Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

User Preferences And Library Space At Whitworth University Library, Paul Ojennus, Kathy A. Watts

Library Faculty Scholarship

The design of library space is undergoing significant changes in layout and focus. Knowing that understanding a specific library’s user needs is essential to effective planning, many academic institutions have undertaken user studies to establish user needs prior to embarking on redesign, or update of library physical space. Librarians at Whitworth University, a small liberal arts college, conducted an online questionnaire of currently enrolled students to appraise current library use and determine potential areas for improvement based on user needs. The survey revealed some unique characteristics of this user group: use of technology for study, and resource discovery was balanced …