strategic use of circulation data: moving beyond the basics
DESCRIPTION
Note: This presentation includes notes with some of the slides. Click on the "Speaker Notes" tab below the slides to see them or download the presentation to view them in PowerPoint. Tightening materials budgets and physical space constraints have intensified the focus on usage data for decision making purposes. For print books, circulation is the most trusted indicator of use. Circulation data can drive decisions about everything from acquisitions and weeding to staffing levels and hours of operation. Modern integrated library systems record and maintain a rich and detailed array of circulation data, yet decisions are often based upon only the most rudimentary measures, such as total circulation, or average circulation per volume. Taking advantage of the time and location data within circulation transactions, and combining it with demographics, acquisitions, and holdings data can provide a basis for more sophisticated analysis of book circulation that is better suited to strategic planning needs. This presentation examines some of the issues with the gathering and analysis of circulation data and also looks at different ways to measure circulation. It includes examples of time series and ratio analysis that can be applied to circulation data, and how the data and analysis can be used for decision making.TRANSCRIPT
Strategic Use of Circulation Data
Moving Beyond the Basics
Richard EntlichCollection AnalystCornell University Library
Charleston Conference, November 3, 2011
Value of Circulation Data in Collection Management
• Recognized many years ago• First proposed as a means to
help cope with overcrowded stacks
• Move little used materials to remote storage facility
Photo credit: zsrlibrary http://www.flickr.com/photos/zsrlibrary/5352092180
Quotes from an Early Proponent of the Strategic Use of Circulation Data
“Completeness can no longer be the ideal of any library.”
“All signs indicate that the flood of printed material has by no means reached its height.”
“It is not a good use of the educational resources of an institution to enlarge its library building to make new space for books in use, when books that are very seldom used can be stored in inexpensive buildings on cheap land.”
Source
Charles William Eliot (President of Harvard University)
“The Division of a Library into Books in Use, and Books Not in Use, with Different Storage Methods for the Two Classes of Books.”
Library Journal 27, no. 7:51-56, 1902
More Wisdom from Charles Eliot
“The means of just discrimination between books in use and books not in use are not easy to discern or to apply; but I maintain, nevertheless, that the search for these means should be diligently prosecuted, and that every reasonable suggestion of means of discrimination deserves careful attention.”
What is use and how do we measure it?• We recognize two common classes of use for print
materials• In-building use (“browsing”) • Out of building use (“circulation”)
Photo credit: zenobia_joy http://www.flickr.com/photos/sekihan/6255392036/
Photo credit: Brendan Murphy http://www.flickr.com/photos/29501884@N04/4552647815/
Browsing
• Evidence of browsing may be hard to detect• As an activity, it is difficult to measure accurately and
consistently• Measurement of browsing, if done at all, can vary
widely, even between libraries within an institution or in the same library over time
Circulation
• The “gold standard” for measuring use of books• It too suffers from a lack of standardization
• What transactions are included? (e.g., ILL)• What are loan periods for different user groups and
materials?• What materials don’t circulate at all?• Is there a limit on renewals?
See “A Look at Circulation Statistics” by Jeff Luzius Journal of Access Services, Vol. 2(4) 2004, pp.15-22
Measuring Use of Books: The Bottom Line
• Circulation is the best measure we have, though it has limitations
• There is some evidence that circulation and browsing are well-correlated
• Comparing circulation between institutions may be of little value, except in the broadest terms
• Comparing circulation within an institution should be meaningful, as long as policies and procedures are fairly consistent across units and over time
A Challenge from Charleston Past• QUESTIONS FOR LIBRARIANS WHO DO
COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT• Do you get or use any circulation data in making
decisions about what books to buy?• If you do get circulation data, does it specifically
pinpoint what's happening in your subject area?• Do you have circulation data time series for your
subject(s)?• Do you see any need for this information?
(From Charles Hamaker, Charleston Conf., 1994)
More Wisdom from Charles Hamaker
“We somehow assume the circulation librarian is ‘responsible’ for circulation data. Few of us have figured out how to use these [automated library systems] to see if they can help us make better decisions about what to buy, or even to see if they tell us what kind of a job we have done with what we did buy.”
