Reports results of a survey of library patrons which investigated: (1) reasons patrons choose the public library for popular nonprint materials; (2) whether patrons using the library for nonprint materials tend to use print materials during their visits; and (3) how use of nonprint materials affects patrons' perceptions of their libraries. (MES)

This study examines possibility of ranking journals in physics by means of bibliometric regression models that estimate usefulness as it is reported by 167 physicists in United States and Canada. Development of four models, patterns of deviation from models, and validity and application are discussed. Twenty-six references are cited. (EJS)

Ten separate 1890 Land-Grant Universities and Tuskegee Institute cooperatively conducted a 10-state southern regional research project, "The Isolation of Factors Related to Patterns and Levels of Living in the Rural South," which elicited household and demographic data on 2,580 rural families. The 10 contiguous southeastern states which…

This paper looks at older adults' use of books and the public library, synthesizes and analyzes work completed in this area, and offers recommendations for future studies. A review was performed of the U.S., Canadian, and British literature over the past 20 years on the use of library materials by older adults. The literature review is divided…

Arguing that user studies and performance measures provide two major approaches to evaluating the effectiveness of library services, this occasional paper presents an overview of the literature, examines the goals and approaches in user studies and performance measures, and provides suggestions for increasing the potential benefits of both by…

Discusses characteristics of typical online public access catalogs (OPACs) and examines patron use via printouts of transaction logs for three separate systems. Desirable features of OPACs (mnemonic search commands, boolean operators, forgiveness or automatic truncation, browsing a subject heading index, suggestive prompts) and need for…

Users of a search/document delivery service in a large engineering firm were surveyed to determine the amount and relevancy of information received, time saved by using the service, dollar value of information received, number of employees using or seeing the information, and any improvement in the firm's competitive position. (EM)

Develops a framework for analyzing the value of information, information products, and services from the viewpoint of information use, and analyzes the practical values of different types of information to study the problems involved in assessing their value-in-use and exchange value. Existing research studies are analyzed using this approach.…

Results of field study measuring end-user perceptions of sources of information (computer-based, libraries, individuals) suggest that accessibility is multidimensional concept encompassing physical access to source, interface with source, ability to physically retrieve potentially relevant information; and perceptions of accessibility are…

A result of the Association of Research Libraries' (ARL) November 1975 Services Survey, this kit presents statistical studies developed from management information sources such as circulation records or generated expressly for a particular study. While academic and research libraries maintain statistical records measuring library efficiency or…

Reports results of a survey of online catalog users in an academic library in Saudi Arabia that examined search patterns, levels of satisfaction, and user attitudes toward the online catalog. The special problems encountered when searching in a foreign language are discussed, and systems improvements are suggested. (CLB)

This review of the research on the use of card catalogs and online catalogs highlights research methodologies and significant findings. Discussion of the results focuses on user needs and satisfaction, and the need to separate bibliographic practices that are universally sound from those that are an adaptation to the medium. (CLB)

In-house surveys of patrons conducted in 20 public libraries in a county library system revealed no meaningful differences among the samples in reasons given for selecting the library to visit or in their uses of the library, although meaningful differences were found in their evaluations of the libraries' facilities. (Author/EM)

This review of the literature on the effect of information overload on users' information-seeking behavior focuses on librarians' opinions about the number of references that constitute too many, and users' preferences for maximum numbers of references from online searches, online public access catalog postings, and manual indexes. (35 references)…

Presents results of study evaluating reactions of 20 university students and faculty to first-time online database searching on the Bibliographic Retrieval Service's menu-driven BRS/After Dark. Background information on participants, search analysis and problems, end user education needs, and the role of the intermediary are discussed. Four…