Navigating patron interactions in a library setting can be tricky sometimes. Whether it's a school, public, or special library, you will find yourself interacting with various patrons with different life experiences. Similar to any other public-facing job, there will be situations where a library worker will want to be prepared to diffuse a situation. Below are some resources and tips to help with understanding how to best navigate different patron interactions.

Key Sources

• The Librarian’s Guide to Homelessness by Ryan Dowd

• Assessing Service Quality by Peter Hernon

• Libraries and the Substance-abuse Crisis by Cindy Grove

• A Trauma-informed Approach to Library Services by Rebecca Tolley

• A Trauma-informed Framework for Supporting Patrons by PLA

• Creating a Person-Centered Library by Elizabeth Wahler

• Library security : better communication, safer facilities by Steve Albrecht

• Crash course in dealing with difficult library customers by Shelley Mosley

• The safe library : keeping users, staff, and collections secure by Steve Albrecht

Tips by patron type

The following tips have largely been created based on attending all of Ryan Dowd's webinar series addressing behavior between patrons and staff.

For all of these scenarios, there are a few things that should be kept in mind: 

• Keep your tone calm, pleasant, and assertive whenever possible. Meeting the tone of the difficult patron will immediately set things to escalate. 

• Seek out trauma-informed care in libraries or customer service settings. Having a basic foundation of understanding for patrons who have experienced significant trauma is paramount.

• Prevention is the goal- Establish a positive rapport with all library patrons whenever possible. Ryan Dowd's "Pennies in the cup" method boils down to having lots of smaller positive interactions with a patron so that, when needed, a confrontation about policy violations can be smoother and more respectful. Learn patrons names and greet people as they enter your space. 

• Avoid calling police when possible. While it may seem like the simple solution, police involvement often escalates the negative patron response, discourages building a positive patron/staff rapport, and can even result in the situation getting mishandled by authorities upon arrival. If a patron is presenting in a violent and threatening manner, the police should be notified immediately. Every patron interaction is nuanced and unique, so your gut instinct and added experience will be your main source when deciding to make the call or not.

Unhoused Patrons arguing

Notes: Start out with a friendly and assertive tone. Approach with volume below the level of the argument- avoid matching their volume to prevent further escalation. If argument seems highly escalated already, have staff member a few feet behind you for backup. Do NOT try to break up a fight if it becomes physical. Call the police or library security if on premises.

High or drunk

Notes: Before approaching, ask yourself if their behavior is in need of being addressed, or if you suspect they are under the influence of a substance but they are otherwise not violating any library rules. Make decisions based on facts and observations, not just feelings and assumptions. If patron is violating library rules, approach them in a calm tone. Blame library policy to redirect any angry response. If patron continues to violate library rule(s), have them leave for the day. Get staff backup if they refuse to leave, then call police if backup is unsuccessful. 

Mental health episode

Notes: If patron is incoherent or unresponsive when addressing them, seek out a local crisis response resource. Some police stations now have crisis response units, but not all. Do not argue with the patron if they are claiming something that is highly improbable- mental health issues such as schizophrenia give a person a separate sense of reality. To argue with their version of reality is unhelpful at best and inflammatory at worst. 

Rude/book challenger

Notes: Policy, policy, policy. Does your library have a set policy when it comes to book challenges? Having policy to point to or to give a challenge form directly to the patron is the best way to address this. Sometimes patrons just want to be loud and rude. Remind them of patron behavior expectations if they become too loud or start harassing a staff member. Something that should be considered for all challenging policies- require the challenger to mark down that they have actually read what they are challenging.

Racist/sexist

Notes: Do not let racist or sexist comments go if you witness them being said to a staff member or another patron. Give the commenter a warning that the library does not accept that type of harassment, and if they are at all argumentative, immediately ask them to leave the premises before they can be abusive any further.

Rowdy teenager(s)

Notes: Watch a training or read up on teenage behavior and brain development. Understand that teenagers brains are specifically wired to seek out reward and disregard risk. Ryan Dowd explains this as them having only a gas pedal but not brake pedal. Meet teenagers with understanding and welcoming whenever possible. Maybe library spaces do not have a designated teen area. Create one in your library, even if a smaller part of a room, to give them a sense of belonging and being settled. 

This list is by no means coverage of every possible patron interaction type. Use the above listed sources to seek out more information.