A survey of user perception and satisfaction with reference services in University Libraries of Punjab.
Rehman, Shafiq Ur
Introduction
Despite the processing and propagation of library resources, a key
trait of a university library is the services based around personal
interaction between users and the library staff. Libraries should make
sure that these services show proper levels of customer care and that
the information given to the users is useful and at the right
level(Loughborough University Library, 2005). Retting (1993) has pointed
out that the distinguishing features of reference include a staff
designated to provide the service; a collection of reference works
accessible to the public in an area set aside for the provision of the
service; adequate guides to the library's resources; and a high
degree of interaction between the staff and the clientele.
Although in today's world the term reference service
encompasses more activities than mentioned by Retting. In this context
Mitchell (2008) has rightly said that today's reference librarians
are actively engaged with the many emerging new processes by which
learning occurs. Further, reference librarians in academic and research
libraries are actively engaged with the many emerging new processes not
only by which learning occurs, but also by which research is done. To be
successful, today's reference librarians need to not only
understand but also embrace current and emerging technologies affecting
reference functions and the information needs of library users. Indeed,
wherever or however we provide reference service, we are all cognizant
of the major changes in libraries--changes that stem from countless
cultural, economic, legal and social developments that have impacted,
and continue to impact, our work. Similarly King (2005) and Hiller
(2001) have mentioned that the information needs and expectations are
continuously changing in the rapidly changing information scenario.
Libraries need to re-orient their collections, services, and facilities
to keep pace with these advancements. User feedback is considered as a
more reliable factor in measuring the utility and effectiveness of any
library. This is the reason that library user surveys have become
widespread in academic libraries during the past twenty years. Surveys
have often been used as a tool to assess service quality and user
satisfaction. By making user surveys a regular part of the
library's functions, librarians can provide a comparative
'snapshot' of usage in various temporal contexts.
Background of the Study
The provision of reference services has been, and still is, at the
heart of all libraries in every sector be it academic, public or
special. Until the internet changed forever the way we access
information, it was the exclusive preserve of the "Reference
librarian" to provide information directly to the client (Weddell,
2008). Evaluation of library reference services began in earnest in the
late 1960s and early 1970s when budgetary situations required
justification of the existence of all services in the library. A close
examination of a reference service provides library administration and
involved librarians with a clear understanding of how well the service
is meeting its intended goals, objectives, and outcomes, how well the
service is helping users fulfill their information needs, and whether
the expended resources are producing the desired results (Pomerantz, Luo
& McClure, 2006). Evaluation of reference services from different
point of view serves different purposes. For example Saxton &
Richardson (2002), has pointed out that most reference evaluation
studies employ either "the query-oriented approach primarily
concerned with testing the accuracy of answers to reference" or
"the obtrusive user-oriented approach primarily concerned with
testing levels of user satisfaction with the service". Similarly
Whitlatch (2000) has mentioned four primary features of reference
services for evaluation such as "economic feature", e.g. cost
effectiveness, productivity measure; "service process", e.g.
measures of satisfaction with the service provided;
"resources", e.g. measures of quantity and quality of
materials, staffing, equipment, and facilities supporting the service;
and "service outcomes or products", e.g. measures related to
the quality of answers or information delivered. Grossa & Saxton
(2002) reported a secondary analysis of a user survey administered in 13
public libraries and examined user ratings of reference services by
transaction type. Transaction type is defined dichotomously as
self-generated (users transacting questions they have determined for
themselves) or imposed (agent users in the library seeking information
on behalf of someone else). Users with self-generated questions rated
library services lower than did users with imposed questions. Both
groups rated the library experience lower than their reference desk
experience, and imposed queries were responsible for proportionately
higher ''first time'' use of the reference desk. No
significant difference existed between groups for ratings of finding
useful information in the library, finding everything wanted in the
library visit, frequency of library use, or levels of attained formal
education. There were significant differences found for ratings of the
reference librarian's service behaviors, user satisfaction with
reference service, and frequency of reference desk use.
