It’s great to see other librarians advocating for the same causes I harp on in this blog. I’m referring to Sarah Robbins, Debra Engel, and Christina Kulp of the University of Oklahoma, whose article appears in the current issue of College & Research Libraries. The article, entitled “How Unique Are Our Users?”1 warns against the [...]
Posts Tagged ‘survey research’
Data Are Not Psychic
Posted in Measurement, Research, Statistics, tagged external validity, generalizability, inferential statistics, perceptions of library users, statistical significance testing, survey research on November 28, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
How Do You Know That?
Posted in Measurement, Research, Statistics, tagged inferential statistics, information literacy, sampling error, statistical significance testing, survey research, vetting information on August 23, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
I borrowed the title for this entry from a 2009 study of student research practices by Randall McClure and Kellian Clink. Their study is cited in an article in the current issue of College & Research Libraries that Joe Matthews brought to my attention. This article is Students Use More Books After Library Instruction by [...]
Stranger Than Fiction
Posted in Research, Statistics, tagged confidence intervals, generalizability of findings, margin of error, sampling, survey research on March 16, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
I proceed with this little essay with some trepidation due to the topic I’ve chosen: the idea of margins of error in survey research. By “survey research” I mean such things as political polls, public opinion surveys, market research, and so on. Right up front I can share my conclusion with you. The common understanding [...]
Poor WebJunction Survey Design Makes Findings Pretty Much Useless
Posted in Measurement, Research, tagged generalizability of findings, library evaluation, survey research, training assessment on April 22, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
This week I noticed that WebJunction is conducting a survey entitled “Technology Competencies Evaluation.” I think this must be a sequel to a survey I saw there last month about “management core competencies.” While the surveys are probably marketing research for WebJunction’s e-learning product line, the researchers say they want to use the data to “establish [...]
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IMLS- Blog Post: You just never know who’s going to drop by the IMLS booth in the exhibit hall! February 10, 2012
- IMLS to Hold Briefing on FY13 Budget Request February 8, 2012
- State Library Agencies Continue to Provide Valuable Services Despite Severe Cuts in Funding and Staff February 6, 2012
- Blog Post: IMLS on YouTube: National Aquarium Teaches with Watershed Moments February 3, 2012
- Application Deadline Extended: National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Awards February 1, 2012
- February 2012: Tubman African American Museum Takes Exhibits Beyond Museum Walls February 1, 2012
