1. Building a Bridge: From Assessment to Development
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Philip Orr
Distance Learning Librarian
University of Southern Indiana

2. Building a Bridge: From Assessment to Development
This session will provide details of an assessment project conducted at the University of Southern Indiana’s David L. Rice Library in which a selection of the library’s print and electronic journal holdings was compared with the top journal publications in several Google Scholar Metrics categories. The data collected gave the library a sense of how well it measured up to a particular standard, an idea of where it could expand collections to better meet its users’ information needs, and information with which to market its strengths to the university community. Attendees will come away with ways to apply the simple assessment technique to their own library setting.

3. Building a Bridge: From Assessment to Development
Institutional Profile:
Public University
Founded in 1965
Evansville, Indiana
Enrollment: 10,701

4. Building a Bridge: From Assessment to Development
Library Profile:
Employees: 10 Librarians, 15 Staff
Print Book Volumes: 252,182
E-Book Volumes: 215,058
Print Journals: 76 Titles
Non-aggregated Electronic Journals: 102
Databases: Approx. 100

5. Building a Bridge: From Assessment to Development
Project Background:
Interest in impact of scholarship
Google Scholar Metrics – “Provides an easy way for authors to quickly guage the visibility and influence of recent articles in scholarly publications. Scholar Metrics summarize recent citations to many publications to help authors as they consider where to publish their new research.” (Google Scholar Metrics: Overview, 2016)

6. Building a Bridge: From Assessment to Development
Project Purpose:
It would:
Give the library staff a sense of how well the library is providing the most highly cited journals in particular sub-disciplines within the social sciences,
Provide information to library administrators concerning its journal holdings which could be communicated to faculty and department chairs,
Show possible deficiencies in the holdings which could be addressed by collection development efforts, and
Provide a list of highly-cited journals available through Rice Library which could be added to research guides as recommended journals.

7. Building a Bridge: From Assessment to Development
Journals Studied:
Top 20 journals in:
30 Social Science Sub-disciplines
4 Humanities Sub-disciplines
3 Health & Medical Sciences Sub-disciplines
Top 20 Social Science Publications
Top 100 Publications

8. Building a Bridge: From Assessment to Development
Additional Metrics:
International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
Google Scholar h-Index
Google Scholar h5-index
Google Scholar h5-median
Availability in Rice Library
2014/2015 Impact Factor, if available
Journal Citation Report Rank, if known
SCImago Rank
Number of Requests via Interlibrary Loan ( )

9. Building a Bridge: From Assessment to Development
Data Collection:
The data for all of the metrics with the exception of interlibrary loan statistics was recorded by five student workers: Leah Defore, Mikayla Hanks, Andrew James, Jacob Knecht, Joshua Knecht, and Joyce Witherspoon.
The interlibrary loan statistics were gathered and recorded by Kirsten Williams, Rice Library’s Library Associate in Interlibrary Loan.
The data were recorded in a multiple sheet spreadsheet with each sheet devoted to one subject sub-discipline. Over 800 unique journal titles were listed throughout the spreadsheet.

10. Building a Bridge: From Assessment to Development
Data Coding:
Complete (C) – Complete run of volumes available
Incomplete (I) – Missing some volumes, including earliest volumes
Incomplete/Embargoed (I/E) – Missing some volumes, including either earliest and/or most recent volumes or issues
Embargoed (E) – Complete except for most recent volumes or issues
Not Available (N) – Not available in Rice Library

11. Building a Bridge: From Assessment to Development
Two Summaries:
SUMMARY2
Number of journal titles in each sub-discipline based on the five availability categories
Percentage of journal titles that were complete (C), available to any extent (C, I, I/E, E), and not available (N)
Listing of complete (C) and not available (N) titles
SUMMARY1
Number of titles in each sub-discipline in each availability category (C, I, I/E, E, N)
Percentage of titles based on availability
Total number of ILL requests for available (C, I, I/E, E) and not available (N) titles during five previous fiscal years (FY )

12. Building a Bridge: From Assessment to Development
Two Summaries:
SUMMARY2
African Studies & History
No. of Titles
Complete (C) 5
Incomplete (I) 4
Incomplete/Embargoed (I/E) 3
Embargoed (E) 2
Not Available (N) 6
% of Titles
25.0%
Available (C, I, I/E, E)
70.0%
30.0%
Complete Titles
No. of ILLs FY11-FY15
Africa
Journal of Asian and African Studies
Africa Today
Africa Spectrum
African Journal of Political Science and International Relations
Not Available Titles
Journal of African Economies
The Journal of Modern African Studies
Journal of Eastern African Studies
Azania: Archaeological Research in Africa
South African Journal of International Affairs
Politikon

13. Building a Bridge: From Assessment to Development
Two Summaries:
SUMMARY1

14. Building a Bridge: From Assessment to Development
Two Lists:
Journal Sub-Discipline Categories with the Highest % Complete (C) Titles:
Psychology – 60%
International Law – 50%
Diplomacy & International Relations – 45%
Educational Psychology & Counseling – 45%
Social Psychology – 45%
Sociology – 40%
Criminology, Criminal Law & Policing – 35%
Academic & Psychological Testing – 30%
Canadian Studies & History – 30%
Family Studies – 30%
Feminism & Women’s Studies – 30%
History – 30%

15. Building a Bridge: From Assessment to Development
Two Lists:
Journal Sub-Discipline Categories with the Highest % Available (C, I, I/E, E) Titles:
Diplomacy & International Relations – 100%
Law – 100%
Chinese Studies & History – 95%
Ethics – 95%
Family Studies – 95%
Gender Studies – 95%
History – 95%
Sociology – 95%
Criminology, Criminal Law & Policing – 90%
Educational Psychology & Counseling – 90%
Ethnic and Cultural Studies – 90%
Psychology – 90%
Academic & Psychological Testing – 85%
Feminism & Women’s Studies – 85%
Middle Eastern & Islamic Studies – 85%

16. Building a Bridge: From Assessment to Development
Implications:
Visible strengths and
weakness of current collection
Possible needs for future collection
development
Limitations:
Google Scholar snapshot
Other considerations in making
collection development decisions