- Email: [email protected]
Price of materials and collection development in larger public libraries
Pergamon
Library Acquisitions: Practice & ~ , VoL 19, No. 3, pp. 299-312, 1995 Copyright O 1995 El~vier Science Ltd Print~lin the USA. All rights ~acrv¢~l 0364-6408/95 $9.50 + .00
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PRICE OF MATERIALS AND COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT IN LARGER PUBLIC LIBRARIES WILLIAM C. ROBINSON Associate Professor Graduate School of Library & Information Science University of Tennessee Knoxville, TN 37996-4330 Internet: wrobinso @utkvx.utk.e~lu
Abstract - - Questionnaires were sent to public library systems in the 200 largest cities in the United States to learn more about the role of price in the selection of materials. A 34 percent response rate yielded 67 usable responses. When ranked on a scale from 1 to 7, with 7 being least important, list price had a median ranking of 5, while likely community demand was ranked I. When faced with price increases, these collection developers tended to select fewer duplicates, fewer periodical and annual publications, and fewer nonbook items. About 26 percent of those responding had adopted an informal or formal price ceiling for selections. About 66 percent of these librarians were likely be more price conscious when selecting nonbook items. Price ceilings for categories and formats are discussed. Keywords - - Public libraries, Price, Collection development
INTRODUCTION Providing the right item for the right person at the right time at the right price has become much more difficult with the large number of selections available to the public library selector, including newer formats such as CD-ROM products. At the same time, the price of materials continues to increase much faster than the collection development budgets of most public libraries. As St. Lifer and Rogers report in Library Journal's third annual budget report: '°The threats to materials budgets continue to challenge public librarians to keep pace with inflation and rising materials costs."[1] This report also noted that circulation increased more rapidly than materials budgets. In their fourth annual budget report, the authors note again that "external circumstances - - eroding tax bases, continued economic slumps, a reprioritizing of funds away from libraries - have altered public libraries' budgetary landscape."[2] 299
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The purpose of this research was to learn more about the importance of price in collection development in larger public libraries. Larger libraries were selected because of their visibility and potential impact upon public library collection development practice. In particular, there was interest in the degree to which collection developers in this environment had reacted to price increases by adopting price ceilings to eliminate unreasonably priced items from selection consideration. This is descriptive research. Little attempt was made to relate attitudes and perceptions about price to potential causal variables except to see if libraries with smaller collection development budgets responded differently from those with larger budgets and to see if libraries with formal or informal price ceilings responded differently.
LITERATURE REVIEW The public librarian seeking information on the role that price plays in the collection development process is not likely to fred helpful literature. Statistics on book prices are available and have been with us for several years. Library Journal periodically publishes statistics on book prices that show that the price of books typically increases more rapidly than inflation [3]. Publishers Weeklyhas long produced both news reports and an annual review of book prices [4]. For example, in 1992, the average hardcover book had a mean price of $45.74, and the average hardcover under $81 category had a mean price of $33.55. Trade paperbacks averaged $18.81 and mass market paperbacks $5.22 [5]. Other articles, such as Lynden's, discuss price indexes and the need for research on the cost of library material [6]. Robinson has written on the per page price of popular fiction and nonfiction [7]. However, statistics such as these have not been related to the purchase decisions of librarians. Why prices are so high is a topic that has received some attention in the literature. However, articles on this topic tend to be descriptive, and sometimes highly anecdotal. From time to time, thoughtful articles, often in Scholarly Publishing, answer the question "Why are book prices so high?" Bohne and Levant have written responses from the viewpoint of the scholarly publisher [8]. Boissonnas and Eaglen discuss the issues related to vendor pricing of books with an emphasis on discounts [9]. Wall has shown how publishers take advantage of libraries through price-gouging techniques [10]. Scilkin has commented on the importance of the net price of the book (after considering the discount), the net per-page cost of the book, and price gouging via short-discount library bindings [11]. While some of these articles discuss strategies that libraries might use in coping with high prices, they do not deal with the question of how the librarian deals with high prices. A variety of news items regularly appear in the literature on public library budgetary problems and these provide some information on the ability of the public library to cope with increasing prices. For example, a note in Library Journal reported that in 1993 California public library book budgets were reduced by 25 percent [12]. Library Journal also issues an annual summary budget report for public libraries. Of the 227 responding libraries in the 1993 survey, 46 percent had increased materials budgets in 1992/1993, 31 percent had a decreased materials budget, and 23 percent had a budget that remained the same [13]. The 1994 LJ budget report makes this important point: Although the 1990 and 1991 fiscal years of draconian budgets cuts are behind us - - Californianotwithstanding - - the big, budgetaryhomerun is now a rarity.Many libraries- - althoughstill gropingand thrashing for a secure financialtoehold- - would be surprised to learn they are in the embryonicstages of a fiscal turnaround, as evidencedby LJ~ latest statistics.[14] In this 1994 report, statistics are available by size of library. Libraries serving populations of fewer than 50,000 experienced a materials budget increase of 7 percent from 1992/1993 to
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1993/1994. This compares with a 5 percent increase for libraries serving 50,000-99,999 and a decline of 1 percent for libraries serving 100,000 or more - - the largest metropolitan public libraries. The decline for the largest public libraries relates directly to this study. In summary, while useful information is available on the price of materials, on why material prices are high, and on the materials budgets of libraries, no literature was found that specifically discussed public library collection developer's attitudes toward price and price ceilings.
