Reference transactions in academic libraries have been on the decline since mid-1990. The Academic Library Survey from the National Center for Education Statistics shows an average drop of 25% in reference use from 1996-2004 with higher numbers at some institutions such as the University of Maryland which plummeted 47% (Martell, 2008). The…

The report which presented the results of A Study of Reference Services and Reference Users in the Metropolitan Atlanta Area:'' a descriptive study of the reference services of selected libraries and of selected users of those services is summarized. (Author/NH)

The separate undergraduate library was originated to provide students with the same quality of library services as are available in a good liberal arts college library. This paper deals with how reference librarians have used this opportunity to provide reference services for the undergraduate student. The major emphasis is on case studies of…

A project team was commissioned to gather information which could be used by the Reference Standards Committee of the American Library Association in their development of standards for library reference services. The metropolitan Atlanta area was selected because it includes in an accessible geographical area the entire range of types of…

Reference librarians overestimate the knowledge graduate students have about reference sources in the library. Many students responding to the questionnaire could not list indexes and abstracts within their specialty fields. Better library orientation and instruction are needed. (4 references) (DH)

In order to measure the effectiveness of its libraries, the City of London Polytechnic Library and Learning Resources Service surveyed its users and compared the results with a study completed the previous year (1973). Tables and statistics have been provided for: number, type, status, and academic department of users; frequency of use;…

Due to a shortage of staff at the Carlson Library at the University of Toledo, user access to the documents collection outside of the normally staffed hours has depended on the resourcefulness of the user. A survey showed that users were unfamiliar with access procedures. In order to make documents more readily available, the staff developed a…

A survey of the reference departments of public libraries in Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah was conducted to determine whether CD-ROM products are being used in routine reference work. Previous literature on CD-ROM had primarily been concerned with the response to and acceptance of the technology by patrons. A stratified sample of public…

Presents preliminary results of Clearwater Public Library's study of the usefulness of "Output Measures for Public Libraries" as an indicator of reference performance, and the impact of collection development choices on reference output measures. Data on turnover rate, in-library use, reference fill rate, and reference transactions per…

Presents questions for evaluating a media center's reference section, focused on types of resources; reference-material evaluation criteria and items that belong in or are misplaced in the reference section; relocating materials and ensuring use of newly classified materials; and how to collect data on usage of resources. (AEF)

This annotated bibliography of materials dealing with the evaluation of library reference services is arranged by category including literature success, quality, and accuracy of answers; cost and task analysis; interviews and communication; classification of reference questions; reference collections; staff availability; use and nonuse of…

Discusses references collections in academic libraries and offers guidelines for placing materials in a reference collection that focus on their suitability for true reference functions and the expected frequency of use. Problems with poorly managed collections are discussed, and the importance of selection policies and weeding are emphasized. (37…

Reference materials used by librarians responding to reference requests and by patrons at the Iowa State University Library were analyzed to determine which subject areas of the collection received greatest use, and whether subject areas and types of materials used by librarians differed from those used by patrons. (19 references) (MES)

Examines the history of telephone directory collections in libraries and describes a survey of telephone directory use at the Colorado State University libraries. Data collection is described, and implications for more effective use of such collections are suggested. An appendix lists sources that augment telephone directory collections. (16…

A user study to determine the ratio of citation-bound queries to data-bound queries originated by university faculty and processed through reference department personnel or by independent use of reference materials in the university library revealed a majority (75%) of the queries are citation-bound. Important implications are suggested for the…