Other Potential Strategic Applications of Circulation Data
• For what titles should we buy multiple copies?• What materials should be owned vs borrowed vs
rented?• What loan policies and periods should apply to what
materials?• In what library building should certain materials be
housed?
Current Challenges Facing Libraries Suggest We Must Adopt a More Quantitative Approach
• Increased scrutiny of library budgets and demands for accountability
• Widening gap between the universe of published output and collection budgets
• Physical space constraints• The shift from speculative (“just-in-case”) to demand-
driven (“just-in-time”) acquisitions
Early Generation Library Automation Systems
• Browse and circulation totals at the title level• No individual transaction data• Transactions were not date and time stamped• Little or no user data• Inability to distinguish internal library use or ILL from
community use• Limited management reporting capability, often
requiring advanced programming skills
Recent Generation Library Automation Systems
• Detailed circulation transaction records retained• Time/location of all charges and discharges• Patron groups (distinguish ‘pseudo-patrons’)• Renewal counts
• More flexible (though not necessarily easy to use) reporting functions
Basic Data Requirements for Circulation Analysis
1. A set of bibliographic data pertaining to print monographs owned by the library, usually subject to certain selection criteria
2. The set of circulation transactions that correspond to the items in set one
Caveats: Bibliographic Records
• Limited to books?• Limited to print?• When first available to circulate?• Part of a circulating collection?• Lost or withdrawn?• Do records support analysis?
Caveats: Circulation Records
• Completed vs in process transactions• Variable loan periods, esp. short-term reserves• What to do about renewals?• Identification of ‘pseudo-patron’ transactions• Handling of ILL transactions
“Beyond Basic” Circulation Analysis
• Trend or Time Series Analysis
• Ratio Analysis
• Integration of non-ILS data
Time Series Study: Time to First Circulation
• Basic Recipe• Gather data on a set of books acquired in a similar time
frame• Gather circulation records for the above set• Isolate the set of first circulations for each• Compute time (in months) from acquisition to first circulation• Analyze as desired
Photo credit: Patrick Gage Kelley http://www.flickr.com/photos/sekihan/6255392036/
LC Top Class - DescriptionAvg Months to First Circ
Total Items
A - General Works 43.4 57V - Naval Science 43.2 60Z - Library Science 33.8 300C - Auxiliary Sciences of History 33.2 299F - History: United States Local and Latin America 32.8 814D - History: General and Outside the Americas 32.5 4459K - Law 32.3 1524B - Philosophy, Psychology, Religion 30.4 3859U - Military Science 28.6 280P - Language and Literature 28.6 8135N - Fine Arts 27.5 2585J - Political Science 25.5 1214M - Music 23.7 750G - Geography 23.2 1134H - Social Sciences 22.3 7138L - Education 21.9 718E - History: United States 21.0 925R - Medicine 18.8 1059S - Agriculture 18.3 1012T - Technology 18.2 1967Q - Science 15.7 3169
Time Series Study: Cumulative Volume Circulation
• Recipe• Gather data on a set of books acquired in a similar time
frame• Gather circulation records for the above set• Isolate the set of first circulations for each• Count the number of first circulations for each year• Calculate cumulative totals for each year• Analyze as desired
Source: Use of Library Materials: The University of Pittsburgh Study by Kent, et al. 1979
Time Series Study: Circulation Consistency
• Recipe• Gather data on a set of books acquired in a similar time
frame• Gather circulation records for the above set• Group records by year of circulation• Cross tabulate desired parameters
ITEM_IDLC Top Class 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Total Circ Years
5952322 K 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 15952325 K 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 15952328 K 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 15952337 G 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 25952339 N 1 1 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 65952341 Q 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 15952345 H 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 25952346 N 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 THE FLASH IN THE PAN5952350 E 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 45952354 H 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 25952357 E 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 35952369 P 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 15952373 H 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 