Book Review: Library Collection Assessment through Statistical Sampling

Abstract

Library Collection Assessment through Statistical Sampling. By Brian J. Baird. Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow, 2004. 103p. $29.95 softbound (ISBN 0-8108-5038-9). Based on the title of this book, Library Collection Assessment through Statistical Sampling, one might expect it to give more detailed coverage of collection development issues and a more robust discussion on statistical sampling than is presented. Nevertheless, this book does provide an overview of the basic concepts behind survey-based assessment, focusing on preservation issues and the evaluation of print collections' physical conditions. Baird explains the purpose of assessment projects and describes why assessment tools should be customized for one's particular institution and purpose. He describes collection assessment as a set of methods to evaluate the effectiveness and consequences of past decisions to inform future decisions, and he provides several examples illustrating this point throughout the book. Chapter two, Designing the Survey Instrument, and chapter three, Conducting the Survey, focus on how to design a survey as an tool for assessment. An extensive series of questions developed to elicit information addressing preservation of print materials covers everything from paper fold tests to circulation data. Baird provides useful tips throughout these chapters and emphasizes the importance of maintaining consistency in how data are collected and scored. For example, Baird stresses that survey methodology needs to be well-documented so that follow-up surveys maintain the guidelines used previously. The author provides a limited list of resources for more examples of survey instruments at the end of these chapters as well as within the bibliography at the end of the book; Ross Harvey provides many more examples in Preservation in Libraries (Bowker Saur, 1993). One drawback of this book is the lack of clear definitions for some terms specific to book conservation and preservation. While an index is provided, detailed illustrations supplemented by a glossary of terms would enhance the reader's understanding of some of the methods described. Brian J. Baird, for example, provides a glossary as well as illustrations in his Preservation Strategies for Small Academic and Public Libraries (Scarecrow, 2003). While a section of chapter three describes appropriate ways to conduct surveys for assessing the condition of print materials, only a brief mention is made of how to determine the appropriate sample size for a statistical evaluation. Baird highlights the importance of maintaining consistency in sampling methodology, but he does not adequately describe how to conduct valid random sampling. As a result, the theme of statistical sampling is not fully developed, and other sources will have to be consulted for a more pointed summary on statistical sampling methods. Baird does offer some recommendations for further reading within the notes section at the end of chapter three, but this subject might have been more fully developed within this work. Managing and Your Collection (ALA, 2002), by Carol A. Doll and Pamela Petrick Barrin, provides a more thorough overview of different sampling techniques and step-by-step instructions on some basic statistical calculations. In chapter four, Analyzing the Data, the author goes into some detail on how to set up a survey form in a database program, using Microsoft Access as the example. The screen shots presented to illustrate the process of setting up tables and forms do not render well in the text, and more detail would be required for a reader inexperienced with using database software to design a survey instrument--this book does not go into any real depth with regard to setting up survey forms in database programming software. …