International Survey of Research University Faculty: Use of Inter-Library Loan Services

The study presents data from a survey of more than 500 international research university faculty from 50+ universities in the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK and Ireland about their use of their academic library interlibrary loan service. The study imparts data on incidence of use, extent of use, payments of fees, and satisfaction with a range of factors including speed of delivery, breadth of services, costs, and inter-library loan staff knowledge of a scholar’s field, among other factors. Survey participants also volunteered what they like most and least about their library’s inter-library loan services. In addition, the study looks at how faculty feel about article “rental services” and how they compare to traditional inter-library loan. Just a few of the reports main findings are that: • 66.87% of survey participants have used their academic library’s inter-library loan service, including 68.28% of participants in the United States, 69.23% in Canada, 67.27% of in Australia and New Zealand, and 59.49% of participants in the UK and Ireland. • Deans, department chairs, and distinguished professors are more likely than other faculty to find inter-library loan services easy to use. • 33.75% of survey participants at public colleges in the United States feel that their academic library inter-library loan staff is excellent at understanding their academic field and research needs; only 15.57% of participants in public colleges outside the United States felt the same about their library’s services.