Library and Information Science Research 42 (2020) 101015 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Library and Information Science Research journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/lisres Towards effective collaboration between academics and library staff: A comparative Australian/Vietnamese study T Hue Phama,b,⁎, Kirsty Williamsona,c a Caulfield School of Information Technology, Faculty of Information Technology, Monash University, PO Box 197, Caulfield East, Vic 3145, Australia Vietnam National University - International School, Hanoi, Vietnam c School of Information Studies, Faculty of Education, Charles Sturt University,Wagga Wagga, NSW 2650, Australia b ABSTRACT From the literature it is clear that collaboration between academics and library staff brings benefits Exactly what enables and constrains such collaboration remains unclear Using the lens of Giddens' Structuration Theory, constraining and enabling factors during collaboration between library staff and academics in universities in two contrasting countries, Australia and Vietnam, was explored The analysis of the qualitative data, collected within an interpretivist framework, indicates that structural factors were dominant, for example, those related to governance and resources Other times the role of agency was evident, for example, in trust building and personal relationships Efforts on the part of library staff in the Vietnamese university, particularly, overcame structural barriers The contrast between the universities of the two countries enhanced the clarity of the findings A model, highlighting factors pertinent to effective collaboration is included Introduction Effective collaboration between academics and library staff, in university contexts, has become essential in tackling the challenges posed by dramatic changes in learning paradigms, modes of delivery, diversity of students, and the proliferation of data and resources Successful collaboration also helps promote university research through scholarly communication services such as bibliometric analysis, research data management and curation, open access publishing, and eresearch (Corrall, 2014; Kennan, Williamson, & Johanson, 2012) Partnerships enable better use of available resources for the benefit of teaching, learning and research, including the different contributions that staff with varying backgrounds can make 1.1 Problem statement and objectives Given the crucial role of collaboration in fostering innovation and enabling smooth processes in educational and research environments, further research is essential The study explored collaboration between librarians (and associated library staff) and academics in two contrasting countries: Australia and Vietnam The significance of the research relates to the fact that the roles, expertise, and status of academics and librarians are quite different in universities (Christiansen, Stombler, & Thaxton, 2004; Shen, 2012) On the one hand, the role of academics is to teach students, as well as to assist in the creation of knowledge, through research in their area of ⁎ expertise On the other hand, the role of librarians is to provide services and support to academics and students The differences in these roles have resulted in differences in status and unequal power relationships between academics and librarians (Given & Julien, 2005) Traditional, stereotypical perceptions of librarians have tended to prevail in the university sphere, with librarians themselves being unable to change the low expectations of their potential contributions This has stood in the way of their collaboration with academics Although, for some time, librarians have worked collaboratively with academics in many universities, in designing and teaching information and research skills to students, this is not well acknowledged The literature on collaboration between academics and librarians has extensively discussed these challenges in developed countries such as the United States, Great Britain, Canada, and Australia, but it has been the views of librarians that most commonly emerge Authors such as Christiansen et al (2004) have called for a focus on how organizational structures affect the relationship between academics and librarians Phelps and Campbell (2012) discussed the importance of understanding the factors influencing the building of relationships in academic environments There is, especially, a paucity of research involving developing countries (Pham & Tanner, 2014; Wang, 2011) The study is therefore significant in its contribution The focus is on identifying factors that encourage or discourage successful collaboration between librarians and academics in university contexts The involvement of an Australian and a Vietnamese university in the study brings comparative opportunities, enabling the highlighting of key Corresponding author E-mail address: hue.pham@monash.edu (H Pham) https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lisr.2020.101015 Received 19 May 2019; Received in revised form January 2020; Accepted 16 March 2020 Available online 22 April 2020 0740-8188/ © 2020 Elsevier Inc All rights reserved Library and Information Science Research 42 (2020) 101015 H Pham and K Williamson factors in unexpected ways The main objectives are: The first objective is significant for understanding the background and key elements that form collaborative relationships between academics and library staff There were no specific interview questions for this objective, but the key areas, as they emerged, are discussed in the ‘discussion’ section The second objective is central and unfolds the complex nature of collaboration relationships, to reveal multiple facets and contextual factors that facilitate or hinder the success of collaboration The final objective leads to the provision of a theoretical model for promoting collaboration in the future There are implications for both theory and practice from the research