To Check in or Not to Check in : A Survey of Librarians on the Relevance and Usefulness of Serials Check-in the 21st Century Library

Hello, fellow listservers.  I sent this message out a week or so ago, but I am following up just in case anyone was on spring break or otherwise missed the message.  I really appreciate your input, as it is essential for my research.

I am the Periodicals/Reference Librarian at Pittsburg State University in Pittsburg, KS.  I am conducting a research survey on the relevance and usefulness of print serials check-in in the 21st century library. Whereas once the emphasis in libraries was on ownership of print materials, the paradigm has been increasingly switching towards access to materials. The duties of the librarian previously responsible for serials check-in more likely
now include maintenance of an electronic resource management system in some form.  Many patrons gravitate towards materials that can be downloaded or printed from anywhere they have internet access rather than copied at the library.

With all of this emphasis on electronic resources, we must ask ourselves whether print serials check-in is necessary.

Pending acceptance, the research will be published in a future issue of Against the Grain.  

This research has been approved by the Institutional Review Board at my institution.  There are no known risks with doing this survey.  All survey answers are anonymous unless you wish to leave your email address.  

To participate, click the link to the survey below.  It will only take a few minutes to answer.  To avoid skewed results, I am asking that only one person from each individual library participate.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/PCJZMSS

Thank you again.

Sincerely,

Barbara M. Pope, MALS
Periodicals/Reference Librarian
Leonard H. Axe Library
Pittsburg State University
1701 S. Broadway
Pittsburg KS  66762
620-235-4884
bpope@pittstate.edu