Describes a national survey in which 7 public library constituent groups rated the degree to which 61 indicators helped describe a library. Dimensions of effectiveness were then developed through factor analysis on the indicator choices. A full list of indicators, a list of collapsed indicators, and the results of the factor analysis are appended.…

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)…

Reviews studies that have attempted to measure levels of community library service, and describes the testing of hypotheses related to the impact of public library system development in Wisconsin on community library services. Conclusions about public library service in Wisconsin and the research methodology used are stated. (16 references) (CLB)

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…

Describes a study that investigated the quality of interlibrary loan services in Canadian public libraries from the library's and the user's perspectives and then compared results. Measures of interlibrary loan performance are reviewed; an alternative conceptualization of service quality is discussed; and SERVQUAL, a measure of service quality, is…