Verifying

When you think you have the question clearly in mind and are ready to search for the answer, check one last time to be certain you have the patron's real question. This last check will verify that you and the patron understand what you will be searching for.

Examples of questions that will verify the patron's information need include:

• "So, what you want to know is the population of Idaho in 1996. Is that right?"
• "What you really need is a recipe for marinara sauce to serve 200 people, right?"
• "Am I correct that you are looking for distributors of ball bearings in eastern Oregon?"
• "So then, you are searching for three or four articles on the Depression for your term paper due on March 1st. Is that what you need?"
• "What you are specifically looking for, then, is the Hispanic population of Idaho counties at the last census, broken down by age groups. Is that correct?"

How is verifying different from paraphrasing?

While the two are similar, paraphrasing is:

• generally not worded as a question;
• comes at an earlier step in the reference interview process;
• is often followed by additional steps (such as open-ended questions) to learn more about the patron's information need.

In contrast, verifying is:

• asking for, or checking on, the specific details of what is wanted;
• phrasing the request as a (frequently closed) question;
• the last step of the reference interview.

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