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Libraries are tasked with upholding a code of ethics for patron privacy according to the Library Bill of Rights and the American Library Association's (ALA) Code of Ethics. However, patrons' personal identifiable information (PII) is being shared through various channels. As libraries move to more technical and digital based collections this creates more challenges to safeguarding patrons' privacy. This technical environment is where information now serves as a platform for library assessment analysis, access for patrons, and demonstration of impact. This study examines the values of e-resource librarians about privacy, the environmental factors influencing decisions, and if the e-resource librarian has a role in their organization's privacy standards. Data was collected through surveys, and the study found that there is a direct correlation between an organization having a policy on privacy and the e-resource librarians' values being represented in their role. There are also indications that the e-resource librarian believes their employer shares their values on privacy. Lastly, the study revealed two major external driving forces on privacy policy are vendors and US privacy policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This survey of graduate students' and faculty's use and non-use of ebooks is a follow-up to the data captured in 2011 from the same mid-sized public university in southeast Texas. In addition to providing a change comparison of faculty and graduate students' ebooks usage over the past decade, the study also aims to contribute to the growing ebook literature examining faculty and graduate students' perception and use of ebooks for different academic activities. Survey results showed that while the proportion of respondents who are library ebook users had increased significantly over the past decade, both ebook users and non-users' attitude towards e- and print books remained consistent. Most ebook users appreciated features such as keyword searches and copy and pasting, but the majority also valued the option to print out pages and chapters. Respondents' format preferences also shifted based on their academic needs, although some of the feature limitations that prompted some users to switch from or avoid library ebooks were caused by DRM restrictions that could be removed by publishers. The findings have implications beyond the institution for academic library ebook acquisition and communication with local user populations. Other marketing and future research implications of the findings are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The success or failure of any tool, service or system used in a library is predicated on the audience it finds. While web-scale discovery systems have developed widespread adoption in academic libraries, there is a sense from librarians that they continue to be in search of their true audience. Librarians play a key role in the utilization of web-scale discovery systems, and their experiences as an end user of these systems may influence their attitudes in many ways. The survey discussed in this article looks at the attitudes librarians have toward web-scale discovery systems when using them for their personal research, including feature preferences and inquiries into opinions regarding strengths and weaknesses of the system. The results of this survey provide some insights into why some librarians struggle with the idea using of web-scale discovery systems by themselves and by the patrons with which they work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study is aimed at determining the future role of libraries in Pakistan as perceived by the Millennials (people born during the 1980's and late 1990's) considering the current ongoing digital development. The quantitative research design, based on survey has been used for the study. The population consisted of students from large and medium sized general universities of Lahore, Pakistan. Stratified purposive sampling technique was carried out to select the pool of the subjects e. A self-constructed and validated instrument was used to collect data. The collected data was analyzed using SPSS (16.0). The results revealed that Millennials want future libraries to allow easy access to a wide range of reading material in both print and digital form. They want to be able to round the clock access to electronic and print resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A group of researchers from an academic library surveyed students to understand how and why the members of their community use course reserve services. Students were happy with the service and used it as a replacement for purchasing textbooks. Frequent users requested more textbook offerings, and both users and nonusers indicated a need for increased promotion of the service. Users provided specific suggestions for improvement that should be examined. Findings illustrated the value of course reserve services as a way to help students with college affordability and to support instruction and learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research examined the ways in which academic librarians and users interact when using social media tools such as Twitter and Weibo as well as end-users' and librarians' perceptions of the types of interaction through social media. The study conducted an analysis of 1600 microblog posts sampled from twenty university library Weibo (Chinese Twitter) sites and twenty library Twitter sites in English-speaking countries. The results were compared using Chi-Square analysis. Results indicated that at present academic librarians in English-speaking countries use post information relevant to the library (news and events) and respond to information/research inquiries. And academic librarians in China are likely to use Weibo to communicate with users and to disseminate library news. Given the lack of previous research on how social media such as micro-blogging in general facilitates communication between librarians and library users in academic libraries between in English-speaking countries and China, this study provides valuable information concerning librarians' and end-users' interactions of information/knowledge sharing activities, which will enable libraries to be better positioned to promote user engagement through SNS usage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the ongoing discussion on library as place, there has not been a robust framework for understanding the meanings and the dimensions of library as place. The purpose of this study is to identify reliable and meaningful dimensions of academic library as place. The formative elements of academic library as place were elicited in terms of physical setting of place, person, and act. A cross-sectional field study was conducted at a state university in the eastern region of the United States. Principal component analysis identified three dimensions of academic library as place: information and services, reading and study, and relaxation. The conceptualization of academic library as place enables us to confirm constructs, and the established constructs advance theoretical discussions on library as place. The findings of this study are expected to provide empirical evidence of user perception of library as place, thus improving our understanding of users and strategies for the effective design of library space. