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Network & Cluster Analysis of Departmental Libraries Used by Faculty at a Large University Library. JoAnn Jacoby Associate Professor of Library Administration and Anthropology & Sociology Subject Specialist.
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Network & Cluster Analysis of Departmental Libraries Used by Faculty at a Large University Library JoAnn Jacoby Associate Professor of Library Administration and Anthropology & Sociology Subject Specialist 7th Northumbria International Conference on Performance Measurement in Libraries & Information Services Spiers Estate, South Africa 13-16 August 2007
Setting: University of Illinois Library • Major research library – big collections (10 million vols.) & great librarians • Decentralized library system (~40 libraries) • Pressures catalyzing change • User expectations multiplying & increasingly diverse
Purpose • Map connections between departmental libraries from the users’ perspective • Gain insight into the use of the ~40 libraries by faculty across disciplines • Evaluate how the library’s structure might be changed to better serve faculty
Methods • Mined data from survey of all faculty, academic professionals & staff, 2006 <http://www.library.uiuc.edu/assessment/> • Responses to “Indicate your primary library/ (ies)” were used to create network maps and cluster trees • Respondents could choose as many libraries as they pleased
Response Rate *Distributed by a campus-mediated “massmail,” the survey was sent to 12,399 (not 13103) individuals because the headcount at the time was less than the annual maximum. The response rate was therefore slightly higher than shown.
Social Network Analysis • Seeks to reveal the patterning of people's interaction (Roger Brown 1965) • Web of social connections key to understanding individuals, groups & societies • Studies patterns in the relations social actors have with particular others(Grannis 2005) • Actors can be people, firms, nations, etc. • Relations = whether actors go to war, have sex, use a particular library, etc.
Methods • Sociomatrix = Data for each relation presented in a two-way matrix, where the rows & columns refer to the actors making up the pairs. • Format used by most network analysis software • Adjacency matrix = type of sociomatrix used for dichotomous data (presence or absence of affiliation)
Methods Setting up the matrix
Methods Two-mode affiliation network 1st mode = 1350 faculty & staff respondents 2nd mode = 47 libraries “Connections among members of one of the modes are based on linkages established through the second mode” Affiliations and Overlapping Subgroups. In Social Network Analysis: Methods and Applications. Wasserman & Faust (1994). Cambridge University Press.
Methods Setting up the adjacency matrix- Quantifies the ties for the relation in question
Network map of connections among all libraries. Lines were drawn when >5 respondents reported using both libraries. Selected nodes are shown in color.
Software Packages • International Network for Social Analysis (INSA), “Computer Programs for Social Network Analysis” <http://www.insna.org/INSNA/soft_inf.html> • Comprehensive list of programs for data conversion, network analysis, data collection & project management
Pajek • <http://vlado.fmf.uni-lj.si/pub/networks/pajek/default.htm> • Free, well-documented, Windows software
TouchGraph <http://www.touchgraph.com/> • Commercial source for software & consulting
BibApp <http://code.google.com/p/bibapp/> Maps researchers & citations 'Institutional Bibliography'
Size classes by number of connections - Used natural breaks - Basis for circle size
Results Network maps were generated showing the connections among: • individual faculty maps • specific departmental libraries • groupings of related departmental libraries
Pink – Cinema Studies, Assistant Professor Indigo - Physics, Professor Green - Agricultural Science (ACES), Academic Professional Light Blue - Spanish, Italian & Portuguese, Associate Professor
Area Studies Arts & Humanities Life Sciences Physical Sciences & Engineering
Allied Central Public Services Social Sciences Special Collections
Cluster analysis of all libraries Confirms some patterns in the network maps, but is of limited utility in identifying potential mergers
Relationships between Number of Primary Library Designations, Circulation & Web Transactions
So what? Faculty don’t come in to the library anymore…. …if they can get what they need online …..right?
Comments: Library as Place • I mostly use the library via online access…It's especially great when working at home or doing field research abroad • Remote delivery of materials is a great service…as my duties make it challenging to get onto central campus to find a book. • Your questions imply that we actually go to the library and want to interact with librarians
Comments: Library as Place • Person to person assistance can be key, especially when beginning new projects or trying to navigate through new search tools…. • It would be easier to find print journals and books if the library was open more hours… • The system of departmental libraries makes it very difficult for an interdisciplinary researcher to find and collect books s/he needs.
Research into Practice • ongoing decisions regarding the consolidation of library service points • revealing areas of potential collaboration • e.g., the author collaborated with the Applied Health Sciences Library (alx) to create a health information portal after seeing evidence of a strong shared constituency
Conclusions Network maps and cluster trees: • reveal connections and patterns in complex systems • provide a data visualization tool that can help inform library decision-making
Conclusions Could be applied to other types of data: • co-locate/bundle suites of services frequently used or highly valued by certain groups of library users • create browsing collections (virtual or tangible) based on “people who checked this out, also checked out”
