Search

This institutional case study analyses 1723 sources referenced in five PhD theses awarded at Alphacrucis University College between 2017 and 2021. The purpose was to demonstrate that the library’s collection development policy is successfully guiding purchasing decisions in order to provide students with the resources they need to complete their research at high levels. Sources were extracted from each thesis and grouped according to type. Library holdings were then checked, revealing that, overall, 70.2% of all cited sources were available from the AC library collection. This research-in-practice paper shows that AC library’s shift in focus for its collection development policy is adequately providing required resources to research students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The document provides information on East Asian libraries in North American institutions for the fiscal year 2022-2023. It includes data on physical and electronic collections, fiscal support, staffing, and public services. The document highlights specific collections and acquisitions at certain institutions and mentions challenges faced by some libraries. It also provides contact information for libraries conducting research on East Asian studies. The document offers a comprehensive overview of the East Asian library collections and resources available at these institutions. [Extracted from the article]

This study investigated influence of institutional management on collection development in Federal Colleges of Agriculture in Northern Nigeria. The study has 3 objectives which include to: determine the types of collection available in Federal College of Agriculture libraries in Northern Nigeria; find out the influence of institutional management on collection development in Federal College of Agriculture libraries in Northern Nigeria and find out the challenges faced by the library management on collection development in Federal College of Agriculture libraries. In order to achieve the stated objectives 3 research questions were asked. The study used a descriptive research design with a population of 72 management staff of Federal College of Agriculture libraries in Northern Nigeria and the sample size drawn was 36 respondents. Out of the 36 copies of questionnaire administered, 28 copies were returned which represent 78%. Data collected was analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics at 0.05 level of significance. The findings revealed that there is availability of collection in all the libraries under study. It was revealed that the college management has a lot of influence on collection development of the college libraries. Finally, the findings revealed that funds are not sufficiently provided, which affects adequacy of collections, there is also delay in the delivery of Collections among others. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Collection development is a most important process of a library. This process increases the reading materials of the library for the satisfaction of the reader approach. Collection development policy acts as a guide for selecting library materials. It helps to maintain library cooperation and communication between library staff. This process increases the reading materials of the library for the satisfaction of the reader approach. Collection development policies are written statements of goals and evaluative parameters to guide decision-making when adding material to a library collection. A large number of e-resources collection has become a challenge to libraries as a lot of information is now available to the public without having to visit and use the traditional library. American Library Association states that the collection development policies document which defines the scope of a library's existing collections, plan for the continuing development of resources, identify collection strength and outline the relationship between selection philosophy and institutions goals, general selection criteria, and intellectual freedom. In electronic environment collection development policy select tools and processes, set the principles for the management of electronic resources, allocating the budget for buying of e-resources. Due to information technology, most of the libraries are involved in the sharing of the e-resources in many ways. The Collection development policy must indeed be clear whether the collection is in print or electronic form and also it should full fill the user's demand. This article tried to explore the different collection development policies for e-resources. The information provided in this article is based on secondary data. The information available in this article is a general kind of information and it is applicable in all kinds of libraries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: With the mandate to review all available literature in the study's inclusion parameters, systematic review projects are likely to require full-text access to a significant number of articles that are not available in a library's collection, thereby necessitating ordering content via interlibrary loan (ILL). The aim of this study is to understand what effect a systematic review service has on the copyright royalty fees accompanying ILL requests at an academic health sciences library. Case Presentation: The library created a custom report using ILLiad data to look specifically at 2018 ILL borrowing requests that were known to be part of systematic reviews. This subset of borrowing activity was then analyzed to determine its impact on the library's copyright royalty expenditures for the year. In 2018, copyright eligible borrowing requests that were known to be part of systematic reviews represented only approximately 5% of total filled requests that involved copyright eligible borrowing. However, these systematic review requests directly or indirectly caused approximately 10% of all the Spencer S. Eccles Library copyright royalty expenditures for 2018 requests. Conclusion: Based on the sample data set, the library's copyright royalty expenditures did increase, but the overall financial impact was modest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Like many health library associations, the Medical Library Association (MLA) developed competencies guiding lifelong learning and competence for medical librarians. Medical librarians should be able to develop skills in identified areas. One MLA indicator of organising resources defines expert skill as the ability to develop