College and Research Libraries


Letters 
To The Editor: 

David Lewis, in'' An Organizational Paradigm for Effective Academic Libraries'' ( C&RL, 
47:4, July 1986), does a really good job of melding some contemporary organizational struc-
ture theory into a compound that might work for libraries. But it will probably take a lot of 
research to make the connection between structure and library effectiveness. Furthermore, 
as I have suggested elsewhere, structure alone has little demonstrated effect on organiza-
tional effectiveness. It is structure and contingency factors that impact on organizational 
outcomes, apparently. 

I hope that the research I now have underway, examining the organizational-level effec-
tiveness of academic libraries in six U.S. Eastern states will help us begin to map out the 
library organizational effectiveness construct territory. Structure may emerge as a key vari-
able. In a small way, perhaps, this may also help to vindicate librarians who, after Charles 
Perrow, have felt that designing and managing the structure of the (library) organizational 
change and problem solving. As Perrow states, "This enormous potential for changing 
behavior can be utilized without substantial outside resources or time taken from produc-
tive activity, without invasion of privacy and without discontinuity between what is 
preached and what is actually allowed to be practiced" (Organizational Analysis: A Sociologi-
cal View, 1970, p.176). "Touchy-feely" approaches may be needed where conditions·are 
truly bad. But, I suspect, most people would much rather respond and adjust to a rational 
structure intelligently erected than to psychological manipulation inexpertly applied (or, to 
be blunt, to library bosses and ARPT committees who really don't know what they are do-
ing, but are willing to mess around with my psyche, anyway). 

Finally, Henry Mintzberg's name is, unfortunately, given as Mitzberg throughout Le-
wis's paper. 

JOSEPH MC DONALD 
Holy Family College, Philadelphia 

To the Editor: 
The article by Dale Montanelli and Patricia Stenstrom (C&RL September, 1986) on the 

benefits of research for academic librarians did not fire me up to do research. It did, though, 
explain what is wrong with much academic research. Personal advancement and recogni-
tion are not acceptable motives for engaging in research. What should fire people up is a 
burning desire to expand knowledge or produce something useful to mankind. If personal 
promotion is what drives most academics, no wonder so much drivel is produced. 

JOHN H. WILDE 
Librarian, Erskine College, South Carolina 

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