Structuration theory (Giddens, 1984) contributes a valuable framework for explicating the role of “structure” and “agency” in the collaboration process (described below) From a practical perspective, the study provides insights into factors that lead to success and failure in the collaboration process, illuminated from the perspectives of library staff, academics and other involved partners, rather than solely from the library practitioners' viewpoint been shown to be crucial (for example, Pilerot, 2012, 2013; Talja, 2002) Yet trust is considered to be more difficult in the absence of shared practice or disciplinary culture (Cronin, 2003; Wilson, 2010) From a cultural perspective, there are differences in the two groups – librarians and academics - in goals, status, knowledge, and expertise (Shen, 2012) While academics focus on subject expertise and research, librarians need to be multi-disciplinary Academics are more independent with higher autonomy and freedom in terms of time, space, and making decisions, resulting in their having a degree of resistance to change (Christiansen et al., 2004; Julien & Given, 2013) In contrast, librarians are more adaptive and require flexibility due to their need to work in teams The often-unequal power relationships between academics and librarians also have an effect and may impede initiatives being made Librarians tend to self-position as subordinate (Julien & Pecoskie, 2009; Mix, 2013) and there tend to be perspective disconnections between the two groups Academics often have insufficient understanding of the role librarians can play in academic partnerships and are therefore unreceptive to working with them (Shen, 2012; Yamaguchi & Richardson, 2017) However, it is difficult to be certain of academic views since perspectives of librarians about academics are reported, but not vice versa (Phelps & Campbell, 2012) Where relationships are not close, there can be disconnections between library service provision and faculty needs (Research & Learning, 2015), sometimes exacerbated by the physical and temporal separation between library and faculty (Christiansen et al., 2004) Literature review 2.3 Giddens' structuration theory The literature provided background in the key areas where collaborations between librarians and academics, in university settings, have taken place; as well as the factors that encourage or impede collaboration, including organizational and cultural perspectives Important is the literature from which the theoretical framework was drawn, namely Giddens' (1984) structuration theory The key theoretical lens was Giddens' (1984) structuration theory, used to understand the factors that hinder or promote collaboration between academics and librarians, as well as the complex relationship between human actions and structure in institutions Giddens' theory focuses on the dualistic division between so-called “structure” (functionalist and structuralist approaches, both of which incline towards “objectivism”) and “agency” (the hermeneutic approach which examines individuals and groups subjectively) His aim was to resolve the division by showing how the two approaches work together to reproduce culture Thus, Giddens' theory offers important insights from the perspectives of both the broad structural situation and the individuals involved in a particular structure Examples of structural properties are rules or procedures, and allocative resources, which become embedded in actions of humans and thus implicated in the production and reproduction of social systems; they are “both medium and outcome of the practices they recursively organize” (Giddens, 1984, p 374) It is this process of interaction of structure and agency that Giddens called “structuration” In the process of structuration, social relations are structured across time and space, and are either reinforced and continued or, alternately, transmuted or changed Structure or structural properties of social systems are the medium and outcome of the human actions accomplished to produce social life in a situated context (Giddens, 1982) Unlike many traditional social theorists, Giddens contends that the structure of a social system does not just constrain human actions but is also enabling Structuration theory was used as a “sensitizing device” informing the conduct of the empirical study – from the stage of collecting the data to its analysis For the objective concerning the factors that enabled or constrained collaboration, structuration theory assisted the researcher to grasp the complex relationship of human actions and structure in institutions where the interaction between academics and librarians is largely structured by the universities and their systems but where agency plays an important part in ameliorating structural effects In focus were organizational structures and the practices of the actors involved, and how these influence each other The theory also facilitated discovery of the nature of collaborative relationships, - To identify the main areas of collaborative relationships between academics and library staff - To elucidate the factors that constrain and enable collaboration between academics and library staff - To model key elements for promoting future collaboration between academics and library staff in universities 2.1 Areas of collaboration In current literature, there is a plethora of reports about various collaborative initiatives between librarians and faculty members in universities around the world Traditionally, library staff mainly worked with faculty staff to provide library bibliographic instruction to students and in activities related to collection development As information technology has developed and electronic resources proliferated, the focus of collaboration has shifted to more sophisticated information and research skills training, research projects and the applications of educational technology The two major areas of partnership most widely reported are