classification and metadata schemes for unique collections. Objectives: This manuscript reviews available curricula for selected library programmes in the United States and Canada, along with professional development and informal opportunities for skill development to identify how medical librarians, who are not experts in cataloging or metadata and not employed as cataloging or metadata librarians, can progress in competency. Methods: The authors reviewed library school and continuing education programming around metadata, along with answers from a pre‐existing informal poll regarding cataloging and metadata roles in health sciences libraries. Data were collected and examined using descriptive statistics. Discussion: Gaps and opportunities for education around organising resources are discussed, including library school courses, formal continuing education opportunities and informal learning (e.g. peer support networks, on‐the‐job learning). Conclusion: Education in organising resources should be created throughout the educational journey of librarianship. Continuing educational opportunities in organising resources should be created by professional organisations that expect competency in this area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The number of journals with embargo periods in aggregated databases designed for academic libraries has increased for the simple reason that the number of available full text journals in these collections has also increased. Misconceptions surrounding embargo periods deduce that embargoes diminish access to information by withholding the current full text from journals, when in fact, embargoes increase access to information for journals that otherwise would not be available in aggregated databases. Embargoes exist for the purpose of preserving a publisher's traditional print and electronic journal subscriptions. Full text databases and e-journals are distinctly different resources. The use of embargoes may be valid in one electronic resource, but not the other. Linking capabilities provide seamless access from embargoed journals with current indexing in databases to the corresponding current full text found in a library's e-journal collection. Embargoed information from a given journal is far superior to no full text information at all from that source. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to explore how the Semantic Web technologies effect the digital library collections and what are the challenges faced by digital collections in Semantic Web environment. The present study is based on substantial literature review on the impact of Semantic Web technologies on digital collections of libraries. The search engines such as Google, Yahoo, and Google Scholar were used to find the relevant literature for the study. Online databases such as Pro Quest, Science Direct, Emerald, and JSTORE were also used to find the relevant literature of the study. Databases of Library Sciences Library and Information Science and Technology Abstracts (LISTA) and Library Information Science Abstracts (LISA) were also used to find the relevant literature of the study. Library, linked data technologies, Semantic Web, digital library and digital collections were the main keywords which were used to find the relevant literature for the study. The evolution of linked data technologies and Semantic Web has changed the traditional role of the libraries. Traditional libraries are converting into digital libraries and digital libraries are in a struggle to publish their resources and on the Web using XML based metadata standards. With the publication of digital collections of libraries on Semantic Web, users could be capable to get their required quality information of libraries round-the-clock. It has improved the Web visibility of the digital collections of the libraries. Digital collections of libraries are being exploited by search engines to make their web appearance more credible and authentic. It has decreased the storage cost of the libraries and has reduced the chances of duplication of resources on the Web. Different digital libraries such as Europeana, Digital Public Library of Americana, Library of Congress, National Library of France, National Library of Spain, and The British Library have been connecting and publishing their digital collections on the Web for wider community usage. There are also some challenges to implement Semantic Web technologies in digital libraries such as copy-rights and legal issues, privacy concerns of libraries, MARC based records of the libraries, reluctance of libraries to adopt it, requirement of technical infrastructure, technical disparity between libraries metadata standards and Web-based standards, complex technologies of linked data such as RDF, RDF/XML, OWL, SPARQL etc. This is the first study of its kind to find the impact of Semantic Web technologies on digital collections of libraries. It will guide policy and decision makers to facilitate the libraries to make their metadata and digital collections available on Semantic Web for wider community usage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digital collections, institutional repositories, open educational resources, open access publishing, and new forms of digital scholarship are all ways in which academic libraries are growing their collections from the inside out as well as making this content widely available to other libraries and users. This article will explore national and global trends in library-enabled publishing and content creation, focusing on the kinds of collections being published by libraries, the ways that metadata can bring these collections together for improved access, and the role of consortia in the process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The United States exists in a Post-truth Era with false beliefs such as the moon landing was a hoax, the 2020 presidential election was stolen, the Chinese government created, then distributed the Covid-19 virus and many others. Conspiracy theorists abound in the U.S. cultural and political landscape. Another such belief is that climate change is a myth; it is not occurring. This study explores in a U.S. Constitutional context the ability of public librarians and public libraries to collect and maintain truthful (trusted) grey content regarding climate change. One element of many collection development policies in libraries is accuracy. See, ACLU v. Miami-Dade County School Board, 557 F.3d 1177, 1184 (11th Cir.), cert. denied 130 