Don’t Fear the Reader: Librarian versus Interlibrary Loan Patron-Driven Acquisition of Print Books at an Academic Library by Relative Collecting Level and by Library of Congress Classes and Subclasses

Authors

David C. Tyler, University of Nebraska - LincolnFollow
Joyce C. Melvin, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
MaryLou Epp, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Anita M. Kreps, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow

ORCID IDs

David C. Tyler

Date of this Version

9-2014

Citation

College & Research Libraries 75:5 (September 2014), pp. 684-704.
doi:10.5860/crl.75.5.684

Comments

©2014 David C. Tyler, Joyce C. Melvin, MaryLou Epp, and Anita M. Kreps

CC-BY-NC licensed

Abstract

Recently, a great deal of literature on patron-driven acquisition (PDA) has been published that addresses the implementation and results of PDA programs at academic libraries. However, despite widespread worries that PDA will lead to unbalanced collections, little attention has been paid to whether patrons’ and librarians’ purchasing differ significantly. This study analyzes librarians’ and PDA patrons’ acquisitions at an academic library by relative collecting level and by subject (that is, Library of Congress class and subclass) to determine whether concern over patrons’ collecting are warranted.