Properly managing all of these increased knowledge stores has great implications for
developing a collection plan for materials that are nicely tailored to Arab American needs.
Of the three types of knowledge, customer knowledge is the most important here because it is a direct expression of customer
need. It reduces the mystery in collection building and gives staff a tangible outline to work with. If it comes out in community
analysis that Arab Americans overwhelmingly request that libraries carry more audio books, then it is obvious that collection
staff will concentrate the acquisitions process on audio books. If Arab Americans would like more Arabic newspapers, then
collection staff will do its best to subscribe to these newspapers. Nothing is more foolproof for collection development practices
than direct demand. Community analysis should heavily emphasize the exploration of customer knowledge in order to extract
these demands in the most precise and accurate manner.
Knowledge management also increases the library’s power to reach out to Arab Americans electronically, and possibly more successfully,
since the electronic medium is so far-reaching. For example, Nagel and Staeheli (2003) tell us that Arab Americans are heavy
users of the Internet as a communication tool, specifically when it comes to political activism. Dumortier (2004) states that
the digital divide negatively affects Arabs overseas far more than Arabs in America, and that the percentage of have-nots
in America is drastically lower. Taking these pieces of information, combining them and examining them against the technology
literacy information acquired from community analysis, librarians can begin the process of electronic planning. Assuming that
technological literacy in the Arab American community is fairly high, a reasonable assumption according to the research referenced
above, collection development staff can begin to build a virtual plan. Such a plan would involve the selection and purchase
of high interest materials to advertise on the website, as well as the creation of a web page designed specifically for Arab
Americans. The goal is to capture the Arab American community’s attention and, ultimately, its patronage.
There is no such thing as too much when it comes to community analysis. Certain endeavors might be costly, but with a little
planning, strategizing, and research, budgets can be accommodated or cheaper methods can be discovered. As long as analysis
is conducted on a continuous basis, on different groups within the community, the benefits will far outweigh the costs. That
is what knowledge management is all about: collecting information for organizational development and improvement. For public
libraries, non-profit ventures in service to their communities, the benefit is twofold: by advancing the organization’s interests,
the library advances the public’s interests as well. When that public consists of minorities, like Arab Americans, that are
generally unknown or misunderstood, the pairing of community analysis and knowledge management becomes even more crucial.
Public libraries have the opportunity to give Arab Americans what they usually search for among themselves: information, knowledge,
and a bit of recreation. A little analysis is all that is needed to further open the avenues of outreach.
Anderson Brule Architects, Inc., & Williams, J.F. (2003, January 28). Pleasant Hill and Contra Costa County library: Community and county library needs assessment and preliminary analysis of site
options (Working draft). Pleasant Hill, CA: Author.
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Carpenter, K.H. (2002). Best practices in libraries – not just another edition of “how I done it good” [Electronic version].
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and social epistemology [Electronic version]. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 56(6), 630-635.
Dumortier, B. (2004). Some aspects of the Arab Human Development Report 2003 as read by a European Scholar. Arab Studies Quarterly, 26(2), 37-47.
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Community analysis is one of the most important tools library professionals have at their disposal. A well-formulated plan can help gauge the makeup of a community and allow for targeted services to patrons.
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