S. Ct. 659 (2009). Accuracy is also used to assess collection maintenance. Prior content including grey literature created and collected at time when climate change was unproven is no longer accurate and should be withdrawn. Likewise requests by patrons to keep or add content presenting an alternative and inaccurate viewpoint regarding climate change should be withdrawn or refused. In the United States the First Amendment guarantees not only the right to speak but also to receive information, including in a public library, the "quintessential locus of the receipt of information." Kreimer v. Bureau of Police for Town of Morristown, 958 F.2d 1242, 1255 (3d Cir. 1992). Under First Amendment Forum analysis, a public library collection would be considered a non-public forum while the public spaces within the library are a limited public forum. See, Faith Center Church Evangelistic Ministries v. Glover, 462 F.3d 1194, 1204 (9th Cir. 2006). In a non-public forum, government policies that regulate speech must be rationale and viewpoint neutral. See, Case v. Unified School District No. 233, 908 F. Supp. 864, 875 (D. Kan. 1995). The constitutional framework poses the following questions: Do public library patrons have a right to require that inaccurate grey content regarding climate change be retained or added to the collection? Must a public library accept gifts of such content, adding it to its collection? Likewise do those same patrons have the right to object when librarians withdraw inaccurate grey content regarding climate change reflecting an alternative viewpoint? A textual analysis of the extant case law regarding the rights of public librarians and their patrons is undertaken in order answer these questions. In addition to relevant U.S. Supreme Court, the following cases among others are analyzed and discussed. ACLU v. Miami-Dade County School Board, 557 F.3d 1177 (11th Cir.), cert. denied 130 S. Ct. 659 (2009); Elgi v. Chester County Library System [CCLS], (E.D. Pa. 2019); and Via v. City of Richmond, 543 F. Supp. 382 (D.C. Va. 1982). Anticipated results of the research: The cases reviewed should prove instructive regarding the rights and limitations of public librarians and libraries to collect and maintain accurate content including grey literature regarding climate change as well as the rights and limitations of patrons possess to impact that collection development and maintenance process. Strategies and responses to interactions with patrons holding alternative viewpoints on climate change are forwarded to assist public libraries and its librarians in their efforts to collect and maintain truthful, trusted grey content regarding climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article provides an account of the making of KBLab, the data lab at the National Library of Sweden (KB). The first part discusses the work involved in establishing a lab as both a physical and a digital site for researchers to use digital collections at previously unimaginable scales. The second part explains how the lab has deployed the library's collections as data to produce high quality Swedish AI models, which constitute a significant new form of digital research infrastructure. We situate this work in the context of uneven AI coverage for smaller languages, and consider how the lab's models have contributed to the making of important AI infrastructure for the Swedish language. The conclusion raises the possibilities and challenges involved in continuing this type of library-based AI development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To help address the well-being of the campus and contribute to empathy building amongst students pursuing careers as healthcare providers, an academic health sciences library built a graphic novel collection focused on comics that discuss medical conditions and health-related topics. The collection contains the experiences of patients, providers, and caregivers. The reader-friendly format of graphic novels provides an easy entry point for discussing empathy with health professions faculty and students. The collection has been used in the classroom during library instruction sessions, with the idea of integrating it within the curriculum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors investigated quantitative methods of collection use analysis employing library data that are available in ILS and ILL systems to better understand library collection use and user needs. For the purpose of the study, the authors extracted circulation and ILL records from the library's systems using data-mining techniques. By comparing these data to records of books acquired in a four-year period, the study reveals generally good collection use as well as some unmet collection needs. The study also offers a method of compiling and sharing these multiple types of usage data among work groups to create feedback mechanisms to inform the work of selectors and suggest modifications to collection development practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – Although the new J-ISIS software from UNESCO, based on Berkeley DB and Lucene technology, complies with some of the technical requirements as seen necessary for digital library applications, an easy way of building collections so far was not available. The purpose of this paper is to give a report on some necessary DL technological requirements, such as the capability to deal with any metadata structure and alphabets and full-text indexing of documents of any length, and how J-ISIS can deal with these, as well as on the production of the DL interface for digital library applications based on Tika technology. Design/methodology/approach – A brief comparison is made with a well-established DL software, i.e. Greenstone Digital Library, regarding the concepts and performance. Findings – While using a quite different architecture and approach, the test shows that J-ISIS can process the documents faster and with more economical storage efficiency, inviting UNESCO to invest more into it in order to allow incorporation of some more advanced features like Greenstone's capability to process intra-document segments and images, but also to allow for new exciting features for digital libraries such as interactivity. Research limitations/implications – The research is based on the J-ISIS prototype implementation of digital library technology and could only be tested on a limited set of documents. Practical implications – Librarians interested in building digital library collections, esp. when