Research on the Impact of a Computerized Circulation System on the Performance of a Large College Library

摘要

Since September 1978, Oberlin College has been studying certain performance variables which were expected to change as a result of the introduction of an automated circulation system. Four years of data collection have shown that efficiencies in production caused by automation have resulted in increased quality of service to patrons. Probably because of the Hawthorne effect, this new level of service has decreased somewhat but is still much higher than its original value. A series of attitude surveys showed that patrons respond to changes produced by automation but that these returned to original values as patrons cycled out of the student body. Patrons did not make increased use of the system even though it is easier to use.