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This case study explores use patterns of an academic library following the addition of several non-library units. Of specific interest were the initial destinations of patrons, the number of destinations visited, and the primary purpose for coming to the library. We observed all destinations of patrons as they entered the building and administered an exit survey to gain additional insight into patrons' use of the library, including all first floor destinations visited and their primary purpose for visiting the library. We used selected statistics to further explore library use. Findings indicate that non-library units are a popular destination for library patrons but do not eclipse the overall use of library units; that the majority of patrons only visit one destination per trip to the library; and that the primary purposes for which patrons come to the library are studying and the use of library materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this research is to explore the idea of the participatory library in higher education settings. This research aims to address the question, what is a participatory university library? Design/methodology/approach Grounded theory approach was adopted. In-depth individual interviews were conducted with two diverse groups of participants including ten library staff members and six library users. Data collection and analysis were carried out simultaneously and complied with Straussian grounded theory principles and techniques. Findings Three core categories representing the participatory library were found including “community”, “empowerment”, and “experience”. Each category was thoroughly delineated via sub-categories, properties, and dimensions that all together create a foundation for the participatory library. A participatory library model was also developed together with an explanation of model building blocks that provide a deeper understanding of the participatory library phenomenon. Research limitations The research focuses on a specific library system, i.e., academic libraries. Therefore, the research results may not be very applicable to public, special, and school library contexts. Originality/Value This is the first empirical study developing a participatory library model. It provides librarians, library managers, researchers, library students, and the library community with a holistic picture of the contemporary library. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Physical space in an academic library is increasingly important to fully support students' diverse needs for learning spaces. However, inefficient space design and planning give rise to crowded and underutilized spaces in a library, thereby probably lowering students' learning outcomes and wasting costly space. Understanding students' use of space can facilitate effective design and planning, which in turn will result in more efficient use of space. As students' spatial choices (i.e., the act of decision-making of an individual or group among two or more space alternatives for a certain activity) account for much of the space use in a library, this study explored the factors that influence their choice of space in an academic library using a paper-based survey (n = 252) at the central academic library, Eindhoven University of Technology, the Netherlands. The five most important space attributes were “Amount of space,” “Noise level,” “Crowdedness,” “Comfort of furnishing” and “Cleanliness.” The spatial choice patterns also differed according to different user and activity profiles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reference services have been developed in China for nearly a century; however literature shows that very little research has been done on users' perception of reference services in Chinese academic libraries. To fill the research gap, this study aims to examine how Chinese undergraduates perceive, understand and use the reference service. A survey was employed and conducted in a comprehensive Chinese university with about 19,000 undergraduate students. 433 valid questionnaires were received. ANOVA was adopted to examine overall reference service satisfaction variation among respondents in different programs. The study reveals that library resources and reference services have been improved in China during the past twenty years, especially with the great support of Project 211 and Project 985 by the Ministry of Education of China. However, there is still more to do to change libraries from book repositories to modern user-centered information services and to improve historically underdeveloped user services in Chinese libraries. Libraries and librarians in China need to more actively embrace the philosophy that library resources are to be used and librarians are there to serve, to thoroughly promote reference services and render them more visible, and to diligently learn, adopt and apply technology to provide quality reference services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How do libraries reconcile increasing access to information and encouraging the use of 21st century technology systems and tools while also preserving patrons' privacy? This question is challenging for all libraries to address, but academic libraries must grapple with it while also considering other complex issues: not only do these libraries need to comply with the ALA's Library Bill of Rights and supporting documents, but they must also adhere to federal-, state-, and institution-level policies regarding student privacy and information security. This article presents how one university's libraries worked to both develop a public statement on patron privacy and identify behind-the-scenes issues with the collection, storage, and disposal of library patrons' private information. The strategies used herein may be helpful to other academic libraries as they consider patron privacy in the 21st century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The focus of this study was to identify: 1) usage of library