Transaction Reference Sampling Results: Spring 2007
The charts below are an analysis of the reference transaction sampling results collected during Spring 2007.
Total Spring Transactions by Year
Architecture Art Chemistry EPSL Hornbake McKeldin Nonprint PAL Shady Grove Ask-A-Librarian (A-A-L) Totals without A-A-L TOTALS 2006 4 57 48 1034 237 2237 817 224 186 Not tracked 4844 4844 2007 60 43 586 225 1904 882 220 169 196 4089 4285
Analysis: This was the first spring that Ask-A-Librarian transactions were included in the reference transaction sampling. Total reported transactions for Spring 2007 showed a 15.6% decline from Spring 2006. This decline may have been due in part to a decline in library staff participation, i.e. fewer reference transaction sampling sheets were turned in during the Spring 2007 semester. In Spring 2006, 66.0% of sampling sheets were turned in. In Spring 2007, the number of returned sheets decreased to 58.4%, despite the addition of Ask-A-Librarian. All libraries showed a reduction in reported reference transactions except for the Art Library and Nonprint Media Services, which had slight increases. The most dramatic decline in reported transactions was at the Engineering and Physical Sciences Library, which decreased by 43.3%. A comparison the for Architecture Library could not be made, as no data was received by MIS.
Spring Average by Day
2006 Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday 422 442 398.5 436.5 308 217.5 197.5 2007 (without Ask-A-Librarian) 353.5 424 361.5 297 281.5 183 144 2007 (with Ask-A-Librarian) 369.5 445 378 315.5 299 189 146.5
Analysis: The average number of daily transactions declined for all days of the week. The largest decrease (40.0%) was on Thursdays. Tuesdays remained the day with the highest number of reference transactions, while Sunday continues to see the lowest count. The preceding comparisons exclude the newly-added Ask-ALibrarian transactions; however, these were distributed fairly evenly across all days of the week, with no significant...