Benson (2018)

From Copyright EVIDENCE

Advertising Architectural Publishing of books, periodicals and other publishing Programming and broadcasting Computer programming Computer consultancy Creative, arts and entertainment Cultural education Libraries, archives, museums and other cultural activities

Film and motion pictures Sound recording and music publishing Photographic activities PR and communication Software publishing Video game publishing Specialised design Television programmes Translation and interpretation

1. Relationship between protection (subject matter/term/scope) and supply/economic development/growth/welfare 2. Relationship between creative process and protection - what motivates creators (e.g. attribution; control; remuneration; time allocation)? 3. Harmony of interest assumption between authors and publishers (creators and producers/investors) 4. Effects of protection on industry structure (e.g. oligopolies; competition; economics of superstars; business models; technology adoption) 5. Understanding consumption/use (e.g. determinants of unlawful behaviour; user-generated content; social media)

A. Nature and Scope of exclusive rights (hyperlinking/browsing; reproduction right) B. Exceptions (distinguish innovation and public policy purposes; open-ended/closed list; commercial/non-commercial distinction) C. Mass digitisation/orphan works (non-use; extended collective licensing) D. Licensing and Business models (collecting societies; meta data; exchanges/hubs; windowing; crossborder availability) E. Fair remuneration (levies; copyright contracts) F. Enforcement (quantifying infringement; criminal sanctions; intermediary liability; graduated response; litigation and court data; commercial/non-commercial distinction; education and awareness)

Source Details

Benson (2018)
Title: Increasing Librarian Confidence and Comprehension in a Fair Use Training Session
Author(s): Benson, S. R.
Year: 2018
Citation: Benson, S.R. (2018) ncreasing Librarian Confidence and Comprehension in a Fair Use Training Session. Libraries and the Academy, Vol 18(4), pp 781-804 (preprint)
Link(s): Open Access
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About the Data
Data Description: The study concerns an experiment consisting of thirty-nine librarians and library students, sixteen being in the control group, and thirty nine participants being in the experimental group. Both groups were provided with a pretest and posttest designed to assess the participants copyright knowledge (using e.g. hypothetical scenarios of fair use), however only the experimental group were provided with a three-hour training session (with a subject-matter expert) in between these tests. A rubric was developed to assess the comprehension of the participants, based on a scale of 0 - 4.
Data Type: Primary data
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Cross Country Study?: No
Comparative Study?: No
Literature review?: No
Government or policy study?: No
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Abstract

“The results of this study illustrate that one-shot training sessions are effective in aiding librarians in academic libraries to engage with fair use. This study used testing both before and after an expert-led three-hour training session on fair use for academic librarians to measure their confidence and comprehension. The results, though limited in scope, provide encouraging evidence that appropriate training, even for a limited time, can help library professionals improve their knowledge of fair use.1 The level of confidence and comprehension rose after the academic librarian participants were provided with the three-hour fair use training. The survey results collected two weeks after the training demonstrated that some librarians had an opportunity to use the skills learned in the training in their daily work. Because fair use is frequent in the everyday experience of academic librarians, additional training for librarians through their employment is recommended. Although it would be ideal to have an expert lead such training, a ready-made curriculum would also be a useful tool for academic libraries wishing to engage in educational practices with copyright.”

Main Results of the Study

Librarians who were offered training on copyright and fair use improved from a rubric score of 1.31 (out of 4) in the pretest, to 2.69 (out of 4) in the posttest. Librarians with no previous formal copyright training benefitted the most from the fair use training, both in terms of comprehension (an improvement averaging 1.82 points on the rubric scale) and confidence levels.Conversely, no significant change was apparent in comprehension or confidence levels in librarians who were not provided with fair use training. The average score for comprehension levels in this group was 1.44 in the pretest, and 2.00 in the posttest. Confidence levels were given similar rankings in both the pretest and post-test, irrespective of whether participants had any previous formal training in copyright.When participants were presented with a follow-up questionnaire two weeks after the initial experiment, twelve participants confirmed they had been given the opportunity to apply their newfound knowledge in their workplace. This included answering patron queries, providing publishing workshops, and informing discussions on e.g. open access and Creative Commons.

Policy Implications as Stated By Author

The study suggests that fair use training sessions may improve confidence and comprehension of copyright for librarians; as such, a “ready-made” curriculum could be implemented in libraries to encourage engagement with copyright issues (of which they are likely to encounter on a daily basis). Moreover, this can be achieved in a short-space of time (training sessions for the experimental group lasted only three hours), despite the complicated nature of fair use.



Coverage of Study

Coverage of Fundamental Issues
Issue Included within Study
Relationship between protection (subject matter/term/scope) and supply/economic development/growth/welfare
Relationship between creative process and protection - what motivates creators (e.g. attribution; control; remuneration; time allocation)?
Harmony of interest assumption between authors and publishers (creators and producers/investors)
Effects of protection on industry structure (e.g. oligopolies; competition; economics of superstars; business models; technology adoption)
Understanding consumption/use (e.g. determinants of unlawful behaviour; user-generated content; social media)
Green-tick.png
Coverage of Evidence Based Policies
Issue Included within Study
Nature and Scope of exclusive rights (hyperlinking/browsing; reproduction right)
Exceptions (distinguish innovation and public policy purposes; open-ended/closed list; commercial/non-commercial distinction)
Green-tick.png
Mass digitisation/orphan works (non-use; extended collective licensing)
Licensing and Business models (collecting societies; meta data; exchanges/hubs; windowing; crossborder availability)
Fair remuneration (levies; copyright contracts)
Enforcement (quantifying infringement; criminal sanctions; intermediary liability; graduated response; litigation and court data; commercial/non-commercial distinction; education and awareness)

Datasets

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