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Dissertation Information for Barbara Kasper

NAME:
- Barbara Kasper

DEGREE:
- Ph.D.

DISCIPLINE:
- Library and Information Science

SCHOOL:
- Indiana University (USA) (1985)

ADVISORS:
- David Kaser

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
- Margaret R. Sheviak
- Ivor Davies
- Shirley A. Fitzgibbons

MPACT Status: Fully Complete

Title: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF PUBLIC LIBRARY SERVICE TO CHILDREN IN INDIANA DURING THE 1970S

Abstract: As numerous studies in the field of librarianship have indicated, children are significant users of public libraries. Based upon selected 1964 American Library Association standards for children, this study collected from all Indiana public libraries the data necessary for the first assessment of library services to children in Indiana. A questionnaire was distributed in the fall of 1979 to Indiana public library directors in 238 different systems (87 percent return rate) requesting 1978 data in children's services. Adult library service data for 1978 and socioeconomic data from the 1970 United States Census were also gathered for each library community in Indiana. The three major units of analysis (children's services, socioeconomic conditions, and adult services) were reported as ordinal data using descriptive statistics for the library data and Pearson's product-moment correlations coefficient (r) for the socioeconomic analysis.

The findings revealed that in those Indiana public libraries which employed professional staff to serve children, programs were conducted for them and nationally recommended activities and services were performed for them at levels almost double the statewide mean. The library data showed that in the majority of cases, if the level of service in the children's department was high, the level of service in the adult department was also high. In an examination of socioeconomic conditions in the areas of population, education, income, and employment, findings indicated that library services to children were significantly related to education and income levels. The Indiana findings on children's services were also compared with similar investigations in Wisconsin, Ohio, and Illinois.

This study of Indiana public library service to children indicated the importance of professional librarians in the performance of these services and provided benchmark data for further research in the field of public library service to children.

MPACT Scores for Barbara Kasper

A = 0
C = 0
A+C = 0
T = 0
G = 0
W = 0
TD = 0
TA = 0
calculated 2008-01-31 06:07:32

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