Paper Abstract


Paper Abstract

"Journal Use Study Today" JUST DO IT!
Sarah D. Murray, Jana J. Slay, and Diane N. Williams
University of South Alabama, Biomedical Library, Mobile, AL

Purpose: This paper will explain the method utilized to report our journal use statistics, in a meaningful and useful way, now that we collect print and electronic formats.

Setting: The Biomedical Library of the University of South Alabama is an academic health sciences library serving the Colleges of Medicine, Nursing, and Allied Health Professions. Journal use statistics are employed to aid in purchasing decisions for the serials collection. The introduction of electronic journals into the collection lead to the reassessment of our method of gathering and using the journal use statistics.

Brief Description: Electronic journal use is counted at the article level while traditional print journal use is counted at volume or issue level, therefore statistics cannot simply be combined to give an estimate of the use. Because of the differences in counting methods, electronic journals will normally have a far greater count than they should when compared to the print journals. Another consideration is that different publishers and aggregators may report electronic use statistics in different ways.

Conclusion: While technology is changing the actual statistics we gather, our goal remains the same. The library needs to discover what titles our patrons use so that we may continue to make them accessible to our users.