College and Research Libraries By P A U L W A S S E R M A N Development of Administration in Library Service: Current Status and Future Prospects THIS ARTICLE attempts to assess the p o i n t to which m a n a g e m e n t of libraries has progressed, to draw parallels with related fields, a n d to p o i n t out avenues which a p - . p e a r most promising for furthering develop- ment of m a n a g e m e n t theory a n d practice in the library field. O n e distinct limitation of present-day thinking a b o u t m a n a g e m e n t or administration is that there has not yet been developed a s t a n d a r d or universally accepted terminology covering m a n a g e r i a l activity. T o avoid confusion over semantics, the terms administration a n d m a n a g e m e n t will be used interchangeably; what is m e a n t here is that g r o u p of executive functions commonly associated with the m a n a g e m e n t or administration of any organizational en- terprise. In 1900, libraries were small c o m p a r e d to their modern counterparts, librarianship was f u n d a m e n t a l l y a custodial f u n c t i o n , ' a n d the techniques of m a n a g e m e n t were rel- atively simple. Public library clienteles were small a n d highly literate, a n d consequent d e m a n d s u p o n librarians were modest. Col- lege libraries were designed primarily to serve the faculty a n d only incidentally the students, a n d the duties of the librarian were frequently absorbed by any available pro- fessor. As libraries grew in size, methods were devised locally to organize a n d preserve the collections, a n d these techniques were passed on to apprentices or other library workers through individual or class instruc- tion. Early in the century the principal attributes necessary for the library adminis- trator were scholarly attainment a n d local library experience. If there are serious questions a b o u t the Mr. Wasserman is Librarian and As- sistant Professor, Graduate School of Business and Public Administration, Cornell University. m a g n i t u d e to which m a n a g e m e n t functions in large p u b l i c a n d research libraries have grown in the last half century, T a b l e s I a n d II, which detail the growth of selected pub- lic a n d university libraries respectively, should help to dispel them. E n o r m o u s ad- vances have been m a d e in the scale of finan- cial a p p r o p r i a t i o n s , in the size of library book stocks, a n d in the n u m b e r of employ- ees needed to render these collections use- ful. O n e inevitable by-product of such a growth pattern has been the d e v e l o p m e n t of the hast of administrative problems which are a function of large a n d c o m p l e x organizations. A crucial question is the de- gree of u n d e r s t a n d i n g of the m a j o r issues of organizational m a n a g e m e n t a m o n g li- brary administrators a n d how well this un- d e r s t a n d i n g a n d the skills a n d insights which grow out of it have kept pace with the rapidly increasing size of library opera- tions. R E V I E W OF T H E L I T E R A T U R E In a survey m a d e for the A C R L College L i b r a r i e s Section in December, 1949, sixty- three libraries from twenty-nine states re- plied to a q u e s t i o n n a i r e which listed areas considered most to r e q u i r e research investi- gation in the college library field. Adminis- tration r a n k e d first in frequency of response a n d greatly o u t r a n k e d all other issues.1 Yet, while there is almost universal agreement that one of the critical needs is better un- d e r s t a n d i n g of m a n a g e m e n t , there has been a paucity of serious analyses of this question. C a r e f u l scrutiny of library literature over the last thirty years reveals few significant contributions. Brief review of some of these may aid in u n d e r s t a n d i n g the present level of thinking. In 1930, D o n a l d Coney suggested some ap- plications of scientific m a n a g e m e n t to li- 1 Dorothy E. Cole, "Areas for Research in the Col- lege Library, CRL, X I (1950), 328. JULY 1958 283 T A B L E I STATISTICS OF P U B L I C LIBRARIES OPERATING EXPENDITURES NUMBER OF BOOKS ALL STAFF LIBRARY 19001 19552 1900 1 1955 2 1921" 19565 B o s t o n C l e v e l a n d C h i c a g o M i n n e a p o l i s St. L o u i s $ 3 0 2 , 4 5 7 7 2 , 9 4 3 2 7 2 , 7 9 0 6 1 , 2 9 5 7 8 , 2 2 5 $ 3 , 2 2 2 , 6 3 7 4 , 2 7 0 , 7 8 7 4 , 7 7 7 , 6 7 2 1,651,351 1,453,043 7 7 2 , 4 3 2 165,868 2 5 8 , 4 9 8 114,000 135,000 2 , 0 8 5 , 6 6 0 2 , 8 1 9 , 1 4 2 2 , 2 9 4 , 3 6 9 9 6 0 , 0 4 0 1,066,339 5 2 9 4 5 3 168 2 3 0 7 4 0 8 9 6 1,204 3 5 4 3 4 0 T A B L E I I STATISTICS OF UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES LIBRARY OPERATING EXPENDITURES NUMBER OF BOOKS ALL STAFF LIBRARY 19001 19553 1900 1 19553 1920-21 6 1 9 5 5 s C o l u m b i a $ 1 , 2 8 8 , 1 4 5 2 9 5 , 0 0 0 2,116,641 6 2 3 1 2 C h i c a g o 7 1 8 , 0 6 6 329,778 1,911,111 9 3 121 I l l i n o i s $ 1,495 1,443,114 4 2 , 3 1 4 2 , 8 8 8 , 5 5 7 51 2 4 5 C a l i f o r n i a ( B e r k e l e y ) 12,940 2 , 0 1 5 , 5 2 0 79,417 2 , 0 6 3 , 0 8 2 2 8 3 0 9 H a r v a r d 7 8 , 8 2 0 2 , 0 3 4 , 1 6 3 5 6 0 , 0 0 0 5 , 9 5 5 , 7 6 6 65 4 376 Y a l e 3 4 , 5 0 0 1,061,116 2 8 5 , 0 0 0 4 , 2 8 0 , 4 7 3 4 3 2 3 3 1 U . S. Education Bureau, Report, I (1900), 923- 1165. 2 U . S. Office of Education, Circular No. 471, "Sta- tistics of Public Libraries in Cities With Population of 100,000 or More: Fiscal Year 1955." 3 CRL, X V I I (1956), 58-65. 4 American Library Association, Bulletin, X V I (1922), 426-451. 5 Enoch Pratt Free Library, Salary Statistics for Large Public Libraries, 1956. 6 Princeton University Library, College and Uni- versity Library Statistics, 1919/20 to 1943/44. 1947. braries. 2 T h i s early effort classified library functions in m a n a g e m e n t terms a n d dis- cussed p r o p o s e d m e t h o d s for i m p r o v i n g ob- jectives in large research libraries, produc- tion problems, the functionalization of work, the standardization of methods, a n d effi- ciency in the use of personnel. However, twenty-two years later, in an article on man- a g e m e n t advances, the same a u t h o r con- cludes by saying. " T h e r e is a regrettable lack of firsthand a c q u a i n t a n c e with m a n a g e m e n t literature, a n d of orientation in the man- a g e m e n t field, o n the p a r t of library admin- istrators a n d those who write on library m a n a g e m e n t . M u c h of librarians' writing on this subject is mor e descriptive than ana- lytical, a n d often, m o r e naive than sophis- ticated. T h e r e is a real lack of b r i d g i n g lit- erature, that is, articles that relate the con- 3 Donald Coney, "Scientific Management and Uni- versity Libraries," in G. T. Schwenning, ed., Man- agement Problems, (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1930), pp. 168-198. cepts a n d practices of professional manage- m e n t literature to library situations. T h e r e is p r o b a b l y a need for some m e a n s of direct- ing librarians to those parts of m a n a g e m e n t writing that have applicability to library w o r k . " 3 I n what is p r o b a b l y the most a d v a n c e d treatment yet a t t e m p t e d , P a u l H o w a r d de- lineates key elements of administrative the- ory a n d a p p l i e s these principles to library situations in an effort to develop a theo- retical framework for m a n a g e m e n t func- tions as a p p l i e d to libraries. 4 H o w a r d de- scribes a n d illustrates library a p p l i c a t i o n s of the following f u n c t i o n s of administra- tion: directing, ordering, supervising, con- trolling, organizing, evaluating, a n d repre- senting. T w o of his conclusions are note- worthy: " A knowledge of the true f u n c t i o n s 3 Donald Coney, "Management in College and Uni- versity Libraries," Library Trends, I (1952), 91. 