The Library: Goals
The Psychology Library is a study and research library that provides hundreds of students, researchers, and academic staff members in the Department of Psychology and other departments at the university, as well as psychologists and therapists, access to information sources in the fields of psychology and psychiatry. It also offers access to publications in the fields of life sciences, social sciences, and humanities.
The library staff prioritize the well-being of students, providing professional and high-quality service to all library users, with a friendly, dedicated, and welcoming approach.
The library also focuses on developing its collections of printed and electronic books, collecting and preserving theses written in the department, mapping and regularly updating the questionnaire database and research tools used in these theses and research databases, as well as acquiring new resources in areas of knowledge and research that students and faculty members need.
A bit about us...- In 1969, the Psychology Library was established in a small asbestos room near Geha Road and the other asbestos rooms used by the Department of Psychology, with its foundation being books that were essential for the faculty members and were collected within the department.
- The library was part of a trend to establish departmental libraries alongside the libraries for Jewish Studies, Humanities, Mathematics, and Exact Sciences. It provided a response to the distance from the larger libraries and the lack of shelf space and storage in them. Additionally, the departmental library added an element of significance and prestige to the discipline and fields of study researched within it.
- Ms. Ruth Weitzner founded the library and managed it until 1993. From 1994 to 2001, Ms. Ariela Sertal managed the library, and in 2001, Ms. Miri Apfel was appointed as the library director, serving in the position until September 2013.
- Nataly Kotzer began working at the library as a student in 1992 and became an information specialist in 1994. Yael Zorof joined the library team as an information specialist in 2002, working there until October 2013 (after which she transferred to the Central Library to work as an ALEPH validator, and later as an ALMA validator).
- In 1985, the process of computerizing library collections began, and in 1995, the gradual computerization of the Psychology Library started, which was only completed during the COVID-19 period.
- In 2003, the Department of Psychology and the library moved to its current location in the Social Sciences Building 902, Room 105.
- Upon the move, it was discovered that no space had been allocated for the library in advance, so the team had to improvise and create a "library" in two floors:
- The first floor was for books and theses;
- The second floor was for journals and book series. It is important to note that both floors had bustling study areas, and publications were transferred between the floors using an internal elevator.
- From December 2013, David Gordon managed the library until May 2020. David made significant contributions to the reorganization of the collections, their detailed mapping, regular and organized cataloging of publications, and the development of the weeding policy. During this period, the library team also took over the professional management of questionnaires and research tools, an active and independent advisory service was established, and organized workspaces were created for the library staff.
- Dr. Chaya Beinosovitz joined the library team as an information specialist in 2006 and has been managing the library since May 21, 2020.
- Over time, the second floor became neglected and abandoned—without the journals that were weeded out, lacking proper furniture, and with students staying away due to the neglect of the space.
- In 2023, it was decided to renovate the first floor of the library and create new, modern learning spaces for students and researchers on the second floor. The library staff temporarily relocated to the Education Library during this time.
- In early October 2023, immediately after the Tishrei holidays and amid the 'Iron Swords' war, the gradual reorganization of the library collection began. By the end of January 2024, the renovated library and new learning spaces reopened to the public.
|
First Floor:- Near the library entrance: a return shelf for books belonging exclusively to the Psychology Library.
- Service desk for general information, book requests, and returns; a station for initial assistance in navigating the library via a 'mirror screen'; a station for in-depth reference and guidance services for finding information for seminar papers, research proposals, MA and PhD theses, and academic articles, as well as for locating publications required for professional work.
- Behind the service desk: reserved guides and reference books, textbooks reserved for courses - marked in the PRIMO catalog as 'Librarian’s Desk'.
- Copies of various textbooks for introductory courses - marked in the PRIMO catalog as 'Reserved'.
- Computer stations for independent information source retrieval and use for study and research purposes.
- A display shelf for new books in the library.
- Reference and research books in Hebrew and English.
- All MA and PhD theses written in the Department of Psychology, Bar-Ilan University; a selection of thesis papers written in psychology departments at other universities in Israel from the 1960s until 2013.
- Hebrew-language journals; several dozen English-language journals available in print format only (only volumes and issues from the year 2000 and onward).
- Seating areas for students and researchers studying in the library.
Second Floor:- Modern learning spaces, including collaborative study areas, rooms of various sizes for study, and personal study corners.
|