METHOD The questionnaire used in this study is attached (Appendix A). Copies were sent to public libraries in the 200 largest U.S. cities according to the 1990 U.S. Census rankings from the 1993 Information Please Almanac [15]. The American Library Directory was then used to identify the public library or public library system for each city. Of the 200 questionnaires mailed in November 1993, 67 usable responses were received for a response rate of about 34 percent. Questionnaire responses were coded, entered into a machine-readable file, and analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences [SPSS; SPSS, Inc., Chicago, ILl. Originally, this study was to compare price ceilings proposed by public library selectors with the mean price of books in various categories and of media formats as reported in Publisher's Weekly and the Bowker Annual. However, the time lag involved in the Bowker data, the difference in categories, and concern about appropriateness (prices for all books in the American Book Publishing Record include many rifles not appropriate for public libraries) of these measures for public libraries resulted in a decision to use minimal Bowker data. In general, the Bowker mean prices are substantially higher than the price ceilings proposed by the respondents. For example, the Bowker mean price [1992 data] for CD-ROM materials is $1,061.00, while the mean proposed ceiling is $394.00 [16]. Lorna Truck, at the Public Library of Des Moines, reported that the invoices for videocassettes at her library averaged about 10 percent of the Bowker mean price because of the different mix of rifles purchased, primarily mass-market videos [17].
FINDINGS Selection Values Public librarians were asked to rank several values often mentioned as important in making selection decisions. Table 1 lists these values and their rankings. Likely community demand and review attention were the selection values ranked highest. While price was not ranked the lowest - - publisher reputation and format were ranked lower - clearly price is not a primary concern in making selection decisions.
Reaction to Price Increases Respondents were asked how price increases affected their selection decisions. Table 2 summarizes these responses. When faced with price increases, these public librarian collection developers react by selecting fewer duplicates (periodicals, annuals, and cloth books), fewer serial publications, and fewer items in nonprint formats. The format receiving more selection attention when prices increase is the trade paper book. To a lesser extent, leased books and mass-market paper books are also popular ways of providing more material for the dollar.
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TABLE 1 Ranked List o f Selection Values Value Likely community demand Review attention Subject Author reputation List price Publisher reputation Format
Mean
Median
Mode
Range
1.6 2.2 2.9 3.7 5.1
1 2 3 4 5
1 2 3 4 5
5.8
6
7
6
6
7
2-7 1-7 1-6 1-7 2-7 3-7 3-7
Rejection of Suitable Items W h e n asked i f they had, within the last six months, rejected an otherwise suitable item because the price was unreasonable, most librarians said "yes." Table 3 summarizes these responses. Videotape was the format most likely to be rejected because the price was too high. The cloth b o o k and the p e r i o d i c a l were the other two formats where suitable items were often rejected because o f unreasonable prices. The mass- market paper b o o k was the category in which librarians were least likely to reject a suitable item based on price.
Selecting Nonbook Items Collection developers were asked i f they were m o r e likely to be price conscious when selecting nonbook items. Slightly more than a third said "no" - - that they were no more price conscious for these items. A b o u t 32 percent were slightly more price conscious, 20 percent were somewhat more
TABLE 2 Impact o f Price Increases on Selecting by F o r m a t Format Cloth books Cloth duplicate titles Trade paper books Mass market paper books [,eased books Periodicals Periodical duplicate titles Annual publications Annual duplicates Videotape Audiotape CD music CD-ROM Microformats Binding
Select less (%) 37 75 5 10 48 85 53 79 41 41 42 38 36 49
Select same (%) Select mote (%) 64 23 47 72 60 53 15 47 21 57 55 57 53 42 30
2 53 21 27
2 7 3 19
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TABLE 3 Rejection of Suitable Material Because of Price Format Cloth book Cloth duplicatebook Tradepaperbook Mass marketpaperbook Leasedbook Periodical Periodicalduplicate Annual publication Annual duplicate Videotapes Audiotapes CD Music CD-ROM Microformats Binding
% RejectingSuitableItems 69 59 22 8 21 69 51 60 51
72 37 27 50 21 14
price conscious, and 12 percent were substantially more price conscious. This suggests that almost two-thirds of those who responded were at least slightly more price conscious when selecting nonbook materials.
Price Ceilings One way to deal with expensive material is to set a price ceiling or a price threshold. A price ceiling is a price point that marks the end of acceptable prices. An item that costs more than this amount would not be purchased despite selection value. A price threshold is a price point that requires some additional rationale for the selection decision. Only 26 percent of these public librarians had adopted, either formally or informally, a price ceiling or a price threshold. In most larger pubfic libraries, no particular price eliminates an item from selection consideration. For those libraries with price ceilings or thresholds, book price ceilings were likely to be in the $75 to $100 range. Ceilings for book subject categories were most likely to be found for art, business, science, technology, and medicine. These price ceilings were in the $50-$60 range. For other formats, price ceilings were more likely to be found for video material, with $100 being the ceiling most frequently mentioned. Librarians were asked to suggest a reasonable price ceiling for each adult cloth book subject category used by Booklist. Suggested ceiling information appears in Table 4. Generally, the price range is from about $15.00 to $150.00. A few minimum values seen here seem unusual. For example, it would be difficult to purchase a cloth book on a professional concern for $3.00 or a cloth science-fiction novel for $11.00. Note that the average 1992 price for a book ranged from $45.74 for hardcover to $5.22 for a mass market paperback. The maximum values do seem quite reasonable. Reference materials are a special case, but their median ceiling of $100 is the highest. The arts, science, and technology are other categories where librarians would be willing to spend more. The lowest ceilings suggested were for popular fiction: general, mysteries, and science fiction. The $25.00 median ceiling here is quite close to the list price of many
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TABLE 4
Reasonable Price Ceilings by Cloth Book Category (in Dollars) Category
Range
Mean
Median
Adult fiction general
13-100 11-100 11-100 15-100 15-100 15-100 18-150 18-150 18-175 15-100 12-100 18-500 15-100 15-100 13-100 15-100 15-100 3-100 5-999
29.3 26.9 26.8 39.6 38.7 39.4 53.5 53.3 49.7 40 37.4 79.2 37.1 40.9 33.7 36.2 43.6 44.9 220.1
25 25 25 35 35 35 50 50 45 35 35 60 35 35 30 30 39 40
25 25 25 50 30 30 50 50 50 50 50 50 20 50 20 25 50 50
100
100
Mystery
Science Fiction Philosophy/psychology Religion Social sciences Science Technology Health Gardening Cookery Arts
Recreation/sports Literature Poetry
Geography/travel History Professional Reference
Mode
currently popular works. When a follow-up question asked which category is most likely to involve price consideration or price resistance, reference books (56 percent) were mentioned most often. Suggested price ceilings for several format categories appear in Table 5. CD-ROM software was the category with the highest mean suggested price ceiling at nearly $400.00. CD music recordings and audiotape have the lowest suggested price ceilings at $20.00 and $35.00. A median price ceiling of $125.00 would cover all of the formats listed here except CD-ROM. When asked which formats are most likely to involve price consideration or resistance, books, microformats, and CD musical recordings were mentioned. However, no single format was mentioned by more than 17 percent of those responding as requiting special consideration because of price. Interestingly, the book format was mentioned the most (17 percent).
