This collection of nine essays is an outgrowth of a study which was conducted by the Office of Library Programs to identify researchable issues that could help librarians fill a position of leadership in the information society. An introduction to the collection describes the study and includes a list of the 10 major issues identified by field-nominated experts as being the most important to the profession: (1) information policy issues; (2) education and training of librarians; (3) access to information; (4) archives and preservation; (5) organization, indexing, and retrieving materials; (6) role of the public service librarians; (7) library funding and economics; (8) libraries and education; (9) information users and needs; and (10) library models. It is noted that the essays in this collection were commissioned to explore these topics and were subjected to several stages of review prior to publication. References and/or notes are provided for each paper as well the reviewers' comments and recommendations for additional research issues. Also included is a summary of an international teleconference offered via Worldnet which was held in Washington, D.C., with interactive participants in Cologne, Frankfurt, and Stuttgart, West Germany. A list of participants in the study is attached. (CGD)