Academic Library Websites Research Articles

The Researcher's Journey: Scholarly Navigation of an Academic Library Web Site

A qualitative study of the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library's Web site identified the ways in which students and faculty of the University of Montana used the site for research purposes. This study employed open-ended interview questions and observations to spontaneously capture a user's experience in researching topics in which they specialized. Four thematic recommendations emerged from nine study participants: increase the readability and consistency of the library's Web site, provide research guidance and ease of navigation, offer task-based services that maximize technology, and enable customization. The study led to Web site modifications and a formalized process by which the library will approach subsequent Web site design.

Rethinking the library for the international student community

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to report on a study conducted about international students’ use of academic libraries at three campuses: a medium‐sized private institution, a state university, and a small private school. In light of a growing number of international students on US campuses, the paper has questions about why they do or do not visit the library, their use of media, and their preferred information and communication resources. The study offers suggestions for ways to make the library more central to the students' experiences.Design/methodology/approachThe investigators collected data from a review of relevant literature, an analysis of academic library web sites that offer information for international students, a poll of listservs, surveys of students, and focus groups. The information was analyzed for themes or trends that could influence the provision of services.FindingsInternational students are an underserved population who use the library primarily as a place for study. Academic librarians can take simple, practical steps to encourage this group of students to use all library resources and services.Originality/valueThis study compiles information from published and electronic sources, as well as surveys and focus groups. Rather than make assumptions about library use by international students, this study obtains first‐hand information by asking the students themselves.

Continuous Improvement Methodology Applied to United Kingdom Academic Library Websites Via National Survey Results

This article analyzes the possibilities of applying Continuous Improvement principles to the management and maintenance of academic library websites. Current practice is mapped onto Continuous Improvement principles, with evidence distilled from a United Kingdom national survey of academic library web practitioners. The survey data informs a website organizational framework and operational model. The framework describes the setting within which library websites are managed, while the model focuses on library specific aspects to the management and development of their site.

Psychosemiotics and Libraries: Identifying Signways in Library Informational Guides, Games, and Tutorials

Tutorials and digital learning objects provide librarians a quick, concise mechanism for delivering information and training on a wide range of library topics. The semiotic theory promoted by Charles Sanders Peirce (Wiener, 1958) and Howard Smith (2005) contains implications for enhancing the effectiveness of library tutorials through the interrelationship of signs and literacies. This paper provides examples of instruction and information delivery through various signways in tutorials and gaming devices from academic library Web sites, as well as PRIMO and the Information Literacy Resource Bank. Foremost, librarians can use these examples to design their digital guides and tutorials to deliver information through multiple signways, thereby enhancing students’ meaning-making.

The Bulgarian university libraries in internet

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to evaluate the content and design of academic library web sites.Design/methodology/approachThe evaluation of the quality of the web sites is carried out on the basis of their function, design, originality, professionalism and efficiency. The quantitative analysis includes areas such as basic information about the library (address, contact information, opening hours, history); access to the electronic resources (OPAC, other electronic information); guides to internet resources (free access or subscribe databases); synchronous and asynchronous online reference services (e‐mail, web forms, chat sessions, audio and video conferencing). Based on these indices, an expert evaluation was carried out, as well as a survey of 42 university libraries, accessible from the web portal of the Ministry of Education and Science, Bulgaria.FindingsThe survey shows that Bulgarian academic library web sites do have a common core of content and many follow the design guidelines, but they still have not come up to expectations as high quality virtual expressions of academic libraries.Originality/valueThis paper presents a comparison of all university libraries in Bulgaria and lays down the prospects to them under the conditions of the so‐called “information age”.

Academic library websites in South Africa

This paper investigates the current state of the 23 academic library websites in South Africa. Using an adapted version of a codebook developed in the United States, it assesses and measures features in a quantitative manner in order to build a current snapshot of content and design. In particular it looks at the presence and treatment of online electronic resources and services, navigation and searching functionality, terminology and innovative features. It identifies some problems with the websites, as well as some examples of best practice, and compares sites in South Africa with global developments in academic web librarianship.