doing this integrated with their library systems and catalogs, have a viable new option now within the FOSS-market. Originality/value – This is the first description on J-ISIS for digital libraries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The aim of this paper is to clearly show the process, cost, and benefits of an audio digitization project within a university library. Design/methodology/approach - From formulating the idea for a new digital collection available to patrons via the library catalog through implementation, promotion, and gathering feedback, each step is detailed. Findings - Although it is a time-consuming endeavor, the creation of unique digital library collections can produce a variety of benefits for both library patrons and librarians. Originality/value - The paper is written by a librarian who is neither a computer nor cataloging expert. It is an attempt to show others who may have important but antiquated collections that digitization projects may be successfully completed without advanced technical skills or a large budget. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the summer of 2004, Georgia Southern University began a library construction project that was to last 4 years. An important aspect was the installation of an Automated Retrieval System (ARC) to house a substantial portion of the library collections so that more space could be available for students, faculty, and the services to meet their needs. This paper traces the development of the use of the ARC to house collections, with emphasis on how materials were selected for the two phases of the project and how catalogers have adapted to the idea of collections that can only be browsed virtually. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this article is to help librarians interested in developing a basic understanding of Sub-Saharan African cinema and increase awareness of the resources available when building a collection of sub-Saharan African films for their library. A general review is provided to help become familiar with the history and nature of the four regions discussed. Design/methodology/approach - A collection development project to expand a mid-sized university's collection of sub-Saharan African films is discussed. Includes brief historical information and core titles, selected for their historical role and/or ease of purchase. Findings - A list of core films is recommended for academic and public libraries representing four geographic regions of sub-Saharan Africa: Nigeria, South Africa, West Africa, and East Africa. Research limitations/implications - Unfortunately, many of the titles referenced in academic literature and winners of African film awards are not available for purchase outside of Africa, making it impossible to accomplish our goal of collecting a core list as intended. Practical implications - The paper increases awareness of African cinema and value inclusion in library collections. Originality/value - While there are general articles on the topic of African cinema, there are no recent articles on the topic of collecting African films for libraries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Issues surrounding the purchase of full-text databases by small hospital libraries and the development of standards for acquisitions are the focus of this article. Considerations include library strategic planning, content, material format, duplication, coverage/completeness, ease of use, archiving, licensing/copyright and affordability along with any recommended standards by various library groups including MLA. Potential effects of purchasing decisions, not only on individual libraries, but upon the information delivery system as a whole are described. Finally, full-text database criteria formulation is advocated for inclusion into a library's collection development policy. Available online and print sources relating to these issues are provided for further information. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This Interactive Web column focuses on a traditional aspect of library management – deselection and weeding of physical materials. It describes the process and considerations of a traditionally conservative library when evaluating Open Access journal availability as a suitable substation for retained print materials. While many, if not most, medical and hospital libraries have weeded a significant part of their older print collections, it is still common to have both older print serials holdings and a pressing need for space. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Arrival of e-books on the scene has had a significant effect on the collection development activities of many academic libraries. Whilst some libraries have made the radical decision to ditch print books in favor of e-books, others are cautiously navigating the new terrain by acquiring both. The current study used the survey research design to study the collection development trends of print books and e-books in academic libraries in Malawi. The study found that academic libraries in Malawi are acquiring both print books and e-books. The trend has resulted from collection development decisions, practices, and budgetary constraints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the results of a multi-stage exploratory study on the acquisition practices of collection development librarians in arts libraries and how these practices support or hinder aspects of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) related to collection work. Analysis of quantitative and qualitative data from the study's written survey and focus groups indicates that while art librarians are overall loosely employing creative strategies to address the DEI scope in collections, practical and comprehensive guidance is needed. Subsequently, the authors have developed principles and guidelines in response to the results of the study as well as a thorough review of literature on the topic of art libraries, collections, and DEI. The guidelines serve as an intervention to move librarians from ingrained, colonized thinking to acquisition practices that instead foster diversity, equity, and inclusivity. A preview of the guidelines shows an approach to collection development that centers around relationship building, radical empathy, and anti-bias. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reviews the web site of The New York Public Library, Digital Collections, available at digitalcollections.nypl.org/divisions/music-division.

