Authority exercise

From Library Instruction Wiki

After I've done a run-down of evaluation criteria, (or we have developed such a list together), I'm usually getting nods and bored looks, "yada yada yada." That's when I ask, "So, I told you never to trust anyone without cross-checking their facts. Do you trust me?" "Sure," someone will say, "You're a librarian." "How do you know that?" "Because you're up there teaching." "But I could be some wierdo who just walked in off the street; how would you know?" I push them until someone says they could Google me / look me up in a database / go ask my boss, so I have them do it, to see if they can verify my claims about working for the library, having a degree, having work experience, writing academic articles, etc. I only go on like this for a few minutes, but it's effective and it increases my credibility with them.

Sherri Saines