User satisfaction and optimization of resources have become
important areas for libraries to maintain awareness of. Many libraries
esp. the university libraries are focusing on evaluation of the
users' needs and their satisfaction with their services. User
surveys can provide useful perceptions of service quality in libraries.
For example Texas A&M University libraries conducted focus group
studies in 2001 with graduate and undergraduate studies in order to
gather specific information related to their satisfaction with and
confidence in the assistance provided at library service points. The
sessions revealed that users were generally pleased with the assistance
provided them by professional staff at reference desks and that they
found librarians to be usually patient and helpful although there were
some elements of dissatisfaction identified by the respondents. The
findings of such studies are being used to improve library directional
tools and to improve staff training for public service staff (Crowley
& Gilreath, 2002).
Similarly, Loughborough University Library decided the annual user
survey for 2004/ 2005 academic year. The purpose of the survey was to
gather a broad understanding of how users perceive the service they
receive at the various desks. The focus specifically was on perceptions
of the customer care they receive and the level of information provided
(Loughborough University Library, 2005). Loorits & Dubjeva (1997)
have reported the satisfaction of the users with reference services at
Tartu University Library. The results of a user survey carried out in
the framework of a Baltic-Swedish joint project at the library in spring
1995, and the statistical data gathered at the same time were analyzed
by them. According to them the same autumn another survey was organized
to gather statistical data to follow the dynamics of reference services.
Similarly Novotny & Rimland (2007) have discussed a service quality
study conducted in the Pennsylvania State University Libraries. The
Wisconsin-Ohio Reference Evaluation Program survey was selected as a
valid, standardized instrument. They presented their results,
highlighting the impact on reference training. According to them a
second survey a year later demonstrated that focusing on behavioral
aspects of reference can improve service quality ratings. Providing
quality reference service is not easy, and any approach needs constant
evaluation. Close attention to user needs can guide the reference staff
about future changes. For example, Fitzpatrick, Moore & Lang (2008)
have predicted the future directions of reference service based on the
findings of a study such as programmatic information literacy
instruction, integration of library resources into the curriculum, and
librarians spending more time in academic buildings outside of the
library in high-activity locations. Reference service is most effective
and efficient when the librarian has a presence at the point of need. In
the changing scenario many reference departments have reduced librarian
time at the Reference desk. Instead, they are creatively seeking
users' multiple points of need online via instant messenger, chat,
phone, email, and face-to-face outside the library in classrooms, labs,
and cafes. According to Dent (2000) the Interactive Reference Assistance
(IRA) project is an example of one such service innovation at the
University of Michigan. Keeping the importance of reference services in
view many studies are conducted in the developed world, but in Pakistan
the situation is not encouraging. Very few studies are conducted to find
out the status of reference service in different libraries of Pakistan.
For example, Raziuddin (1998) studied different aspects of reference
services like reference questions, reference interview, and reference
librarians' competencies, kinds of reference sources and impact of
computer on reference services. She pointed out that reference services
are almost out of practice in Pakistan and very few libraries provide
reference services and have reference librarian. Bashir (1977) discussed
the reference services in college libraries, while Haq (1993)
investigated the reference services in the Quaid-e-Azam Library and
emphasized on the improvement of not only reference services but the
skills of librarians as well. He mentioned that active and knowledgeable
reference librarians along with adequate reference tools are more
helpful for library users and suggested the frequent performance
evaluation of libraries.Khan (1979), Mirza (1981) and Khan (2006a)
described the impact of electronic data processing on reference services
and highlighted various computer based reference services in Pakistan.
