LibQUAL+ ® : An Introduction Bern, Switzerland July 9, 2007 PRESENTED BY: Martha Kyrillidou Association of Research Libraries old.libqual.org

Overview Introduction and Overview LibQUAL+® in the UK Research Foundations –Qualitative Process –Quantitative Evidence The Survey Process General Discussion and Q&A

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World LibQUAL+ ® Survey

old.libqual.org Rapid Growth in Other Areas Languages –American English –British English –Chinese (2007) –French –Dutch –Swedish –Norwegian –Finnish –Danish Consortia –Each may create 5 local questions to add to their survey Countries –Australia, Canada, Denmark, Egypt, Finland, France, Hong Kong, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Norway, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, UAE, U.K., U.S. Types of Institutions –Academic Health Sciences –Academic Law –Academic Military –College or University –Community College –Electronic –European Business –Family History –FFRDC –High School (2007) –Hospital –National Health Service England –Natural Resources –New York Public –Public –Smithsonian –State –University/TAFE

old.libqual.org LibQUAL+ ® Participants * 2007 data reflects Session I data only

old.libqual.org LibQUAL+ ® First Year Participants * 2007 data reflects Session I data only

old.libqual.org LibQUAL+ ® Surveys by Type Years Academic law Academic military 6 1 College or university Community college Electronic 1 European business 5 16 Family history library 1 2 FFRDC 51 Health sciences library Hospital 1011 National Health Service Eng. 10 Natural Resources 4 New York Public library 1 Public 4113 Smithsonian 1 1 State 1 13 University/TAFE 21

old.libqual.org LibQUAL+ ® Languages

old.libqual.org Surveys by Session: YearSession 1Session

old.libqual.org Survey methods used in the UK West, 2004 A Survey of Surveys Source: Stephen Town, Paris, March 22-23, 2007

old.libqual.org The UK approach Coordinated on behalf of the Society of College, National & University Libraries (SCONUL) Working Group on Performance Improvement (WGPI) UK Higher Education (HE) institutions UK & Irish HE institutions UK & Irish HE institutions 2006 – 20 UK & Irish HE institutions 2007 – 22 UK & Irish HE institutions 62 different institutions Source: Stephen Town, Paris, March 22-23, 2007

old.libqual.org Response Comparisons SCONUL 2003 –20 institutions –11,919 respondents SCONUL 2004 –16 institutions –16,611 respondents Increase by 4,692 SCONUL 2005 –16 institutions –17,355 respondents Increase by 744 SCONUL 2006 –20 institutions –19,108 respondents Increase by 1,753 LibQUAL –308 institutions –128,958 respondents LibQUAL –202 institutions –112,551 respondents Decrease by 16,407 LibQUAL –199 institutions –108,504 respondents Decrease by 4,047 LibQUAL –298 institutions –176,360 respondents Increase by 67,856 Source: Stephen Town, Paris, March 22-23, 2007

old.libqual.org SCONUL Response by User Group 2006

old.libqual.org SCONUL Response by Discipline 2006

old.libqual.org Respondent Comparisons Glasgow University –2006 = 1,535 –2005 = 1,384 –2004 = 2,178 –2003 = 503 London South Bank University –2006 = 700 –2005 = 766 –2004 = 568 –2003 = 276 Source: Stephen Town, Paris, March 22-23, 2007

old.libqual.org General findings Highly desired –Making electronic resources accessible from my home or office –Print and/or electronic journals I require for my work –A haven for study, learning or research Lowest –Library staff who instil confidence in users –Giving users individual attention –Space for group learning and group study Source: Stephen Town, Paris, March 22-23, 2007

old.libqual.org Free Text Comments Received Total number of comments 2005 = 8,368 Total number of comments 2004 = 8,161 Total number of comments 2003 = 7,342 Source: Stephen Town, Paris, March 22-23, 2007

old.libqual.org Why LibQUAL+? Benchmarking Cost effectiveness Analysis compiled by LibQUAL+ Fast delivery of results Support available, especially regarding analysis of results Trialling alternative survey methods More library focused than previous in-house method Planned institutional survey failed to happen. LibQUAL+ was cost effective way of doing something to fill the gap. Source: Stephen Town, Paris, March 22-23, 2007

old.libqual.org Research Foundations

old.libqual.org Total Circulation Note. M. Kyrillidou and M. Young. (2003). ARL Statistics Washington, D.C.: ARL, p.8.