TABLE 5
Price Ceilings by Format (ill Dollars) Format Videotape Audiotape CD Music Microforms Periodicals CD-ROM
Books
Range
Mean
Median
Mode
25-500 8-300 12-100 25-999 5-999 100-999 10-300
87.4 50.7 29.5 222.8 ! 69.8 394 69.3
50 35 20 125 100 300 42.5
50 50 15 50 100
100 100
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Sample Characteristics Three questions were asked to provide some information on the responding library or library system. The mean number o f librarians within a particular system involved full-time in collection development and management was 2.7, with the median being 1.0. The range was from zero to 20. About 35 percent o f the libraries responding had no one involved in collection development on a full-time basis. The respondent was asked to indicate the number o f years o f substantial involvement with collection development and management. The range was from one to 37 years with the mean being 28.1 and the median being 11 years. The mean annual collection development budget for the library or library system was $1.4 million. The median was $600,000.00.
Relationships In general, there were no notable relationships between these sample or demographic variables and attitudes toward price. A significant relationship (at the .01 level with Cramer's V = .48) was found between adoption of a price ceiling and the importance of review attention. Those public libraries with price ceilings were likely to feel that review attention was more important and rank it higher. The size o f the collection development budget made a difference in some cases. Libraries with larger collection development budgets ranked price as less important than libraries with more limited budgets (significant at the .04 level with Cramer's V =.64). These more affluent libraries also ranked publisher reputation higher in the values affecting selection decisions (significant at the .04 level with Cramer's V = .59).
COMMENT Collection development librarians had a variety of comments on the role price plays in collection development. Some librarians felt that prices were generally reasonable: '~l'he majority of items ordered fall in a reasonable price range." Others felt that price was not as much of a problem as their materials budget: "price in combination with inadequate funding for collection development creates problems." Given generally inadequate funding, many commented that the cost of library materials resulted in fewer additions to the collection: I see a significant increase in the price of books. In order to keep subjects current (consumer health, etc.) and meet demand for promoted books, we are definitely buying fewer titles and fewer copies of both fiction and nonfiction. Another librarian noted that price increases slowed development and make less current editions available for reference. They inhibit depth and current information in science and technology. They restrict titles in periodicals and the ability to purchase duplicates in microforms. There was general agreement that price was not as important as quality or demand. One librarian made this emphatic statement: There should be no price ceiling - - if the book is needed for the community then it must be purchased . . . . Naturally, I would not buy a $100.00 Tony Hillerman limited edition, but I would buy his latest mystery at whatever price.
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Other librarians argued that "we see it as our duty to provide readers with expensive materials they could not purchase themselves" and "we tend to buy some of the more outrageously priced books patrons ask for because if we don't buy them, the average person will never have access to them." Several librarians said that price "is a factor . . . . but not the most important one. Sometimes we don't purchase an inexpensive item, and do buy a very expensive one." "The key criterion is demand; price is definitely a low criterion." Another librarian said: Price is always a considerationbut not the most important. If an item is expensive and we have a big demand for it or we feel that it's an essentialitemthat needsto be in the collection,we will buy it. This may mean we needto cut otheritemsor materials. There was general agreement that it was better to buy more expensive quality material, especially if in demand, even if that meant that fewer items could be selected. One librarian made the persuasive comment that on a per-use basis expensive material may be less costly than inexpensive material that is not heavily used. A few librarians made the point that price was much more important to branch managers faced with more limited budgets: "Our branch libraries, rather than the Central Library, are more likely to use price as a determining factor due to the smaller budget they are allocated for collection development. They are more likely to substitute a trade paperback for a cloth book when adding current interest nonfiction floes to their collections." Another collection developer added: "branch managers frequently ask me to t-rod cheaper videos and audiocassettes..." Some collection development librarians felt that price did make a difference: "Although cost is never the first factor considered in the selection process, frequently the high price of special reference sources means sacrificing more popular items, multiple copies, and replacements." Another librarian noted that "price seldom stops us from buying one copy but price does stop us from buying multiple copies." Another made the same point: "If the floe is going to be popular, price will play a role in how many copies we will purchase." When combined with marginal usage, price becomes more important: "we try to buy just about anything that our public asks us to unless it is expensive, and other usage isn't anticipated." A few collection developers commented that the importance of price varied from subject to subject. For example, some suggested that price plays a more important role in the selection of art/free arts and technical books. Several strategies for dealing with price increases were mentioned. For example, "we also alternate purchases--for example, only ordering one new set of encyclopedias a year, and buying CDROMs with what would have been spent on other encyclopedias." Another librarian noted: "We have an informal policy of looking especially hard at titles priced at 50% more than the average price in that subject area." Negotiating better discounts from vendors and getting free shipping and handling were also mentioned as ways to accommodate the inevitable price increases. One collection developer argued for relying on CD-ROM and online services for nonfiction queries: "Books deal in the past and most, as in the computer area, are outdated when they hit the shelf." Paper editions, especially trade paper, were frequently mentioned as a cost saving option, especially when demand is likely to be limited or intensive but short: "We often buy paperback editions instead of cloth, especially when we don't anticipate a long or heavy demand." Another librarian made a similar point: "On some marginal titles we well wait until a trade paperback edition is published and purchase the paperback." Popular items likely to be stolen were also frequent
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targets for paper editions. Two librarians mentioned that topics suffering heavy loss are more likely to have informal price ceilings.
