FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
LibQUAL+TMSurvey Overview
- What is the LibQUAL+™ survey?
- How will my choice to respond to the survey benefit The University of Scranton?
- How and when will users have a chance to respond?
- How are responses kept confidential?
- How was LibQUAL+™ developed?
- What kinds of questions are asked?
- What other libraries are participating in LibQUAL+™?
- How can I get more information about LibQUAL+™?
Responding to the Survey
- How long will the survey take?
- Can I skip questions?
- Are there any special incentives for participating?
- Do I need to use a specific Web browser for the survey?
- Is the survey exclusively web-based, or can I complete a paper version?
- Is there a version of the survey compatible with text-to-speech web browsers?
- Why isn't the survey at a “scranton.edu” email address?
- If I deleted the email can I still take the survey?
- What if I cannot open the URL from my email?
- Can I respond to the LibQUAL+™ if I am not part of the random sample?
- Why do some questions seem to be repeated?
- Why did I get a reminder when I had already completed the survey?
Results
- How will I find out about the survey results?
- What information is shared with other institutions?
- What if I still have questions?
- What is the
LibQUAL+ survey?
The Weinberg Memorial Library wants to know how well it is meeting its mission to provide information, services and programs that meet users' current and anticipated educational, research and public service needs. LibQUAL+™ measures library users’ expectations and perceptions of the quality of the library as a place, its collections and staff. LibQUAL+™ asks how users rate the minimum level of service, the level of service they expect and the service they received. LibQUAL+™ was developed by the Association of Research Libraries (ARL). The information we gather through this survey will help us understand users' perceptions and to develop a plan for addressing areas that need improvement.
- How will
my choice to respond to the survey benefit The University of Scranton?
The University of Scranton will have information about how well we meet our users’ expectations compared to peer institutions. These libraries share information on their plans to improve their library programs. This information will be helpful to us as we develop our own plan to respond to our users’ feedback.
- How and when
will users have an opportunity to respond?
The questionnaire is straightforward and involves no deception or coercion. Potential respondents may elect not to proceed with the survey after reading the guarantees of confidentiality and privacy.
All faculty and a random sample of students' email addresses will be compiled to represent various majors and classes. On March 1, 2009 this sample group will receive an email message from Charles Kratz, Dean of the Library, inviting them to choose to respond to the LibQUAL+™ survey. Because we cannot tell whether or not anyone has responded, reminders will be sent to all emails to encourage a sufficient response so that we can have a good sampling of data to analyze.
Responses are stored on secure servers located in the Texas A&M University Library with only aggregated mean scores reported back to us. - How are responses
kept confidential?
The LibQUAL+ approach to confidentiality is guided by the ethical standards of the American Psychological Association (see http://www.apa.org/ethics/code.html, section 5). Demographic information is gathered to determine if the survey truly represents the faculty and students; this is not traceable back to individual responses. A Respondent may volunteer to enter his/her email address to enter a drawing for a prize; these are separated from the survey responses. Email addresses will be discarded after the drawing.
- How was LibQUAL+™
developed?
LibQUAL+™ evolved from the SERVQUAL tool for assessing service quality in the private sector grounded in the "Gap Theory of Service Quality” developed by Leonard L. Berry (Distinguished Professor, Texas A&M University), A. Parasuraman, and Valarie A. Zeithaml. After using a modified SERVQUAL for several years, Texas A&M University and other libraries saw the need for an adapted tool that focused on libraries. From 1999, ARL, representing the largest research libraries in North America, partnered with Texas A&M University Libraries to develop, test, and refine LibQUAL+™. This effort was supported in part by a three-year grant from the U.S. Department of Education’s Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary Education (FIPSE).
- What kinds
of questions are asked?
All libraries use the same 22 core multiple choice questions and demographic questions. The Library also selects 5 additional questions that focus on a specific aspect of service. There is also an opportunity for open ended comments.
- How can I get more information about LibQUAL+?