4 Paul Howard, "The Functions of Library Man- agement," Library Quarterly, X (1940), 313-349. 284 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES of library m a n a g e m e n t should e n a b l e the library profession to select candidates f o r m a n a g e r i a l positions much more accurately than is possible at the present t i m e " a n d " I t should be possible to work from this [frame-- w o r k ] , or similar basis, toward the formula-' tion of a comprehensive a n d definitive the- ory of library m a n a g e m e n t . " 5 Since 1940, no m a j o r advances in the theory of library ad-, ministration have been m a d e beyond the introductory propositions advanced by How- ard. In sharp contrast with other professions, no book or m o n o g r a p h has yet been written which attempts to evolve a n d a p p l y a theo- retical framework as a tool for achieving a better u n d e r s t a n d i n g of library administra- tion. A few books have a p p e a r e d ; several are even distinctive a n d definitive works, which treat the organization a n d problems of particular types of libraries—public, col- lege, university, or special. T h e character- istics which all these volumes share is the great degree of concern with descriptive de- tail a n d not theory, the concentration u p o n the distinctive institutional problems a n d the o p e r a t i n g features of the type of library treated, the great emphasis u p o n method a n d technique, a n d the unconcern with prin- ciples which may be common in the ad- ministration of any large library effort, re- gardless of type. It would be u n f a i r , of course, to exclude from all m e n t i o n the i m p o r t a n t work which was d o n e f r o m the mid-1930's into the 1940's at the University of Chicago where a con- certed effort was m a d e to link the study of library administration to that of p u b l i c ad- ministration. T h i s work culminated in signi- ficant volumes such as Carleton Joeckel's Government of the American Public Li- brary (1935) a n d A r n o l d Miles a n d Lowell M a r t i n ' s Public Administration and the Li- brary (1941), a n d in the academic prepara- tion of some of the l e a d i n g administrative practitioners which the library field has de- veloped. T h e f u n d a m e n t a l orientation of this movement, however, was institutional, a n d the theoretical bases were never fully developed. Cognizance must also be given to the specialized materials which have been d e v e l o p e d to aid the library administrator in a p p r o a c h i n g the technical problems of 5 Ibid. administration with sharper a n d mo re effec- tive tools. Perhaps the most i m p o r t a n t effort of this type was E m m a B a l d w i n a n d Wil- l i a m s M a r c u s ' s Library Costs and Budgets; A Study of Cost Accounting in Public Li- braries (1941). T h e large mass of material p u b l i s h e d in the professional j o u r n a l s of librarianship d e a l i n g with m a n a g e m e n t issues can best be characterized as a type of latter-day folk- lore. T h e r e is a plethora of how-we-do-it articles which describe particular techniques employed by indiv idua l libraries, with the p r e s u m p t i o n that methods which work (or seem to work) one place are s o u n d o p e r a t i n g principles to g u i d e action elsewhere. T h e literature is deficient in contributions which a t t e m p t to theorize a n d very little can be generalized when the p r e p o n d e r a n c e of pub- lished offerings are accounts of noncumula- tive, isolated experiences. Virtually no writ- ing has a t t e m p t e d to distill f r o m a study of administrative practices in a n u m b e r of institutions a set of hypotheses which m i g h t p r o v i d e a framework for u n d e r s t a n d i n g com- mon situations in different settings. T h e promise which Carleton J o e c k e l held out for advancement of a d m i n i s t r a t i o n in 1938, " [ L i b r a r y a d m i n i s t r a t i o n ] is new in the sense that the close a n d scientific study of library administration as a subject worthy of consideration in itself is only in its be- g i n n i n g s , " 6 has not been fulfilled. CURRENT ORIENTATIONS TO ADMINISTRATION O n e relatively widespread p h e n o m e n o n which suggests that library m a n a g e m e n t in many institutions is b e i n g subjected to in- creased scrutiny, is the library survey. T h i s device (broadly a n a l o g o u s to the use of m a n a g e m e n t consulting firms in industry a n d government), attempts to focus detached professional thinking u p o n the administra- tive issues facing the library u n d e r surveil- lance. I n a perceptive, but p e r h a p s too- gentle critique, R a l p h Shaw characterizes the historical evolution of the library survey through three phases: T h e first p e r i o d controlled by " m a c r o m a n a g e m e n t " experts, b r o a d g u a g e d administrative generalists; the second phase given over to the "microman- a g e m e n t " specialists, expert in the technical 6 Carleton B. Joeckel, ed., Current Issues in Library A.d ministration, (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1939), Introduction. JULY 1958 285 library f u n c t i o n s ; a n d the present stage, in which a first-rate survey team is directed by a broadly o r i e n t e d m a n a g e m e n t generalist, a i d e d by a crew of specialists who f u n c t i o n as staff assistants to the survey director. 7 Even if we accept Shaw's j u d g m e n t , while incidence of the use of the library survey ap- pears to b e increasing, there is n o indication that this device is a d d i n g a p p r e c i a b l y to the total u n d e r s t a n d i n g of library a d m i n i s t r a t i o n . T h a t is not to say that i n d i v i d u a l surveys may not be extremely v a l u a b l e to the in- stitutions u n d e r investigation. Such studies frequently d o p r o v i d e the m e a n s for obtain- ing keen diagnosis of p r o b l e m s a n d equally p e n e t r a t i n g p r o p o s a l s for the solution of problems. U n f o r t u n a t e l y , however, each sur- vey situation is an isolated entity, detached a n d disassociated from other c o m p a r a b l e operations. A large n u m b e r of library sur- veys have been published, a corps of survey experts has been developed, b u t out of this p h e n o m e n o n has come n o new understand- ing or insights, n o distillation of adminis- trative principles, n o accretions to the knowledge of the controllable or uncontroll- able variables of the administrative process in the library organization. T h e r e has not been one significant c o m p a r a t i v e analysis of administrative issues growing o u t of these efforts. A n o t h e r characteristic of present day thinking a b o u t library administration is the prevalence of sharply different points of view a n d attitudes toward what are the most effective means for a d v a n c i n g under- s t a n d i n g a n d practice of m a n a g e m e n t in libraries. O n e position is e n u n c i a t e d most clearly by the documentalist school. T h i s g r o u p , identified largely with D e a n J e s s e H . Shera a n d the Western Reserve School of L i b r a r y Science Center for D o c u m e n t a t i o n a n d C o m m u n i c a t i o n Research, energetically attempts to a p p l y to librarianship the skills a n d techniques of the basic a n d a p p l i e d sciences. F o r this g r o u p , the most crucial is- sues f a c i n g library administration are the technical problems, a n d primary concern is centered u p o n the d e v e l o p m e n t of effective devices for the retrieval of i n f o r m a t i o n . A t another p o l e is the faction whose posi- tion is most clearly articulated by L a w r e n c e 7 Ralph R. Shaw, "Scientific M a n a g e m e n t in the L i b r a r y , " Wilson Library Bulletin, X X I ( 1 9 4 7 ) , 349. Clark