DISCUSSION Selecting books, videos and other material for the public library is different from buying pencils or computers. Since most items, at least those under copyright are unique, and are available in but one edition from one publisher, there is little price competition. Once the decision is made to select an item, the library must pay the price. That price may be discounted depending on arrangemerits with publishers and vendors, but we do not have the opportunity to select and find a competirive product. Most public librarian selectors believe that the price of an item does not weigh heavily in making a selection decision. There is little of that spirited price resistance encountered, for example, in academic librarians when they speak of periodical price increases. Are public libraries then a captive audience for the publisher7 The house publishes it and then librarians buy it7 While sticker shock does not seem to be a problem here, there is no doubt that higher prices have an impact. Fewer items are selected; duplicate or multiple copies are reduced. Some public librarians are trading down by selecting trade and mass market paper editions. Still, given the public librarians' commitment to providing the public with popular, quality material, the public libraries do represent a captive audience for publishers. Since meeting community demand is the highest ranking selection value, it is difficult for librarians to refuse to select popular material despite price. However, the fact that review attention is the second most important selection value may provide an opportunity for value, including price to receive thoughtful consideration. As several respondents noted, the focus on price is misleading. Value, the relationship between price and the frequency of use as well as the consequence of use, is the real issue. It is much more difficult to identify the value of an item, even after it has been in the library for some time, than its price. The finding that few public libraries have price ceilings seems reasonable given the attitudes toward price discussed above. The failure to cap prices for formats or subject categories provides more flexibility for selectors. Most public librarians do not find price caps to be an appropriate response to price increases. One library in four with a price ceiling for nonreference books typically had a ceiling between $75.00 and $100.00. This fits well with Bowker's decision to produce separate U.S. book price statistics for books with a list price of less than $81.00. The response of public librarians to price increases seems reasonable. One could argue that the public might be better served with fewer rifles and more duplicate copies. The balance between a greater variety of useful items and immediate patron access to a core of high demand rifles is a difficult one. The decision to select fewer nonprint items may be quite rational or may reflect some sense that these formats are not as essential or as appropriate as the traditional print ones. The finding that collection developers are at least somewhat more likely to be price conscious with nonprint items is another indication of the same problem. Public librarians selecting for major U.S. libraries are concerned with the price of library materials and continuing price increases. They are taking steps to reduce the impact of these increases. And they continue to agree that price is always a consideration but not the most important one. Acknowledgements - - I am grateful to Lisa Marie Caldwell who helped with all phases of this research effort, including duplicating and mailing the questionnaire, and coding and entering the responses into a machine-readable file. Lisa Baker Hill provided helpful assistance with the literature search and securing needed items. The University of Tennessee Computing Center provided access to the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences and general computing support.
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REFERENCES 1. St. Lifer, Evan and Michael Rogers. " U ' s Third Annual Budget Report: PLs Struggle To Make Ends Meet," Library Journal, 118 (January t993), 16-36. 2. St. Lifer, Evan and Michael Rogers. "I_J Finds Pockets of Prosperity Amid Tight PL Budgets," Library Journal, 119 (January 1994), 14-29. 3. Selsky, Deborah. "Book Prices Continue to Rise Faster Than Inflation," Library Journal, 116 (February 1991), 42. 4. "Average Adult Book Prices Drop," School Library Journal, 40 (April 1994), 14. 5. Grannis, Chandler. "Output & Prices: Moving On Up," Publishers Weekly, 240 (March 1, 1993), 532-535; "American Book Prices Average Per Volume: 1991-1992 Final," Library Journal, 241 (January 24 1994), 13. 6. Lynden, Frederick C. "Library Materials Cost Studies," Library Resources and Technical Services, 27 (April/June 1983), 14-29. 7. Robinson, William C. "The Page Price of Popular Fiction and Nonfiction Books: an Exploratory Study," Library Resources and Technical Services, 37 (October 1993), 351-366. 8. Bohne, Harald. "Why Are Book Prices So HighT' Scholarly Publishing, 7 (January 1976), 135-143; Daniel J. Levant, "What Is a Book Worth.'?"Scholarly Publishing, 5 (July 1974), 319-329. 9. Boissonnas, Christian M. "When We Buy Books, We Know What We Pay For - - Or Do WeT' Library Acquisitions: Practice & Theory, 13 (1989), 78-101; Audrey B. Eaglen, "Short Discount Shuffles - - What It's All About," School Library Journal, 25 (May 1979), 30-33. 10. Wall, C. Edward. "Inflationary Book Prices and Consumer Gouging - - a Diagnosis," Catholic Library World, 47 (November 1975), 170-172. 11. Scilken, Marvin H. '~l'ruly Astonished," School Library Journal, 34 (May 1988), 6; "Library Book Reviews: More Information Needed, The U*N*A*B*A*S*H*E*D Librarian, 73 (1989), 10; "PLBs and Prices," School Library Journal, 38 (April 1992), 16. 12. "CA Task Force Tries to Solve $ Woes," Library Journal, 119 (June 15, 1994), 15. 13. St. Lifer and Rogers, 'Whird Annual Budget Report," 24, 36. 14. St. Lifer and Rogers, "Pockets of Prosperity," 14. 15. "U.S. Cities Over 25,000 Population," Information Please Almanac, Atlas and Yearbook. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1993, 811-820. 16. "CD-ROM Price Inventory 1990: 1992: Average Costs by Classification and Material Type (Serials and Monographs)." The Bowker Annual of Library & Book Trade Information. New York: R. R. Bowker, 1993, 491. 17. Truck, Loma. "Media Prices," [email protected] (February 22, 1994)
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APPENDIX
Questionnaire
The Role of Price in Public Library Selection Decisions Your participation is important for the success of this study. Each response will be treated anonymously. The study is designed to secure information from the chief collection development librarian at larger public libraries. 1.
