Organization for collection development in medium-sized academic libraries

A survey of medium-sized academic libraries was conducted to ascertain their organizational structure for collection development, and its effect on the activities performed. Two survey instruments were developed, one for chief collection development officers, and one for librarians with collection development responsibilities. The study revealed that librarians defer collection development to other responsibilities and perform few of the activities they feel are desirable for collection development. Librarians in separate collection development departments were less likely to defer collection development to other activities, and performed more collection development activities than their colleagues in other types of libraries. It was recommended that a library of this size locate librarians with primary assignments in collection development in departments established for that purpose.     

Information systems and collection development in public libraries

Collection development in public libraries is performed by one or more librarians who make use of a variety of selection tools. Computers and information systems are becoming increasingly important tools for selectors because they offer alternatives for assessing user needs, for gathering information about published materials, and for obtaining materials quickly. This paper describes a case study of twelve public library systems, the tasks they perform, and the sources they use in collection development. The selectors reported satisfaction with their jobs, increasing reliance upon information systems and electronic resources, and the need for system improvements to support selection for local collections in a publishing climate responsive to popular taste.     

A dual approach to assessing collection development and acquisitions for academic libraries

With a growing interest in evaluating the effectiveness of libraries, it is increasingly important that libraries find efficient ways to evaluate the collection development and acquisitions process. This requires a dual approach to explore both what was collected and actually used and also what was not collected which should have been. This study presents a way that both of these areas can be studied for smaller academic libraries and suggests ways these results can be interpreted and used to reallocate scarce budgetary resources or provide evidence for more funds for further developing the collection.     

Price of materials and collection development in larger public libraries

Questionnaires were sent to public library systems in the 200 largest cities in the United States to learn more about the role of price in the selection of materials. A 34 percent response rate yielded 67 usable responses. When ranked on a scale from 1 to 7, with 7 being least important, list price had a median ranking of 5, while likely community demand was ranked 1. When faced with price increases, these collection developers tended to select fewer duplicates, fewer periodical and annual publications, and fewer nonbook items. About 26 percent of those responding had adopted an informal or formal price ceiling for selections. About 66 percent of these librarians were likely be more price conscious when selecting nonbook items. Price ceilings for categories and formats are discussed.     

LibStatCAT: a library statistical collection assessment tool for individual libraries & cooperative collection development

The following presentation to the Acquisitions Institute at Timberline Lodge focuses on LibStatCAT, a prototype collection assessment tool under development at Portland State University. Our presentation explores the current uses of LibStatCAT, as well as future developments of LibStatCAT as a regional library data farm for comprehensive assessment of library collections and services for individual libraries and cooperative collection development. We share a variety of other collection assessment tools in use at Portland State University Library.     

Islamic literature: Problems in collection development

This article highlights two aspects of the development of collections of Islamic literature: the conceptual problem, that is, the nature of an Islamic collection, and practical problems of selection and acquisition. A definition of Islamic literature is provided, then the question is posed: why is the Islamic collection to be developed? The main components of Islamic literature are discussed. Problems of collection development are examined in terms of what to select, how to acquire it, and how to process the material. Solutions to some of these problems and recommended procedures, based on long experience in research libraries, are offered.     

Contemporary issues in collection development programmes of Nigerian university libraries

The article focuses on contemporary problems affecting the collection development programmes of university libraries in Nigeria. The global economic recession of the 1980's is identified as the significant variable for the success and failure of these programmes the world over; hence the treatment of the subject in both a global and national context. At the national level, special examination is made of the financial problems facing Nigerian university libraries and their impact on collection growth and development. While the article agrees that improved budgetary provisions could eradicate the current constraints, it suggests that library co-operative networking should be adopted as a cost-effective option for future collection development in university libraries in Nigeria.     

高校图书馆红色文献搜集工作探析

文章在解读红色文献定义的基础上,对红色文献的搜集范围、载体形态等问题进行了探讨,认为高校搜集红色文献不仅是满足高校科研与教育的需要,还是保存文化遗产以及政治宣传教育的需要,进而提出搜集红色文献的具体思路与方法.     

The literature of women and the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS): implications for collection development and information retrieval

The purpose of the study was to identify the pattern of publication about women and AIDS in scientific journals. Bradford zones were identified in each of six databases. The study determined that journal scatter for this subset of AIDS literature differed from the scatter in the general literature; further, the information indexed in the six electronic sources demonstrated little overlap. Consequently, key journal and newsletter titles identified by this study should form the core of any collection focusing on women and AIDS. The assurance of quality patient care management demands that librarians consult multiple resources for information retrieval that can assist health care providers, patients, and caregivers to enhance quality of life as well as to provide optimum care.     

试论中医药高校图书馆特色馆藏建设

首先对特色馆藏与核心馆藏进行定义和诠释,指出目前高校图书馆建设特色馆藏存在的误区,并结合天津中医药大学图书馆阐述特色馆藏建设的四个核心方面,提出并分析了相应的建设策略。     

Highlights of the collection development librarians of academic libraries discussion group

The Collection Development Discussion Group, moderated by Eric Carpenter (Oberlin College), focused on two primary topics: “The Role of Faculty in Collection Development” and “Performance Evaluation.”     

Academic libraries and university presses

In recent years university presses have undergone some significant changes, such as expansion of their scope to include materials that may have appeal beyond the scholarly market. This article investigates, through the use of a survey of university libraries, the acquisition of university press products by libraries. In general, recent years have been changes in the relationship between university presses and libraries that have resulted in fewer items being purchased by the libraries.     

Managing collection development in university libraries that utilize librarians with dual-responsibility assignments

Heavy work loads, lack of administrative support, and innate difficulties in the work of collection building, lead many collection development librarians who have part-time or dual-responsibility assignments to feel that something is inherently wrong with this way of organizing and staffing collection development. While there are many difficulties associated with part-time assignments, they can be corrected by developing effective organizations for collection development, selecting librarians who are suited to this kind of work, and improving the management of collection development. This paper examines these problems and discusses specific actions that will reduce or eliminate them.