teaching (Leeder & Lonn, 2014; Øvern, 2014) and research (Bruce, 2001; Creaser & Spezi, 2014) Others are resources development (Chu, 1997; Shen, 2012); data curation and management (Corrall, Kennan, & Afzal, 2013; MacMillan, 2014); publishing and scholarly communication (Eng, Jordan, & Lesher, 2014); digital humanities scholarship (Tzoc, 2016); and open access and open educational resources (Adema & Schmidt, 2010) 2.2 Influences on collaboration The literature flags a range of factors that influence whether collaborative initiatives take place as well as the degree of their success From an organizational perspective, there can be a lack of essential structure underpinning collaborative activities In these circumstances, initiatives must come from individuals and groups, meaning that collaboration happens on a voluntary basis (Thull & Hansen, 2009; Wang, 2011) In all circumstances, trust and personal relationships are important Collaboration critically involves information sharing for which trust has Library and Information Science Research 42 (2020) 101015 H Pham and K Williamson Table Data collection In the Australian university In the Vietnamese university Six faculties 30 in-depth interviews with 11 academics, 11 library staff/skills advisors, and one administrative staff A focus group with four library staff and management staff Two observation sessions of two collaborative projects Sources of internal documents: web-based resources, library annual reports and meeting minutes Five faculties 12 in-depth interviews with seven academics and five library staff One workshop with 15 academics, library staff and faculty management staff Nine detailed written responses and numerous informal conversations Sources of internal documents: web-based resources, library reports and meeting minutes sampling was used for selecting research participants at both universities At the Australian university, the researcher needed to include academics from a range of faculties, representing different disciplines and varying levels of collaboration with library staff From the perspective of the library, it was important to include library liaison staff, as well as skills advisors working in faculty liaison teams The researcher also wanted to include management and administrative staff from the library and academic units Participants were identified from university contacts, library websites and through recommendations of participating librarians, academic skill advisors and academics Email was the method of contact At the Vietnamese university, a similar range of participants was required, except for academic skills advisors since they were not employed in this university This resulted in fewer library staff participants being needed in Vietnam Participants were identified from the existing colleague relationships with the Vietnamese scholar, who had work in the university in the past They were contacted by email and telephone particularly different collaboration patterns that are mediated by the interplay of power structures, financial resources, as well as distinctive cultural values and norms, This, in turn, leads to changes in collaborative infrastructure There are a number of precedents for the use of structuration theory in research in library and information science Stillman and Stoecker (2004) found that structuration theory helped to explain social and cultural values in community information and knowledge management Ma (2010) used structuration theory as a theoretical lens for understanding how the work practices of information professionals relate to social structures Research design Because the focus of the research was an interest in “the meanings and experiences of human beings” (Williamson, 2018, p 9), the study was framed within a philosophically interpretivist design The focus of the study was therefore the in-depth perspectives of individuals about the questions of interest Taking place at two universities – one Australian and one Vietnamese – it aimed to explore how collaboration occurred between academics and library staff in the two settings, including the factors that encouraged or discouraged that collaboration to take place As an interpretivist study, the style was inductive, emphasised qualitative data, and was concerned with context The design was an embedded multiple case study where evidence was collected across each university, as well as from different faculties where specific library collaboration projects had taken place A Vietnamese scholar, who resided in Australia for the duration of the study, undertook the study In this way, in-depth insights emerged, along with comparisons of experiences within each university and across both universities 3.3 Data collection Table provides details of data collection As can be seen from Table 1, data collection was extensive, involving interviews, focus groups, observation sessions and review of internal documents Questions and topics concerned the kinds of collaboration taking place in each university, along with the influences that enabled or constrained collaboration including structure, socio-cultural contexts, professional boundaries, trust and personal relationships Data collected at both universities were very rich in nature, enabling deep exploration of the process of collaboration between academics and library staff 3.1 The university settings 3.4 Data analysis The Australian university is large and complex with multiple campuses at home and overseas and has a strong research focus At the time of the research, the library staffing structure included academic skills advisors jointly working with liaison librarians in a faculty-library team structure The university committee structure was supportive and included senior library staff Thus collaboration, and the information sharing that underpinned it, were aided by a supportive structure At the time of the research, the Vietnamese university had been established for many years, was