Presented in this report is an extensive evaluation of three library projects located in Chicago, Peoria, and the suburban Chicago area. All the projects reviewed have strong and weak points. Generally, the strong elements are a vigorous commitment to the people served, emphasis on inexpensive paperback books and collections of books stressing…

Describes a national survey aimed at defining effectiveness for public libraries that asked 7 constituent groups (library managers, staff, trustees, users, friends of the library, local officials, and community leaders) to rate the importance of 61 effectiveness indicators. The complex and multidimensional nature of the results is discussed and…

The first of a two-part study of the comprehensive 1962 public library survey, this report presents institutional data for public libraries serving 35,000 persons and above. In content and coverage it continues the 1960 public library survey which was released in three parts in 1961 and 1962 under the title, "Statistics of Public Library…

Tests hierarchical regression model--library employee's salary is a function of library size, public sector collective bargaining strength, library's ability to pay, cost of living in area, presence of any union and union representing librarians in library--on three salary levels (department head, beginning librarian, clerical worker). (29…

This report summarizes the findings, issues, and lessons learned from the Developing National Public Library and Statewide Network Statistics and Performance Measures study conducted between January 1999 and August 2000. The overall goal of the study was to develop a core set of national statistics and performance measures that librarians,…

Book condition surveys have been conducted in several large research libraries in the United States to determine the extent of book deterioration in those libraries. This paper outlines the steps for conducting a brittle book survey adapted from more comprehensive surveys to assess the extent of paper brittleness of the book collections in a small…

This comprehensive report details the activities of a study which investigated public, public secondary school, community college, academic, state institutional, and state library agencies, in order to: (1) assess the current status of libraries in literacy education; (2) determine an expanded role for libraries in literacy education; and (3)…

Volume 2 comprises the appendices to the study reported in Volume 1. The following textual material is presented: (1) background material for the first regional meeting on reference referral in the state of California; (2) minutes and participation lists from the seven focus group meetings held from March 27 through April 23, 1986; (3) summaries…

Compares five public library early childhood centers with regard to origin and purpose; scope of collections; types of services; differences between these services and those traditionally offered. Factors to consider before starting center, those which contribute to success or failure, and competencies needed by staff are discussed. Sixteen…

To determine on which levels of cooperation most media specialists and public librarians function, and whether or not the cooperation is satisfactory, a survey was conducted of libraries and school media specialists in the Atlanta-Fulton County and Gwinnett County (Georgia) areas. Questionnaires (152) were mailed to 115 school library and media…

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…

This study examined the information seeking behavior of gatekeepers in five ethnolinguistic communities: American Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Latino. Personal interviews were conducted with 129 gatekeepers and a conceptual information model was used to generate an analytical framework for presenting and discussing the data. The major…

Describes study that was conducted to determine whether the search process is the same for academic, public, and school library users. Cognitive models of information seeking are discussed, users' attitudes during the search process are described, the role mediators play is examined, and future research needs are suggested. (26 references) (LRW)