Access denied turnaway statistics are provided to libraries to help with serials collection development, but very little research about turnaways is available. This article examines the relationship between access denied turnaways and interlibrary loan (ILL) requests at one institution in an attempt to deepen our understanding of turnaways. The study showed that there is a moderate correlation with an overall ILL requests to turnaways ratio of 11.4%. The strength of the relationship and the ILL requests to turnaways ratio do vary depending on the publisher/provider. The article also discusses potential explanations and implications as related to the relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Collections assessment in academic libraries has experienced a shift in recent years from project-based models to continuous models that aim improve the responsivity of library collections to campus needs. This article reports on how one university library used a library committee with representation from across library departments to develop a holistic, on-going Collection Management Cycle. This newly created process evaluates the entire library collection over a five-year period and aligns with library reporting requirements for university program review to minimize additional workload and improve the impact of external reporting activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gifts and donations form an integral part of an academic library's existence, whether monetary or physical items. While monetary gifts are greatly valued, gift-in-kind donations of physical items can also contribute rare or unique items to collections. However, gift-in-kind donations also bring many challenges, as processing and evaluating physical materials can be time-consuming and labour-intensive; moreover, these materials may occupy significant amounts of space and ultimately may or may not add value to the library collection. Providing clear, publicly available gift and donation information can mitigate some of these challenges and help to set expectations for donors by giving a clear overview of the evaluation process and letting them know which types of material are of interest. The author reviewed donation-related webpages of twenty-one Canadian academic libraries to determine commonalities regarding library donation webpages. This analysis can provide practical assistance to librarians who are creating or revising gift-in-kind policies and procedures in Canadian academic libraries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Statistical data contributes to strategic planning, creation and maintenance of a library. Such data is critical to the library's collection development decisions. This study investigated the extent to which Rössing Foundation libraries use statistical data for decision-making. The objectives of the study were to establish how Rössing Foundation libraries analyse statistical data, to find out if the statistical data is used for the libraries' management, to determine the extent to which the statistics relate to collection development, to find out if there are any challenges in the use of statistics at Rössing Foundation libraries, and to come up with solutions to the challenges. The study used a case study design and employed a qualitative research approach to collect data from library staff of two libraries within the Rössing Foundation. The target population consisted of 10 library staff and six librarians were selected through purposive sampling. The researchers collected data in two phases through face-to-face interviews. The first phase covered three librarians who were interviewed before the COVID-19 pandemic and the second phase covered the same number who were interviewed after the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of six librarians were interviewed. The findings revealed that the librarians at the two Rössing Foundation libraries in Swakopmund and Arandis were not qualified, and they lacked information and communication technology (ICT) skills. This posed a challenge in compiling reports. Moreover, some library patrons did not follow library procedures. The study was limited to two Rössing Foundation libraries in Arandis and Swakopmund, which are the only public libraries in Erongo region. Although the results from the study may not be generalised to other public libraries in the country, they draw attention to the need for public libraries to document accurate and reliable statistics for decision-making. The results will inform policy at national level. The major recommendation from this study was that Rössing Foundation should hire more librarians with skills and knowledge required to collect and analyse library statistics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While scholarship in library science continues to expand understanding of collaboration and its potential to transform the collective collection, librarian acquisitions trips have been largely absent from the conversation. In early 2020, three US-based South Asian studies librarians traveled together to India, jettisoning solo travel in favor of a model of collaborative fieldwork. Using this trip as a case study, the authors draw on interdisciplinary literature to explore how intersecting identities and the embodied nature of fieldwork shape outcomes for the collective collection. They reflect on how foregrounding care in the field can converge with efforts to build more ethical collections. Finally, the authors consider the possibilities of a shift toward collaboration beyond mere coordination, and offer suggestions for how a relational perspective might be advocated for in their work. At the intersection of theory and practice, this article helps readers understand the holistic work behind area studies librarianship, and offers a vision of improved practice in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