Powell who suggests that " T o admin- ister libraries calls for gifts of the m i n d a n d the s p i r i t " a n d , almost as an afterthought, " a s well as theoretical knowledge of manage- ment a n d a knack for gimmicks a n d gadg- e t s . " 8 I n describing a p r o p o s e d p r o g r a m in library education, his primary concern is with a " r e d e d i c a t i o n to the simple facts of li- brary l i f e . " 9 T h i s , in essence, is the position of the h u m a n i s t who sees the library admin- istrator as scholar a n d b o o k m a n , with man- a g e m e n t only a m i n o r f u n c t i o n which he per- forms as an aside, a n d , presumably, intui- tively. T R A I N I N G FOR L I B R A R Y ADMINSTRATION T h e most p e n e t r a t i n g discussion of educa- tional p r e p a r a t i o n for a d m i n i s t r a t i o n in li- braries was contributed by M a r t i n in 1945.1 0 H e characterizes courses in a d m i n i s t r a t i o n offered in library schools as susceptible of three different levels of presentation. T h e first type treats material u n d e r the general rubric of a d m i n i s t r a t i o n which is not cov- ered elsewhere in the c u r r i c u l u m — b o o k charging systems, order routines, statistical records, p r e p a r a t i o n a n d care of materials, etc. T h e second kind considers the "ele- ments of m a n a g e m e n t " — t h o s e topics or problems with which a library administrator deals on a day-to-day basis. T h i s type of presentation is exemplified by a concern with such issues as buildings a n d e q u i p m e n t . M a r t i n then advocates that such courses be a d v a n c e d to a third level a n d centered a r o u n d what he terms the " a d m i n i s t r a t i v e process." While he, u n f o r t u n a t e l y , presents little amplification of the details a n d con- tent of such a course, the implications are that the material considered w o u l d be of a theoretical as well as a p p l i e d nature. Mar- tin's first level is not administration at all. H i s second level covers actual o p e r a t i o n a l functions a n d their control, rather than ad- ministration. It is only his p r o p o s e d third level which w o u l d seriously concern itself with a different order of p e r f o r m a n c e — t h e f u n c t i o n s of the executive in m a n a g e m e n t — as contrasted with the f u n c t i o n s of library o p e r a t i o n s . Interestingly enough, while M a r t i n ' s analy- 8 L a w r e n c e Clark Powell, " T h e G i f t to Be S i m p l e , " Library Journal, L X X X I I ( 1 9 5 7 ) , 314. 9 Ibid., p. 314. 10 Lowell M a r t i n . " S h a l l L i b r a r y Schools Teach a d m i n i s t r a t i o n ? " CRL, V I ( 1 9 4 5 ) , 335-340, 345. 286 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES sis was published a dozen years ago, since which time professional education has swung almost exclusively from the u n d e r g r a d u a t e to the g r a d u a t e level a n d in the process u n d e r g o n e a decided reorientation of values a n d emphases, a review of present-day courses reveals only a few instances of m a j o r mod- ifications in the content of the formal courses in administration toward an admin- istrative process orientation. T h e remarks which follow are based u p o n written communications with every A L A accredited library school a n d an analysis of the syllabi, outlines, a n d r e a d i n g lists used by these p r o g r a m s in their courses in ad- ministration. O u t of a total of thirty-six in- quiries, replies were received from twenty- five schools. Of this number, only eighteen h a d m a d e available their materials in time to be considered in this study. Several schools were not willing to provide details of their courses; others indicated that the administra- tion courses were being revised a n d that new materials were not yet available. However, every school of m a j o r national r e p u t a t i o n d i d comply in full or in part, a n d is, there- fore, represented in the conclusions drawn. Admittedly, it is difficult to assess the level of instruction exactly a n d fairly, based sole- ly u p o n e x a m i n a t i o n of outlines a n d read- ing lists without the complementary insights g a i n e d from personal interviews with the in- structors. Systematic analysis of the materials at h a n d leads to the following conclusions. Only three of the eighteen schools re- s p o n d i n g a p p r o a c h the teaching of admin- istration f r o m the s t a n d p o i n t of an " a d m i n - istrative process." In each of these three in- stances, there are clear indications that a conscious a t t e m p t is being m a d e to study li- brary administration as a substantive area a n d to distinguish administration from a preoccupation with the techniques a n d meth- ods of the p r o d u c t i o n a n d service functions of libraries. Seven schools are a p p a r e n t l y treating ad- ministration in exactly the same way which Martin characterized as the first level of in- struction a n d continue to offer courses cov- ering materials a n d subjects which are not considered elsewhere in the curriculum. T h e other eight schools provide courses which a p p e a r to fit the description of Martin's sec- o n d category, in which administration is e q u a t e d with concern for physical plant, legal f o u n d a t i o n , financial control, etc. Certain other attributes of courses in li- brary administration are worth n o t i n g here. In nearly every p r o g r a m there are special- ized courses in the administration of distinc- tive types of libraries. Either these faculties believe the process of administration varies in different types of libraries, or these are not courses in administration, but treatments of the problems or f u n c t i o n s of public, col- lege, university, or special libraries. R e a d i n g lists in administration courses draw most heavily from the library litera- ture. While there is occasional reference to, or assignment in, the broader m a n a g e m e n t literature of business administration, p u b l i c administration, or administrative behavior, this is u n c o m m o n . If the thesis a d v a n c e d earlier that library literature is p o o r in sub- stantive contributions toward u n d e r s t a n d i n g of administration is correct, the student suf- fers from an i n a p p r o p r i a t e intellectual diet. O n e almost universal characteristic of the course or courses in administration (based u p o n a review of the catalogs of the schools) is their elective feature. A survey of the work of practicing librarians w o u l d doubt- less reveal that many exercise control over, a n d responsibility for, the work of others. T h e degree of responsibility would vary widely, between one extreme of supervision of one or two clerical assistants to that of the highest m a n a g e m e n t post in a large organ- ization. A n u n d e r s t a n d i n g of administration would a p p e a r to be equally relevant as part of the professional e q u i p m e n t of every li- brarian, including specialists in research, ref- erence, a n d cataloging, who, while not di- rectly concerned with administrative per- formance, need to u n d e r s t a n d the theory a n d framework of administration if only to a p p r e c i a t e their roles in the total organiza- tion in which they function, a n d their own relationship to it. T h e central theme of this p a p e r is not education for librarianship. B u t in its con- cern with key issues of present-day library administration, some general j u d g m e n t s must be m a d e a b o u t the caliber, extent, a n d effectiveness of academic p r e p a r a t i o n . Li- brary administration, as it is practiced, a n d even more particularly, as it is taught, is not a model of intellectual refinement. I t JULY 1958 287 does not have a clearly defined, well-organ- ized body of subject