The purpose of this paper is to describe how online survey tools can be utilized to gather input and feedback from faculty related to monographic collection decisions to evaluate current and guide future decision making.
The use of an online survey tool for a particular collection development project is described and results of the survey are analyzed.
It is found that online survey tools are an easy and valuable tool for gathering direct feedback from faculty and provide opportunities to engage faculty in conversations about a wide range of scholarly communications issues.
Online survey tools provide one means of evaluating collection development decisions that should be utilized in conjunction with other methodologies, e.g. circulation studies. Online survey tools can be utilized to allow faculty to recommend items for immediate purchase but could also be used to study faculty reactions to purchases that have already been made.
The process and procedure outlined could be used by collection development librarians to evaluate current and historic collection development decisions.