Adoption of Library 2.0 Functionalities by Academic Libraries and Users: A Knowledge Management Perspective

This study investigates the adoption of Library 2.0 functionalities by academic libraries and users through a knowledge management perspective. Based on randomly selected 230 academic library Web sites and 184 users, the authors found RSS and blogs are widely adopted by academic libraries while users widely utilized the bookmark function.

Strategic development of UK academic library websites: A survey of East Midlands university libraries

The strategic development of an academic library website is an ongoing process. The methods available to libraries in their efforts to understand the use of their website are also changing. A pilot survey of a group of UK academic libraries provided an insight into the approaches and methods adopted by this group. The study also revealed some of the issues these libraries faced in maintaining a website capable of satisfying the needs of its users. This group of libraries demonstrated that practical measures to develop their sites are being taken. However, in some cases a library’s ability to develop its site was constrained by institutional procedures and processes. Lessons learnt from this pilot will be implemented in a national survey of UK academic libraries.

Services for Graduate Students: A Review of Academic Library Web Sites

A library's Web site is well recognized as the gateway to the library for the vast majority of users. Choosing the most user-friendly Web architecture to reflect the many services libraries offer is a complex process, and librarians are still experimenting to find what works best for their users. As part of a redesign of the Oregon State University Libraries’ Web site, entry points for specific user groups were created. One of these user groups was graduate students. The purpose of this study was to explore the ways other academic libraries design their Web sites for particular user groups, specifically graduate students, in order to determine how the Oregon State University Libraries Web site compared to peer institutions. This study analyzed 112 Association of Research Libraries’ Web sites and 26 Oregon academic libraries’ Web sites to determine the availability of resources and services specifically promoted to graduate students. Since graduate students may view the library Web site through the lens of new student, researcher, or instructor, Web sites were also examined to see if sites were created with any or all of these roles in mind. Nearly a quarter of Association of Research Libraries' Web sites that were examined contained a link on the homepage for graduate students, and another 20 percent provided graduate-student information at a lower level in their site hierarchy. A majority of sites had events, subject guides, or course guides for graduate students. Information for graduate students was typically framed in the context of graduate students as researchers. Ideas and examples are given for ways to improve Web site design to better serve this user group. In order to provide improved services to these students, future studies will explore what graduate students need from academic libraries and the ways these students conduct themselves in their various roles of researchers, instructors, and new students.

A comparison of the research and publication patterns and output of academic librarians in eastern and southern Africa from 1990-2006:a preliminary study

This paper compares the research and publication patterns of academic librarians in eastern and southern Africa. The study confined its scope to publications produced between 1990 and 2006. Bibliometric techniques through content analysis were used as a research method. Two online databases, namely LISTA and WORLDCAT were used for publication searches. Names of academic librarians were retrieved from their respective academic library websites and used as keywords for retrieving data from the two online databases. A total of 866 academic librarians, i.e. 755 from southern Africa and 111 from eastern Africa, were identified and their research publication records analysed. The results indicate that in terms of publications per librarian there was no significant difference between southern Africa and eastern Africa; South Africa was the most productive country in terms of publications; the University of Botswana Library was the most prolific library; Muswazi from the University of Witwatersrand and Pienaar from the University of Pretoria were the most productive academic librarians; academic librarians in eastern Africa preferred publishing in foreign journals while those from southern Africa published more in domestic journals led by South African Journal of Libraries and Information Science; the publication output of the two regions was inconsistent (up-down trend) during this period; the main subject area of librarians in both regions was Information Technology; most academic librarians from both regions preferred publishing individually; and the most published type of document in both regions was journal articles.

Testing an Academic Library Website for Usability with Faculty and Graduate Students

Objectives - This usability study was developed to observe faculty and graduate students’ reactions to a recent redesign of the University of Kansas (KU) Libraries’ website. The redesign included new navigational features, introduction of a federated search tool, a quick search box on the front page, and research subject pages. The study also provided the opportunity to observe the practices of faculty and graduate students in locating and retrieving information on the Libraries’ website.
 