prestigious, multidisciplinary, and very well connected internationally While there had been a much greater emphasis on teaching than on research, this was gradually changing It was a good choice for a comparative study because its structure was very different from that of the Australian university For example, it did not provide a supportive structure for collaboration Although the library structure had a single librarian liaison team to work with all faculties, the university committee structure was not inclusive of senior library staff Three different data analysis methods offered in the literature were selected: Dey's (1993) middle-level data analysis method; constructivist grounded theory techniques (Charmaz, 2006, 2014); and cross-case comparison procedures (Miles & Huberman, 1994) Dey's (1993) middle-level coding was used initially to attempt “to grasp basic themes or issues in the data by absorbing them as a whole rather than by analysing them line by line” (Dey, 1993, p 110) There were two main advantages from this method From the top down, it allowed data to be analysed based on the assumed theoretical perspectives of structuration theory together with the specific sets of research objectives and main insights from the review of existing literature From the bottom up, it supported the use of constructivist grounded theory techniques (Charmaz, 2006, 2014) to encourage the discovery of new patterns emerging from the data The two methods, in combination, resulted a holistic approach Charmaz's (2006, 2014) focused coding methods were used to develop codes and categories from the data Relationships between codes and categories were formed based on the association of categories and the researcher's theoretical sensitivity to the data Codes and categories were refined towards the end of the process The final step was the use of Miles and Huberman's (1994) mind- 3.2 Participant recruitment So that input from each relevant group was included, purposive Library and Information Science Research 42 (2020) 101015 H Pham and K Williamson mapping techniques and matrices Matrix tables were used for crosscase analysis They were found useful not only in identifying case and cross-case patterns, but also in comparing and contrasting findings across participant groups, i.e., between academics and library staff Mind-mapping techniques were utilised to make sense of the data and the relationship between codes as well as categories They helped present, organize, and analyse the connections between themes and sub-themes initiatives in Vietnamese universities This resulted in the collaboration structure between academics and library staff being typically ad hoc, with lack of structure limiting the interaction between academics and library staff, and their influence on each other's work We all know that there is a library, but a lot of us don't know why we need to collaborate with librarians (Academic–V16) Sometimes, we felt that we came to faculty seminars as uninvited guests (Senior library staff–V8) Findings 4.1.2 A-symmetry of power between academics and library staff The structure of both universities was siloed, from the viewpoint of cultural differences between academics and library staff (Shen, 2012), leading to an a-symmetry of power between the two groups The differences that divided the groups, as discussed in the literature review, e.g., the greater autonomy afforded to academics, the greater need for flexibility on the part of librarians (Julien & Given, 2013) emerged in the findings There's a culture of the academic staff, they think they are in complete control of their unit … it's mine, go away, let me alone (Liaison librarian–Sessional academic staff-A18) As intimated above, the emphasis of Giddens' (1984) structuration theory is on the interaction between structure and agency, leading to cultural reproduction Nevertheless, the enabling and constraining factors, identified as associated with collaboration, appeared to be sometimes related principally to existing structures, or lack thereof, within the universities, and sometimes related principally to agency The findings are presented in three parts In the presentation of the findings, each staff member has a unique number plus the letter designating whether they are Australian (A) or Vietnamese (V) Please note that, in some cases in both universities, staff wore two hats – as library staff and sessional academic staff, a situation that enabled deeper insights from those participants who could contribute both library and academic perspectives Many academics not understand library jobs and the work culture of the library (Senior library staff–Sessional academic staff–V7) Nevertheless, shared culture between academics and library staff was not promoted or enabled in the Vietnamese university to the extent that it was in the Australian university 4.1 Influences on collaboration principally from the perspective of structure Six influences on collaboration were found to occur particularly as a result of structural issues 4.1.3 The effect of resources structure Evidence was found for the relationship between governance structure, one faculty's funding framework, and incentives for collaboration Beyond the overall Australian university's governance structure, which already assisted collaboration, one faculty had introduced a resources structure, reinforcing this We have a contract pricing system We pay for the service … If I want to ask [name of library staff member] to develop a level nine, research skills training module for online delivery, I've got to pay for that and she will give me a costing … We don't expect the library to things for nothing (Academic–Section head–A9) 4.1.1 Shared governance vs silo structure In Australia, in terms of the broader university structure there were senior management committees that enabled high-level engagement between university senior staff and library management These committees were responsible for overall