old.libqual.org Reference Transactions Note. M. Kyrillidou and M. Young. (2003). ARL Statistics Washington, D.C.: ARL, p.8.

old.libqual.org Assessment “The difficulty lies in trying to find a single model or set of simple indicators that can be used by different institutions, and that will compare something across large groups that is by definition only locally applicable—i.e., how well a library meets the needs of its institution. Librarians have either made do with oversimplified national data or have undertaken customized local evaluations of effectiveness, but there has not been devised an effective way to link the two.” Sarah Pritchard, Library Trends, 1996

old.libqual.org Multiple Methods of Listening to Customers Transactional surveys* Mystery shopping New, declining, and lost-customer surveys Focus group interviews Customer advisory panels Service reviews Customer complaint, comment, and inquiry capture Total market surveys* Employee field reporting Employee surveys Service operating data capture *A SERVQUAL-type instrument is most suitable for these methods Note. A. Parasuraman. The SERVQUAL Model: Its Evolution And Current Status. (2000). Paper presented at ARL Symposium on Measuring Service Quality, Washington, D.C.

old.libqual.org Premises Three Seminal Quotations

old.libqual.org PERCEPTIONS SERVICE “….only customers judge quality; all other judgments are essentially irrelevant” Note. Zeithaml, Parasuraman, Berry. (1999). Delivering quality service. NY: The Free Press. LibQUAL+ ™ Premise #1

old.libqual.org LibQUAL+ ™ Premise #2 “Il est plus nécessaire d'étudier les hommes que les livres” —FRANÇOIS DE LA ROCHEFOUCAULD

old.libqual.org “We only care about the things we measure.” --Bruce Thompson, CASLIN, 2006 LibQUAL+ ™ Premise #3

old.libqual.org 13 Libraries English LibQUAL+™ Version 4000 Respondents QUAL QUAN QUAL QUAN QUAL PURPOSE DATA ANALYSIS PRODUCT/RESULT Describe library environment; build theory of library service quality from user perspective Test LibQUAL+™ instrument Refine theory of service quality Refine LibQUAL+™ instrument Test LibQUAL+™ instrument Refine theory Unstructured interviews at 8 ARL institutions Web-delivered survey Unstructured interviews at Health Sciences and the Smithsonian libraries to survey administrators Web-delivered survey Focus groups Content analysis: (cards & Atlas TI) Reliability/validity analyses: Cronbachs Alpha, factor analysis, SEM, descriptive statistics Content analysis Reliability/validity analyses including Cronbachs Alpha, factor analysis, SEM, descriptive statistics Content analysis Vignette Re-tooling Iterative Emergent Libraries English, Dutch, Swedish, German LibQUAL+™ Versions 160,000 anticipated respondents LibQUAL+ ® Project Case studies 1 Valid LibQUAL+™ protocol Scalable process Enhanced understanding of user-centered views of service quality in the library environment 2 Cultural perspective 3 Refined survey delivery process and theory of service quality 4 Refined LibQUAL+™ instrument 5 Local contextual understanding of LibQUAL+™ survey responses 6

old.libqual.org Dimensions items56 items25 items22 items Affect of Service Service Affect Library as Place Reliability Personal Control Information Control Provision of Physical Collections Self-Reliance Information Access Access to Information

old.libqual.org Survey Structure (Detail View)

old.libqual.org Interpreting Service Quality Data Three Interpretation Frameworks

old.libqual.org Benchmarking Against Peer Institutions --1,000,000 Users; 1,000 Institutions! NORMS! NORMS! NORMS! Interpretation Framework #1

old.libqual.org Score Norms Norm Conversion Tables facilitate the interpretation of observed scores using norms created for a large and representative sample. LibQUAL+™ norms have been created at both the individual and institutional level

old.libqual.org Benchmarking Against Self, Longitudinally “Nobody is more like me than me!” --Anonymous Interpretation Framework #2

old.libqual.org Interpreting Perceived Scores Against Minimally-Acceptable and Desired Service Levels (i.e., “Zones of Tolerance”) Interpretation Framework #3

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“22 Items and The Box….” Why the Box is so Important –About 40% of participants provide open- ended comments, and these are linked to demographics and quantitative data. –Users elaborate the details of their concerns. –Users feel the need to be constructive in their criticisms, and offer specific suggestions for action.