“From Picas to Pixels” editor Chad Hutchens takes a look into a herbarium library collection that is quickly being digitized and will be available in the new JSTOR Plants database. Dr. Ronald Hartman, curator of the Rocky Mountain Herbarium, discusses the physical collection of thousands of plants, as well as the scope of the collection. Larry Schmidt, science and engineering reference librarian at the University of Wyoming Libraries, talks about digitization efforts and the development of the Rocky Mountain Herbarium online databases. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This article describes a bibliographic mapping project recently undertaken at the Library of the Institute for the Study of the Ancient World (ISAW). The MARC Advisory Committee recently approved an update to MARC that enables the use of dereferenceable Uniform Resource Identifiers (URIs) in MARC subfield $0. The ISAW Library has taken advantage of MARC's new openness to URIs, using identifiers from the linked data gazetteer Pleiades in MARC records and using this metadata to create maps representing our library's holdings. By populating our MARC records with URIs from Pleiades, an online, linked open data (LOD) gazetteer of the ancient world, we are able to create maps of the geographic metadata in our library's catalog. This article describes the background, procedures, and potential future directions for this collection-mapping project. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to show how quality information materials are maintained in Kenyan museum libraries by examining collection development policy, skills and processes used by librarians in acquisition. Design/methodology/approach: A total of 137 respondents, which included 130 registered library users and seven members of staff, completed the questionnaires. This included the principal librarian, for whom an interview schedule was used to collect the required data. A pilot study to ensure data validity and reliability was carried out at the Kenya Medical Research Institute Library. Statistical Packages for Social Science (SPSS) was used to analyze the research data. Findings: The findings, which were presented both textually and graphically, show that the National Museum of Kenya library lacks a collection development policy to guide the acquisition process, as well as a diverse set of information resources that are both comprehensive and current to meet the current user information needs. Furthermore, the key impediment to the acquisition of information materials was revealed to be financial constraints, and there was a positive effort to involve library users in the acquisition process. Research limitations/implications: The study focus on library users and library staff at the National Museums of Kenya (NMK) library in Nairobi, it may not be, therefore, representative of the acquisition processes at all Kenyan museum libraries. Although NMK has other branches across the country, they were not included in this study. Practical implications: This paper purposes to provide the Kenyan museum library with important information about maintaining quality information materials from the perspectives of librarians and library users. Despite efforts to improve information materials, the management faces financial challenges. Social implications: The study unveils underlying picture in selection and acquisition practices which will inform on meeting library users information needs. Originality/value: The paper is of value as a case study of Kenya Museums Library. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article delves into the complex and inseparable relationship between collection development in libraries and the interconnected factors of privacy, censorship, and government influence. Libraries, as guardians of information and knowledge, constantly strive to update their collections to meet the diverse needs of patrons. However, in doing so, they face intricate challenges that extend beyond merely acquiring materials. This article aims to shed light on the pivotal role librarians play in collection development. It highlights the need for librarians to consider a wide range of factors, both internal and external, before making informed decisions about their collections. By understanding the multifaceted nature of their responsibilities, librarians can better serve their communities and maintain libraries as vital centers for knowledge dissemination. This article ultimately offers insights that can contribute to the enhancement of collection development practices, ensuring libraries remain adaptive, inclusive, and conducive to the pursuit of knowledge in an ever-changing world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Library staff at the Vasche Library at California State University, Stanislaus used innovative collection development methods to identify potential acquisitions for the Vasche Library's Modern Assyrian Heritage Collection. They worked with a faculty subject expert and the donor, who provided the startup funds for the collection, to search the OPACs of university libraries that had substantial holdings in Modern Assyrian Studies. The potential acquisitions identified could grow the collection by 39%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The present study aims to analyse the collection development/ access management of e-resources among the three Central Universities in Delhi. The study also analyses the allocation of budget to accessing as well as selection criteria for print and electronic resources. Design/Methodology/Approach - The study is based on the research being done for the PhD work and required data is collected through the questionnaire, interview and observation among the three central universities viz. Jamia Millia Islamia, Jawaharlal Nehru University and University of Delhi in Delhi. Findings - The electronic documents are the dominant forms of present-day library procurement in India, with the print struggling to retain its readership. The study revealed the prospects and problems faced by the Libraries in view of access management of e-resources. It was found that inadequate funds and negotiation with publishers are the two most important problems libraries are facing while accessing the electronic resources. Originality/value - The study is original undertaken on three Central Universities in Delhi, India based on the PhD research work done by the scholar. The data and content is extracted from the PhD