A basic tenet of public librarianship is the idea that each library and its communities are unique. While libraries share certain characteristics in common, their products, services, and operations are (in theory) highly customized to fit local conditions. I didn’t realize how strong a tenet this was until I heard this declaration at an Ohio Library Council conference: “All library excellence is local.” Wow, pretty unequivocal! Granted, public libraries do acknowledge that they have certain things in common with other libraries, but it sure sounds like unique characteristics trump everything else.
This contrast between things standard and things tailored (or customized) turns out to be a theme central to evaluation research also. The idea has been noted, for instance, by Mark Lipsey, co-author of the leading textbook on program evaluation. [Read more...]
