University of Guelph Library
You need to be aware of the following:
- Your participaton in this web survey is entirely voluntary.
- You will be indicating your consent to participate in this research project by completing the survey.
- Your decision not to participate, complete or submit the survey will not result in any penalty or loss of rights or benefits at the University of Guelph.
- The survey asks you to "Please answer all items". However, you are not required to do so, and you may refrain from answering any question. If you deem the item is not applicable to you and has a "NA" response option, please use that response option rather than not answering the question.
- Information for questions you have may be found on our FAQ page. If you have difficulty determining your area of specialization in the "Discipline" list of the Demographic section of the survey, please consult the FAQ page.
- Upon completion of the survey, you will have an opportunity to submit contact information in a separate database for the explicit purpose of a random draw for incentive prizes. ONLY EMAIL ADDRESSES ISSUED FROM THE University of Guelph OR ITS Regional Campuses ARE ELIGIBLE
- Survey response data will be collected on a secure web server at the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) and saved separately from any personally identifiable information such as E-mail or IP-address.
- UofG will only receive anonymous survey results from ARL, (i.e. all personal identification data will have been removed).
- Verbatim anonymous open-text comments will be supplied to UofG by ARL.
- Analyses and reporting will be at the aggregate or group level (e.g. faculty, staff, graduate student and undergraduate).
- The anonymous data sets supplied to UofG by ARL will be preserved locally on a UofG Library staff server with restricted access to enable comparisons with previous and future LibQUAL+ results.
- The aggregated results of this survey will be posted for viewing at the UofG Library website. We will communicate the internet site reference link when available on the UofG Library home page.
- This survey is a research project being conducted by the UofG Library and it has received clearance by the UofG Research Ethics Board (REB). If you have any questions regarding your rights as a research subject, you may contact the UofG REB at 519-824-4120 x56606 or sauld@uoguelph.ca.
- If you have questions regarding this study, you may contact the investigators at the contact information listed above, or by email to libqual@uoguelph.ca.
Purpose of the study and how long it will last:
This evaluation is being undertaken to seek feedback from library users on their perceptions and expectations for services provided by the University of Guelph Library. Invited participants may complete the web-based survey and submit their responses between February 1st and February 28th, 2010. Completion of the survey should take less than 15 minutes, assuming a normal computer environment and internet access.
Description of the study including the procedures to be used:
LibQUAL+ is a web-based survey developed by the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) to assess quality of library services. The University of Guelph has used this survey every two or three years since 2001.
The survey consists of 45 questions. Specifically, there are:
- 27 questions to rate library services and functions on three dimensions (minimum, perceived and desired service levels) using nine-point rating scales
- 8 questions to rate satisfaction and outcomes using a single nine point rating scale
- 3 questions to assess the respondent's library usage patterns
- 5 demographic questions
- A box for any additional user comments
- A box to enter your University of Guelph or Regional Campus E-mail address for our incentive prize draw. Only use your uoguelph.ca email address. Any other email suffix will not be eligible for the prize draw.
Incentive prizes will be drawn from participants submitting their uoguelph.ca email contact information at the end of the survey. Three (3) iPod Touch devices (8GB), valued at $200, will be awarded. We estimate the chances of winning a prize will be approximately 1 in 800.
Description of the risks to participants:
There are no procedures or elements of this survey that have been identified as potential or foreseeable risks for participants.
Benefits to participants or others:
Information from this study will enable the UofG Library to better understand user needs, system demands and utilization patterns. These data will be used to assist planning and development of service enhancements. Whether or not you will benefit directly from the findings is not predictable, but we trust that you will receive some future benefit from LibQUAL+ results during your terms at UofG.
The UofG results will also be compared with those from comparable institutions across Ontario, Canada and globally. Participation in LibQUAL+ promotes these goals:
- Fostering a culture of excellence in providing library service.
- Helping the Library understand user perceptions of library services and facilities.
- Assisting the Library to interpret the impact of changes over time.
- Providing libraries with comparable assessment information from peer institutions.
- Identifying, soliciting and sharing best practices in library service with peer institutions.
You may wish to print this Information Letter for your records.
Thank you in advance for your consideration, time and effort in participating in this research.