decision-making and oversight of academic affairs in order to promote and maintain high achievement in education and research At the time of the data collection, the university librarian had recently become a member of one such senior academic committee The formal representation of the university librarian in the senior team of the university was found to be very important to the library because it meant it was gaining a certain amount of power within the central management of the university: The university librarian is engaged [with the faculty deans] with the senior decision making… And, you know, we are having an understanding of the direction and being able to contribute (Senior library staff–A22) In this most successful faculty case, the senior library staff showed leadership in working with senior faculty management and academics across key areas of faculty expertise such as in teaching, curriculum review and development, research, and project management Importantly, academics of the faculty were open to collaboration and respectful of library staff as they were with other faculty colleagues I think there is less of a border between [name of the faculty] and [name of the library] staff than there are in other faculties that I've worked in … Here … we are all on the same team and we are all out for the same sort of goals and there is respect on both sides, which is really important (Liaison librarian–A31) In one faculty, library staff were regarded as teaching colleagues, leading to their participation at the highest committee levels, for example on the education committee of the faculty The committee determined important matters, such as course rules and development, as well as the learning and teaching practice Here library staff had voting rights and a reserved seat at the table, meaning that they were well integrated into the decision-making processes of the faculty [The] library has helped in developing a proposal for research [skills] training modules that are pitched to the different levels … They have a broader understanding of what we're trying to achieve and how we might achieve that and they're very much partners with us … I'd say they're leaders, really … I find them very professional, very knowledgeable, and very efficient (Academic–Section head–A9) In this situation, a resources structure encouraged librarians in a new teaching role, formally acknowledged and approved by the university Interestingly, it was library staff who wrought a change in the resources structure in the Vietnamese university, i.e., it was agency rather than structure that prevailed in this case where librarians commenced teaching assignments in one faculty, without allowances, during the data collection period I felt sorry that library staff have not been paid their teaching allowance as they should have been for their hard work (Academic-Section head–V18) Comparatively, the Vietnamese university was rigidly bureaucratic, with a lack of integration of library staff into the decision making of the faculties or the university Library staff did not have representatives on committees at either faculty or university levels, resulting in a lack of organizational support for the library This confirmed Diep's (2011) finding that structure has significantly constrained library collaborative Since the university did not recognize the librarians' new role, the library could not recruit new staff to solve the problem of shortages due to the new teaching workloads More importantly, acknowledgement of Library and Information Science Research 42 (2020) 101015 H Pham and K Williamson joint contribution in academic activities was imperative to keep up the librarians' motivation Ultimately, after meticulous effort of the university librarian and the course coordinator in formalising the teaching role of the librarians, a resource framework to sustain the teaching activities for librarians came into effect We finally received our teaching allowance from the faculty (Liaison librarian–V1) partnerships Small campuses were beneficial in this regard, as it was much easier for library staff to get to know a wider range of academics than on larger campuses In one case, on a large campus, the faculty library was physically located in a very central position and this had great benefits In essence, as one participant observed: We have often been able to more things just through a meeting on the stairs … or just walking into the building or we see them in the coffee shop (Senior library staff–A28) The outcome was that the capabilities in teaching information literacy became well known in the university They also had triumphed in the face of a lack of confidence, limited initial support, and various unpredicted complications at work and in life This is an example, to add to 4.3, below, of agency changing structure Findings of the influence of temporal and spatial dimensions were also relevant at the Vietnamese university where academics and library staff participated in joint academic activities: The relationship becomes much better over time We have a good understanding about each other, and that has made the joint work go much easier (Liaison librarian–Sessional academic staff–V1) 4.1.4 Lack of integrated systems for enabling collaborative teaching and research activities: Australian university Another structural issue concerns technology In the Australian university, an important technological constraint upon collaboration was the separation of the library system (and other related systems) from the key teaching platform of the university, the Moodle learning management system This meant that, while library staff were responsible for the lecture recording system, course-related academic skills resources, and the reading list of core materials, these resources were managed in different systems from the closely related teaching work of academics who used the Moodle system The divide between the systems formed an invisible boundary