knowledge. Its subject knowledge has no simple, or even c o m p l e x , theoretical basis or structure. Its literature is a motley of descriptive treatment of op- erating methods used in i n d i v i d u a l , varied settings. T h e content of most of the courses a p p e a r s to describe practices a n d to m a k e general r e c o m m e n d a t i o n s for what are pre- s u m e d to be successful techniques. W h e r e it might, a n d p e r h a p s should, i m p r o v e itself by borrowing heavily f r o m many diverse dis- ciplines such as business, law, economics, political science, a n d education, it does not, or does not very o f t e n . U n d e r l y i n g the issue of education for ad- ministration is the question of who is best e q u i p p e d to teach the courses. Powell m a k e s the p o i n t in discussing this issue that " L i - b r a r i a n s h i p today is suffering f r o m . . . [be- i n g ] taught by teachers who have never been successful librarians, or even librarians at a l l . " 1 1 A c c o r d i n g to this s t a n d a r d , only those who have a d m i n i s t e r e d are q u a l i f i e d to teach a d m i n i s t r a t i o n . A p e r f u n c t o r y re- view of the b a c k g r o u n d s of those who ac- tually offer the courses, in Who's Who in Li- brary Service, suggests that the overwhelm- ing majority are drawn f r o m the ranks of the practitioners, present a n d past. T h e r e is a serious question of how u s e f u l this has been. While this g r o u p may, in fact, have administered or be a d m i n i s t e r i n g libraries with n o t a b l e success, they have u p to this p o i n t contributed little to f u r t h e r i n g the d e v e l o p m e n t a n d u n d e r s t a n d i n g of the sub- ject of library a d m i n i s t r a t i o n . O n e alter- native would be to turn the instructional reins over to a research-oriented g r o u p . T h e r a t i o n a l e is best expressed in the following passage taken f r o m another field.12 " T h e practitioner, both by e q u i p m e n t a n d by t e m p e r a m e n t , is g e a r e d to action, a n d the scientist to e x p l a n a t i o n . T h e practitioner's action is not r a n d o m , or irrational however. It is based on a k i n d of wisdom a n d expe- rience which can best be described as clin- ical acumen. Clinical a c u m e n is not some- thing mystical. It is c o m p o u n d e d of partly conscious, partly unconscious, knowledge 11 Powell, op. ext., 313. 12 David G. French, "The Utilization of the Social Sciences in Solving Welfare Problems," in Social Work Practice in the Field of Tuberculosis (Sympo- sium Proceedings July 27-August 1, 1953), Univer- sity of Pittsburgh, School of Social Work, 1954, p. 29. a n d facts which form the basis for a r a t i o n a l j u d g m e n t . O n e procedure for d e v e l o p i n g a more scientific base for welfare practice, I believe, will be the identification a n d ex- plication of the elements that enter into clinical a c u m e n . " F u r t h e r a n d mo re specif- ically, " t h e f o r m u l a t i o n of practitioner knowledge into testable p r o p o s i t i o n calls for a k i n d of competence a n d interest not pos- sessed by most practitioners. It calls for the k i n d of analytical, generalizing ability a n d interests possessed by scientists whose m a j o r concern is with analysis a n d g e n e r a l i z a t i o n . " If this p o i n t of view were to b e general- ized a n d a p p l i e d to librarianship, it would not suggest necessarily that every administra- tor by virtue of this e x p o s u r e was i n c a p a b l e of conceptualizing his experience, or that a research-oriented person necessarily could. It would suggest, however, that there is a propensity for this to be the case. If then the practitioner is considered to be less well e q u i p p e d to distill from experience the ac- tual principles which g u i d e him because of a f u n d a m e n t a l action-focus, a n d if the social scientist is basically concerned with intro- d u c i n g order a n d relationships to what ap- p e a r otherwise to be unconnected phenom- ena, a n d if research may a i d in p r o v i d i n g m e a n i n g f u l generalization, the case for the non-administrator or scholar-teacher, is strengthened. P U B L I C A D M I N I S T R A T I O N A s s u m i n g a d m i n i s t r a t i o n to be c o m m o n to all large-scale organizations a n d assum- ing that the problems, issues a n d a p p r o a c h e s which develop in one type of institutional e n v i r o n m e n t may have relevance for other settings, a c o m p a r a t i v e review may p r o v e of interest. L i b r a r y administration parallels p u b l i c a d m i n i s t r a t i o n in a n u m b e r of ways, and, in a very real sense, library administra- tion is only an extension of p u b l i c admin- istration. T h e r e have been, traditionally, two m a j o r avenues by which to study pub- lic a d m i n i s t r a t i o n . T h e first is the so-called " o r g a n i z a t i o n " or " p r o g r a m " a p p r o a c h , in which a d m i n i s t r a t i o n is viewed from the p o i n t of view of a specific type of function- ing u n i t — p o l i c e , prison, fire, m u n i c i p a l gov- ernment, etc. T h i s a p p r o a c h , which consid- ers the usual g r o u p of administrative prob- l e m s — p l a n n i n g , personnel, budget, etc.—is concerned with a d m i n i s t r a t i o n as a process, 288 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES b u t p r i m a r i l y it focuses u p o n the specific tasks a n d f u n c t i o n s of p a r t i c u l a r a g e n c i e s o r types of agencies. T h i s a p p r o a c h is sup- p o r t e d by the theory that a d m i n i s t r a t i o n c a n n o t b e s t u d i e d m e a n i n g f u l l y a p a r t f r o m the specific p r o g r a m to b e a d m i n i s t e r e d , that a n a d m i n i s t r a t o r a d m i n i s t e r s s o m e t h i n g , a n d that this s o m e t h i n g is highly i m p o r t a n t to the m a n n e r of a d m i n i s t r a t i o n . T r a n s l a t e d in- to library terms, this s a m e p o i n t of view is p r e s u m a b l y reflected in the w i d e s p r e a d prev- a l e n c e in l i b r a r y schools of distinct courses in p u b l i c , college, university a n d s p e c i a l li- brary a d m i n i s t r a t i o n . Th£_secorLd m a j o r a p p r o a c h rests o n the c o n c e p t of a d m i n i s t r a t i o n as m a n a g e m e n t . A c c o r d i n g to this n o t i o n , there a r e c e r t a i n m a n a g e r i a l processes which r u n t h r o u g h the w h o l e of a d m i n i s t r a t i o n , w h a t e v e r the p r o g r a m . A m o n g these a r e p l a n n i n g , pro- g r a m m i n g , o r g a n i z i n g , d i r e c t i n g , c o o r d i n a t - i n g , r e p o r t i n g , a n d a p p r a i s i n g , a n d each of these processes is sufficiently a l i k e f r o m pro- g r a m to p r o g r a m to j u s t i f y s p e c i a l study of the process itself. T h o s e w h o s p e a k a u t h o r i t a t i v e l y f o r p u b - lic a d m i n i s t r a t i o n today, g e n e r a l l y accept the c o n c e p t of m a n a g e m e n t as a process r u n n i n g t h r o u g h all o r g a n i z a t i o n s , w h i l e rec- o g n i z i n g , of course, that m a n a g e m e n t d o e s not t a k e p l a c e in a v a c u u m . W h i l e the cur- r i c u l a of i n d i v i d u a l u n i v e r s i t i e s o f f e r i n g pro- g r a m s in p u b l i c a d m i n i s t r a t i o n offer concen- t r a t i o n s in s p e c i a l i z e d p r o g r a m a r e a s such as p o l i c e a d m i n i s t r a t i o n a n d city m a n a g e m e n t , " i t is clear that the u n i v e r s i t i e s h a v e accept- e d the c o n c e p t of p u b l i c a d m i n i s t r a t i o n as a process in s e t t i n g u p their e d u c a t i o n a l pro- g r a m s f o r the p u b l