Khan (2006b) probed the 153 students' perception of the reference
librarian and how do they approach them for services at Peshawar
University Library. Majeed (1998) investigated the public services of
Punjab University Library and she presented the status of reference
services in the Library. Rafi (2006) conducted an appraisal of reference
services offered by Quaid-e-Azam Reference Library. She mentioned that
majority of users were satisfied with reference services but there is a
need to update the printed reference sources. She furnished various
recommendations for further improvement. Similarly, Saddique (2006)
surveyed the reference services offered by the IRC (previously known as
Reference Section) of the University of Punjab, Lahore. He investigated
the user's perception about IRC. He found that during last few
years IRC services have improved but there is a need for more training
of staff and the users as well. Extensive information literacy program
should be developed for users. Keeping the problems of developing
countries like Pakistan in view, Lopes (1992) has rightly pointed out
that the setting up reference services and referral centers in libraries
in developing countries must be considered as an increasingly important
factor in the development of effective libraries and information systems
in developing countries.
Problem Statement, Objectives and Methodology of the Study
Review of the above literature reveals a wide gap in the provision
of reference services. As the situation of university libraries in
Punjab is better than other provinces, so to take a broader
understanding of reference services in university libraries of Punjab, a
reasonable sample of well established general universities of Punjab was
selected for this study. The basic objective of this study was to gather
a broad understanding of how users perceive the reference services they
receive at their university libraries and their satisfaction with these
services.
Methodology
The survey is limited to all public sector general university
libraries (central library/main library) (N=10) of the Punjab province
(Pakistan) having a reasonable collection, staff, and separate reference
section, as well as a reference librarian. One hundred questionnaires
were distributed in each university library selected for the study. The
sample from all public sector universities was purposefully selected
from library users. To be included in the selection, a library user had
to be full time student or faculty/staff member. Additionally, he also
has some experience of using library reference services. The
questionnaire was distributed to the users during their physical visits
to the concerned library. A questionnaire-based cross-sectional survey
research design was employed. It was a cross-sectional survey because
the data were collected from the subjects at one point in time. This was
done keeping in view the time constraints. Out of 1000 questionnaires
distributed, 507 filled in questionnaires were returned to the
researchers in the usable form. The rate of response was, therefore,
50.7 % in our case which was sufficiently high with regard to a survey
research design. All areas of reference services to measure different
constructs were combined in the form of a questionnaire (containing 24
questionnaire items/statements). It used a five-point Likert scale. The
scale used for each item was from 1 strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly
agree). To assess the reliability and validity of the scale,
Cronbach's alpha (a) was executed on the scale. The Cronbach alpha
value is 0.911, which is higher than the general standard of 0.80, items
suggesting a good reliability of overall questionnaire. The first part
also contained demographic questions i,e. status, sex, frequency of
library visit, frequency of reference section visit, name of the
organization etc. and an open-ended question for gathering further
opinion. The questionnaires were received by the authors through mail,
email (scanned copy of the filled questionnaires) and personal visits.
The data were analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively to reach at
conclusions. Quantitative analysis was done with the help of Statistical
Package for Social Sciences (SPSS-version 16).
Data Analysis and Related Discussion
Personal Profile of the Respondents
Acquired responses reveal that in total 507 i.e., 277 (55%) male
and 230 (45%) female users from different university libraries responded
against the questionnaire (Table 1). Table 2 presents the frequency
distribution of responses acquired from each university. Most of the
responses were received from the Islamia University of Bahawalpur (94,
19%) and then from University of the Punjab, Lahore (89, 18%) due to
personal visits by the authors. Of the 507 respondents, 460 (91%) were
students, 22 (4%), faculty members and 13 (3%) different staff members
of the relevant universities (Table 3). Most of the students were
studying in MA/MSc programs (321, 63%), while 125 (25%) did not mention
their level of studies (Table 4).
Frequency of Library and Reference Section Visits
Table 5 shows the frequency with which the respondents were
visiting the library. The response shows a good trend of library visits
because most of them were daily (219, 43%) and twice a week (198, 39%)
visitors of the library. On the other hand the results show that 172
(34%) respondents were visiting the Reference section of their
respective library twice a week and 110 (22%) were visiting it daily. A
great number of respondents (106, 21%) were visiting it rarely (Table
6).