old.libqual.org “…and Five Ancillary Items” Either Zero or Five Ancillary items are selected to address local or consortial concerns –Items from the initial LibQUAL+ TM item pool. –Items written by previous consortial groups.

old.libqual.org Qualitative Grounding

old.libqual.org Premise for Mixed-Methods “The underlying premise of mixed-method inquiry is that each paradigm offers a meaningful and legitimate way of knowing and understanding” (p. 7). Note. Greene, J.C. and Caracelli, V. J. (Eds.). (1997). Advances in mixed-method valuation. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

old.libqual.org LibQUAL+  Process  SERVQUAL dimensions served as a priori theoretical starting point

old.libqual.org York University University of Arizona Arizona State University of Connecticut University of Houston University of Kansas  University of Minnesota  University of Pennsylvania  University of Washington  Smithsonian  Northwestern Medical 76 Interviews Conducted

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Dimensions of Library Service Quality

old.libqual.org “You put a search on a book and it’s just gone; it’s not reacquired. … There’s more of a problem of lost books, of books that are gone and nobody knows why and nobody’s doing anything about it.” Faculty member Reliability

old.libqual.org “I want to be treated with respect. I want you to be courteous, to look like you know what you are doing and enjoy what you are doing. … Don’t get into personal conversations when I am at the desk.” Faculty member Affect of Service

old.libqual.org “Over time my own library use has become increasingly electronic. So that the amount of time I actually spend in the library is getting smaller and the amount of time I spend at my desk on the web … is increasing.” Faculty member Ubiquity of Access

old.libqual.org “I think one of the things I love about academic life in the United States is that as a culture…, we tend to appreciate the extraordinary importance of libraries in the life of the mind.” Faculty member Comprehensive Collections

old.libqual.org “One of the cherished rituals is going up the steps and through the gorgeous doors of the library and heading up to the fifth floor to my study. … I have my books and I have six million volumes downstairs that are readily available to me in an open stack library.” Faculty member Library as Place

old.libqual.org “I guess you’d call them satisfiers. As long as they are not negatives, they won’t be much of a factor. If they are negatives, they are a big factor.” Faculty member Library as Place

old.libqual.org “The poorer your situation, the more you need the public spaces to work in. When I was an undergraduate, I spent most of my time in the library, just using it as a study space.” Faculty member Library as Place

old.libqual.org “…first of all, I would turn to the best search engines that are out there. That’s not a person so much as an entity. In this sense, librarians are search engines [ just ] with a different interface.” Faculty member Self-reliance

old.libqual.org “By habit, I usually try to be self-sufficient. And I’ve found that I am actually fairly proficient. I usually find what I’m looking for eventually. So I personally tend to ask a librarian only as a last resort.” Graduate student Self-reliance

old.libqual.org Dimensions of Library Service Quality

old.libqual.org Dimensions of Library Service Quality

old.libqual.org Core Items and Dimensions 22 core items (i.e., questions) Three dimensions: Affect of Service – 9 questions Information Control – 8 questions Library as Place – 5 questions

old.libqual.org Understanding a Radar Chart

old.libqual.org Key to Radar Charts

old.libqual.org Radar Chart Basics

old.libqual.org Understanding Thermometer Charts

old.libqual.org Dimension Summary

old.libqual.org Library Use Question (Unified)

old.libqual.org 2006 LibQUAL+ ® Highlights: Overall

old.libqual.org Qualitative Analysis: User Comments About one-half of users include comments on their surveys User Comments available on the LibQUAL+ ® Web site –Download comments in Excel or text file Skim the comments Conduct Atlas.ti analysis

old.libqual.org General Discussion and Q&A

old.libqual.org Summary and Closure

old.libqual.org LibQUAL+ ® Resources LibQUAL+ ® Web site: Publications: Events and Training: Gap Theory/Radar Graph Introduction: LibQUAL+ ® Procedures Manual:

old.libqual.org Contact LibQUAL+ ® Martha Kyrillidou Director, Statistics and Service Quality Programs MaShana Davis Technical Communications Liaison Kristina Justh Customer Relations Coordinator Gary Roebuck Technical Operations Manager Selena Lock, Research and Development, Cranfield University