On Their Own: Librarians' Self-Directed, Work-Related Learning

Personal members of the American Library Association (ALA) were queried in order to gather baseline data on their self-directed, informal, work-related learning. Results showed that 77 percent of respondents recalled having undertaken such learning. Comparison with time spent in formal continuing education (CE) activities revealed that three times as many hours were spent on self-directed learning (SDL). Philip Candy's framework for conceptualizing SDL provided a model for examining relationships among variables likely to influence SDL. Those variables that measured librarians' professional activities and the size of the institution employing them were the most salient. Institutional policies and resources in support of professional development were not predictors of SDL as measured in this study.