Because advances in medical science can lead to rapid changes in current health knowledge, a library collection of medical science materials can become dated rather quickly. This factor, as well as the many variables of library use and operation which impact the availability of current materials on the library shelves--loan periods, weeding…

This report describes how courses offered by the Department of Library/Media Technology at Northland Pioneer College (Arizona) can be effective in bridging the gap between the professionally trained master's degree librarian and the untrained library clerk or volunteer. The courses, which are typically offered on weekends, are designed to…

Standards for public libraries have undergone dramatic changes in the last decade. Traditional standards measured only "inputs," or what the community put into the library in terms of staff, books, funding, etc. However, these standards did not measure the services that the library produced, and, as a result, the Public Libraries…

This paper reviews the literature on the habits and preferences of American adults in four areas: reading, library use, television viewing, and adult learning. Within these areas, research results are reported for: (1) the demographic characteristics of readers and nonreaders, the reasons given for reading, time spent reading, the places where…

This document addresses the recommendation regarding community adult education information services in California's 1989 Strategic Plan for Adult Education. It presents an analysis of the state of the art, the nature of the California model, and four policy proposals to help guide its development. Chapter 1 offers a history and summary of the…

Designed to provide librarians, library administrators, and other interested persons with information organized to facilitate comparisons of libraries within the same library system, with comparable service populations, and with comparable expenditures, this publication contains information derived from the 1985 Annual Report/System Membership…

This study considers the theories of impulse buying in an examination of the effects on circulation of library books when books are displayed face front (with all or most of the book jacket showing) as opposed to spine front. Reviews of the literature on consumer behavior and on library displays support the hypothesis of this study, i.e., that…

Public libraries can be instrumental in creating a learning society and alleviating the problems pointed out in "A Nation at Risk: The Imperative for Educational Reform," the report of the National Commission on Excellence in Education. In fact, public libraries have always played an important role in the nation's education and will…

Building on a prior investigation of users' formulations and needs in fiction, this study was conducted to determine dominant patterns in public library user-librarian search interactions. Based on analysis of 134 actual user-librarian conversations about fiction recorded under everyday library conditions in Danish public libraries in 1976, it was…

Prepared by the state librarian of Michigan, this compilation of laws is intended to help librarians, government officials, and citizens familarize themselves with the many state statues that affect the operation and development of libraries in Michigan. The document includes excerpts of laws pertaining to public libraries, school libraries,…

Based on a study undertaken for a conference on the implications of California's increasing ethnic and racial diversity for the state's public libraries, this paper was prepared to serve as a background paper for the conference and provide a context for the conferees' deliberations. The first of eight sections describes an analytical study that…

The Sydney Public Library began as the Australian Subscription Library and Reading Room which opened in Sydney on December 1, 1827, with 1,000 volumes. The Municipal Council of Sydney took possession of the library in 1909. The library evolved from a closed access, fixed shelf position library to an open access system in 1910. A complete…

This report on a Business of Acquisitions Regional Institute, sponsored by the Resources and Technical Services Division (RTSD) of the American Library Association (ALA) and the Northern California Technical Processes Group (NCTPG), summarizes the keynote address on the relationships between booksellers, publishers, and librarians. Three panel…

This compilation of primarily narrative reports from 24 federal projects funded by the Library Services and Construction Act (LSCA) and administered by the California State Library covers the period 1985-1987, with further reports to be published approximately every other year. Each report--excerpted from a standardized summary report form--is…

This collection of materials for a three-hour instructional program for young people and adults in the effective use of the public library includes an introduction to the program, a teaching guide for the librarian, a packet of materials for students, and a summary of 90 evaluations of the program as it was presented at two area libraries and…