i c service, for the em- p h a s i s is o n m a n a g e m e n t r a t h e r t h a n pro- g r a m . " 1 3 I n s p i t e of d i s c l a i m e r s within the profes- sion to the contrary, a n d certainly to a de- g r e e which is n o w h e r e n e a r b e i n g p a r a l l e l e d in the field of l i b r a r y a d m i n i s t r a t i o n , p u b - lic a d m i n i s t r a t i o n is the f o c u s of consider- a b l e research a t t e n t i o n . As a m a t t e r of fact, research has p r o g r e s s e d to the p o i n t where p u b l i c a d m i n i s t r a t i o n is now widely con- ceived of a s a n " i n t e r a c t i o n " d i s c i p l i n e , d r a w i n g m a n y of its key c o n t r i b u t i o n s f r o m 13 R. C. Martin, "Education for Public Administra- tion" in Education for the Professions, U. S. Depart- ment of Health, Education and Welfare, Office of Ed- ucation, 1955, p. 194. o t h e r b e h a v i o r a l sciences. T h e g r e a t v a l u e of such a cross-disciplinary a p p r o a c h is that while researchers in o t h e r fields m a y f o c u s u p o n the s a m e p r o b l e m s , their p e r s p e c t i v e s a n d c o n c e p t u a l tools a r e c o n s i d e r a b l y differ- ent. T h i s t e n d e n c y h a s g i v e n rise to s o m e new a n d s t i m u l a t i n g a p p r o a c h e s to adminis- trative p r o b l e m s , a n d t o a wider e x p l o r a t i o n of new m e t h o d s , t e c h n i q u e s , a n d research f r a m e w o r k s . S o m e of the insights currently b e i n g u s e d in s t u d y i n g p u b l i c a d m i n i s t r a - tion as a n a p p l i e d a r e a a r e b e i n g d r a w n f r o m a n u m b e r of w h a t w o u l d f o r m e r l y h a v e b e e n c o n s i d e r e d novel sources, includ- i n g the f o l l o w i n g fields: Politics—Research a t t e n t i o n is b e i n g di- r e c t e d m o r e a n d m o r e to the q u e s t i o n of p o l i t i c a l b e h a v i o r as a tool f o r u n d e r s t a n d - i n g a d m i n i s t r a t i v e issues. W h a t was o n c e a p u b l i c a d m i n i s t r a t i o n t a b o o (on the theory that a d m i n i s t r a t i o n a n d p o l i t i c s were dichot- o m o u s issues), is now g e n e r a l l y v i e w e d a s a crucial e l e m e n t of the a d m i n i s t r a t i v e process. W h i l e the a m o u n t of r e c i p r o c a l c o n t r i b u t i o n f r o m p o l i t i c s to p u b l i c a d m i n i s t r a t i o n , a n d vice versa, has b e e n very l i m i t e d , i n d i c a t i o n s a r e that this m a y not c o n t i n u e to b e the case. History—In c o g n i z a n c e of the g e n e r a l l y a c c e p t e d difficulty of a p p l y i n g the scientific m e t h o d s of c o n t r o l l e d e x p e r i m e n t to a dy- n a m i c social field, i n c r e a s i n g research at- t e n t i o n is b e i n g b r o u g h t t o b e a r on the r e c o r d of the past. P e r h a p s the g r e a t e s t les- son to b e l e a r n e d here is the m e a n s of cop- i n g with the type of a d m i n i s t r a t i v e issue which is r e c u r r e n t . Cultural Anthropology—Particular atten- tion is b e i n g d i r e c t e d to u n d e r s t a n d i n g cul- tures a n d issues of u n d e r d e v e l o p e d areas, a n d the lessons l e a r n e d f r o m these cross- c u l t u r a l s t u d i e s a r e p r o v i d i n g u s e f u l insights f o r assessing a d m i n i s t r a t i v e p r o b l e m s of m o r e c o m p l e x societies. T h i s d i s c i p l i n e has p r o v e d crucial in a d v a n c i n g the study of c o m p a r a t i v e a d m i n i s t r a t i o n , a t o p i c which relates to p e r h a p s the s i n g l e fastest g r o w i n g p r o g r a m a r e a in the p u b l i c a d m i n i s t r a t i o n field. Sociology—Many of the issues which f o r m the basis of i n q u i r y i n t o h u m a n organiza- tions such as status, class, a n d p o w e r , a r e p r o v i n g e q u a l l y u s e f u l in f u r t h e r i n g u n d e r - s t a n d i n g of a d m i n i s t r a t i o n . T h e l i t e r a t u r e of b u r e a u c r a c y has e n r i c h e d the study of JULY 1958 289 p u b l i c a d m i n i s t r a t i o n i m m e a s u r a b l y a n d p r o v i d e d m a n y m e a n i n g f u l insights. Social Psychology—Closely tied to sociol- ogy a n d social a n t h r o p o l o g y , this d i s c i p l i n e has p r o v i d e d a d m i n i s t r a t i o n with the valu- a b l e c o n c e p t of the i n f o r m a l g r o u p , studies of l e a d e r s h i p , r o l e p l a y i n g , a n d the e n t i r e a r e a of tests a n d m e a s u r e m e n t . Economics—There has been c o n s i d e r a b l e e x c h a n g e between e c o n o m i c s a n d p u b l i c a d m i n i s t r a t i o n a n d even a tendency to con- verge. T h e m a n a g e r i a l e c o n o m i c s theory of the firm has its p a r a l l e l in the p u b l i c cor- p o r a t i o n , a n d the firm as a system of p o w e r a n d the p u b l i c agency as a n e q u i l i b r a t i n g e c o n o m i c force, t e n d to cross a n d to p r o v i d e each other with c o r r e s p o n d i n g insights. Business Administration—Scientific m a n - a g e m e n t has g r o w n u p o u t of the field of business a d m i n i s t r a t i o n a n d b e e n a d a p t e d to the p u b l i c s p h e r e . T h e insights i n t o hu- m a n b e h a v i o r g a i n e d f r o m the E l t o n M a y o H a w t h o r n e e x p e r i m e n t s on social c o n d i t i o n s in the p l a n t , a n d the H a r v a r d B u s i n e s s School case study m e t h o d , h a v e each b e e n t r a n s l a t e d i n t o p u b l i c a d m i n i s t r a t i o n terms. O b v i o u s l y , a d m i n i s t r a t i o n in the p u b l i c field faces m a n y i n t e r n a l , technical prob- lems. H o w e v e r , the insights b e i n g g a i n e d t h r o u g h other social sciences a r e c a u s i n g a review a n d re-evaluation of m a n y o l d ques- tions. M a n y writers h a v e s p o k e n of the rev- o l u t i o n in the social sciences, that is, the m u s h r o o m i n g of w i d e s p r e a d study in all the a r e a s of social interest. N e w fields a r e b e i n g b o r n such as cybernetics, econometrics, a n d sociometry. Cross d i s c i p l i n a r y a d v a n c e s are b e i n g m a d e to f o r m u l a t e new m e t h o d s of a t t a c k i n g a d m i n i s t r a t i v e p r o b l e m s — l e a d e r - ship studies, small g r o u p theory, c o m m u n i c a - tion theory, g a m e , a n d role theory. If p u b l i c a d m i n i s t r a t i o n , which has a g e n e t i c a n d even o r g a n i z a t i o n a l r e l a t i o n only to p o l i t i c a l science, is r e v i e w i n g its own p o s i t i o n in these new terms, what then s h o u l d be the i m p l i c a t i o n s f o r library service, which is the g e n e t i c o f f s p r i n g of all the social disciplines? A n d if the f o l l o w i n g criticisms can b e legiti- mately levelled at the g e n e r a l p r o g r a m of research activity in the field of p u b l i c ad- m i n i s t r a t i o n , what c o u l d not b e said of li- brary a d m i n i s t r a t i o n ? 