Thesis work submitted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the experience of academic libraries on handling of book donations and gifts with strings or conditions attached. This study adopted the descriptive survey research design. The study population consisted of eighteen (18) academic libraries from public and private universities in South-West, Nigeria. Purposive sampling techniques was adopted to select librarians who are in charge of Collection Development of their respective libraries. Descriptive statistics involving frequency and percentage distribution were used for data analysis. The findings of the study revealed that individuals 13(72.2%) are the major source of donations with strings attached and further revealed that 6(33.3%) indicated that the string attached by donors is mostly dictating where the donated materials should be stored or displayed. The study concludes that library managements should publish the library's policy on gifts and donations and also should not hesitate to reject donations that have stringent conditions attached that may be difficulty to abide by and accept donations that will not have strings attached in a bid to provide information to users but should always ensure good quality, recency and relevance of such materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper presents research that sought to understand how the National Library of Australia engages with soft power in its Annual Report 2019–20. Driving the analysis was the research question: How is soft power discourse reproduced and enacted in the National Library of Australia's Annual Report 2019–20? The research recognises the significance of Australia's soft power, cultural diplomacy, and regional relationships to national interest in the context of a library's contributions to these areas. Design/methodology/approach: The study employs a qualitative discourse analysis, with constructivist and interpretivist perspectives. A critical discourse analysis was undertaken that applied a discourse-historical approach. Findings: The findings suggest that the National Library of Australia primarily engages with soft power discourse through the construction and preservation of an Australian national identity. National identity is framed as key to the Library's collection development, with Australian knowledge prioritised. Originality/value: This study extends on research addressing the roles of galleries, archives, and museums in cultural diplomacy, but rarely examines soft power and libraries explicitly or in a contemporary context. It contributes to broader understandings of libraries in international relations and the role they can play in soft power attraction and cultural diplomacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present research findings from a project to identify, locate and examine the first collection of a large academic research institution. The article also examines changes in collections over time and some of the factors influencing changing collection development policies and practice. Design/methodology/approach – Methodology included historical archival research, collection discovery and item by item comparison. Findings – As electronic access, shared repositories and access to shared content reshape the collection development landscape, the emphasis is shifting toward global access and unique local content. And yet, we see that this new model is built on a solid foundation of collection development almost 150 years in the making. Originality/value – Understanding how the University Library got to where it is will help inform future decisions and directions regarding collection development, and allow others to compare our findings against their own institutional growth and forward trajectory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the discussion on increasing emphasis on equity, diversity, inclusion, and justice in academia. Topics include higher education's commitment to diversity and social justice manifested in mission statements and highlighted in strategic plans; and other publishing groups staking a claim to coining the actual term overarching conceptualization.

Objective: The study purpose was to understand how early months of the COVID-19 pandemic altered interlibrary loan (ILL) and document delivery (DD) in North American health science libraries (HSLs), specifically the decision-making and workflow adjustments associated with accessing their own collections and obtaining content not available via ILL. Methods: Researchers distributed an online 26-question survey through 24 health science library email lists from January 6-February 7, 2021. Respondents reported their library's ILL and DD activities from March-August 2020, including ILL/DD usage and policies, collection access, decision-making, and workflow adjustments. In addition to calculating frequencies, cross-tabulation and statistical tests were performed to test a priori potential associations. Two researchers independently and thematically analyzed responses to the 2 open-ended questions and reached consensus on themes. Results: Hospital libraries represented 52% (n=226/431) of respondents, along with 42% academic (n=179) and 6% (n=26) multi-type or other special. Only 1% (n=5) closed completely with no remote services, but many, 45% (n=194), ceased ILL of print materials. More than half (n=246/423; 58%) agreed that ILL requests likely to be filled from print remained unfilled more than is typical. Open-ended questions yielded 5 themes on ILL/DD staffing, setup, and systems; 6 on impacts for libraries and library users. Conclusion: Lack of communication regarding collection availability and staffing resulted in delayed or unfilled requests. Hospital and academic libraries made similar decisions about continuing services but reported different experiences in areas such as purchasing digital content. Hybrid ILL/DD workflows may continue for managing these services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article outlines the use of a collection mapping model of collection assessment in which data visualization tools were utilized in order to provide a unified portrait of a complicated