Below are seven factors often considered in making a selection decision. Please rank the importance of these factors from 1 to 7 where 1 is the highest and 7 is the lowest: price __ likely community demand __ author reputation __ publisher, producer, distributor reputation review attention/recommendation __ subject format other When faced with price increases for library materials, I typically respond by selecting [check as many as apply]
Format
Cloth books Cloth duplicate titles Trade paper books Mass market paper books Rental/lease books Periodicals Periodical duplicate titles Annual publications Annual duplicate titles Videotapes Audiotapes CD musical recordings CD-ROM software Micro formats Binding
Less
A b o u t the same
More
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3.
Have you, within the past six months, rejected an otherwise suitable item because you fek that the price was unreasonable?
Format
Yes
No
Number of t/mes if
Cloth books Cloth duplicate titles Trade paper books Mass market paper books Rental/lease books Periodicals Periodical duplicate titles Annual publications Annual duplicate titles Videotapes Audiotapes CD musical recordings CD-ROM software Micro formats Binding
4.
Are you more likely to be more price conscious when selecting non-book items? [Please circle the most appropriate response] No Slightly more Somewhat more Substantially more
5.
Has your library adopted, either formally or informally, a general price ceiling-a price point that removes an item from selection consideration or requires unusual justification for selection? YES NO
Price and Collection Development
6.
If the answer to question 5 is yes, which formats have such ceilings and what is your price ceiling amount? Format
7.
3! 1
Price Ceilin(, Amount
Please indicate what you would consider to be a reasonable price ceiling for these cloth book categories. [In whole dollars] Adult fiction general Mystery and espionage fiction Science fiction Philosophy and psychology Religion Social sciences Science Technology Health and medicine Plants and gardening Cookery Arts Recreation and sports Literature Poetry Geography and travel History Professional reading Reference Which of the above cloth book categories is most likely to involve price consideration or price resistance?
9.
Please indicate what you would consider to be a reasonable price threshold for these media categories. [In whole dollars] Videotape Audiotape CD musical recordings Micro formats Periodicals CD-ROM software
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Books
10.
Selecting items from which of the above categories is most likely to involve price consideration or price resistance?
11.
Please comment below on the role that price plays in the development of collections in your public library.
12.
What is the annual collection development budget for your library system (all materials plus binding)?
13.
How many librarians are involved with collection development and management on a fulltime basis?
14.
For how many years have you been substantially involved in collection development and management?
Thank you for your help. Please return the questionnaire in the stamped, self-addressed envelope to Graduate School of Library & Information Science, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 379964330. Queries or comments to Bill Robinson (615-974-2148, fax 615-974-4967 or [email protected]).
Library Acquisitions: Practice & ~ , VoL 19, No. 3, pp. 299-312, 1995 Copyright O 1995 El~vier Science Ltd Print~lin the USA. All rights ~acrv¢~l 0364-6408/95 $9.50 + .00
o:~,..~osos)ooo~.o
PRICE OF MATERIALS AND COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT IN LARGER PUBLIC LIBRARIES WILLIAM C. ROBINSON Associate Professor Graduate School of Library & Information Science University of Tennessee Knoxville, TN 37996-4330 Internet: wrobinso @utkvx.utk.e~lu
Abstract - - Questionnaires were sent to public library systems in the 200 largest cities in the United States to learn more about the role of price in the selection of materials. A 34 percent response rate yielded 67 usable responses. When ranked on a scale from 1 to 7, with 7 being least important, list price had a median ranking of 5, while likely community demand was ranked I. When faced with price increases, these collection developers tended to select fewer duplicates, fewer periodical and annual publications, and fewer nonbook items. About 26 percent of those responding had adopted an informal or formal price ceiling for selections. About 66 percent of these librarians were likely be more price conscious when selecting nonbook items. Price ceilings for categories and formats are discussed. Keywords - - Public libraries, Price, Collection development
INTRODUCTION Providing the right item for the right person at the right time at the right price has become much more difficult with the large number of selections available to the public library selector, including newer formats such as CD-ROM products. At the same time, the price of materials continues to increase much faster than the collection development budgets of most public libraries. As St. Lifer and Rogers report in Library Journal's third annual budget report: '°The threats to materials budgets continue to challenge public librarians to keep pace with inflation and rising materials costs."[1] This report also noted that circulation increased more rapidly than materials budgets. In their fourth annual budget report, the authors note again that "external circumstances - - eroding tax bases, continued economic slumps, a reprioritizing of funds away from libraries - have altered public libraries' budgetary landscape."[2] 299
300
w . c . ROBINSON
The purpose of this research was to learn more about the importance of price in collection development in larger public libraries. Larger libraries were selected because of their visibility and potential impact upon public library collection development practice. In particular, there was interest in the degree to which collection developers in this environment had reacted to price increases by adopting price ceilings to eliminate unreasonably priced items from selection consideration. This is descriptive research. Little attempt was made to relate attitudes and perceptions about price to potential causal variables except to see if libraries with smaller collection development budgets responded differently from those with larger budgets and to see if libraries with formal or informal price ceilings responded differently.