 Methods - Ten participants (five faculty and five graduate students) representing diverse disciplines were solicited for the study. Participants were required to access the Libraries’ website to answer a series of questions regarding new and updated features of the website. Observational analysis using Morae™ software was conducted and interviews with each participant provided details of their opinions on how these new features would influence their research and teaching activities. 
 
 Results - Most of the participants either did not notice or ignored the major website changes. Links to and locations of commonly used resources (e.g. catalogue; databases; e-journals) had been changed minimally, and the faculty and graduate student participants gravitated to those familiar features to complete tasks. Prior to the study, participants had not accessed the new discovery tools; however, once previewed, responses to the tools’ utility were generally favourable. After using the federated search tool on a familiar topic, several participants noted that, when directed to databases they had not previously considered, they were able to locate citations they had missed in the past. Observers noted pitfalls in navigating the site such as inconsistent underscoring of links, ambiguous terminology, and unclear icons meant to expand subject heading lists. Unexpected searching behaviours were observed, including inconsistent and lack of conceptual understanding in searching for e-journal content.
 
 Conclusions - This study provides evidence regarding the usability of a library website with a population already familiar with library resources. It demonstrated that faculty and graduate students are not interested in experimenting with new discovery tools but are amenable to their potential value to undergraduate students. The recent trend toward minimizing content and links on websites satisfies this population, one which is already comfortable with the basic attributes of a library’s website.

Business Library Web Sites Revisited: An Updated Review of the Organization and Content of Academic Business Library Web Sites

This article updates the findings from a study by Hal Kirkwood in 2000 of the organization and content of academic business library Web sites. The authors examined 75 sites, focusing on five general aspects of the sites: organization, terminology, instructional elements, integration of resources across formats, and annotations. Results of the study show that business library Websites have dramatically improved in the 7 years since the original study.

Library Website Management and Maintenance: A Study of the Uk 1994 Group

The Academic Library website is a key access point for information and services. This paper reports on a study of the 1994 Group Library web presence, with a view to establishing their practices in terms of site management and maintenance. It provides evidence of the commitment this Group makes towards ensuring their sites meet the needs of their users. The study encompassed a survey to gather data on current management and maintenance practices, and direct observation of the home pages of these Libraries to establish layout conventions and details of changes made over time. The influence of University policy in respect of the look-and-feel of the Library website and decision making around it are revealed. The implementation of new social technologies across this Group also became evident. We also show that a number of Libraries in the Group are not currently evaluating the use of their site, and that changes to some home pages were seldom made during the study period. Due to the limitations inherent in focusing on a limited number of Library websites, a larger sample size would make the findings of this research more applicable to a wider range of University Libraries.

Usability analysis for redesign of a Caribbean academic library web site: a case study

PurposeThis paper seeks to present a usability evaluation of the web site of the Main Library of the St Augustine Campus of the University of the West Indies (UWI) to get users and site visitors to identify the major strengths and weaknesses of the site and to incorporate the results and participant feedback into a redesign that reflects users' intuitions rather than those of the site developers and librarians.Design/methodology/approachA combination of experimental and respondent research strategies was used to evaluate usability. These included survey questionnaires, focus groups, formal usability testing and card sort. In addition, both usability heuristics and ISO guidelines were used to assess effectiveness, learnability, usefulness and user satisfaction. Respondent strategies used a sample size of 529 participants for the self‐completion questionnaires and 16 participants in the focus group sessions. Experimental strategies combined observation of 21 individual participants and three groups of participants in the usability tests. In the card sort protocol nine individual participants and three groups of participants were observed.FindingsThe findings identified challenges in the site's information architecture (labelling and organisation) and in the interface design.Research limitations/implicationsMore ethnographic approaches are needed to elicit distinctive Caribbean user behaviours.Practical implicationsThe study concludes that similar usability evaluations should be undertaken at the other UWI campus library web sites and that usability training should be incorporated into the culture of the library organisation. Critical next steps for the web designer are also suggested.Originality/valueThe paper presents issues of organisational change and the impact of technology on the relationship between systems and user services librarians.

