| Professional image and status have figured prominently as controversial issues in the literature of library and information studies. Much of the problem can be linked to definitional disarray, to the extent that the information profession needs to clarify for its public and itself what it is and what it claims to do. Based on a revised model of professionalization and the assumption that professional education provides one source of professional image, this preliminary study set out to compare the professional image considered appropriate by library and information science educators in the United States and Scandinavia. Professional image was defined as an aggregate of five elements: appropriate professional title, professional role, capability, behavior and social status.;Two focus group interviews were held at one of the library schools in each region, and questionnaires based on the focus groups were sent to full-time faculty at each of the national schools of library and information studies in Norway, Sweden, and Denmark, and a random sample of six schools in the United States, for a return of 77.5% and 70.9%, respectively. Significant differences on a ;Further study recommended includes replication with a larger U.S. sample and a more rigorous instrument, and extension to include students, practitioners in the field and patrons, as well as other countries. |