LITERATURE REVIEW The public librarian seeking information on the role that price plays in the collection development process is not likely to fred helpful literature. Statistics on book prices are available and have been with us for several years. Library Journal periodically publishes statistics on book prices that show that the price of books typically increases more rapidly than inflation [3]. Publishers Weeklyhas long produced both news reports and an annual review of book prices [4]. For example, in 1992, the average hardcover book had a mean price of $45.74, and the average hardcover under $81 category had a mean price of $33.55. Trade paperbacks averaged $18.81 and mass market paperbacks $5.22 [5]. Other articles, such as Lynden's, discuss price indexes and the need for research on the cost of library material [6]. Robinson has written on the per page price of popular fiction and nonfiction [7]. However, statistics such as these have not been related to the purchase decisions of librarians. Why prices are so high is a topic that has received some attention in the literature. However, articles on this topic tend to be descriptive, and sometimes highly anecdotal. From time to time, thoughtful articles, often in Scholarly Publishing, answer the question "Why are book prices so high?" Bohne and Levant have written responses from the viewpoint of the scholarly publisher [8]. Boissonnas and Eaglen discuss the issues related to vendor pricing of books with an emphasis on discounts [9]. Wall has shown how publishers take advantage of libraries through price-gouging techniques [10]. Scilkin has commented on the importance of the net price of the book (after considering the discount), the net per-page cost of the book, and price gouging via short-discount library bindings [11]. While some of these articles discuss strategies that libraries might use in coping with high prices, they do not deal with the question of how the librarian deals with high prices. A variety of news items regularly appear in the literature on public library budgetary problems and these provide some information on the ability of the public library to cope with increasing prices. For example, a note in Library Journal reported that in 1993 California public library book budgets were reduced by 25 percent [12]. Library Journal also issues an annual summary budget report for public libraries. Of the 227 responding libraries in the 1993 survey, 46 percent had increased materials budgets in 1992/1993, 31 percent had a decreased materials budget, and 23 percent had a budget that remained the same [13]. The 1994 LJ budget report makes this important point: Although the 1990 and 1991 fiscal years of draconian budgets cuts are behind us - - Californianotwithstanding - - the big, budgetaryhomerun is now a rarity.Many libraries- - althoughstill gropingand thrashing for a secure financialtoehold- - would be surprised to learn they are in the embryonicstages of a fiscal turnaround, as evidencedby LJ~ latest statistics.[14] In this 1994 report, statistics are available by size of library. Libraries serving populations of fewer than 50,000 experienced a materials budget increase of 7 percent from 1992/1993 to
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1993/1994. This compares with a 5 percent increase for libraries serving 50,000-99,999 and a decline of 1 percent for libraries serving 100,000 or more - - the largest metropolitan public libraries. The decline for the largest public libraries relates directly to this study. In summary, while useful information is available on the price of materials, on why material prices are high, and on the materials budgets of libraries, no literature was found that specifically discussed public library collection developer's attitudes toward price and price ceilings.
METHOD The questionnaire used in this study is attached (Appendix A). Copies were sent to public libraries in the 200 largest U.S. cities according to the 1990 U.S. Census rankings from the 1993 Information Please Almanac [15]. The American Library Directory was then used to identify the public library or public library system for each city. Of the 200 questionnaires mailed in November 1993, 67 usable responses were received for a response rate of about 34 percent. Questionnaire responses were coded, entered into a machine-readable file, and analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences [SPSS; SPSS, Inc., Chicago, ILl. Originally, this study was to compare price ceilings proposed by public library selectors with the mean price of books in various categories and of media formats as reported in Publisher's Weekly and the Bowker Annual. However, the time lag involved in the Bowker data, the difference in categories, and concern about appropriateness (prices for all books in the American Book Publishing Record include many rifles not appropriate for public libraries) of these measures for public libraries resulted in a decision to use minimal Bowker data. In general, the Bowker mean prices are substantially higher than the price ceilings proposed by the respondents. For example, the Bowker mean price [1992 data] for CD-ROM materials is $1,061.00, while the mean proposed ceiling is $394.00 [16]. Lorna Truck, at the Public Library of Des Moines, reported that the invoices for videocassettes at her library averaged about 10 percent of the Bowker mean price because of the different mix of rifles purchased, primarily mass-market videos [17].
FINDINGS Selection Values Public librarians were asked to rank several values often mentioned as important in making selection decisions. Table 1 lists these values and their rankings. Likely community demand and review attention were the selection values ranked highest. While price was not ranked the lowest - - publisher reputation and format were ranked lower - clearly price is not a primary concern in making selection decisions.
Reaction to Price Increases Respondents were asked how price increases affected their selection decisions. Table 2 summarizes these responses. When faced with price increases, these public librarian collection developers react by selecting fewer duplicates (periodicals, annuals, and cloth books), fewer serial publications, and fewer items in nonprint formats. The format receiving more selection attention when prices increase is the trade paper book. To a lesser extent, leased books and mass-market paper books are also popular ways of providing more material for the dollar.
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TABLE 1 Ranked List o f Selection Values Value Likely community demand Review attention Subject Author reputation List price Publisher reputation Format
Mean
Median
Mode
Range
1.6 2.2 2.9 3.7 5.1
1 2 3 4 5
1 2 3 4 5
5.8
6
7
6
6
7
2-7 1-7 1-6 1-7 2-7 3-7 3-7
Rejection of Suitable Items W h e n asked i f they had, within the last six months, rejected an otherwise suitable item because the price was unreasonable, most librarians said "yes." Table 3 summarizes these responses. Videotape was the format most likely to be rejected because the price was too high. The cloth b o o k and the p e r i o d i c a l were the other two formats where suitable items were often rejected because o f unreasonable prices. The mass- market paper b o o k was the category in which librarians were least likely to reject a suitable item based on price.
