A survey of 125 public library directors in Indiana laid the groundwork for a future study of change in the public library. Data were gathered on the background characteristics of the libraries and directors; directors' perceptions of change; and utilization of formal planning processes. A copy of the questionnaire is appended. (27 references)…

Outlines the general techniques of Guttman scale analysis and briefly describes its uses in social science research. To illustrate the potential application to library science, a Guttman scale of restrictiveness in dealing with overdue books is developed and data from a 1986 survey of public libraries are fitted into the scale. (23 references)…

Describes a study that used survey questionnaire and case study methodologies to compare proportional relationships among services to children, teenagers, and adults in California public libraries during fiscal years 1977-78 and 1982-83. It is concluded that the findings both support and refute the belief that youth services received limited…

Provides background on public library standards and state aid to public libraries, and reports results of a 1986 survey of Illinois public libraries which explored the relationship between state standards and the per capita grant program. The questionnaire and survey data are appended. (six references) (MES)

Report on survey of 160 public libraries highlights characteristics of libraries involved in literacy education, incentives and barriers, services provided, populations served, library staff, materials and equipment, library participation in cooperative literacy efforts, and budget and funding sources. A recommended approach to library involvement…

In-house surveys of patrons conducted in 20 public libraries in a county library system revealed no meaningful differences among the samples in reasons given for selecting the library to visit or in their uses of the library, although meaningful differences were found in their evaluations of the libraries' facilities. (Author/EM)

Public library effectiveness efforts are placed within the context of theoretical and empirical research on organizational effectiveness. The construct, measures, and determinants of public library effectiveness are investigated, and a possible model of the determinants of public library output measures is presented. (Author/EM)

Presents statistics from 1978 survey of public library patrons concerning relationship between distance and library usage and compares them with results from 1968 survey. Data for branch libraries showing effects of age, education, and mode of transportation used are discussed, and three specific contexts are examined. Seven sources are cited.…

New Zealand librarians, using 95 indicators of performance, rated their libraries highest on service indicators and lowest on local government relations. Factor analysis was used to derive 13 dimensions of effectiveness. The indicators ranked highest in a prior survey of stakeholders are spread across nine of the dimensions, which fit four models…

Discussion of public library roles examines roles from the Public Library Association's planning and measurement tools for their usefulness in evaluating public library effectiveness, based on data from the Public Library Effectiveness Study. Indicators of library effectiveness are discussed, and a cluster analysis of libraries with similar role…

Construct validity and reliability estimates indicate that study designed to measure utilization of automation in public and academic libraries was successful in tentatively identifying and measuring three subdimensions of level of automation: quality of hardware, method of software development, and number of automation specialists. Questionnaire…

Public library users made judgments about the competence of reference librarians whom they observed in videotaped interviews. Two social factors were varied in the interviews: the gender of the librarian, patron, and observers; and the communication behavior exhibited by the reference librarian toward the patron. Nineteen references are cited.…

Discusses data gathered from study assessing library users' behavior and perceptions of reference transaction. Characteristics of reference clientele (address, age, education), questions asked, answers given (type, source, length of time spent), relationships between variables, and cost of reference service are highlighted. Instructions and forms…

This survey of librarians in public and school libraries serving a significant number of Hispanics found that, although 60 percent of the respondents report that books in Spanish for Spanish-speaking children and young adults serve an important educational purpose, many of the remaining respondents are very much opposed to increasing their…

Presents a methodology for construction of location modeling for public library facilities in diverse urban environments. Historical and current research in library location is reviewed; and data collected from a survey of six library systems are analyzed according to population, spatial, library use, and library attractiveness variables. (48…