1 4 14 F. C. Mosher, "Research in Public Administra- tion: Some Notes and Suggestions" in Public Admin- istration Review, X V I (1956), 178. (1) T h e r e h a s n o t b e e n e n o u g h research p e r f o r m e d ; the s t i m u l u s f o r research effort has been insufficient; a n d research o u t p u t is f a l l i n g b e h i n d the needs. (2) T h e r e has been insufficient p l a n n i n g , d i r e c t i o n , a n d c h a n n e l i n g of research efforts; a r e a s of crucial concern h a v e b e e n n e g l e c t e d . (3) T h e r e has been insufficient commu- n i c a t i o n within the field with the result that few know what others a r e d o i n g ; a n d the outlets for research p r o d u c t s a r e i n a d e q u a t e . (4) T h e r e is i n a d e q u a t e c o m m u n i c a t i o n between this field a n d r e l a t e d fields of the social sciences in either d i r e c t i o n ; there is i n a d e q u a t e c o l l a b o r a t i o n , c o o p e r a t i o n , a n d i n t e r a c t i o n a m o n g them. EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION T h e field of c o n t e m p o r a r y e d u c a t i o n is characterized by a vital concern with the q u e s t i o n s of a d m i n i s t r a t i v e l e a d e r s h i p . U n - d o u b t e d l y , the single most c o n s p i c u o u s a c h i e v e m e n t has b e e n the e v o l u t i o n of the C o o p e r a t i v e P r o g r a m in E d u c a t i o n a l A d m i n - istration. D e v e l o p i n g f r o m a concern with the u n d e r l y i n g issues of e d u c a t i o n a l leader- ship, three m a j o r a s s o c i a t i o n s in the educa- tion field, in c o n j u n c t i o n with the W . K . K e l l o g g F o u n d a t i o n , p l a n n e d to study the q u e s t i o n a n d s p o n s o r e d five r e g i o n a l confer- ences d u r i n g 1949-50. O u t of these sessions was b o r n the C o o p e r a t i v e P r o g r a m in Ed- u c a t i o n a l A d m i n i s t r a t i o n , financed by g r a n t s f r o m the K e l l o g g F o u n d a t i o n t o t a l l i n g sev- eral m i l l i o n dollars, a n d d e s i g n a t i n g at first five, a n d later three, m o r e e d u c a t i o n a l in- stitutions, where the p r o g r a m was to b e car- r i e d o u t . T h e g r a n t s were specifically ear- m a r k e d f o r " a c t i o n - r e s e a r c h " p r o g r a m s in the field of e d u c a t i o n a l l e a d e r s h i p . E a c h in- d i v i d u a l study center evolved a series of ob- jectives which were used to direct the specif- ic lines which the i n q u i r y was to take a t that university. A d e v e l o p m e n t of interest is the g e n e r a l revision of the p r o g r a m r e p o r t e d in 1955 a t o n e of the r e g i o n a l centers, the M i d w e s t A d m i n i s t r a t i o n C e n t e r , at the U n i v e r s i t y of C h i c a g o . 1 5 T h e m a j o r lines a l o n g which re- search was to be d i r e c t e d h e r e were: (1) the f o r m u l a t i o n of a g e n e r a l theory of a d m i n i - stration to g u i d e b o t h p r a c t i c e a n d research, (2) the classification of a d m i n i s t r a t i v e func- tions, roles, a n d effects t h r o u g h e x p e r i m e n - 15 "New Program in Administration," Elementary School Journal, LV (1955), 311-314. 290 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES tation a n d research, (3) rigorous a p p l i c a t i o n of present knowledge a n d of a c c u m u l a t i n g theory a n d research to the selection a n d p r e p a r a t i o n of persons for administrative roles, (4) continuous re-education of those engaged in administration through mor e ef- fective use of a c o m b i n a t i o n of conferences, discussion groups, publications, audio-visual presentation a n d consultative service, a n d (5) i m p r o v e m e n t of the situation through which education is provided. A key element in this p r o g r a m involves the p r e p a r a t i o n of a field staff comprised of younger education- al administrators with interest in theory a n d research who are to be trained on an inter- disciplinary basis over a p e r i o d of one to three years as p a r t of their orientation to the p r o g r a m . Some of the resources which Chicago p l a n n e d to use in this p r o g r a m in- cluded the d e p a r t m e n t s a n d professional schools of anthropology, political science, sociology, industrial relations, business, law a n d social service. Perhaps the most perceptive summary of advances in thinking a b o u t administration in the field of education is provided by' J o h n W a l t o n who suggests that " t h e m o u n t i n g interest in the theoretical aspects of educa- tional administration indicates a dissatisfac- tion with the traditional study of the subject a n d a desire to f o r m u l a t e a r u b r i c of ad- ministrative doctrine, if not a scientific the- o r y . " 1 6 Even more interesting are Walton's observations a b o u t the three possible chan- nels a l o n g which the theory of educational administration may develop, observations which may, incidentally, be equally relevant for library administration. T h e first avenue would arise from the a s s u m p t i o n that the administrative function cannot be abstracted from the other func- tions of the educational enterprise a n d that the educational administrator is principally a scholar rather than administrator. T h e sec- o n d possible type of theory to emerge would be to abstract administration from the other f u n c t i o n s of an institution so that it might become a science. T h i s would r e q u i r e the identification a n d classification of the ele- ments of administration a n d the formula- tion a n d testing of precise causal relations. Such a theory would provide for specialists 16 J o h n W a l t o n , " T h e Theoretical S t u d y of Educa- tional A d m i n i s t r a t i o n , " Harvard Educational Review, X X V (19S5), 169. in administration, rather than education, who might presumably be interchangeable from one institution to another—school, hospital, library, etc. T h e third theory is only a reflection of what the author suggests most often unwittingly h a p p e n s . Because education is a complex, unwielding, hetero- geneous, social institution, the primary req- uisite of an administrator is the facility to see relationships. Such an administrator would need to know how to r u n an organ- ization but also would have m u c h to say a b o u t its purposes. Specialists p r o v i d e the administrator with facts a n d technical data* but decision-making a b o u t all aspects of ed- u c a t i o n — p u r p o s e s as well as procedures— would be left to the administrator. T h i s pre- supposes the availability of an administra- tor who is endowed with the capacity to at- tack not only administrative issues b u t sub- stantive educational questions as well. Ob- viously, the third alternative w o u l d provide the most satisfactory solution; unfortunately, there are no hints a b o u t where to find or how to develop such a class of administrators. N o t only is there active concern with ad- ministration at the lower levels of educa- tion, but college a n d university administra- tion is the focus of considerable a t t e n t i o n as well. Evidence of this concern is expressed by one university president who writes, " T h e duties are so complex that it is sur- prising that this vocational field has not been accepted generally as a discrete art or science r e q u i r i n g special educational train- ing. H i g h e r education has instructional pro- grams p r e p a r i n g p e o p l e for everything but its own o p e r a t i o n " and, " I t is high time that administration in higher education was recognized for what it is, a vitally necessary function, one of the most difficult of all areas of administrative activity, a n d an under- taking to be consciously p r e p a r e d f o r . " 1 7 O n e noteworthy d e v e l o p m e n t in recogni- tion of this need has been the p r o g r a m evolved at the H a r v a r d Business School. Aid- ed by a Carnegie F o u n d a t i o n g r a n t a n d sponsored by the Association of American Colleges, in 1955 the Institute for College a n d University Administrators was begun. T h i s has been an a t t e m p t to a d a p t the same techniques used in the short training 17 J . A . P e r k i n s , " P u b l i c A d m i n i s t r a t i o n a n d the Col- lege A d m i n i s t r a t o r , " Harvard Educational Review, X X V ( 1 9 5 5 ) , 216. JULY 1958 291 p r o g r a m s for business executives which the H a r v a r d Business School provides, to the training of college officials. T