UW-Madison Libraries to administer LibQUAL+ survey

By Katie Gilbert
Library Communications

A 10-minute survey of more than 2,500 students, faculty and staff on the UW-Madison campus is being conducted by the libraries. The survey is designed to provide data on perceptions of the quality of library services. Staff also expect the survey, called LibQUAL+, to help identify potential improvements.

Results will provide statistics on perceptions of service by measuring the gaps between the users’ desired level of service, the perceived level of service they receive, and the minimal expectations users have. In addition to the General Library System, the survey is also being conducted by the UW-Madison Law Library, the engineering library and several four-year UW system libraries.

Librarians will collect and interpret user feedback and will use the data to compare the UW-Madison Libraries to other libraries throughout North America, according to LibQUAL+ working group chair Mary Folster, Business Library, who gave a presentation on the survey at a public services forum Feb. 24.

The survey will be distributed in late March and will close in mid-April. Results will be available in late April and reviewed throughout May. At the American Library Association’s meeting June 24-30 in Orlando, Fla., LibQUAL+ participants will discuss national survey results, obtain feedback from other participants and determine the next steps to take.

The survey will be administered through a link provided in an e-mail. Prior to the survey implementation, UW-Madison Libraries Director Ken Frazier sent an e-mail to a randomly selected group of students, faculty and staff explaining the purpose of the survey and inviting them to participate.

The survey consists of questions related to three dimensions: information control, feelings and attitudes about library services and the library as a place. There are additional questions related to public service outcomes, information literacy, general satisfaction, and a request for open-ended comments. Participants will be asked basic demographic questions, such as age, library use, and discipline of study. After taking the survey, participants will have the option of submitting their e-mail address to enter a prize drawing.

Survey results will be compiled into a notebook that will include user survey comments and statistics to allow comparisons with other state and national libraries. Raw survey data will also be available for future analysis by the library staff. Follow-up and future planning may include focus groups and additional surveys.

The LibQUAL survey stems from another survey instrument, SERVQUAL, initially designed by marketing graduate students in the 1980s to measure service quality in businesses. In 2000 Texas A&M spearheaded a pilot project, LibQUAL, in which 13 libraries used a modified version of SERVQUAL to assess service quality. The number of participating institutions has increased dramatically with more than 300 libraries using the survey in 2003, which is now provided through the Association of Research Libraries.

The LibQUAL+ working group includes: Susan Barribeau, Collection Development; Sue Center, Law Library; Folster; David Luke, College Library; Elisabeth Owens, Library Communications; and Rachel Watters, Wendt Library. Karl Debus-López and Tanner Wray, both of whom recently left the UW-Madison Libraries, were also original members of the LibQUAL+ working group.

For more information, visit http://www.libqual.org or e-mail the LibQUAL+ working group at lib-qual@library.wisc.edu. To take the practice survey, visit http://www.libqual.org/Preview/index.cfm?ID=952183.

 

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