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Purpose - The literature on collection development largely discusses all kinds of managerial and practical issues. There appears to be a noteworthy gap in LIS literature regarding the philosophical and conceptual underpinning of the subject. The paper aims to attempt to explore the developments in the theoretical foundations of collection management practices in libraries. Design/methodology/approach - An extensive review of the available literature was made to synthesise the study. It illustrates the impacts of the developments in civilization, from ancient times to modern, on the collection management services of libraries. Findings - It was found that the philosophy underlying collection management work has expanded through the ages due to various factors. Originality/value - The paper provides an overview of social and technological changes on the philosophy of managing collections through the ages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - Proposes encouraging librarians to be more informed about the value of collection evaluations. Design/methodology/approach - Three examples of collection evaluation methods (user-centered evaluation, physical assessment and specific subject support) are explored. Findings - Many strategies are available for evaluating collections, regardless of the kind of library or size of the collection. Evaluation allows librarians a more thorough knowledge of what already exists, what may be needed, and whether collection development goals are being achieved. Practical implications - Methods of meaningful collection evaluation are shared so that librarians may create an evaluation that will provide useful information to them in their library setting. Implications for successful future collection management, financial resource management and effective format selection are discussed. Originality/value - Discussion that includes the "assessment of specific subject support" and "assessing and building specific subject collections" encourages librarians to recognize their major and minor collections, creatively assess those collection areas, and involve techniques or individuals who might guide them to specific subject materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]