Article
Where Do We Go From Here?: Informing Academic Library Staffing through Reference Transaction Analysis
College & Research Libraries
(2013)
Abstract
This study conducted a systematic sample of every 70th reference transaction from over a three-year period and analyzed 1,852 reference transactions asked at an academic library system's fifteen f2f service points as well as via telephone, e-mail, and chat. Findings indicate two-thirds of the total questions asked were location-based questions about the library. Also, 80.2 percent of location-based questions and 77.2 percent of subject-based questions were asked f2f. Analysis of location-based reference questions informs effective deployment of librarians and staff at library service points as well as the development of mobile library apps.
Keywords
- Reference transaction,
- Academic libraries,
- Staffing,
- Mobile library apps
Disciplines
Publication Date
September, 2013
Citation Information
Bradley Wade Bishop and Jennifer A. Bartlett. "Where Do We Go From Here?: Informing Academic Library Staffing through Reference Transaction Analysis" College & Research Libraries Vol. 74 Iss. 5 (2013) Available at: http://works.bepress.com/jenbartlett/8/