A survey of 113 Texas libraries examined characteristics of reference positions to determine whether there were important similarities and differences between public and academic libraries in the areas of professional qualifications for employment; job skills and responsibilities; work scheduling; benefits; and departmental characteristics. The…

This study examined differences between public library patrons and librarians in their assessments of the competence of librarians they observed in videotaped reference interviews. Interviews varied in the level of nonverbal warmth shown by the librarian toward the patron and in the level of inclusion exhibited. (6 references) (Author/MES)

Two sophisticated--autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA), straight-line regression--and two naive--simple average, monthly average--forecasting techniques were used to forecast monthly circulation totals of 34 public libraries. Comparisons of forecasts and actual totals revealed that ARIMA and monthly average methods had smallest mean…

This study estimates the proportion of academic and public library acquisitions in the United Kingdom for which a UK MARC record is available at the time of cataloging. A beta-binomial model is used to attribute standard errors to each estimate and to compare differences between the two types of libraries. (Author/LRW)

This nationwide study, conducted to investigate extent to which sex of individual is controlling factor relating to salaries, career progression, and library support, compared the careers of male and female public library directors serving populations of 100,000 or more in continental United States. Questionnaire is appended. (21 references) (EJS)

Overlap (two libraries own same title) and duplication (one library has more than one copy) in children's collections of books and audiovisual materials were measured. It was found that there was less overlap between two school libraries than between a school library and a public library. Six references are cited. (EJS)

Survey of 547 public library reference librarians compared to a similar study of teachers indicates that: 35% of librarians experienced burnout; burnout was high where role ambiguity and role conflict were present; role variable use in predicting burnout was statistically significant; comparison with teachers showed similarities and differences.…

Analyzes opinions of public library directors regarding library competencies that are most important for entry-level librarians now and in future; competencies that are most important to specializations within library; number of current library school graduates adequately possessing competencies; and where competencies should be acquired.…

Public librarians in Quebec were surveyed to compare their orientation toward a field-specific model of professionalism with their orientation toward a traditional model based on traits derived from other professions. Results indicate that they had a stronger orientation toward the field-specific model to measure the level of professionalism in…

The first of a two-part series covers research published since 1970 that is directly relevant to interlibrary loan in the United States, with emphasis on studies of total volume, growth rate, nature of exchange relationships, characteristics of requests and types of material requested, users and uses, and financing. (47 references) (EJS)

This study was designed both to determine if patrons are able to discern differences in library performance and to investigate relationships between patron evaluation and use of public libraries. Highlights include study procedures, instrumentation, data collection, results of data analyses, and interpretation of results. Eighteen references are…

Segmented labor market theory is used to explain how the structure of the library labor market may determine salary differences by type of library. Evidence that segmentation exists at intraoccupational levels and the possibility that comparing entire occupations may obscure results are also reported. (Author/CLB)

Describes a pilot project in Alberta designed to provide training for the staff of small rural school and public libraries through various distance delivery methods. Reported results include demographics of the rural librarian population; evaluation of courses offered; and comparison of delivery modes by student satisfaction, effectiveness, and…