Masked by Trust: Bias in Library Discovery

by Matthew Reidsma

The rise of Google and its integration into nearly every aspect of our lives has pushed libraries to adopt similar "Google-like" search tools, called discovery systems. Because these tools are provided by libraries and search scholarly materials rather than the open web, we often assume they are more "accurate" or "reliable" than their general-purpose peers like Google or Bing. But discovery systems are still software written by people with prejudices and biases, library software vendors are subject to strong commercial pressures that are often hidden behind diffuse collection-development contracts and layers of administration, and they struggle to integrate content from thousands of different vendors and their collective disregard for consistent metadata.



Library discovery systems struggle with accuracy, relevance, and human biases, and these shortcomings have the potential to shape the academic research and worldviews of the students and faculty who rely on them. While human bias, commercial interests, and problematic metadata have long affected researchers' access to information, algorithims in library discovery systems increase the scale of the negative effects on users, while libraries continue to promote their "objective" and "neutral" search tools.

Matthew Reidsma is the Web Services Librarian at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan. He was a co-founder and former Editor-in-Chief of Weave: Journal of Library User Experience, a peer-reviewed, open access journal for Library User Experience professionals. He is the author of Responsive Web Design for Libraries published by ALA TechSource, Customizing Vendor Systems for Better User Experiences from Libraries Unlimited, and the forthcoming Masked by Trust: Bias in library discovery from Library Juice Press. He speaks about design ethics, user experience, and usability around the world. Library Journal named him a "Mover and Shaker" in 2013, which led to many unfortunate dance-related jokes in the Reidsma household.

Genres: Nonfiction, Library Science, Librarianship

204 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2019

About the author

Matthew Reidsma is the Web Services Librarian at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan. He was a co-founder and former Editor-in-Chief of Weave: Journal of Library User Experience, a peer-reviewed, open access journal for Library User Experience professionals. He is the author of Responsive Web Design for Libraries published by ALA TechSource, Customizing Vendor Systems for Better User Experiences from Libraries Unlimited, and the forthcoming Masked by Trust: Bias in library discovery from Library Juice Press. He speaks about design ethics, user experience, and usability around the world. Library Journal named him a "Mover and Shaker" in 2013, which led to many unfortunate dance-related jokes in the Reidsma household.

Reviews

[Eric Phetteplace · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great synthesis of similar works on algorithmic bias (e.g. Noble's Algorithms of Oppression), not nearly as tightly scoped to libraries as I thought it'd be. I don't think all the screenshots of damning search results add much, and I wonder about the tight focus on Summon's Topic Explorer as opposed to a more detailed investigation of relevance rankings, but overall a tremendous book. Easy to read, insightful, rich in sources, inspiring.

[Lizzy Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review forthcoming for College and Research Libraries.

[Karrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good examples of how library discovery systems are biased by algorithms, indexes, and library/information professional's limited established methods for testing these systems.
One reflection I had while Reidsma discussed the how opaque algorithm construction is: how the decisions of humans, no matter how consequential, we can look at their history and influences and make assumptions about motive. Now there is no history, no tracing of decision-making bc it is hidden behind the black box of proprietary intellectual property rights.
I think there is a lot of future work to be done by information professionals to test and hold companies accountable for their algorithmic choices--this book is a good start.

[Brett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed the sections around trust and how users perceive or gain trust while using on-line services. Compares popular search tools like Google who rank results and quickly bring back pretty good resources, with library search discovery tools. The author shares examples from library search results that included wrong our out-dated information. While libraries have tried to demonstrate and earn trust by not including problematic information (i.e. mis- and dis- information) and including high quality information, that is not always the case. Worth the read if you work in libraries or curious about ways algorithms are deciding search results.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A powerfully clear exploration of how library catalogs & databases can be painfully flawed. This is an important reminder that all librarians have a responsibility to question how valuable our search tools really are.

[Gabrielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Had to read this for school, and I learned a lot about bias in search engines! The last chapter got very meta and I think there was an unwillingness to accept that the Google train has left the station, but there was still good information to be learned.

[Mark]

https://works.bepress.com/mreidsma/5/

[anarcho-lesbian · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was good! A lot of stuff I already knew, but also quite a bit to chew for library instruction purposes...

[Arianna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Still extremely relevant, 6 years on. Also resonates in light of AI development. Excellent short study on how we examine and critique algorithms.