e-resources by faculty and staff affiliation and status to identify research and teaching needs; 2) usage of library e-resources by student major, status, gender, registered disability and registered veteran to establish best outreach practices and areas that need service improvement and collection development in support of student learning; and 3) the correlation between use of library e-resources and student attainment as defined by grade point average (GPA). Demographic data was collected for these users based on their university NetID logins. The findings in this study conclusively document that students and faculty use library e-resources to a statistically significant extent and that a statistical relationship exists between student GPA and their use of e-resources. This information confirms the value of library resources to institutional teaching and research needs and can be used to document library value to the institutional mission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Student deep participation in library work allows students to actively participate in library operation and become deeply involved in library service and program development. There are usually two levels of deep participation: level I refers to the employment of student assistants in different areas of library routine work, ranging from shelving to IT support; and level II refers to the engagement of students as library partners or collaborators, working with librarians to complete independent project. Sharing Tsinghua University Library's experiences, we provide a holistic view of how the two levels of student deep participation are implemented at an academic library, with a focus on level II. We seek to generate a thorough understanding of the practices and benefits of student deep participation, and encourage academic libraries to create more opportunities to deeply involve students in library work, and to ultimately demonstrate the value and relevance of the library to the campus community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mobile Internet applications and service innovations are changing people's way of life. At the same time, they are also changing the way that people communicate and access information. People who visited libraries to find specific information in the past are now able to find the same information online. As the spectrum of human need grows, the opportunities for librarians to meet these needs are also growing. Libraries will need to be designed to accommodate the changing needs of their users. Mobile library services can meet users' information needs in a fast-paced society. In this investigation we identified 39 university libraries supported by the Ministry of Education's “Project 985” and evaluated their status as mobile library service providers. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The Auraria Library, which serves the University of Colorado Denver, Metropolitan State College of Denver and the Community College of Denver, collaborated with several academic courses on its campus to investigate some aspects of Participatory Action Research and Service Learning. The goal was to have students (the largest library user group) formulate questions, analyze data and provide suggestions that would help the library make evidence based decisions. The projects would provide student produced information that would be used to renovate the library. Unexpected benefits included the valuable relationships that developed between the Auraria Library, students and teaching faculty. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

With the growth of international student enrollment in Chinese universities, user perception has become an area of developing research in academic libraries. China's policy of opening up has led to the education and economic reforms allowing major universities to enroll international students. These changes have created an increasing need for libraries to be responsive to the information needs of these students. In order to serve these students better, universities will be expected to further understand how academic library services are currently perceived by international students. This is particularly the case at Wuhan University, which has experienced significant growth in international student enrollment. This study aims to discover the met and unmet needs as well as barriers encountered in library use by international students. Based on the information gathered, recommendations and future strategies will be formulated to improve the understanding of the information needs of non-native Chinese speakers in both the provision of services and the building of collections. The findings of this study reveal that Chinese academic libraries are considerably well perceived by international students. It also indicates that they have differing purposes, and differing needs for library services and information resources. This paper acknowledges that the study is limited to Wuhan University; however, there is a need for further studies on non-Chinese speakers, particularly, international students to obtain important information on their perception of library services and information resources. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

While virtual reference services (VRS) are becoming more and more common in academic libraries, implementing and maintaining well-used and effective VRS can be a challenge in the face of competing demands on time, staffing, and funding. Between 2011 and 2012, librarians at Washington State University, Pullman (WSU) have overhauled and reorganized VRS, committing more time, money, and energy to VRS than ever before. While past experiences with VRS at WSU Pullman have been mixed, data collected from recent years shows that the decision to prioritize VRS was worth it, leading to a vital and rapidly growing service. VRS at WSU shows sizable increases in usage between 2010 and 2012, indicating that VRS is now a necessary part of the WSU Libraries' mission to best serve their community of users. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A critical component of strategic planning is creating a shared-awareness among library staff of the potential societal, political, economic and technological changes that will influence how future users will create and consume scholarly materials, what will be expected of library services, and how facilities will be used. The ACRL Futuring scenarios were adapted at the beginning of the Ohio University Libraries strategic planning process to identify such themes and concerns. Those scenarios prompted a series of in-depth and interactive group discussions, which created a shared awareness of possible library futures and guided Ohio University's strategic thinking. Those interactive exercises led by Professor David Staley, and the subsequent discussions surrounding the scenarios, represent a best practice for other librarians and staff who are attempting to understand the external factors that shape society, higher education and the future of libraries. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A content analysis was conducted of status messages posted by academic libraries on seventeen Facebook pages. In addition to being informational, libraries attempt to engage and establish rapport with students through Facebook. The university setting not only creates a context for messages, but also offers a mutual set of experiences and values shared by libraries and students. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Library use is strongly linked with student persistence in higher education, and Latino students have lower rates of academic library use and proficiency than other racial/ethnic groups of students. This study explores Latino undergraduate students' perceptions of the academic library and library staff and identifies the conditions which impede or facilitate the students' use of the library. Using a multiple case study design, this study describes the experiences and perceptions of undergraduate students who identify as Latino and attend a four-year public research-intensive university in the Midwest. The findings suggest that Latino students use the library through the influence of peers, interpret the library as a space for cultural support based on their experiences with public libraries, and do not fully understand the range of resources and support available. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

2007 data from LibQUAL+™ and the ACRL Library Trends and Statistics database were analyzed to determine if there is a statistically significant correlation between library expenditures and usage statistics and library patron satisfaction across 73 universities. The results show that users of larger, better funded libraries have higher expectations for information resource availability, but not higher satisfaction scores. Furthermore, the data show no significant correlation between library usage statistics and user satisfaction. The researchers conclude that the lack of expected correlations could be attributed to limitations in the LibQUAL+™ method of measuring patron satisfaction, or the difficulty of using the quantitative measurements found in ACRL statistics to try and accurately predict user satisfaction. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This research explores the extent of service quality in Spanish university science and technology libraries, based on the expectations and perceptions of their users: faculty and researchers. Users' information behavior is analyzed with the specially designed BiQual tool, which reveals specific needs such as the greater importance of electronic collections and improved electronic access. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While many surveys aim primarily at measuring general user satisfaction, this survey is dedicated to understanding music users' needs, usage patterns, and preferences towards various collections. Findings showed dissimilar use behavior and perceived importance of materials between academic- and performance-oriented music users. Needs for different score genres (formats) were also identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New product development is an omnipresent challenge to modern libraries in the information age. Therefore, we present the design and selected results of a comprehensive research project aiming at the systematic and user-oriented planning of academic library services by means of conjoint analysis. The applicability of the analytical framework used and the expressiveness of the attainable results are demonstrated by means of two surveys complementing each other. Both surveys together are representing the opinions of more than 3500 academic library users. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As libraries experience changes in their environment, communicating to stakeholders about the changes as well as the library's mission, strategies, and responses to the changes is critical. Such communication serves well to inform how the change management integrates with the mission of the library so that stakeholders have a shared understanding of the changes taking place, as well as to build and develop their support and confidence in the organization. This study discusses findings of an exploratory analysis in which 111 Association of Research Libraries (ARL) Web sites were surveyed to gain insights into the academic library's current practices of communicating the library mission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On the surface, SFX, utilizing the concept of context-sensitive linking among library resources, promises the ability to obtain full text effortlessly. This paper reports on the results of a three-fold study—online survey, focus group interviews, and sample testing analysis—to examine library end-user and librarian expectations and experiences using SFX. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reference interactions with patrons in a digital library environment using digital reference services (DRS) has become widespread. However, such services in many libraries appear to be underutilized. A study surveying the ease and convenience of such services for patrons in over 100 academic health science library Web sites suggests that cumbersome access and difficulty of use may be a key restraining force. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a study which examined the relationship between library services and its budget, number of employees and primary clientele. Institutions of higher education have experienced serious fiscal pressures in recent years due to which academic libraries have had to reduce costs. There has been a decline in the percentage of university budget allocations to members of the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) from 3.91 percent in 1982 to 3.32 percent in 1992. Traditional measures of academic library quality considered factors such as the number of volumes owned, number of journal subscriptions. However the new measures of library quality include quality of services, customer satisfaction, patron perception of library service quality, market penetration and assessment of impact. The aspects of library services examined were number of reference transactions, number of instructional presentations to groups and number of attendees at group presentations. This study found a relationship between the ARL Index, staffing, and expenditures, and library services.