Respondents' Perception and Satisfaction with the Reference
Section and its Services
Table 7 shows the descriptive statistics of respondents'
perception and satisfaction with the Reference section of their
respective university library. They were asked to rate different
statements against a five point Likert scale. Some statements were asked
repetitively from different angles in order to get the clear feedback.
To interpret the results of the study the researchers considered
satisfied services those have mean score of 3.5 or above. These
statements are categorized and ranked for the purpose of data analysis.
The categories and acquired responses are as followed:
Reference Collection
Respondents were agree with the statement that Reference collection
is adequate for their information needs (mean=3.67), well-organized and
easy to use (mean= 3.57) and appropriate material is available for
answering the reference questions (mean= 3.56). On the other hand most
of the respondents gave no opinion about the adequacy of print (mean=
3.44) and electronic (mean= 3.17) reference collection.
Reference Staff
They agreed that the reference staff is competent and helpful
(mean= 3.84) and demonstrates good communication skills (mean= 3.58),
but most of them did not give any opinion about the statement that the
reference staff immediately answers their ready reference questions
(mean= 3.44). It seems that they have shown their perception and
satisfaction with all the library staff rather than only about reference
staff.
Reference Services
The results show that most of the respondents showed no opinion
about the reference services of the library.
E-Reference Services
Respondents were also asked about the electronic reference services
provided by their libraries. They mentioned that they are strongly agree
with the statement that library Web pages are informative, helpful, and
easy-to-use and a good source for e-reference services (mean = 4.53). On
the other hand they gave no opinion about other statements probing their
perception and satisfaction about the E-reference services.
Facilities
The respondents agreed that Reference section's environment
(noise level, heating / cooling, lights, furniture, cleanliness, etc.)
is conducive to study and convenient to use (mean = 3.88), and approach
(mean = 3.86), its opening and closing hours
meet their needs (mean = 3.78) and it is easy to borrow reference
material for photocopy (mean = 3.71). On the other hand they expressed
no opinion regarding the provision of access to adequate electronic
reference sources (mean = 3.28), good Internet facility for searching
online reference sources (mean = 3.21) and availability of adequate
computers for use of electronic reference sources (mean = 3.06).
Overall Satisfaction
It is revealed from the acquired results that the respondents were
agreed that they were satisfied with the overall quality of reference
services (mean = 3.6).
Comparison of User Satisfaction with the Reference Services among
the University Libraries
Opinions of the users about their satisfaction with reference
services among different libraries were compared on a five-point scale.
Mean scores of their satisfaction level of reference services about
different libraries are given in Table 8. To see the significance of
difference between means of satisfaction, analysis of variance (ANOVA)
was used. It is a technique that partitions the total variation--a term
distinct from variance and measured by the sum of squares of deviations
from the mean--into components, each of which may be attributed to a
definite source of variation (Shafique & Mahmood, 2007). The results
of ANOVA show that there is significant difference (at the 0.05 alpha
levels) among the means of different universities. The results show that
satisfactions of the respondents about different services in
universities are different (See table 8).
Suggestions Provided by the Respondents
The analysis of the free-text comments also provides more
qualitative information from the users' perspective. Of the 507
respondents, 274 (54%) provided their suggestions for the improvement of
reference and other library services. Most of them recommended for the
provision of more facilities and reference services (n = 99),
acquisition of new and updated reference material for all subjects (n =
84) and provision of more reference services as mentioned in the
questionnaire. Other important suggestions were that the reference
librarian and other reference staff should be competent, well trained
and should be able to answer all the queries of the users. They
recommended the provision of good ICT facilities and online reference
services as well (See table 9).
