Student employees fulfill an essential role at all academic libraries, but budget and staffing cuts have made student work even more imperative at small, public institutions. This article examines a reference service redesign at Adams State University through the lens of the student circulation employees. Student employee feedback was directly…

Two research questions guided this study: (1) Is there a gap in customer service quality perception between librarians (service providers) and patrons (service beneficiaries)?; and (2) How do patrons perceive the relational service qualities of librarians who staff the reference desk? Quantitative results based on a Likert scale survey showed no…

Are services that were once intended to be exclusively available to the distance learning population now typically available for all users in a university community? This article seeks to investigate this question using two different methods. First, an unobtrusive study of 100 library Websites was conducted to determine whether these libraries…

This report presents tabulations for the 2012 Academic Libraries Survey (ALS) conducted by the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), within the Institute of Education Sciences. The 2012 ALS population included postsecondary institutions with all of the following: total library expenditures that exceed…

The University of Texas at Arlington's Library began using an online chat reference in 2002. The service, called Collaborative Digital Reference Service, later became "Ask a Librarian." Slightly over one year later, the library joined the University of Texas System's "Ask a Librarian" service. Both services are powered by…

Discusses responses of 937 academic library directors who were surveyed to determine whether their libraries provide services to users outside academic community; whether outside users are charged fees; and what services are provided for fee. Extracts of information (services, staff, comments) received from ten universities are highlighted. Survey…

A survey of 200 Iowa rural public libraries serving a population of less than 2,500 was conducted in 1984 to determine reference service characteristics. A total of 137 libraries responded to a survey modeled after a questionnaire developed by Bernard Vavrek for a 1981 nationwide survey. It was found that the number of full-time staff members was…

This report describes a 1986 survey of procedures and priorities at Indiana University and Purdue University regional campus libraries designed to aid the librarians at the Walter E. Helmke Library at Indiana University-Purdue University, Fort Wayne, in re-evaluating various library procedures. Responses were received from nine of the 11 libraries…

This research report presents the results of a survey of public libraries that serve areas where populations are 25,000 or fewer individuals. The long range goal of the study was to gather data that would help to initially describe some of the circumstances in which and because of which rural information services exist and endure. Questionnaires…

Describes a survey that was conducted at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville library to count and categorize the types of questions coming into the reference department from telephone calls. Informational and directional calls are examined, implications for staffing are considered, and queuing theory is applied. (seven references) (LRW)

Results of this study evaluating library reference service indicate a statistically significant difference at the .05 level between obtrusive and unobtrusive evaluation methods. Library staff answer a greater proportion of questions correctly when they are aware of being evaluated. The 30 questions used, a report form, and references are included.…

This report includes national and state summary data on public libraries in the 50 states and the District of Columbia, with an introduction, selected findings, and tables. The report is based on data from the Public Libraries Survey for fiscal year 2005, and includes information on service measures such as number of users of electronic resources,…

This study profiles bookmobile libraries operating within the state of Ohio. Details of the services offered to the public by these libraries were gathered through a questionnaire soliciting information about individual programs. The questionnaire was completed by 35 librarians in Ohio--in each case, the librarian most responsible for the…

The purpose of this study is to determine responsibilities expected of newly-hired academic reference librarians and background experiences they are expected to possess. The content analysis of 3 months' worth of reference librarian job listings from three 1990 issues of "College & Research Library News" led to a profile of…

This report, written for a National Archives Staff training program, presents the results of a survey which sought information about the administration of the government documents sections of the National Library of Canada, the National Archives of the United States, and 12 selected American state archives and state libraries. The survey gathered…