Library Service Quality Survey LibQUAL+ 2009

How well is Kimbel Library meeting the needs of students, faculty and staff?

Thank you for taking the survey this year.

The Winners Are

(top of page)

To claim your prize go to the Room 114 of the Library between 8:30AM and 4:00PM

(Please bring your student I.D.)

LibQUAL+ FAQ

(top of page)

What is LibQUAL+? 

LibQUAL+ is an internationally used survey tool developed by the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) which gauges library users' opinions of the resources and services provided.
The goals in doing the LibQUAL+ survey are to enable the Academic Libraries to:

• Foster a culture of excellence in providing library service
• Help the library better understand user perceptions of the quality of library services
• Collect and interpret library user feedback over time
• Provide the library with comparable assessment information from peer institutions
• Respond positively to user needs and expectations
• Identify best practices in library services

LibQUAL+ uses "gap analysis" to identify the differences between users' minimal acceptable service, perceived service level and desired service level. It identifies the users' "Zones of tolerance" and gives us data about where our services fall in relation to these zones.

Who will receive the survey?

All Coastal Carolina students, faculty and staff are invited to participate in the survey. The greater the participation rate, the higher the validity of the results. If over 2,500 students participate, our response rate would be one of the highest for the survey.

How will students and faculty receive this survey?

E-mail announcements will be sent to all students, faculty and staff through their CCU em-mail accounts. To take the survey, click on the link above.

What will we do with this data?

LibQUAL+ will give us an opportunity to identify which services need improvement, as we begin planning for the Information Commons addition to the library. The data will also be used to support requests for resources and to better plan how we use our current space and resources.

How will LibQUAL+ benefit library users?

After receiving the results of our survey, we will work to improve services our users have identified.
We will also compare our service quality with that of peer institutions in an effort to develop benchmarks and understanding of best practices across institutions.
The ultimate goal is to improve services and surpass user expectations to better help users reach their learning and research objectives.

How long with the survey take?

The survey will take about 10-15 minutes to complete.

Are responses confidential?

Yes, the completed surveys are transmitted directly to a server located at Rackspace, in the Dallas/Ft. Worth, Texas area. The responses are automatically separated from any identifying information, including the e-mail addresses of students who register for the prize drawing.

What kind of questions are asked in the survey?

The instrument consists of 35 questions that address four service quality dimensions that have been found to be valid in previous assessments of library services: service affect, library as place, personal control, and information access. Each question has three parts that ask respondents to indicate the minimum service level they will accept, the desired service level they expect, and the perceived level of service currently provided. This design will permit analysis of gaps between expectations, perception, and minimum acceptance level of service.

Why are some of the survey questions redundant?

Redundancy in questions allows the survey designers to analyze the validity of each service quality dimension through statistical methods. Over time, questions that are not as effective as others in measuring the specific dimensions of service quality will be discarded.

Why are reminders sent to respondents who have already completed the survey?

Reminders are sent because research indicates that the single highest predictor of response rates in web-based surveys is the number of contacts made, including reminders.
Due to security and confidentiality features, everyone in the Coastal community will receive reminders, even those who have already responded. When submitted, survey responses and indentifying information are immediately disaggregated, so we have no way of knowing who has already responded. Reminders, therefore, are distributed to everyone.

What happens to the results?

The responses are collected and compiled by the Association of Research Libraries, in collaboration with researchers at Texas A&M University. The data is analyzed and reports are generated presenting information on the gaps between users' desired, perceived, and minimally acceptable levels of service. We will receive the Kimbel Library results in December 2009. We will also receive access to the results of other participating libraries, which will allow us to compare our results with peer institutions. The LibQUAL+ 2009 survey results will be one of several assessment strategies used by the Kimbel Library in planning services and resources to best meet student and faculty needs.

Who is participating in the LibQUAL+ 2009 survey project?

A total of 180 academic and research libraries are participating in the 2009 LibQUAL+ survey. The participants include university, college, community college libraries, here and abroad. A complete list of the 2009 participants is available at http://www.libqual.org/Information/Participants/index.cfm

The KL LibQUAL+ survey team is

(top of page)

Dr. Barbara Burd

Margaret Fain

Jennifer Hughes

Michael Lackey