between academics and library staff, impeding collaboration One academic noted: Moodle is the key system and I think everything else needs to be able to be integrated (Academic–A6) However, participants at the Vietnamese university believed that location seemed to bring little advantage to collaboration in the face of various other organizational and structural constraints: I think we lack purposeful interaction for building up a working partnership here We are close by so we meet sometimes to talk, but it is not enough to become a partnership if you don't have people's interest (Academic–V17) 4.2 Influences on collaboration principally from the perspective of agency As Giddens (1984) said: “structure is always both enabling and constraining” (p 169) and this emerged in this study where the Australian university was very much advantaged from the viewpoint of structure Nevertheless, the role of agency was clearly evident, where efforts were made to overcome structural barriers, or initiate collaboration even where structures were more favorable This was particularly so in the Vietnamese university but also in the Australian one In terms of agency, personality, personal relationships, trust, and communication were inter-related attributes which were important in overcoming structural barriers For example, in relation to personality, working with people who are pleasant and to whom it is easy to relate, was considered important [Regarding] the temperaments and personalities of the library staff, we've been very, very lucky …I mean they're all really, really nice people … (Academic–Section head–A9) Thus, instead of technology assisting to enhance collaboration, in this case it was an impediment 4.1.5 The bridging role of academic skills advisors in the library: Australian university Academic skills advisors are academics with expertise in education in the Australian university who, prior to the organizational restructure that relocated them into the same organizational unit as the library, had worked in a dedicated educational support unit Although rigorously opposed by the advisors at first, the restructure was designed to develop collaborative partnerships between the advisors and librarians that would enhance students' learning and information skills Indeed, this new structure had promoted the academic role of the library in the faculties The skills advisors' roles in the library liaison team seemed to be clearly recognized by academics in different faculties: I think this is one of the good things about the way the library organizes [They have] the academic skills unit and they have librarians who are subject or discipline specific librarians I think that's really useful (Academic–Section head–A2) There was considerable emphasis on developing relationships and trust in both universities Facebook makes us become friends You get to know a lot about their interests, hobbies and relationships Once you know each other, contacting or meeting are going to be much easier (Academic–V13) I think it really goes back to building a relationship at a personal level You can't just sort of start off a research collaboration without getting to know the person I think that's really how it works with the library (Academic–Section head–A2) 4.1.6 Time and proximity of workspace An excellent example of the role of time in assisting collaboration comes from the evolving relationship between librarians and academic skills advisors Gradually the original opposition to the move on the part of the latter evaporated and they increasingly worked well with librarians in effective collaborative partnerships The result was that faculties received much stronger academic support than previously because of the integration of information and research skills with communication and learning skills Because academic skills advisors and librarians have complementary skills … we get maximum benefit when we work as a team (Academic skills adviser–A17) We have developed a better understanding about each other after years They really trust us so it is much more comfortable to work together (Liaison librarian–Sessional academic staff–V2) Given the problems arising from cultural differences between disparate groups, as mooted by Cronin (2003) and Wilson (2010), developing trust between academics and librarians was often difficult, particularly in the Vietnamese university As mentioned in the literature review, trust is very important for collaboration and the information sharing that needs to occur to support it (Pilerot, 2012, 2013; Talja, 2002) In terms of the related information sharing or communication, Vietnamese librarians used Facebook extensively (as indicated above) as a way of building relationships, but also as a communication strategy for information sharing about academic activities and events Both In terms of the spatial dimension, the opportunity for personal, faceto-face interaction assisted the development of collaborative Library and Information Science Research 42 (2020) 101015 H Pham and K Williamson faculties and the library posted information about their events and programs on Facebook All of my faculty leaders, Dean and Deputy Deans, are on Facebook We usually upload important faculty events (Vietnamese academic–Section head–V) Thus, technology had been enabling in the Vietnamese university despite their comparatively lower level of technological development The Vietnamese librarians actively used social technologies to build relationships and share information, thus illustrating Giddens' (1984) notion that “various forms of constraint” can be also be “forms of enablement” Structural constraints appeared “to open up certain possibilities of action at the same time as they restrict or deny others” (p.173) Writers such as Øvern (2014) and Thull and Hansen (2009) have pointed out that organizational and administrative support are important in encouraging collaboration between academics and library staff in