Selecting Nonbook Items Collection developers were asked i f they were m o r e likely to be price conscious when selecting nonbook items. Slightly more than a third said "no" - - that they were no more price conscious for these items. A b o u t 32 percent were slightly more price conscious, 20 percent were somewhat more
TABLE 2 Impact o f Price Increases on Selecting by F o r m a t Format Cloth books Cloth duplicate titles Trade paper books Mass market paper books [,eased books Periodicals Periodical duplicate titles Annual publications Annual duplicates Videotape Audiotape CD music CD-ROM Microformats Binding
Select less (%) 37 75 5 10 48 85 53 79 41 41 42 38 36 49
Select same (%) Select mote (%) 64 23 47 72 60 53 15 47 21 57 55 57 53 42 30
2 53 21 27
2 7 3 19
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TABLE 3 Rejection of Suitable Material Because of Price Format Cloth book Cloth duplicatebook Tradepaperbook Mass marketpaperbook Leasedbook Periodical Periodicalduplicate Annual publication Annual duplicate Videotapes Audiotapes CD Music CD-ROM Microformats Binding
% RejectingSuitableItems 69 59 22 8 21 69 51 60 51
72 37 27 50 21 14
price conscious, and 12 percent were substantially more price conscious. This suggests that almost two-thirds of those who responded were at least slightly more price conscious when selecting nonbook materials.
Price Ceilings One way to deal with expensive material is to set a price ceiling or a price threshold. A price ceiling is a price point that marks the end of acceptable prices. An item that costs more than this amount would not be purchased despite selection value. A price threshold is a price point that requires some additional rationale for the selection decision. Only 26 percent of these public librarians had adopted, either formally or informally, a price ceiling or a price threshold. In most larger pubfic libraries, no particular price eliminates an item from selection consideration. For those libraries with price ceilings or thresholds, book price ceilings were likely to be in the $75 to $100 range. Ceilings for book subject categories were most likely to be found for art, business, science, technology, and medicine. These price ceilings were in the $50-$60 range. For other formats, price ceilings were more likely to be found for video material, with $100 being the ceiling most frequently mentioned. Librarians were asked to suggest a reasonable price ceiling for each adult cloth book subject category used by Booklist. Suggested ceiling information appears in Table 4. Generally, the price range is from about $15.00 to $150.00. A few minimum values seen here seem unusual. For example, it would be difficult to purchase a cloth book on a professional concern for $3.00 or a cloth science-fiction novel for $11.00. Note that the average 1992 price for a book ranged from $45.74 for hardcover to $5.22 for a mass market paperback. The maximum values do seem quite reasonable. Reference materials are a special case, but their median ceiling of $100 is the highest. The arts, science, and technology are other categories where librarians would be willing to spend more. The lowest ceilings suggested were for popular fiction: general, mysteries, and science fiction. The $25.00 median ceiling here is quite close to the list price of many
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TABLE 4
Reasonable Price Ceilings by Cloth Book Category (in Dollars) Category
Range
Mean
Median
Adult fiction general
13-100 11-100 11-100 15-100 15-100 15-100 18-150 18-150 18-175 15-100 12-100 18-500 15-100 15-100 13-100 15-100 15-100 3-100 5-999
29.3 26.9 26.8 39.6 38.7 39.4 53.5 53.3 49.7 40 37.4 79.2 37.1 40.9 33.7 36.2 43.6 44.9 220.1
25 25 25 35 35 35 50 50 45 35 35 60 35 35 30 30 39 40
25 25 25 50 30 30 50 50 50 50 50 50 20 50 20 25 50 50
100
100
Mystery
Science Fiction Philosophy/psychology Religion Social sciences Science Technology Health Gardening Cookery Arts
Recreation/sports Literature Poetry
Geography/travel History Professional Reference
Mode
currently popular works. When a follow-up question asked which category is most likely to involve price consideration or price resistance, reference books (56 percent) were mentioned most often. Suggested price ceilings for several format categories appear in Table 5. CD-ROM software was the category with the highest mean suggested price ceiling at nearly $400.00. CD music recordings and audiotape have the lowest suggested price ceilings at $20.00 and $35.00. A median price ceiling of $125.00 would cover all of the formats listed here except CD-ROM. When asked which formats are most likely to involve price consideration or resistance, books, microformats, and CD musical recordings were mentioned. However, no single format was mentioned by more than 17 percent of those responding as requiting special consideration because of price. Interestingly, the book format was mentioned the most (17 percent).
TABLE 5
Price Ceilings by Format (ill Dollars) Format Videotape Audiotape CD Music Microforms Periodicals CD-ROM
Books
Range
Mean
Median
Mode
25-500 8-300 12-100 25-999 5-999 100-999 10-300
87.4 50.7 29.5 222.8 ! 69.8 394 69.3
50 35 20 125 100 300 42.5
50 50 15 50 100
100 100
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Sample Characteristics Three questions were asked to provide some information on the responding library or library system. The mean number o f librarians within a particular system involved full-time in collection development and management was 2.7, with the median being 1.0. The range was from zero to 20. About 35 percent o f the libraries responding had no one involved in collection development on a full-time basis. The respondent was asked to indicate the number o f years o f substantial involvement with collection development and management. The range was from one to 37 years with the mean being 28.1 and the median being 11 years. The mean annual collection development budget for the library or library system was $1.4 million. The median was $600,000.00.
