In 2020, ARL committed to revising the LibQUAL survey instrument to enhance the user experience, decrease response time and burden, and address longstanding feedback about elements of the survey that customers and users found confusing. After completing its assessment, the ARL team recommended several revisions. Some of these changes include:
- Testing a new software platform for administering the survey for a modernized user experience
- Simplifying the triple-Likert response scales from three to two to reflect how many customers already use LibQUAL data
- Modifying the response scales to represent “importance” and “performance”
- Retaining the most valued and used questions in the survey
- Clarifying language where ambiguities existed
- Updating language to reflect contemporary library services
- Increasing structural consistency by treating questions related to Information Literacy as its own dimension and renaming it to “Skills Development”
- Moving the branch library question before the core questions so responses could be better associated to a specific branch, making the data more actionable
- Adding demographic questions and expanding response options to allow segmented analysis by demographic factors, helping libraries better understand experiences and needs of specific groups
- Adding more open-ended comment boxes for increased specificity of users’ comments and opportunity for more specific, qualitative analysis
- Adding survey logic so only questions relevant to each user are presented
Through user testing and two pilot LibQUAL engagements in two countries, the ARL team found that the recommended changes to the LibQUAL survey substantially lowered response times while still retaining the value of the dimensions and the core questions. Surveys that take longer to complete increase cognitive load and user fatigue, reducing data reliability and completion rates. By reducing nonresponse bias, ARL can offer survey brevity while maintaining or improving statistical rigor.
Overall, the revised LibQUAL instrument met our goals in that it is:
- An updated instrument that addresses libraries’ evolved needs.
- Easier for users to take the survey.
- Easier for customers to understand, use, and share results.
Settings for the two pilot engagements included one US-based university library, and one university library outside of the US. Both pilot partners expressed satisfaction with their experience and that they would run the refreshed LibQUAL survey again. The revised LibQUAL survey provided pilot partners with data that they found valid and useful and helped answer their questions about user satisfaction.
ARL is pleased to share these updates with the library assessment community, and encourages any feedback that could be helpful as we look toward implementation. Below you can see a list of selected revisions that will appear in the revised version of the LibQUAL instrument. Please email libqual@arl.org for more information.
Changes to Dimension Names
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Changes to Response Scales
Response scales were changed from three to two by removing the Minimum Service Level scale. The Desired Service Level was changed to Importance by asking How important is this to...
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Changes to Survey Questions
The comparison tables below show the current questions and the revised questions to be included in the revised instrument. The questions are organized by dimension and category. Library Use LibQUAL...