This study investigates the influences of the antecedent factors on the complaints and resulting behaviors of 582 university library users in South Korea. There were statistically significant relationships between personal norms and negative word of mouth and indirect voice behaviors, between service importance and negative word-of-mouth behavior, and between perceived severity of dissatisfaction and most of the specific complaint responses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents the results of a library service survey conducted at the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences in Boston in January and February 2002. Background on the college; Factors affecting the satisfaction of library users; Main reasons for students to use Sheppard Library; Libraries used by students besides Sheppard Library; Things that are lacking in the Sheppard Library collection.

Presents a study which explored the differences in the academic library use of undergraduate ethnic groups in the U.S. Racial characteristics of undergraduates; Percentage statistics on the college experiences of ethnic groups; Assessment of academic library usage.

Focuses on a study which investigated unaffiliated users' access and other privileges at academic libraries. Procedures; Findings; Conclusion.

Examines the literature on unaffiliated users' access to academic libraries since the 1950s. Librarians who have contributed to the public use of academic libraries; Reasons for the increased demand of unaffiliated users for libraries; Number of libraries in Virginia which allowed free borrowing to outside users throughout the 1980s; Surveys which reported on policies toward external users.

The open access (OA) movement is working to transform scholarly communication around the world, but this philosophy can also apply to metadata and cataloging records. While some notable, large academic libraries, such as Harvard University, the University of Michigan, and the University of Cambridge, released their cataloging records under OA licenses, this is not the prevailing standard for libraries as a whole. In order for OA metadata to benefit users, libraries must release their cataloging records and metadata under an open access license. This OA metadata can reside locally or globally, both of which will be discussed in this article. Three main stakeholders can foster this process: libraries, vendors, and publishers. Working as a cataloger in a vendor's technical services department affords me a unique perspective on the potential role of vendors creating, promoting, and working with OA metadata to help libraries make their collections more discoverable and user-friendly. No matter what role vendors and publishers play, though, libraries and their catalogers must lead the charge in OA metadata and cataloging records in order to provide better information to users, while easing the burden of record upkeep through a collaboration of shared OA information. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper reports on a research study aiming to identify the user requirements of digital scholarship services (DSS) in university libraries. Due to the exploratory nature of this study, a case study approach was adopted as the overarching methodology. Wuhan University Library (one of the top university libraries in China) was adopted as the case study. Specifically, a mixed qualitative-quantitative approach was employed for the case analysis. A qualitative study was performed aiming to identify and qualify users' DSS requirements. The analysis of qualitative interview data pointed to 17 DSS requirements under five themes: formulating research ideas, locating research partners, writing research proposals, conducting research, and publishing results. Subsequently, a quantitative Kano model analysis was undertaken to validate, verify and prioritise the DSS requirements identified. Based on measuring individual requirements' priority, DSS requirements were classified into four types: must-be, one-dimensional, attractive, and indifference. Finally, a set of strategic suggestions for DSS development were devised. This paper is of interests to library and information science researchers, as well as library managers and professionals. Although the data were collected from a university library in China, the research findings provide useful insights and implications that can be shared across international borders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discusses how a library should treat online information. Mission of an academic library; Prediction on the future of online information industry; Involvement of the library in the information activities of patrons.