Findings
The study reveals that although respondents have shown their
overall satisfaction with the reference collection, staff, facilities
and services provided by their libraries but they did not rank highly
satisfied to any category of reference service. Out of 24 statements 14
falls in the category of satisfaction level, but a review of responses
against other similar statements and provided suggestions/comments
indicate that in some cases they gave their opinion about the overall
library collection, staff and services etc. rather than about reference
section in particular. Although most users do not have clear
understanding of the complexities of library systems, in order to
implement customer-based changes, library administration must accept
user perceptions as valid statements of how patrons feel. Some
suggestions provided by the users were interesting such as regarding the
provision of reference services mentioned in the questionnaire i.e.,
chat reference etc. Any how this is a significant finding that the
respondents have valued the investment in reference services by their
university libraries. The level of user satisfaction with these
investments is also satisfactory.
Conclusion and Recommendations
We are living in the information age, where information explosion
and customer care are one of the major challenges. In this context, it
is inevitable for a library to provide richer information diets to their
customers for fulfilling their information needs. This reality is very
well felt by the developed world and in those countries reference and
information services have seen revolutionary changes to meet the new
challenges of information age. This study investigated the overall
user's perception and satisfaction with reference services in
public sector university library of largest province of Pakistan. This
is first effort to investigate the user's satisfaction with
reference services in Pakistan. The researchers hope that this study
will further motivate the future research on the topic in Pakistan. The
Reference services are often criticized due to lack of customer focus
and input. This study result suggest that concerned authorities should
pay attention for the improvement of present level of user satisfaction
. Keeping this reality in view the survey was an initial step for
finding the status of such activities in the largest Province of
Pakistan. On the basis of findings of the study some recommendations are
made, which are as followed:
1. Libraries should pay special attention on the provision of good
collection, staff and services in their reference sections.
2. New ICT based services i.e., Electronic or virtual reference
services should be introduced by the libraries.
3. Consideration should be given on future service development. The
reference staff should be trained in maintaining high level of customer
satisfaction in face to face services.
4. University libraries should consider the features of "user
friendliness and helpfulness" while designing online or electronic
services for their users.
5. The concept of customer care training should be introduced at
the library schools and libraries as well.
6. Library instruction program should target undergraduate students
who are most in need of assistance in the use of different library
resources and services.
7. Such studies should be conducted more frequently. Other
provinces of the country are also needed to be studied.
8. User satisfaction survey research should be conducted in
Pakistan at the macro and micro levels on different aspects of reference
services.
9. Library schools should pay special attention on training the
future reference librarians by giving them the assignments of long and
short range questions and electronic reference services.
10. Findings of the study should be considered by the relevant
individual university libraries in particular and other libraries in
general for improvement of their reference services.
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Shafiq Ur Rehman
PhD Scholar, Universite Charles-de-Gaulle--Lille 3 (France) &
Senior Librarian
University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan.
Farzana Shafique
Lecturer
Department of Library and Information Science
The Islamia University of Bahawalpur
Pakistan.
Dr. Khalid Mahmood
Professor
Department of Library and Information Science
University of the Punjab
Lahore, Pakistan
Table 1: Frequency Distribution of Respondents' Gender
Gender Frequency Percent
Male 277 55
Female 230 45
Total 507 100
Table 2: Frequency Distribution of the Responses Acquired from
each University
Rank Names of Responded University Libraries Frequency Percent
1. Islamia University of Bahawalpur 94 19
2. University of the Punjab-Lahore 89 18
3. Government College University-Lahore 60 12
4. University of Engineering and 50 10
Technology-Lahore
5. University of Gujrat 46 9
6. Allama Iqbal Open University-Islamabad 43 9
7. Bahaudin Zakria University-Multan 40 8
8. International Islamic University- 34 7
Islamabad
9. UVAS-Lahore 26 5
10. Government College University-Faisalabad 25 5
Table 3: Frequency distribution of Respondents' Status
Respondents Frequency Percent
Student 460 91
Faculty 22 4
Staff 13 3
Missing 12 2
Total 507 100
Table 4: Frequency Distribution of Respondents' Level of Studies
Level of Study Frequency Percent
MA/MSc 321 63
Missing 125 25
M. Phil 29 6
PhD 18 4
BA-honors/BSc 14 3
Table 5: Frequency of Library Visits
Library Visits Frequency Percent
Daily 219 43
Twice a week 198 39
Monthly 31 6
Fortnightly 21 4
Missing 15 3
Table 6: Frequency of Reference Section Visits
Reference Section Visits Frequency Percent
Twice a week 172 34
Daily 110 22
Rarely 106 21
Fortnightly 42 8
Missing 40 8
Monthly 37 7
Table 7: Descriptive Statistics of Respondents Perception and
Satisfaction with the Reference Section and its Services
Statements Mean Std.
