Assessing Your Librarys ILL Performance Amy Burger A survey is a system for collecting information from or about people to describe, compare, or explain their knowledge, attitudes, and behavior (Fink, 2003, p. 1) Image courtesy of digitalart 5 basic steps 1 Set objective(s) 2 Create survey 3 Administer survey 4 Analyze results 5 Report results Set Objective(s) What do you want to know? Why are you conducting this survey? Define the sample: Who has this information? Image courtesy of digitalart Create Survey: Choose a Format Image courtesy of renjith krishnan Tips for Success Consider anonymity Address the survey to the respondent Include cover letter Set a deadline Be mindful of length Avoid busy times Follow up Offer an incentive Image courtesy of renjith krishnan Create Survey: Write Questions Avoid: Jargon, slang, abbreviations Double-barrelled questions Leading questions Unbalanced responses Embrace: Comments Image courtesy of renjith krishnan NGCSU Survey Content I received my Interlibrary Loan item promptly I would be willing to pay for faster delivery of Interlibrary Loan items The library staff was helpful in assisting me with my Interlibrary Loan item The online Interlibrary Loan ordering process is easy to use Was your most recent Interlibrary Loan article delivered electronically? (yes or no) If yes only: Was the quality of the electronic copy satisfactory? Please rate your most recent Interlibrary Loan experience Administer Survey Image courtesy of Grant Cochrane Analyze Data Describe results: Descriptive statistics Correlations Assess Significance: What does the data tell you? Image courtesy of digitalart Report Results Who benefits from knowing? What are the most important findings? How will you present the data? Image courtesy of jscreationzs Further Reading Fink, A. (2003). The survey handbook (2 nd ed.). Thousand Oaks: Sage. Fowler, F.J. (1995). Improving survey questions. Thousand Oaks: Sage. Rea, L.M. (1997). Designing and conducting survey research. San Francisco: Jossey- Bass. Thank you!