Vignettes, brief descriptions of fictional characters and situations, serve as a tool to study people's lives, perceptions, beliefs, and attitudes about specific situations. Although not widely used in library and information science (LIS) research, vignettes can depersonalize responses to controversial situations or behavioral responses related…

This article serves as a primer for assessment and evaluation design by describing the range of methods commonly employed in library settings. Quantitative methods, such as counting and benchmarking measures, are useful for investigating the internal operations of an access services department in order to identify workflow inefficiencies or…

This meta-analysis of research on reference service evaluation discusses how often the same variables are examined, to what extent the observed correlations agreed or differed, and whether the results of multiple studies (59 studies listed) can be combined to obtain a more accurate estimate of the strength of association for a variable with…

Developed to assist librarians in the measurement and evaluation of the library's ability to provide services, this guide suggests a number of evaluation techniques that may be used once the reasons for a study have been clearly determined and locally peculiar conditions have been taken into account. The first section explains methods for…

In an electronic era, the evaluation of reference and related information services should still be based on the same principles used to evaluate traditional face-to-face reference services and printed reference tools. Traditional research methods can be utilized very effectively in an electronic environment. However, electronic technologies offer…

At a time when emphasis is being placed on quality, standards, and accountability, the research world is spending more time assessing the value and impact of library organizations. This paper argues that research in this area requires sociological and psychological research skills. Qualitative data are as important as statistics. Different…

The SERVQUAL measure was developed by A. Parasuraman, L. Berry, and V. Zeithaml (1988) to measure perceptions of service quality, originally in the retailing sector. However, libraries and other educational institutions are also service providers. Librarians in particular have increasingly become interested in measuring quality of service as the…

Includes three articles: the first presents rules and regulations from the "Federal Register" that focus on educational effectiveness in postsecondary institutions; the second discusses the appropriateness of various research methodologies for assessment and accountability of reference services; and the third examines data collection…

Describes an unobtrusive study of the ability of professional librarians to deal with factual questions that was conducted at Illinois State University. Evaluation of the accuracy of responses is discussed, the responsiveness and helpfulness of librarians is examined, attitude scores are described, and implications for improving reference service…

The recent demand for more accountability from public libraries has made it essential that true cost-benefit analysis be applied to their operations. The authors developed a cost-benefit analysis methodology and applied it to five large public library systems. This article describes ongoing research to modify their methodologies to make them…

Reports on an evaluation of the higher levels of California's statewide reference referral network that involved an unobtrusive method utilizing existing records of actual reference transactions evaluated by panel of judges. Reference evaluation methods, findings of other studies, and other uses of the method are discussed. (Nineteen references…

Examines questions related to service quality, satisfaction, and outcomes assessment in academic libraries. Relates the literature of library and information science to each concept, identifies major research methodologies used, and offers suggestions for future research. (Contains 65 references.) (Author/LRW)

This paper explores library evaluation in Australia and proposes a return to research fundamentals in which evaluators are asked to consider the centrality of philosophical issues and the role of different research methods. A critique of current evaluation examples demonstrates a system-centred, quantitative, input/output focus which fails to…

This paper defines performance measurement as the clarification of objectives and standards, identification of key activities, data collection and analysis, and formative evaluation of services. It then examines some of the factors involved in using performance measurement to evaluate public services activities, and analyzes performance…

Summarizes the literature explaining focus group interview techniques and provides ideas on how they can be used for needs assessment and program evaluation in libraries and information centers. Discussion includes focus group session objectives, the level of moderator involvement, various methodologies, data analysis, and reporting in qualitative…