h e v a l u e of the p r o g r a m has been characterized by the Car- negie C o r p o r a t i o n as follows: " t h e Corpora- tion u n d e r t o o k what a p p e a r e d at the time to be a rather speculative venture, b u t one that proved to be eminently s u c c e s s f u l . " 1 8 C U R R E N T D E V E L O P M E N T S T h e degree of concentration of thinking a n d activity in the two fields reviewed sug- gests clearly that in comparison, the theoret- ical a n d practical study of a d m i n i s t r a t i o n in the library field is l a g g i n g considerably. However, the picture is not completely black. Several recent d e v e l o p m e n t s are par- ticularly noteworthy. T h e most d r a m a t i c event has been the establishment by the F o r d F o u n d a t i o n of the Council on L i b r a r y Resources. Well financed a n d ably directed, this agency is charged with the responsibility f o r s t i m u l a t i n g de- velopments which will i m p r o v e the meth- ods a n d mechanisms for the effective opera- tion a n d m a n a g e m e n t of large research li- braries. A r e a s o n a b l e a s s u m p t i o n w o u l d be that as a result of this p r o g r a m inroads may be m a d e into areas which relate to the cen- tral issues of library a d m i n i s t r a t i o n . Another i m p o r t a n t d e v e l o p m e n t has been the award by the C a r n e g i e C o r p o r a t i o n to the School of L i b r a r y Service of Western Re- serve University where D e a n Shera is direct- ing a study to " u n d e r t a k e a thorough exam- ination of education for librarians, a n d , on the basis of this research, d e v e l o p a m o d e l curriculum at Western R e s e r v e . " Presum- ably, in this study attention may, in some measure, be directed to the issue of educa- tional p r e p a r a t i o n for library administra- tion. T h e recent organizational revision of the American L i b r a r y Association g i v i n g rise to the new L i b r a r y A d m i n i s t r a t i o n Division is another h o p e f u l factor. T h e central focus of this g r o u p will almost certainly be those theoretical a n d practical issues f a c i n g all of library a d m i n i s t r a t i o n , regardless of type. U n d o u b t e d l y , this body will aid in creating a better climate of u n d e r s t a n d i n g , a n d 18 Carnegie Corporation of New York, Annual Re- port for the Fiscal Year Ended September 30, 1955 ( N e w York, 1956), p. 32. may also prove to be influential in stimulat- ing study, research, a n d writing o n manage- m e n t issues. Finally, there is the p r o p o s a l a d v a n c e d by Keyes Metcalf in his final H a r v a r d report, for p r o v i d i n g special training for administra- t i o n . 1 9 Metcalf indicates that o n e of the pressing p r o b l e m s of A m e r i c a n l i b r a r i a n s h i p is the shortage of leaders qualified for the m a j o r administrative posts in the large re- search libraries of the country, a n d suggests a limited p r o g r a m of fellowships for stu- dents who hold a d v a n c e d degrees in subject fields a n d the basic professional degree in l i b r a r i a n s h i p who have d e m o n s t r a t e d apti- tude in administrative library positions. H i s p r o j e c t e d p r o g r a m of instruction calls for a carefully directed plan of internship in the H a r v a r d University L i b r a r y , f o r m a l train- ing in substantive areas m a k i n g use of the following professional schools at H a r v a r d — G r a d u a t e School of Business, G r a d u a t e School of E d u c a t i o n , a n d G r a d u a t e School of Public A d m i n i s t r a t i o n — a n d a d v a n c e d study in one of the d e p a r t m e n t s of the G r a d u a t e School of Arts a n d Sciences. T h e outline calls for two a n d one-half years of academic study (one-half year of which would be in b i b l i o g r a p h y a n d library ad- ministration) a n d another academic year of internship in co njunct io n with the usual l a n g u a g e e x a m i n a t i o n s a n d dissertation lead- ing to the Ph.D. In a somewhat modified f o r m the p r o g r a m w o u l d l e a d to an M.A. Such a course would p r o v i d e the student with a d v a n c e d scholarly work while at the same time e x p o s i n g him to the p r o b l e m s f a c e d by the practicing administrator. While this p l a n is particularly e a r m a r k e d for re- search library administrators, it conceivably could have implications for administration of other types of libraries. T h e p r o g r a m for library administrators u n d e r Metcalf at the G r a d u a t e School of L i b r a r y Service at Rut- gers University represents a step in the training of potential leaders. It is different, of course, f r o m the p r o p o s a l of Metcalf for H a r v a r d . 19 K. D. Metcalf, Report on the Harvard University Library: A Study of Present and Prospective Problems (Cambridge: Harvard University Library, 1955), pp. 120-123. 292 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES SUGGESTED A V E N U E S FOR ADVANCING L I B R A R Y ADMINISTRATION T h e material presented u p to this point has been based u p o n empirical observation flavored by the author's personal reactions to the facts. So m u c h for the diagnosis. W h a t of the prognosis? As is probably true of most of the deep-seated problems facing all the professions, the real answers are not yet known a n d may only be learned after con- siderable research effort of a f u n d a m e n t a l order. T h e crucial issue, really, is where, how, a n d by whom this research in admin- istration in librarianship is to be done. As has been indicated, seldom is the practition- er e q u i p p e d to distill theory a n d principles from practice. L i b r a r y administration must profit from the same insights a n d techniques which are being brought to bear u p o n other fields of administrative activity. In effect, this means that the barriers must be lowered a n d the host of social a n d behavioral sci- ences invited, even urged, to bring their conceptual tools to bear u p o n the problems of library administration. A n excellent precedent has been set. In the Public L i b r a r y Inquiry a team of trained social scientists (including librarians), pooled their skills, insights, a n d ideas a n d studied the m a j o r issues facing the p u b l i c li- brary. T h e sum total was an essential a n d perceptive assessment of American p u b l i c library service at mid-century. A n u m b e r of p h i l a n t h r o p i c f o u n d a t i o n s have over the years evidenced a sympathetic interest in the p r o b l e m s of librarianship. It should not be unduly optimistic to anticipate a well-con- ceived research design in library administra- tion using the talents of a r a n g e of behav- ioral a n d technical administrative disci- plines. While it is a b u n d a n t l y clear that the answers to all the questions may not be ex- pected to s p r i n g from one large-scale under- taking, it is equally clear that a forceful first- wave assault could be m a d e by this means. If, as has been suggested, p r o g r a m s in other fields have been fertilized by advances in the social sciences while library admin- istration has r e m a i n e d insulated a n d iso- lated, p e r h a p s an e x p e d i e n t for training in administration would result from e x p o s i n g library students to such courses in other pro- fessional schools. T h i s device would capital- ize on the close geographical a n d intellectual proximity to other professional schools which library schools enjoy. Perhaps an even mo re effective device w o u l d be to cross over into other disciplines a n d to b r i n g their instruc- tional personnel into the library school where they might offer the course or courses in administration. O n e i m p o r t a n t a d v a n t a g e would be to p r o v i d e such