multi-disciplinary collection located in several different physical locations across the Libraries of the University of California Riverside. Through the use of freely-available data visualization software, the massive amount of data generated by collection-centered inventory of the Libraries' Latin American Studies collection can be assessed in a number of different dimensions, clearly illustrating the collection's strengths to stakeholders both within and outside of the libraries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study analyzes the references cited in 34 chemistry dissertations and compares the results with an earlier study of citations in American Chemical Society journals. The dissertations cite more references and older references and a greater diversity of sources. They have the same tendency to heavily cite journal articles from a small core of traditional journals. This study underscores the value of comparing internal citation analyses with external citation analyses, and of analyzing the number of citing authors as well as the number of citations. Interlibrary loan and internal usage statistics were also used to inform collection development and library instruction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this research is to investigate the language of "weeding" (library deselection) within public library collection development policies in order to examine whether such policies and practices can be usefully connected to library and information science (LIS) theory, specifically to "Deweyan pragmatic adaptation" as suggested by Buschman (2017) in the pages of this journal. Design/methodology/approach: This is a policy analysis of collection deselection policies from the 50 public libraries serving US state capitals, using Bacchi's policy problem representation technique. Findings: "Weeding" as described by these public library collection deselection policies is clearly pragmatic and oriented to increasing circulation to patrons, but the "Deweyan pragmatic adaptation" as reflected by many of those reviewed might better be defined as the pragmatism of Melvil Dewey rather than that of John Dewey. Research limitations/implications: Although this work reviewed policies from a very small sample of US public libraries, collection, selection and deselection language as shown in the policies studied appear to be consistent with neoliberal priorities and values in terms of prioritizing "circulation" and "customers," which may have additional implications for the current transition from print to electronic materials in public libraries Originality/value: John Dewey's political philosophy and Carol Bacchi's policy problem representation technique have not been widely used in policy analysis by LIS researchers, and this paper offers a number of suggestions for similar public library policy investigations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has been some discussion of late, in academic library circles, surrounding the relative merits of Microlog (Micromedia-ProQuest) versus the Canadian Public Policy Collection (CPPC -- Gibson Library Connections). Microlog is a long-standing resource, with over 200,000 titles, that provides fiche copies of Canadian government documents (federal, provincial, and municipal) to subscribers. Microlog also creates the MARC records and makes them available for uploading into library catalogues. CPPC is an online collection of over 22,000 think tank and policy institute reports, along with a selection of federal and provincial government documents. This paper provides a comparative analysis of Microlog and CPPC to help clarify their roles in academic library collections. This analysis considers measures of growth, coverage, and content, as well as additional features associated with each of these collections. The analysis concludes that these collections are largely distinct and tend to be more complementary than competitive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because of efforts such as large-scale book digitization projects, research libraries will increasingly be distinguished by their special and unique collections. In this paper, the authors analyze three software solutions that enable Encoded Archival Description finding aid documents and digital objects (derived from photographs, manuscripts, and other special collection items) to be published online. While several significant market and technological challenges exist, there are available solutions, both commercial and open-source, that enable libraries to publish selected digital collections and items online. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the Eliasaf Robinson Collection on Tel Aviv, Israel that is available at the Stanford University Libraries website located at http://collections.stanfod.edu/telaviv. It states that the rich collection of books, magazines, and other historical materials were acquired by the university in 2005. It notes that the collection is from the Tel Aviv native and the most prominent antiquarian bookseller Eliasaf Robinson, who assembled the materials for forty years. It also discusses the history of Tel Aviv, which is documented in the collection. Moreover, it mentions that different digitalization equipments were used for each material such as the I2S DigiBook for the manuscripts and printed ephemera, while photographs are captured in 400 pixels per inch.

The article discusses digital special collections in libraries and making these available on the Internet for researchers. The author states that special collections have become the center of most libraries and that librarians must focus on preservation, reformatting, and security. The article mentions potential complications including scarce resources, legal issues, and organizational boundaries. The article also discusses the future of special collections, the scope of digitization in research libraries, and digital curation.

An attempt is made to describe the various techniques available for evaluating a document collection in an academic library. A study is made with two engineering college libraries to establish the need for such evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]