Marketing the academic library on the web

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to describe the marketing initiatives taken by academic libraries to promote collection and services to their clientele. It specifically aims to examine academic library web sites for marketing approach, promotional and public relations activities.Design/methodology/approachThe study relies heavily on web site exploration and interviews with library managers. A total of 22 library web sites were examined based on pre‐determined criteria developed from the extant literature and initial web site investigation. The paper also draws upon the authors' personal experiences and observations. Interviews were used to investigate university library manager's level of awareness of the library web site as a marketing tool and how they perceived this to be used to the library's advantage.FindingsIt is found that academic libraries are lacking in their promotional activities. Library web sites are not fully utilized as a marketing tool and an enabler to reach out to the community for promotion of services and collections.Research limitations/implicationsThe study is limited to Malaysian university libraries, therefore generalization to others is to be cautioned but there are important lessons to be learnt.Practical implicationsThis paper will be helpful to libraries planning to implement a marketing strategic plan to improve its outreach to users and enhance the users' image of the library.Originality/valueA study such as this is new in Malaysia and reveals several marketing strategies that may be useful to other academic libraries.

The Academic Library Meets Web 2.0: Applications and Implications

Visits to 81 academic library websites in the New York State reveal that 42% of them adopted one or more Web 2.0 tools such as blogs while implementation of those tools in individual libraries varies greatly. We also propose a conceptual model of Academic Library 2.0 in this report.

Web Analytics: A Picture of the Academic Library Web Site User

This article describes the usefulness of Web analytics for understanding the users of an academic library Web site. Using a case study, the analysis describes how Web analytics can answer questions about Web site user behavior, including when visitors come, the duration of the visit, how they get there, the technology they use, and the most popular content using an open-source Web log analysis tool. The author offers suggestions for future research into user motivations to complement the findings possible using Web analytics.

Accessibility Trends among Academic Library and Library School Web Sites in the USA and Canada

This paper focuses on the accessibility of North American library and library school Web sites for all users, including those with disabilities. Web accessibility data collected in 2006 are compared to those of 2000 and 2002. The findings of this follow-up study continue to give cause for concern: Despite improvements since 2002, library and library school Web sites still tend to contain many barriers. A low correlation between the 2002 and 2006 data point to much up-and-down movement in Web accessibility. Contrary to findings derived from the early data sets, the comparison of the 2002 and 2006 data shows that redesign had a positive impact on accessibility. The paper concludes with the warning that advocates of accessible Web sites cannot yet relax: despite the overall positive trend, with so much up-and-down movement in Web accessibility occurring, today's leaders may turn into tomorrow's laggards—unless special vigilance and efforts keep this from happening.

How Well Do Academic Library Web Sites Address the Needs of Database Users with Visual Disabilities?

Many libraries striving to provide accessible resources to people with visual disabilities stop at the door of the omnipresent database. Given the extent of database use today, the article questions whether we shortchange our visually impaired users if we do not examine the accessibility of these electronic resources and encourage database vendors to improve their products. Libraries have moved at varying speeds in servicing the needs of the visually impaired, both in providing helpful web site service pages and in providing the extra measure of reference assistance necessary for database access and use. This article examines a sampling of academic library web sites to determine how libraries might improve service and access for this specially challenged population.

Design Insights and Inspiration from the Tate: What Museum Web Sites Can Offer Us

There are many similarities between museums and academic libraries as public service institutions. This article is an examination of museum Web site practices and concepts that might also be transferable to academic library Web sites. It explores the digital manifestations of design and information presentation, user engagement, interactivity, and learning, as well as sponsorship. The research is accomplished through a literature review, numerous Web site examinations, and a case study. The results of the study offer some possible ways for academic libraries to improve and leverage their Web sites.