Characteristics of Articles Requested Through OCLC Interlibrary Loan

Abstract

As the number of periodical titles in electronic editions increase, and as libraries are faced with new restrictions for sharing articles from site-licensed periodical literature, copyright issues surface. Understanding the characteristics of articles users now request can facilitate discussion. This paper presents the attributes of articles sought through OCLC Interlibrary Loan. Nearly two-thirds of the requested articles were published within five years. Over 80% of the periodical source titles were sought five or fewer times a year.