Dissertation Information for David Ernest Gleim NAME: - David Ernest Gleim
DEGREE:
- Ph.D.
DISCIPLINE:
- Library and Information Science
SCHOOL:
- University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill (USA) (1992)
ADVISORS: - William M. Shaw Jr.
COMMITTEE MEMBERS: - Robert N. Broadus - Joe A. Hewitt - Paul Metz - Jerry Dale Saye
MPACT Status: Fully Complete
Title: The relationship between cataloging delay and the circulation of books at a large research library
Abstract: The literature of librarianship contains ample speculation but few empirical studies about the detrimental relationship between the time a book spends in an arrearage and its usefulness once cataloged. This dissertation tested the relationship with a diachronous book use study of a 3000-item sample of monographs cataloged in the fall of 1979 at Davis Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The independent variable was time in an arrearage, measured in terms of cataloging delay, i.e., the difference between the time an item was acquired and the time it was cataloged and made available for use. Cataloging delay was categorized at brief, moderate, and lengthy levels. The dependent variable was external circulation, measured over an interval of eight years. Also measured were language, subject, and the delay between publication date and receipt (acquisition delay).
The relationship between the independent and dependent variables was tested in two hypotheses. The first hypothesis in its null form predicted no relationship between cataloging delay and circulation. The ANOVA results indicated the null hypothesis was rejected when the extraneous variables were not controlled. It was also rejected for books in English (but not in non-English); English-language books with brief acquisition delay (but not lengthy); and English-language books in the social sciences (but not in history and in humanities).
Linear and exponential models of obsolescence were fitted to distributions of circulation over time and compared with a Box-Cox test. The second hypothesis in its null form predicted an equally appropriate fit for the two models. It was rejected for the brief cataloging delay distribution (in preference for the exponential model) but not rejected for the distributions for moderate and lengthy delay.
The conclusion included discussions of the analogous relationship to circulation of times before and after cataloging; alternative models of obsolescence; and the implications of applying the results to decision-making in research library technical services.
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MPACT Scores for David Ernest Gleim A = 0
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calculated 2008-01-31 06:20:18
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