10 THE STEADY PERFORMER5952375 H 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 45952380 P 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 25952383 B 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 15952384 Q 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 65952385 Q 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 15952386 P 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 25952422 P 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 15952423 P 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 25952424 B 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 2 THE LATE BLOOMER5952433 H 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 15952437 K 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 15952438 L 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 65952445 B 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 95955982 H 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 4 THE COMEBACK KID
LC Top Class - DescriptionAverage of Circ Years
Total Items
Q - Science 3.58 3169S - Agriculture 3.48 1012E - History: United States 3.25 925G - Geography 3.18 1134M - Music 3.09 750R - Medicine 3.08 1059T - Technology 3.06 1967N - Fine Arts 3.04 2585J - Political Science 2.95 1214H - Social Sciences 2.86 7138L - Education 2.80 718P - Language and Literature 2.75 8135B - Philosophy, Psychology, Religion 2.57 3859F - History: United States Local and Latin America 2.46 814C - Auxiliary Sciences of History 2.37 299D - History: General and Outside the Americas 2.28 4459Z - Library Science 2.23 300U - Military Science 2.21 280A - General Works 2.19 57K - Law 2.09 1524V - Naval Science 1.77 60
Ratio Analysis: Circulation by Language• From a study of historical circulation of books in a
particular LC subclass, by language• At first glance, the data doesn’t seem very dramatic
Language Holdings Total Circ
No. of Volumes that Circulated
% of Historical Circulation
% of Volume Circulation
English 7417 38974 5637 95.6% 86.1%French 1055 840 369 2.1% 5.6%German 1018 468 262 1.1% 4.0%Russian 772 79 56 0.2% 0.9%Spanish 481 180 96 0.4% 1.5%Italian 171 67 40 0.2% 0.6%Portuguese 98 46 25 0.1% 0.4%Greek 49 40 22 0.1% 0.3%
French German Russian Spanish Italian Portuguese Greek Total0.0%
0.5%
1.0%
1.5%
2.0%
2.5%
% of Historical Circulation for non-English Volumes with the Largest Holdings
French German Russian Spanish Italian Portuguese Greek0.0%
1.0%
2.0%
3.0%
4.0%
5.0%
6.0%
% of Volume Circulation for non-English Volumes with the Largest Holdings
Whether plotted as historicalor volume circulation, severallanguages show similar levelsof use, relative to the whole.
But the ratios tell a different story:An “Enthusiasm Gap”
Language%Holdings / %HistoricalCirc
%Holdings / %VolumeCirc
French 4.50 1.65German 7.80 2.24Russian 35.05 7.94Spanish 9.58 2.89Italian 9.15 2.46Portuguese 7.64 2.26Greek 4.39 1.28
French German Russian Spanish Italian Portuguese Greek0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
% Holdings to % Total Circulation Ratio for non-English Volumes with the Largest Holdings
French German Russian Spanish Italian Portuguese Greek0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
% Holdings to % Volume Circulation Ratio for non-English Volumes with the Largest Holdings
External Data: “Circulation Snapshot”• A frozen moment in a
continuous stream of data
• Combines ILS data with human resources data for a much richer demographic analysis of users• Profiles the users of print• Identifies relationships between users and materials
• impact of characteristics like status, department, field of study, and college affiliation on borrowing habits
• breakdown of subjects, languages, dates of publication by user groups
Photo credit: jeff_golden http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeffanddayna/5067383625/
Some Strategic Applications of Snapshot Data• For Unit Library Review process
• From which depts/fields do borrowers of libraries come?• Which libraries do members of affiliated depts/fields use?
• For Print Collection Usage Task Force review process• LC class user analysis by department and graduate field• Department/grad field usage breakdown by LC class• Circulation time and renewals by patron status
• Other potential uses• User breakdown by publication date (for off-site transfer
decision-making)• Inform individual subject selectors about usage in their
domain
For a detailed description of the circulation snapshot process and its use, see
Richard Entlich, “Focus on Circulation Snapshots: A Powerful Tool for Print Collection Assessment” in
Proceedings of the 2010 Library Assessment Conference, October 24–27, 2010, Baltimore, Maryland, pp. 703-13.
http://libraryassessment.org/bm~doc/proceedings-lac-2010.pdf