For more information, see the LibQUAL+™ homepage at http://www.libqual.org/.
- What other libraries are participating in LibQUAL+™?
A list of the libraries that are participating in LibQUAL+™ in 2009 is available at: http://www.libqual.org/Information/Participants/index.cfm
- How long does
the survey take?
The average time is 10 minutes.
- Can I skip
questions that don't apply to me?
To be counted in the aggregates scores, all 22 core questions need to be answered. Instead of skipping a question, select NA (not applicable).
- Will
there be any special incentives for participating?
There is no compensation per se for completing the survey. Respondents may choose to enter their emails in a drawing for a prize. The drawing will take place at the close of the survey and the winners will be posted on the Library News page http://academic.scranton.edu/department/wml/news.html.
- Do I
need to use a specific web browser for the survey?
LibQUAL+™ does not rely on Java or cookies. Any browser should work so long as it is not too old.
- Is
the survey exclusively web-based, or can I complete a paper version?
Respondents who are unable to complete an online questionnaire may obtain a paper copy of the survey by emailing libqual@scranton.edu. Return the survey to Bonnie Strohl, Weinberg Memorial Library, The University of Scranton, Scranton, PA 18510.
- Is the survey
compatible with text-to-speech web browsers?
Yes, the survey is compatible with the JAWS screen reader software.
- Why isn't
the survey at a “scanton.edu” email address?
The survey is administered through the Association of Research Libraries and Texas A & M University, and the survey and data are housed on secure Texas A & M servers.
- If I deleted
the email can I still take the survey?
Yes. You can get another copy of the web link. Contact Bonnie Strohl, LibQUAL+™ Project Coordinator, strohlb1@scranton.edu to have the link emailed to you. Your responses to the survey will still be confidential since the survey is separated from emails.
- What
if I cannot open the URL from my email?
If you have trouble opening the URL from within your email message, you can copy the URL and paste it into your Web browser. If you still cannot access the survey, contact Bonnie Strohl, LibQUAL+™ Project Coordinator, strohlb1@scranton.edu
- Can
I respond to LibQUAL+™ if I am not part of the random sample?
The Weinberg Memorial Library is always interested in feedback from our users. To be valid as a representational sample of the University community of faculty and students, only those returns from the random sample will be forwarded to LibQUAL+™ for multi-institutional analysis and comparison. If you are not part of the present random sample, but would like to complete a survey, you may contact Bonnie Strohl, LibQUAL+™ Project Coordinator, strohlb1@scranton.edu for a print version. The University Library welcomes completed surveys from other interested users, and will review these returns along with those gathered from the random sample to help us best serve our users.
- Why do
some questions see to be repeated?
The survey examines a variety of dimensions of library services, each represented by a number of questions. Repetition or redundancy in questions allows the survey designers to analyze the validity of each service quality dimension through statistical methods.
- Why
did I get a reminder when I had already completed the survey?
When submitted, survey responses and identifying information are immediately separated, so we have no way of knowing who has already responded, therefore reminders are sent to everyone.
- How
will I find out about the survey results?
We will receive summary for our library and be able to make comparisons among all participating academic institutions. This will help us see best practices and determine how we might devise a plan for improvement. We will also be able to acknowledge where we are doing a good job of meeting our user’s expectations. As we did for the 2006 administration of LibQUAL+™.We will post results on the Library’s web pages in the form of the data itself and our analysis. We will also post our strategy for responding to areas in which we need to develop our library program. There will also be articles in the Library’s Information Update Newsletter.
- What
information is shared with other institutions?
Only summary statistics are shared with other institutions on a password-protected web site. Comments to open-ended questions will be posted on the Library's LibQUAL+™. No rsponse is linked to any individual.
What if I still have questions?
If this FAQ has not answered your questions or concerns, please email Bonnie Strohl strohlb1@scranton.edu.
If you are among those selected for the random sample, we hope that you will choose to respond to the survey. We value your input and are eager to hear from you!
Thank you.