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2012 Survey

About LibQual+™ 2012

LibQUAL+™ is a web based survey used by libraries to learn how users feel about customer service, delivery of information, and the library building and environment. Based on responses to the 2009 LibQual+™ survey, all computers in the Library were replaced, group study rooms were added, and the amount of 24 hour space was increased. We want to know what you would like the Library to do next. LibQual+™ is a standardized survey designed by the Association of Research Libraries so that we can also compare our user satisfaction to that of peer institutions. Since this is the third time we are using LibQual+™, the Library is also able to see where users’ opinions of services, collection and facility has improved or needs attention.

In an effort to make the survey more user friendly, this year the Library is using LibQual+Lite. LibQual+™ has 22 core questions. In the Lite version, all 22 questions are asked but each respondent is only asked 10 of the 22. Studies were conducted by the Association of Research Libraries to make sure that the data is still valid. The total number of questions, excluding demographic information in the Lite version is 19; the full LibQual+™ is 33 questions. It takes about 6 minutes to complete.

The Weinberg Memorial Library administered LibQual+Lite™ for the whole month of October. In 2012 we asked all students, staff, and faculty for their feedback. In 2009, the sample was smaller and there were not sufficient competed surveys to enable us to get a good picture of how and what to improve.

The Survey

LibQual+™ includes 22 core and 5 locally designed questions in three dimensions:

  1. affect of service questions focus on Library employees. Do they instill confidence in users, give individual attention, consistently behave courteously, show readiness to respond to users, have requisite knowledge, deal with users in a caring fashion, understand users' needs, willingly help and dependably handle users' service problems?
  2. library as a place focuses on the building itself. Does it inspire study and learning, provide a quiet pace for individual activities, a comfortable and inviting location, a getaway for study, learning and research, and/or a community space for group learning and group study?
  3. information control focuses on print resources, web content, and equipment. Does the Library make electronic resources accessible from home or office, does it enable the user to independently locate information, does it have the print and electronic sources users need, does it have modern equipment and easy-to-use access tools for users to independently find things?
  4. local questions, does the library contribute to the intellectual atmosphere of the campus, have the necessary non-print materials, reflect Jesuit ideals of social justice and respect for all persons and provide 24/7 chat assistance and access to archival materials.

There are also questions on information literacy, general satisfaction, user demographics and an open ended question that gives users the opportunity to provide feedback on any aspect that they chose.

For each question, a user gives three scores: the minimum level he or she would find acceptable, the desired level of service and the perceived service performance. The resulting data is provided to the library as gap, radar and bar chart scores. Gap scores indicate a "zone of tolerance" measure of the degree between the desired and minimum levels of service. Service superiority is reflected then perceived service exceeds desired service. The radar and bar charts display the data in colors that visually highlight how well users' perceive the library in the three dimensions.

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