instructors with a direct a n d conscious focus u p o n the library as the central institution of administrative concern. As a matter of fact, in such diverse fields as business, p u b l i c administration, ed- ucation, social service, law a n d medicine, personnel trained in such behavioral disci- plines as sociology, anthropology, a n d psy- chology are b e i n g a d d e d to professional school faculties in increasing numbers. T h e use of these specialists introduces new orien- tations in teaching a n d provides a new stim- ulus to the study of administrative a n d or- ganizational problems in these fields. It also makes possible the b l e n d i n g of behavioral concepts a n d techniques in p l a n n i n g for, a n d research in, these a p p l i e d fields. Might the library field not profit by this type of exposure? If there continues to be little or n o basic research conducted in library schools, profes- sional training p r o g r a m s will continue to be primarily technical or vocational. Exact- ly this criticism has often been lodged at the schools of business administration. T h e case could u n d o u b t e d l y be m a d e with e q u a l vig- or against library education. Unless there is more f u n d a m e n t a l study a n d the subse- q u e n t u n d e r s t a n d i n g of basic issues which grows o u t of research study, there will con- tinue to be little m o r e to feed into the li- brary curriculum than the limited contribu- tions contained in the periodical literature. If administration of libraries is to profit from developments in parallel fields, a need exists for c o m p a r a t i v e studies d r a w i n g con- tracts a n d comparisons between library ad- ministration a n d administration of other in- stitutions. A m o d e l of this type is Paul Al- len's recent study of educational a n d busi- ness a d m i n i s t r a t i o n . 2 0 Allen's observations point u p corollary ideas for library adminis- tration: (1) T h e r e is a basic, universal proc- ess of administration a p p l i c a b l e in the fields 20 P. M. Allen, The Administrative Process; A Com- parative Study of Educational and Business Adminis- tration, Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Nebraska, 1956. 147pp. (Available in microfilm from University Microfilm, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 56-3750.) JULY 1958 293 of e d u c a t i o n a l a n d business a d m i n i s t r a t i o n regardless of the type of enterprise to be administered, (2) the principles or inte- grants of the process of a d m i n i s t r a t i o n may b e defined a n d delimited, (3) these inte- grants are consistent a n d t e n a b l e regardless of the area of a d m i n i s t r a t i o n , a n d (4) the obvious dissimilarities in e d u c a t i o n a l a n d business a d m i n i s t r a t i o n are a result of struc- tural or situational expediency a n d not a difference in the process of a d m i n i s t r a t i o n p e r se. Allen suggests f u r t h e r that training in both business a n d education places pri- mary emphasis on technical subject matter a n d little or n o n e o n a d m i n i s t r a t i o n , a n d points to the nee d for further c o m p a r a t i v e studies where a d m i n i s t r a t i o n is of concern. A host of c o m p a r a t i v e questions suggest themselves—how d o the skills a n d character- istics of library administrators c o m p a r e a n d differ f r o m those of their counterparts in business, public, a n d educational administra- tion; what criteria are used in selection of administrators; what are the avenues lead- i n g to administrative posts; what s t a n d a r d s are there by which p e r f o r m a n c e is m e a s u r e d in the different fields; what is the degree of mobility of the executive g r o u p ; how does the f o r m a l a n d i n f o r m a l decision-making ap- p a r a t u s c o m p a r e ; what is the power struc- ture of the library a n d how does it differ f r o m , or c o m p a r e with, other institutional types? T h e s e are b u t a s p r i n k l i n g of unstud- ied a n d researchable c o m p a r a t i v e issues. It is time to p u t to empirical test some of the classic doctrines, or p e r h a p s , myths, a n d to hold u p for e x a m i n a t i o n such state- ments as " t h e professional e q u i p m e n t re- q u i r e d by the college librarian is different from that r e q u i r e d by the p u b l i c l i b r a r i a n , the high school librarian, even the univer- sity l i b r a r i a n , " 2 1 a n d " t h e m o t i v a t i o n s which b r i n g p e o p l e into shoe stores, markets, a n d libraries are not the same, a n d [ t h a t ] the satisfactions of the m i n d a n d spirit, which are derived f r o m books, m a k e libraries akin to schools a n d c h u r c h e s . " 2 2 T o stimulate a n d direct research is a clear a n d p r o p e r f u n c t i o n a n d responsibility of the professional school, for research a n d teaching should b e i n s e p a r a b l e if effective 21 W. M. Randall and Francis L. D. Goodrich, Prin- ciples of College Library Administration. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1936). Introduction. 22 Powell, op. cit., 314. practice a n d instruction are to result. T h i s does not imply that only research a n d re- search-founded instruction is i m p o r t a n t . T e c h n i c a l courses are, of course, needed, b u t it is in some of the technical areas that research may aid u n d e r s t a n d i n g most. With- o u t the transfer of ideas a n d theories from research to instruction, for most students li- brary e d u c a t i o n will continue to be a far less s t i m u l a t i n g e x p o s u r e than it might or could be. W h a t is needed is not mo re schools (in 1953 there were forty-five schools award- ing g r a d u a t e degrees with an average stu- d e n t body of sixty) 2 3 but schools p e o p l e d with faculties a n d a d v a n c e d g r a d u a t e stu- dents with the insights, skills, a n d motiva- tion to i m p r o v e the educational p r o d u c t . R e s e a r c h in library a d m i n i s t r a t i o n is equally necessary at the a p p l i e d level. T h i s need was recognized a n d discussed as f a r back as 1939 by J o e c k e l . 2 4 T h e use of ap- p l i e d research as an active m a n a g e m e n t tool in libraries, as it is in industry a n d gov- ernment service, is still f a r too restricted. Several large libraries have e x p e r i m e n t e d here. T h e Brooklyn Public L i b r a r y , for ex- a m p l e , has carried on a m a n a g e m e n t im- p r o v e m e n t p r o g r a m for some t i m e . 2 5 Where a p p l i e d research has been used by large- scale organizations, the e x p e r i e n c e has proved many times over that economics are p r o d u c e d which m o r e than offset the per- sonnel costs. L i b r a r i e s are nothing mo re than organiza- tions of p e o p l e enlisted in a c o m m o n objec- tive. T h e larger the library, the m o r e com- p l e x the organization a n d the consequent m a n a g e m e n t problems. W h a t is crucially n e e d e d is increased knowledge a n d under- s t a n d i n g of how to accomplish objectives through p e o p l e . T h e r e may well be impor- tant differences between books a n d gro- ceries. B u t if administration in libraries hopes to rival the a d m i n i s t r a t i o n of super- markets, there must be mo re than a better knowledge of books. T h e r e must be a m o r e widespread u n d e r s t a n d i n g of the issues u n d e r l y i n g the ways in which c o m p l e x or- ganizations, i n c l u d i n g libraries, f u n c t i o n ef- fectively. 23 U . S. Office of Education, Education for the Pro- fessions ( 1 9 5 5 ) , pp. 128-129. 24 Joeckel, op. cit., Introduction. 25 F. R. St. John, "Management Improvement in Libraries," CRL, X I V ( 1 9 5 3 ) , 174-177. 294 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES