Data from student and teacher questionnaires, interviews with school librarians, and examination of bibliographies of student papers were collected in six metropolitan area public schools working to study facilities used and assistance received by students on independent study assigments. Results indicated that students successfully used a wide…

A library user exposed to immediate communication with a librarian is more satisfied with the reference interview and question negotiation than when communication is nonimmediate, but there is no difference in satisfaction with information transfer. "Immediacy" evolves from the relatively positive feelings generated in the user by the librarian's…

Describes a modular, interdisciplinary curriculum offered by the City and East London Confederation. This curriculum aims to encourage more student responsibility for education, to create a problem solving approach to learning, to give early exposure to clinical elements, and to develop student communication skills. (DDR)

Examines the effectiveness of a framework developed to measure service quality in academic libraries. The research, which was conducted in the seven university libraries of New Zealand during 1996 concluded that the survey questionnaire administered is an effective instrument for testing service quality. (AEF)

Discusses ways in which libraries are using the World Wide Web to provide information via a home page, based on information from a survey in Iceland as well as a larger study that conducted content analyses of home pages of public and school libraries in 13 countries. (Author/LRW)

This study compares libraries of 222 public historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) with those of traditionally white public colleges in 18 states by analyzing number of volumes, staff, and salary totals. In general, HBCUs and non-HBCUs are equal in volumes per student; HBCUs are superior in library staffing, and non-HBCUs are ahead…

Reports on the second stage of the New Zealand University Libraries Effectiveness Study, which identified dimensions of effectiveness in New Zealand academic libraries and examined parallels with dimensions of organizational effectiveness in a similar study of public libraries. Each libraries' staff rated the library's performance against 99…

Explored user perceptions of dependability and accuracy of Texas A&M library services through focus groups. Reports user difficulties in locating materials, inaccurate catalog and circulation records, inadequate signage, searching the online catalog, and late notification of interlibrary loan arrivals; and discusses the library's efforts to…

Investigates interlibrary loan use patterns for scientists at SUNY (State University of New York) Albany by analyzing one year's worth of filled interlibrary loan requests for journal articles. Highlights include differences among scientific disciplines; year of publication; and sources of citations. Contains 11 tables. (Author/LRW)

Describes a needs assessment process that was developed for the Soledad branch library, which is located in a rural, predominantly Spanish-speaking community. Questionnaires for users and nonusers are described, community residents' involvement is discussed, desirable library services are suggested, and needs in a bilingual community are…

Describes results of a survey that was conducted to compile statistical data on collection growth and library expenditures in academic libraries. Data from liberal arts college libraries are compared with data from members of the Association of Research Libraries (ARL), library statistics are discussed, and significant trends are described. (32…

Describes an experiment conducted at the University of Illinois at Chicago that was designed to determine whether adding a substantial number of subject headings would raise circulation rates. The effects of added contents notes, keyword searching, browsing, and displays on the online catalog are examined, and further research is suggested. (27…

Discussion of operational effectiveness in libraries focuses on a modeling approach that was used to compare the effectiveness of a local interlibrary loan system with using a national system, the British Library Document Supply Centre (BLDSC). Cost figures and surveys of five academic libraries are described. (six references) (LRW)

Describes results of a study of interlibrary loan statistics that was conducted at the King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM) Library (Saudi Arabia) in 1985-86. Results are used to examine collection development needs, departmental use, categories of users, time required to fill requests, and lending vendors. (five references) (LRW)

Nine articles in this festschrift for Herbert Goldhor explore relatively new and innovative approaches to problem solving in libraries. The articles identify and discuss methods and techniques of applied and evaluative research, consider conceptual and practical issues related to problem solving in libraries, and recognize Goldhor's many…