Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Comparison Of Personas Between Two Academic Libraries, Holt Zaugg, Donna Harp Ziegenfuss

Faculty Publications

Purpose: A persona describes a group of library patrons as a single person to better identify and describe user patterns and needs. Identifying personas in academic libraries can assist in library planning by focusing on patrons. Initially personas were thought to be unique to each library; additional insights led the researchers to rethink this assertion. This article seeks to determine if personas, developed in one library, are unique or more universal than previously thought.

Design/methodology/approach: In this study, 903 surveys were completed across two institutions asking library patrons to identify use patterns within each library. Mean score responses were analyzed …

Begin Again, Holt Zaugg

Faculty Publications

One of the hallmarks of any assessment or evaluation is that it serves as an agent for improved change. However, not all changes are positive. In some cases, improvements in one area of library service delivery have negative effects in other areas of service delivery. In addition to this, no assessment is ever perfectly planned nor conducted. Each of these factors contributes to the need for library assessments to be periodically repeated. This chapter begins with a description of an assessment planning guide and journal to chronicle how the assessment was planned and unfolded. From here it discusses factors of …

Popular With Whom?: Usage Demographics Of Popular Science Nonfiction At An Academic Library, Megan Frost, Rebecca Walton

Faculty Publications

There is a large body of nonfiction written for a general audience which is infrequently promoted in popular reading collections at academic libraries. The aim of this research is to look at the usage of nonfiction science literature at a large university library in comparison to the science collection as a whole. This information can help librarians to not only determine how best to prioritize the collection of nonfiction science literature, but it can also be used to provide insight into how popular nonfiction science books can be most effectively promoted to library patrons.

Separating The Wheat From The Chaff: Weeding The Collection Is A Collaborative Affair, Gregory M. Nelson, Meg F. Frost, Betsy S. Hopkins, Mark W. Jackson, Jed Johnston, David Pixton, Michael C. Goates

Faculty Publications

A library construction project led our library’s Science & Engineering Department to take on a massive evaluation of the entire science print collection and reduce the collection footprint by at least 36% within a 12 month period. In order to improve access, reduce the footprint, strengthen the robustness of our collection, and complete the project in an effective and timely manner, a methodology of how to choose, select, evaluate, and move the entire collection of over 360,000 items had to be established and vetted. A plan was developed between the library’s Science & Engineering Department and teams from collection development, …

Virtual Reality: A Survey Of Use At An Academic Library, Megan Frost, Michael C. Goates, Sarah Cheng

Faculty Publications

We conducted a survey to inform the expansion of our current Virtual Reality (VR) service in the library. We were primarily interested in user experience, demographics, academic interests in VR, and methods of discovery.

Hot Type: Digitizing Utah’S Historical Newspapers, Jeremy Myntti, Tina Kirkham

Faculty Publications

1.History of Utah Digital Newspapers (UDN) Program

2.Tour of UDN

3.How can YOU help build UDN?

4.Future of UDN

5.UDN for Family History

Small Data Management: Master Data For Better Collection Analysis, Jared L. Howland

Faculty Publications

While librarians often speak about data management for external data, little has been said about managing internal data in a systematic manner. Information about the need, along with tools and methodologies, for starting a small-scale data management program for internal collection analysis and assessment purposes was discussed.

Originally presented at the 2018 Electronic Resources & Libraries Conference held in Austin, TX.

If We Built It, Would They Come? Creating Instruction Videos With Promotion In Mind, Leticia Camacho

Faculty Publications

This article reports on a video project done in an academic library where faculty were included in the production and marketing of the library instruction videos. The videos allowed the librarian to provide a shorter presentation and spend most of her time working individually with each student. The results showed that 97% of the students watched the videos and were able to benefit from the content. The implementation of the videos was a success due to the collaboration of the professors teaching the three courses and the buy-in of the course coordinator; both factors were essential in the success of …

Poster Competitions: Teaching Effective Scholarly Communication, Michael C. Goates, Gregory M. Nelson, Megan Frost, Jed Johnston

Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Scholarly communication is at the heart of science. Poster sessions are a time honored method of presenting research results in a visually appealing, concise format. However, designing scientific posters that are both informative and easy to navigate can be a daunting task, even for the most experienced researcher. What role does the academic library play to help students learn the artful skill of conveying complex scientific results in a clear and succinct poster presentation? METHODS: Librarians from Brigham Young University sponsored a research poster competition for undergraduate students in the life sciences. As part of the competition, poster judges …

Western Name Authority File: Linked People And Corporate Bodies, Jeremy Myntti, Anna Neatrour

Faculty Publications

Presentation at the ALA ALCTS/LITA Linked Library Data Interest Group.

Clinging To The Past: Circulation Policies In Academic Libraries In The United States, Duane Wilson, Brian Roberts

Faculty Publications

This study reports on a national survey of circulation policies in academic libraries in the United States. Circulation policies are similar at most responding libraries and are typically restrictive, though some differences exist based on library type. Associates granting institutions tend to have less generous circulation periods, and PhD granting institutions tend to have more generous renewal policies. Despite dramatic changes in print use, libraries have typically not adjusted their circulation policies to reflect the current environment. Libraries should evaluate their circulation policies and seek for ways to provide more generous policies to better serve the needs of their patrons.

The Economics Of Entrepreneurship, Leticia Camacho

Faculty Publications

Parker (Univ. of Western Ontario, Canada) analyzes the connection between economics and entrepreneurship. Specifically, he shows how academic studies such as economics, policy, and social issues relate to entrepreneurship. The book is organized in four parts: selection (theories, empirical methods, determinants, and evidence), finance (debt, venture capital, angel finance, crowd-funding, wealth, etc.), performance (growth, job creation, innovation, survival, etc.), and public policy (policies, regulation, taxation, etc.). At the end of each, a concluding section provides a summary, a list of opportunities for future research, an extensive reference section, and an index.

Integrating A Creativity, Innovation, And Design Studio Within An Academic Library, Holt Zaugg, Melissa C. Warr

Faculty Publications

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe the efforts to set up a creativity, innovation, and design (CID) studio within an academic library. This paper will describe the reasons for creating a CID studio, assessment of the pilot study, and next steps.

Design/methodology/approach – The assessment used surveys, interviews, focus groups and observations of students and faculty to determine how well the CID fits into the library.

Findings – Initial findings indicate that the CID studio is a good fit within the library space as learning activities in it support collaboration, discovery, and integration of library services. …