Key People and Organizations working on Trauma and Library Staff: 

Urban Librarians Unite

WebJunction: Free articles, courses and webinars on common issues for library staff:

• De-escalation Strategies for Libraries, Archives, and Museum Staff
• Crisis Communications Planning for Libraries, Archives, and Museums
• From Burnout to Balance
• Revitalizing Morale: Cultivating a Supportive Library Culture
• Book Challenges and Intellectual Freedom: Proactive Planning for Public Libraries
• Books, programming, resources: Helping patrons through the opioid crisis
• Resource for Social Work and Library Collaboration 

Infopeople: Free live and archives webinars for library staff:

•  We are NOT Okay: Library Worker Trauma Before and During COVID-19 and What Happens After
• Rekindling from Burnout: Lessons and Strategies for Public Library Workers
• Ten Tips for Managing Conflict
• Vocational Awe and Librarianship: Loving Yourself is Not a Crime
• Putting the Me in Mental Health

Kaetrena Davis Kendrick researches and coaches on low morale in libraries, “reconnecting people and organization to their purpose”, and empathetic strategies for long term improvement in the workplace.

CALIFA provides this collection of freely available resources and archived webinars supporting self-care for library workers, including resources on topics like vocational awe and compassion fatigue.

Visit our Mental Health Resources page and Self-Care and Mindfulness for Library Staff page for more resources on those topics.

Resources and Publications on Trauma and Library Staff:

• Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services AdministrationLinks to an external site. (SAMHSA). U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.  

• Clark, C., Classen, C. C., Fourt, A., & Shetty, M. (2014). Treating the trauma survivor: An essential guide to trauma-informed care. Routledge. (pp. 5-30) 

• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (2014), “SAMHSA’s concept of traumaLinks to an external site.
  and guidance for a trauma-informed approachLinks to an external site.”, U.S. Department of Health and Human
  Services (pp. 9-17; continuation from M1/2) 

• Hagelin, K. (June 23, 2020). Moving Towards Healing: A Trauma-Informed Librarianship PrimerLinks to an external site.. ACRL. 

• Eades, R. B. (2019). Implementing a trauma-informed approachLinks to an external site.. Public Libraries, 58(5), 58-63. 

• Founds, S. D. (2023). Trauma-informed librarianship: an exploratory literature review of trauma-informed approaches in school, academic and public librariesLinks to an external site.. Reference Services Review. 

• Public Library Association Social Work Task Force. (2019). Public library social work–Overview of trauma-informed careLinks to an external site.. Public Libraries. (1 pager–good for explaining TIC to others) 

• Scheyett, A. M. (2019). Trauma-informed library transformation: The next step in library social workLinks to an external site.. (very brief writeup about the University of Georgia School of Social Work (UGASSW) and the Athens Clarke County Library TIC project) 

• Urban Librarians Unite (2022). Urban Library Trauma StudyLinks to an external site. [about staff] 

• Dudak, L. T., Comito, L., & Zabriskie, C. (2023). “You Can’t Self-Care Your Way Out of a Broken System”: The 2022 Urban Libraries Trauma Forum 

• Actions. Public Library Quarterly (New York, N.Y.), 42(6), 650–664.  

• Urban Libraries Unite (2024). Bibliography (Airtable) of readings about staff traumaLinks to an external site.. Note, this page comes with a trigger warning as it contains extensive, explicit articles about incidents of staff trauma. Please explore the entire ULU websiteLinks to an external site. as it contains lots of important info.  

• Peet, L. (2022). Tackling Trauma: As Frontline Public Library Workers Experience Increasing Levels Of Trauma On The Job, A Recent Report And Forum Consider How To Help Disrupt The Cycle. Library Journal, 147(7), 20-. (about the ULU study and discusses vocational awe) 

• Shaghaei, N., et al. (2022). Library resilience and leadership in a global crisis. LIBER Quarterly, 32(1), 1–21. 

• Westbrook, L. (2015). “I’m not a social worker”: An information service model for working with patrons in crisis. The Library Quarterly, 85(1), 6-25. 

• Dudak, L. (2023). Working Toward Wellness:Links to an external site. As awareness increases about the need to address personal challenges both inside and out of the library, staff and practitioners–from leaders to frontline workers–are sharing their experiences, observations, and views around trauma-informed librarianship. Library Journal, 148(2), 36-40. 

• Tolley, R. (2020). A trauma-informed approach to library services. (Ch13-14). Chicago: American Library Association. 

• Lipsky, L. D., & Burk, C. (2009). Trauma stewardship: An everyday guide to caring for self while caring for others. (Ch 2 “Three Levels of Trauma Stewardship” and Part 4, ch 7-12 about the 5 directions of trauma stewardship) San Francisco, CA: Berrett-Koehler Publishers. (I’m a huge fan of this book and find it very helpful) 

• Trauma Stewardship InstituteLinks to an external site. (Lara Lipsky’s site has lots of great content and a podcast) 

• Renewals: Empathetic, Engaged Career Coaching and Organizational Belonging ConsultationLinks to an external site.. (Kaetrena Davis Kendrick’ website) 

• Urban Libraries UniteLinks to an external site. 

• Provence, M. A. (2023). Three models of practice: Impacts on the de-escalation role of library social workers during crises with patrons experiencing homelessness. Journal of the Australian Library and Information Association, 72(4), 400-419. 

• Tolley, R. (2020). A Trauma-Informed Approach to Library Services. ALA Editions 

• Eades, R. (2019). Implementing a trauma-informed approach. Public Libraries, 58(5), 58-63.  

• Wahler, E. et al. (2023). Public Library-Based Social Work Field Placements: Guidance for Public Libraries Planning to Become a Social Work Practicum Site, PLQ, 42:2, 141-54. 

• Ogden, L. & Williams, R. (2022). Supporting Patrons in Crisis through a Social Work-Public Library Collaboration, J Library Administration, 62:5, 656-72. 

• Baum, B., et al. (2022). Bridging the Service Gap: Branch Managers Talk about Social Workers in Public Libraries, Public Library Quarterly. 

• National Harm Reduction Coalition (2023, December 1). Online learning center. National Harm Reduction Coalition. https://harmreduction.org/our-work/training-capacity-building/online-training-institute/ 

• Dudak, L. (2023). Working Toward Wellness. Library Journal, 148(2), 36-40. 

• Dudak, Leah T., et al. (2022). “‘You Can’t Self-Care Your Way Out of a Broken System’: The 2022 Urban Libraries Trauma Forum.” PLQ, 1–15.