Taking a Fresh Look: Reviewing and Classifying Reference Statistics for Data-Driven Decision Making

Sarah LeMire, Lorelei Rutledge, Amy Brunvand

Abstract


This article describes the results of an extensive review of reference transactions from multiple service points at the University of Utah’s J. Willard Marriott Library. The review enabled us to better understand the types of questions asked at our service points and resulted in a new set of codes for categorizing reference transactions that focus on recording the kinds of expertise needed to answer each question. We describe the differences between our model and other scales for collecting reference questions. Our method for reviewing reference transactions and developing new codes may be useful to other libraries interested in updating how they collect reference statistics.


Full Text:

HTML PDF

References


Michelene T. H. Chi, Robert Glaser, and Marshall J. Farr, The Nature of Expertise (Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1988).

Eric Novotny, SPEC Kit 268: Reference Service Statistics and Assessment (Washington, DC: Association of Research Libraries, 2002).

Ellie Buckley, Kornelia Tancheva, and Xin Li, “Systematic Quantitative and Qualitative Reference Transaction Assessment: An Approach for Service Improvements,” in Proceedings of the 2008 Library Assessment Conference: Building Effective, Sustainable, Practical Assessment, edited Steve Hiller et al. (Seattle, WA: Association of Research Libraries, 2008), 375–85.

Amy Brunvand, “Ask the Expert: Using Expertise Domains for Library Service Assessment.,” in Proceedings of the 2010 Library Assessment Conference: Building Effective, Sustainable, Practical Assessment, edited by Steve Hiller et al. (Baltimore, MD: Association of Research Libraries, 2010), 571–79.

Gabrielle K. W. Wong, “Information Commons Help Desk Transactions Study,” Journal of Academic Librarianship 36, no.3 (2010): 235–41.

Bella Karr Gerlich and Edward Whatley, “Using the READ Scale for Staffing Strategies: The Georgia College and State University Experience,” Library Leadership & Management 23, no. 1 (2009): 26.

Debra G. Warner, “A New Classification for Reference Statistics,” Reference & User Services Quarterly 41 no. 1 (Fall 2001): 51–55.

William A Katz, Introduction to Reference Work. Vol. 1, Basic Information Services, 8th ed. (Boston: McGraw Hill, 2002).

Susan M. Ryan, “Reference Transactions Analysis: The Cost-Effectiveness of Staffing a Traditional Academic Reference Desk,” Journal of Academic Librarianship 34, no. 5 (2008): 389–99.

Debbi Dinkins and Susan M. Ryan, “Measuring Referrals: The Use of Paraprofessionals at the Reference Desk,” Journal of Academic Librarianship 36 no. 4 (2010): 279–86.

Bradley Wade Bishop and Jennifer A. Bartlett, “Where Do We Go from Here? Informing Academic Library Staffing through Reference Transaction Analysis,” College & Research Libraries 74 no. 5 (2013): 494.

Alison Graber et al., “Evaluating Reference Data Accuracy: A Mixed Methods Study,” Reference Services Review 41, no. 2 (2013): 298–312.

Sarah M. Philips, “The Search for Accuracy in Reference Desk Statistics,” Community & Junior College Libraries 12, no. 3 (2004): 49–60.

Matthew L. Saxton and John V. Richardson Jr., Understanding Reference Transactions: Transforming an Art into a Science (San Diego, CA: Academic Press, 2002).

Thomas Childers, Cynthia Lopata, and Brian Stafford, “Measuring the Difficulty of Reference Questions,” RQ 31, no. 2 (Winter 1991): 237–43.




DOI: https://doi.org/10.5860/rusq.55n3.230

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


ALA Privacy Policy

© 2025 RUSA