universities This was lacking in the Vietnamese university Despite this limitation, the Vietnamese university librarians were able to use social media effectively to promote information sharing and collaboration 4.3 Influences on collaboration from the perspective of combined structure and agency Here there are examples of where agency very quickly had a recognizable effect on structure In the first quotation, an Australian liaison librarian pointed out how librarians have looked for, and taken up, skills development opportunities The second quotation indicates how taking these opportunities has ameliorated the unequal structural relationships that existed in the past We look at skill development opportunities and teaching across the units and across the faculties (Australian liaison librarian -A10) Fig Model of factors to be considered for effective collaboration Based on the cross-country comparisons through the theoretical lens of Giddens' structuration theory, the model provides a framework of factors influencing collaboration between academics and librarians From the level of structure (principally), there are five key factors: governance (for example, shared governance vs silo structure); culture and norms (for example, shared culture vs cultural divisions); resources (for example, rewarding librarians for teaching roles; systems, including for communication); roles (librarian, academic, academic skills advisory); and time/space dimensions From the agency level (principally), the framework highlights three key influences: personal relationships/personality, trust, and communication/information sharing Very important is the interaction between all these factors, leading to cultural reproduction (Giddens, 1984) The model can be used to explain the dynamic interplay of an organization's governance structure with its socio-cultural systems and individual values, and how these systems shape and are shaped by actions of people in collaboration practices It can be used to analyse relationships, which offer insights for understanding collaboration in situated contexts For example, in studying a collaboration practice by an organization's teams or members, it is important to articulate factors concerning: If they didn't teach in the faculty, [academics] would not accept them as having a voice at the table (Australian academic–Section head–A9) Similar points were made with respect to research where initiatives on the part of librarians helped them to become involved in the research structure of the Australian university The first quotation indicates how structure makes research important to academics; the second and third quotations show how librarians have taken action to make themselves part of the research structure of the university The university values research output and if you go for a promotion, that's what's recognized (Academic–Section head–A15) [The] library has helped in developing a proposal for research [skills] training modules that are pitched to the different levels… I find them [librarians] very professional, very knowledgeable, and very efficient… I'm incredibly grateful (Academic–Section head–A9) - management, roles and responsibilities, organizational resources, communication and methods of communication, and technology and systems; - the social and cultural aspects including power distribution, social and cultural norms, and time and space as in physical and digital contexts, and as organizational and individual resources; and - individual characteristics including trust, personal perceptions, relationships, and personality of the organizational members As a librarian I've published and I research with them So I have … gain[ed] some [respect] It opens the door a bit (Australian liaison librarian–A5) Structural changes, as a result of agency, were more easily identifiable in the Australian university than in the Vietnamese one This was not surprising given the lack of structure to support integration of academics and librarians, and to promote collaboration between them in the latter university Nevertheless, there is an example of structural change, related to resources, in the Vietnamese university in 4.1.3, above Conclusion One of the great strengths of the research was the participation of universities in two different countries, with varying levels of resources Various new findings have emerged from comparing and contrasting structures and values that are different across two countries with different social and structural contexts In terms of the first research objective posed above, the research confirmed that two key areas of collaboration between library and Discussion The following model is drawn from the discussion above and highlights the factors that are important to consider if effective collaboration is the goal (See Fig 1) Library and Information Science Research 42 (2020) 101015 H Pham and K Williamson academic staff were teaching and research Although specific interview questions about areas of collaboration were not asked of participants, clear information about key collaborative areas emerged Rich examples, particularly for teaching, emerged In terms of the second objective, a range of diverse factors influencing collaboration emerged, some seemingly structural; others principally agency factors All these factors were part of a mix that sometimes led, in the short-term, to obvious change Across time and space, in the longer term, the interactional mix would lead either to the status quo being reinforced and continued or, alternately, to transmutation and change (Giddens, 1984) The model, discussed above, provides an overall picture of the interrelationship of key dimensions of collaboration It encourages the exploration of how structures enable and constrain the collaborative interaction of participants, as well as how participants' actions change the systems via their interactions This model can be applied 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