Deviation
Reference Collection: Reference collection is 3.67 1.104
adequate for my needs
Library's reference collection is well-organized 3.57 1.178
and easy to find
Library has appropriate reference material for 3.56 1.082
answering reference questions
Print reference collection is adequate 3.44 1.058
Electronic reference collection is adequate 3.17 1.140
Reference Staff: Reference staff is competent and 3.84 1.125
helpful
Reference Staff demonstrates good communication 3.58 2.123
skill
Reference staff immediately answers my ready 3.44 1.236
reference questions
Catalog of reference material is easy to use 3.42 1.723
Reference Services: Current Awareness Service 3.33 1.417
(CAS) is helpful
Library provides adequate training on the use of 3.13 1.225
reference services and resources
Library provides good Interlibrary loan and 3.10 1.093
document delivery services
E-Reference Services: Library Web pages are 4.53 24.767
informative, helpful, and easy-to-use and a good
source for e-reference services
Digital (E-mail & chat) reference services satisfy 3.10 2.075
my need
Library answers the digital/electronic reference 3.10 1.054
queries
Facilities: Reference section's environment (noise 3.88 2.09
level, heating/cooling, lights, furniture,
cleanliness, etc.) is conducive to study
Use of Reference section procedure is convenient 3.88 1.019
Reference section is convenient for visitors to 3.86 .936
approach
Opening/closing hours of reference section meet my 3.78 1.059
needs
Borrowing reference books for photocopying from 3.71 1.076
the library is easy
Library provides access to adequate electronic 3.28 1.921
reference sources for research and information
Reference section provides good Internet facility 3.21 1.344
for searching online reference sources
Adequate computers are available for use of 3.06 1.341
electronic reference sources
Over all Satisfaction: I am satisfied with the 3.6 2.038
overall quality of reference services
Scale: 5=Strongly agree, 4=Agree, 3=No opinion, 2=Disagree,
1=Strongly disagree
Table 8: Difference on the basis of universities
Overall Satisfaction Sum of df Mean F Sig.
Squares Square
Between Groups 7047.797 9 783.089 3.636 .000
Within Groups 106837.049 496 215.397
Total 113884.846 505
Table 9: Frequency Distribution of Suggestions Provided
by the Respondents
Rank Suggestions Frequency
1. Library should provide more facilities and 99
reference services
2. New and updated reference material should be 84
acquired by the library in all subjects
3. More reference services should be started as 83
mentioned in the questionnaire
4. Reference librarian should be competent 71
5. Reference staff should be well trained and answer 61
all the queries of the users
6. Internet and other ICT facilities/need good 58
Internet speed
7. Online reference service should be started 57
8. Environment of the section should be conducive for 33
research and study
9. Proper reference services should be started. Our 27
library has no proper concept of reference
services
10. Reference material should be processed and 26
arranged properly
11. More print/e-journals should be subscribed by the 23
section
12. OPAC should be provided in the reference section 13
as well
13. Reference material should also be issued to the 11
users
14. Reference services should be of international 11
standard
15. More trained reference staff should be appointed 9
16. User education programs should be started 8
17. Departmental libraries should also provide 6
reference services
