Interlibrary Transfer of Bookstock at the University of Canterbury Library: A Comparative Survey of Awareness, Use and Impact of a Library Service

Abstract

This research explores awareness, use and perception of impact of a new library service among campus-based students and staff in a New Zealand academic library. The inter-library book delivery service transfers bookstock requested by staff and students between 6 campus libraries. This study seeks to determine the extent to which students and staff are aware of the service , have used it, whether they were satisfied with the service, and what impact the service may have had on their goals. A survey in the form of an electronic questionnaire was used to collect quantitative and qualitative data from respondents and there were 149 responses to this. Participants were self-selected on a non-random basis and so it was not possible to generalise the results of the survey. Key findings of the research were that there do not appear to be groups that are more aware of the service than others. Respondents report similar patterns of use of the library, use of the service and purpose of use of the service according to their role and discipline. High levels of satisfaction with the service, as well as clear indication that the service meets user requirements, were reported and impact of the service was perceived as beneficial to the majority of users. Suggestions to improve the service were focussed on advertising, improving the speed of the service, and communicating with users of the service.