SPEC Survey Distribution
ARL gathers data from its member libraries in a variety of ways. The two most prominent methods are the annual statistical compilations conducted by the ARL Statistics and Measurement Program and the SPEC surveys. Six SPEC surveys are distributed annually to ARL member libraries via this ARL Web page. Each member library has a designated SPEC Survey Liaison who coordinates distribution of the surveys to the relevant person in the library and tracks survey responses.
2008 SPEC Surveys
SPEC Survey on Promoting the Library
Research libraries expend considerable effort to be perceived as vital to students, faculty, and research scientists. They continually promote their potential to enhance teaching and learning, to facilitate research with appropriate resources and expertise, and to gain credibility in a world that competes for the information consumer’s attention.
This survey seeks to identify how academic and research libraries are working in these promotional arenas to foster greater understanding of the critical roles they play in the lives of their constituents. It seeks to identify the purposes of promotional activities and strategies, promotional tools and techniques, samples of promotional materials, how libraries organize to do promotion, the nature of library branding campaigns, and coordination of activities and reporting structures.
This survey was designed by Brian Mathews, User Experience Librarian, Georgia Tech, and Jill Stover, Undergraduate Services Coordinator, Virginia Commonwealth University.
Survey posted January 28, 2008.
This survey is now closed.
SPEC Survey on Records Management
Records management is the field of management responsible for efficient and systematic control of the creation, receipt, maintenance, use, and disposition of the records of a business or organization. Not all academic or research institutions have a records management program.
This survey seeks to identify which ARL member institutions have a records management program and where records management is placed in the administrative structure of the institution. If there is a program and it is administered by a library, the survey explores what staff administer the program, what services are offered to institution clientele, where records are physically housed, etc.
This survey was designed by Clark Center, Jr., Curator, W.S. Hoole Special Collections Library, University of Alabama.
Survey posted February 4, 2008.
This survey is now closed.
SPEC Survey on Social Software in Libraries
In the last few years the use of social software has grown rapidly. Many who write about
online social software emphasize the community of such sites, where users mingle for social,
political, or research purposes, creating and sharing information or just having fun. These sites “allow individuals to present themselves, articulate
their social networks, and establish or maintain connections with others.”
For this study social software is broadly defined as software that enables people to connect
with one another online. This includes, but is not limited to, ten types of applications: 1)
social networking sites; 2) media sharing sites; 3) social bookmarking or social tagging sites; 4) wikis; 5) blogs; 6) sites that use RSS (Really Simple Syndication) to syndicate and broadcast content; 7) instant messenger services; 8) VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) services; 9) virtual worlds; and 10) widgets.
This survey seeks to discover how many ARL member libraries have adopted social software; what,
why, and how are they using it; how many staff are using such software; how
activities are organized and managed; what the benefits and challenges to using social
software in libraries are; and how libraries are evaluating participation and usefulness.
This survey was designed by Matthew Bejune, Assistant Professor of Library Science, Purdue
University, and Jana Ronan, Interactive Reference Coordinator, University of Florida.
Survey posted February 19, 2008.
This survey is now closed.
SPEC Survey on Manuscript Collections on the Web
Most of those in the archival profession have heard the casual yet emphatic question from patrons, “Why isn’t this information on your Web site?” In the 1990s, simply posting hours of operation, basic policies, contact information, and a digital image or two may have been enough to keep patrons, staff, and top-level administration content. In 2008, however, this minimal information is not enough for anyone on any level. Now more than ever, staff in archival repositories feel pressure from administrators, colleagues, and patrons to increase the amount and types of information they make available on their Web sites for public consumption.
This survey investigates how many manuscript collections are held in ARL member libraries; what percentage of these collections are represented on the Web; what types of information about the collections are available in finding aids and on the Web; what formats are used for finding aids on the Web; how many library staff are working on manuscript collections, the challenges and benefits of migrating collections to the Web, and whether and how usage of manuscripts is tracked.
This survey was designed by Donnelly Lancaster, Archival Access Coordinator, W.S. Hoole Special Collections Library, University of Alabama.
Survey posted February 26, 2008.
This survey is now closed.
SPEC Survey on Graduate Student and Faculty Spaces and Services
Over the last decade, research libraries have focused increasing attention on serving the needs of the undergraduate student. In many cases, large collection areas have been converted into learning or information commons facilities—complete with vast banks of public computers, collaborative study rooms, comfortable furnishings, and relaxed noise, food, and drink regulations. Some have incorporated a wide spectrum of student-centered services, including writing centers, academic skills counselling, tutoring services, and more.
In many cases, faculty and graduate students are welcome to use these spaces and services but are not considered the primary customers. As faculty and graduate students observe these transformations, they are inspired to ask their libraries if the same attention will be turned to their needs.
Recently, ARL libraries have begun to experiment with an enriched set of spaces and services to meet the complex teaching, learning, and research needs of graduate students and faculty. Some libraries have introduced small sanctuaries (study rooms or lounges) for graduate students and faculty as distinctly separate from undergraduate spaces. Others are providing new suites of services like dissertation support, curriculum design, and learning object design. In some cases, the services are offered in collaboration with other campus units—perhaps the Faculty Development Office, the Learning Technology Office, or Campus Computing. The new services and spaces may be localized in a discrete area (sometimes called a “research commons” or “faculty commons”) or opportunistically distributed across the library system.
This survey is designed to explore the variety of resources and services being delivered or envisioned specifically for faculty and/or graduate students, the location(s) of service delivery, service point staffing, partners in service delivery, marketing of services, and assessment of the use of these spaces and services.
This survey was designed by Vivian Lewis, Associate University Librarian, Teaching, Learning, and Research, and Cathy Moulder, Director of Library Services, Maps, Data & GIS, at McMaster University.
Survey posted March 31, 2008.
This survey is now closed.
