LibQUAL+™ Survey Overview

1) What is LibQUAL+™?

The LibQUAL+™ survey is a project sponsored by the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) in collaboration with the University of Wisconsin-Madison Libraries. The project's goal is to define and measure library service quality across institutions and to create useful quality-assessment tools for libraries.

The LibQUAL+™ project is currently using an instrument designed to measure how library users perceive the quality of service they receive. This tool measures library users' perceptions of their libraries' service quality and identifies gaps between minimal, desired, and perceived levels of service.

2) What does the survey measure?

The survey instrument addresses three service quality dimensions that have been found to be valid in previous assessment of library services: affect of service, library as place, and Information control. Each question has three parts that ask respondents to indicate 1) the minimum service level they will accept, 2) the desired service level they expect, and 3) the perceived level of service currently provided. This design will permit analysis of gaps between expectations, perception, and minimum acceptance level of service.

3) How many libraries are involved in LibQUAL+™?

The spring 2006 survey effort involves more than 200 libraries around the world.

4.) How will the survey benefit the UW-Madison Library community?

As individual libraries receive information about areas needing improvement, this project will allow libraries to compare their service quality with other peer institutions, to develop benchmarks, and to identify best practices across institutions. By using the LibQUAL+™ instrument and initiating action based on the results of this survey, the UW-Madison Libraries can be more responsive to users' needs and provide services that are better aligned to users' expectations.

5. Are the survey responses confidential?

Yes, absolutely. The LibQUAL+™ approach to confidentiality is guided by the ethical standards of the American Psychological Association. Survey data are stored on a secure server at Texas A & M University, which is located behind a secure firewall. Responses are automatically separated from identifying information, including email addresses registered for the drawing.

6. Why isn't the survey at a University of Wisconsin-Madison Web 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.

Completing the Survey

1) How was I chosen to participate in this survey?

We randomly selected a representative number of e-mail addresses of UW-Madison faculty, staff, and students. We then sent e-mail messages to that group encouraging each recipient to complete the online survey.

2) What kinds of questions are on the survey?

There are three types of questions in the survey:

• Rating your minimum, desired, and perceived service levels on various topics (a rating of 1 = low and 9 = high).

• An open-ended question (text box) where you can write in comments in your own words. Full or partial comments (maintaining full confidentiality) may be used in survey follow-up activities, including reports and promotional materials.

• Demographic data such as age, discipline, and position at the university will enable us to analyze the results by data element.

3) How long will this survey take to complete?

The survey should take no more than 10-15 minutes to complete.

4) Can I skip questions?

Please do not skip any questions! Incomplete surveys are discarded. If you feel a question does not apply to you, please choose NA (not applicable). Surveys whose core questions are not completely filled out are not counted in the aggregate scores.

5) What discipline category should I choose for my major or area of research?

Because this is a multi-institution survey, discipline categories have been standardized for ease of comparison. This will assist with future benchmarking activities. If you are in an interdisciplinary field or in doubt as to what discipline you should select from the drop-down list on the survey, select *Undecided* or *Other*. Staff not engaged in discipline-based research may choose *Other*.

6) What are the prizes?

There will be no compensation for completing the survey, though an incentive prize will be offered as thanks to participants. At the end of the Web-based survey, respondents may elect to submit their e-mail address, which will enter them in a drawing for prizes including an iPod nano or $25 gift certificates from the University Bookstore.

7) Why does the survey seem to repeat the same questions?

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.

8) Why are reminders sent to those who have already completed the survey?

All respondents will receive reminders due to the project's built-in mechanisms for security and confidentiality. Once a return is submitted to the project server, the contents are disassociated from the respondent's email address. This provides maximum security, but precludes any differentiation of respondents/non-respondents among the sample.

9) What if I cannot open the survey link URL from my email message?

If you cannot open the URL from within your email message by clicking, try copying the URL text and pasting it into your Web browser's address box.

10) What Web browsers are supported for the survey?

The LibQUAL+™ Survey has been developed to work in many settings, including public libraries and community colleges. It does not rely on erratically supported browser features such as Java or cookies. Any browser should work so long as it is not too old.

11) What if I receive an error message stating that a variable is undefined?

This is a timeout problem. If the survey is left incomplete for more than an hour, it will timeout. Start over and complete the survey without taking a break.

12) Can I participate without using the online Web form?

Yes, if you wish. Contact the LibQUAL team at libqual@library.wisc.edu to get a paper copy of the survey form. Data from the paper forms will be manually entered into the library's web survey database.

Results

1. What happens to the data collected in the survey?

Survey data are transmitted directly from the central LibQUAL+™ server to a secure database. The data are then analyzed and reports generated for the individual libraries. These reports will provide UW-Madison Libraries with detailed information on how our users perceive the quality of their library service.

2. What information is share with other institutions?

Results are shared with other participating institutions on a password-protected Web site.

3. What do the survey results look like?

Survey results will include aggregate summaries, demographics by library, item summaries, dimension summaries, and dimensions measured for survey implementation.

4. Where and when will results be posted?

A summary of results will be compiled and posted on the UW-Madison Libraries Web site and announced via emails and other media formats.

Contacts

1) Where can I find more information about LibQUAL+™?

The official home page of LibQUAL+™ is located at http://www.libqual.org. Click on the "About" link to find information about the origins of LibQUAL+™, the people involved, how the project is funded, and a bibliography. If you are having questions about the survey please contact the UW-Madison Libraries LibQUAL team at libqual@library.wisc.edu.

2) Who can I talk to about the survey?

Contact the LibQUAL+ team: libqual@library.wisc.edu