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Dissertation Information for Loriene Roy

NAME:
- Loriene Roy

DEGREE:
- Ph.D.

DISCIPLINE:
- Library and Information Science

SCHOOL:
- University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign (USA) (1987)

ADVISORS:
- Lawrence Auld

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
- Debora Shaw
- Walter Recharde Allen
- Linda C. Smith
- Leslie Edmonds

MPACT Status: Fully Complete

Title: AN INVESTIGATION OF THE USE OF WEEDING AND DISPLAYS AS METHODS TO INCREASE THE STOCK TURNOVER RATE IN SMALL PUBLIC LIBRARIES

Abstract: An experiment was conducted in eight small public libraries in Illinois to test several techniques to increase adult circulation of books, a variation of stock turnover rate (STR) referred to as STR A/B.

Three research hypotheses were proposed. First, weeding the collection will significantly increase STR A/B reducing total holdings and increasing circulation. Second, introducing multiple displays will not significantly increase STR A/B unless weeding is also used since displays displace circulation from other areas of the collection to the displayed items. Finally, the greatest increase in STR A/B will occur when both treatments are employed simultaneously.

To test these hypotheses, one pair of libraries was weeded; 11 percent of the adult circulating book collection was placed in temporary storage. Two libraries introduced four to five displays of adult circulating books simultaneously. Both weeding and displays were organized in two libraries. The remaining two libraries served as controls and neither weeded nor used displays. The effect on STR A/B was monitored by recording library circulation and changes in library holdings.

Weeding as a single treatment resulted in an average increase in STR A/B of 9 percent. Weeding and displays together increased STR A/B 23 percent. However, analysis of variance tests indicated that differences in STR A/B among the four groups of libraries were not significant. These findings indicate that none of the experimental treatments effectively increased STR A/B. The joint use of weeding and arranging book displays did significantly increase circulation and, thus, has the potential for increasing STR A/B. Paired t-tests indicated that circulation of particular books increased when the books were placed on display but book displays in themselves did not increase total circulation.

Libraries that desire to increase the STR in their adult collection should, first, contemplate the usefulness of STR in in-house evaluation of performance. Libraries would do well to then (1) replicate and cross-validate these results by applying more stringent and continual weeding along with multiple displays and (2) explore other approaches to increasing STR.

MPACT Scores for Loriene Roy

A = 0
C = 3
A+C = 3
T = 0
G = 0
W = 0
TD = 0
TA = 0
calculated 2009-05-18 10:18:50

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