User experience is immeasurably important for your patrons as they access your Web site. This article presents tips and strategies for testing user experience, suggests a number of different popular technologies and tools that are used in the UX field, and lays out a plan for sharing and utilizing data to make improvements on your Web site. It is…

This journey-mapping pilot study was designed to determine whether journey mapping is an effective method to enhance the student experience of using the library by assessing our services from their point of view. Journey mapping plots a process or service to produce a visual representation of a library transaction--from the point at which the…

Libraries have become increasingly interested in studying the use of spaces within their buildings. Traditional methods for tracking library building use, such as gate counts, provide little information on what patrons do once they are in the library; therefore, new methods for studying space usage are being developed. Particularly promising are…

Measuring quality of service in academic libraries traditionally includes quantifiable data such as collection size, staff counts, circulation numbers, reference service statistics, qualitative analyses of customer satisfaction, shelving accuracy, and building comfort. In the libraries of the third millennium, virtual worlds, Web content and…

A description of the Academic Library Development Program and a report on the progress of the project. (AP)

The University of Denver Libraries employed SCORE (Service Components Reliability and Efficiency), a cost analysis technique, to measure effectiveness and cost of reference activity. This report examines the results and the problems encountered in application of this methodology. A reference model, designed as a flow chart, was developed by…

Cost benefit accounting is not being used in academic reference libraries today but administrators are beginning to require quantitative evaluation of services provided. Several systems are described and evaluated. (35 references) (DH)

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 American College of Higher Studies (ACHS) in Thessaloniki, Greece, is in the process of expanding and improving its library's collection and facilities in order to meet American regional accreditation standards. An evaluation of the college's Anatolia College Library with regard to collection, staff, services, administration and facilities was…

This pilot study was conducted to evaluate the telephone reference service of a university library. Questions were called in by volunteers to several different divisions of the library to try to determine: (a) factual accuracy of responses, (b) level of interviewing by the staff person, and (c) attitude of the staff person. Results of the study…

Results of a 4-month library self-evaluation program conducted by staff members at Carnegie-Mellon University Libraries are reported in this document. The study was conducted using the Academic Library Development Program (ALDP), a self-improvement strategy for libraries to evaluate and develop their performance. The study team consisting of four…

Discusses how to improve library reference service, especially the effective delivery of accurate answers, based on a program at Wichita State University (Kansas) that used concepts of quality from business and organizational management. Topics addressed include customers and customer service, and methods of reference service evaluation. (Contains…

A COMMITTEE AT HENRY FORD COMMUNITY COLLEGE WAS ESTABLISHED TO STUDY THE LIBRARY, FORMULATE AN EVALUATION, AND DEVELOP A SERIES OF RECOMMENDATIONS ISSUING OUT OF AND BASED ON THE STUDY. THE COMMITTEE USED THE JUNIOR COLLEGE LIBRARY STANDARDS AS THE INSTRUMENT FOR JUDGING THE LIBRARY PROGRAM. FROM EACH OF THE EIGHT SECTIONS OF THE STANDARDS, THEY…

In an effort to evaluate how well the Learning Resources Center at Virginia Western Community College serves its faculty, a survey was taken to obtain professional information about the faculty members responding, frequencies and ratings of services used, and suggestions for improvement. The 121 faculty respondents (69%) indicated which of the 22…

A local model for support of periodic academic program reviews by the Indiana Commission for Higher Education (ICHE) has developed and evolved at the Ball State University library. The process of devising a format to systematically report library holdings statistics to support program reviews and other collections development duties began in 1975;…