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Skeptically Defining the "Post-Reference Epoch"
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AI
DOI：10.1353/lib.2026.a992002.png)
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Abstract
En 中文
This article explores the tension between generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) and library reference service as options for information seeking, arguing that with the recent proliferation of GenAI tools, we have entered a post-reference epoch. This epoch is defined by a change in not only where and how patrons may seek information but their expectations of that information. After refining the idea of the "post-reference epoch," the article outlines specific sites of tension between the values of generative AI and the values of academic librarianship, as well as potential futures for library reference service. This article's AI-skeptical stance envisions the post-reference epoch as an opportunity to review past services and revise service provision to reflect new knowledge. The lack of immediate answers to questions about the future of reference is the most compelling tension we will explore; our first steps along this path will be guided by critical theory, Marxist theory, and the philosophy of information. We seek not to resolve this tension within a single article but to begin charting a potential path toward new definitions of value and service.
Keywords:
generative AI
values
philosophy of information
labor