Relationships In general, there were no notable relationships between these sample or demographic variables and attitudes toward price. A significant relationship (at the .01 level with Cramer's V = .48) was found between adoption of a price ceiling and the importance of review attention. Those public libraries with price ceilings were likely to feel that review attention was more important and rank it higher. The size o f the collection development budget made a difference in some cases. Libraries with larger collection development budgets ranked price as less important than libraries with more limited budgets (significant at the .04 level with Cramer's V =.64). These more affluent libraries also ranked publisher reputation higher in the values affecting selection decisions (significant at the .04 level with Cramer's V = .59).
COMMENT Collection development librarians had a variety of comments on the role price plays in collection development. Some librarians felt that prices were generally reasonable: '~l'he majority of items ordered fall in a reasonable price range." Others felt that price was not as much of a problem as their materials budget: "price in combination with inadequate funding for collection development creates problems." Given generally inadequate funding, many commented that the cost of library materials resulted in fewer additions to the collection: I see a significant increase in the price of books. In order to keep subjects current (consumer health, etc.) and meet demand for promoted books, we are definitely buying fewer titles and fewer copies of both fiction and nonfiction. Another librarian noted that price increases slowed development and make less current editions available for reference. They inhibit depth and current information in science and technology. They restrict titles in periodicals and the ability to purchase duplicates in microforms. There was general agreement that price was not as important as quality or demand. One librarian made this emphatic statement: There should be no price ceiling - - if the book is needed for the community then it must be purchased . . . . Naturally, I would not buy a $100.00 Tony Hillerman limited edition, but I would buy his latest mystery at whatever price.
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Other librarians argued that "we see it as our duty to provide readers with expensive materials they could not purchase themselves" and "we tend to buy some of the more outrageously priced books patrons ask for because if we don't buy them, the average person will never have access to them." Several librarians said that price "is a factor . . . . but not the most important one. Sometimes we don't purchase an inexpensive item, and do buy a very expensive one." "The key criterion is demand; price is definitely a low criterion." Another librarian said: Price is always a considerationbut not the most important. If an item is expensive and we have a big demand for it or we feel that it's an essentialitemthat needsto be in the collection,we will buy it. This may mean we needto cut otheritemsor materials. There was general agreement that it was better to buy more expensive quality material, especially if in demand, even if that meant that fewer items could be selected. One librarian made the persuasive comment that on a per-use basis expensive material may be less costly than inexpensive material that is not heavily used. A few librarians made the point that price was much more important to branch managers faced with more limited budgets: "Our branch libraries, rather than the Central Library, are more likely to use price as a determining factor due to the smaller budget they are allocated for collection development. They are more likely to substitute a trade paperback for a cloth book when adding current interest nonfiction floes to their collections." Another collection developer added: "branch managers frequently ask me to t-rod cheaper videos and audiocassettes..." Some collection development librarians felt that price did make a difference: "Although cost is never the first factor considered in the selection process, frequently the high price of special reference sources means sacrificing more popular items, multiple copies, and replacements." Another librarian noted that "price seldom stops us from buying one copy but price does stop us from buying multiple copies." Another made the same point: "If the floe is going to be popular, price will play a role in how many copies we will purchase." When combined with marginal usage, price becomes more important: "we try to buy just about anything that our public asks us to unless it is expensive, and other usage isn't anticipated." A few collection developers commented that the importance of price varied from subject to subject. For example, some suggested that price plays a more important role in the selection of art/free arts and technical books. Several strategies for dealing with price increases were mentioned. For example, "we also alternate purchases--for example, only ordering one new set of encyclopedias a year, and buying CDROMs with what would have been spent on other encyclopedias." Another librarian noted: "We have an informal policy of looking especially hard at titles priced at 50% more than the average price in that subject area." Negotiating better discounts from vendors and getting free shipping and handling were also mentioned as ways to accommodate the inevitable price increases. One collection developer argued for relying on CD-ROM and online services for nonfiction queries: "Books deal in the past and most, as in the computer area, are outdated when they hit the shelf." Paper editions, especially trade paper, were frequently mentioned as a cost saving option, especially when demand is likely to be limited or intensive but short: "We often buy paperback editions instead of cloth, especially when we don't anticipate a long or heavy demand." Another librarian made a similar point: "On some marginal titles we well wait until a trade paperback edition is published and purchase the paperback." Popular items likely to be stolen were also frequent
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targets for paper editions. Two librarians mentioned that topics suffering heavy loss are more likely to have informal price ceilings.
DISCUSSION Selecting books, videos and other material for the public library is different from buying pencils or computers. Since most items, at least those under copyright are unique, and are available in but one edition from one publisher, there is little price competition. Once the decision is made to select an item, the library must pay the price. That price may be discounted depending on arrangemerits with publishers and vendors, but we do not have the opportunity to select and find a competirive product. Most public librarian selectors believe that the price of an item does not weigh heavily in making a selection decision. There is little of that spirited price resistance encountered, for example, in academic librarians when they speak of periodical price increases. Are public libraries then a captive audience for the publisher7 The house publishes it and then librarians buy it7 While sticker shock does not seem to be a problem here, there is no doubt that higher prices have an impact. Fewer items are selected; duplicate or multiple copies are reduced. Some public librarians are trading down by selecting trade and mass market paper editions. Still, given the public librarians' commitment to providing the public with popular, quality material, the public libraries do represent a captive audience for publishers. Since meeting community demand is the highest ranking selection value, it is difficult for librarians to refuse to select popular material despite price. However, the fact that review attention is the second most important selection value may provide an opportunity for value, including price to receive thoughtful consideration. As several respondents noted, the focus on price is misleading. Value, the relationship between price and the frequency of use as well as the consequence of use, is the real issue. It is much more difficult to identify the value of an item, even after it has been in the library for some time, than its price. The finding that few public libraries have price ceilings seems reasonable given the attitudes toward price discussed above. The failure to cap prices for formats or subject categories provides more flexibility for selectors. Most public librarians do not find price caps to be an appropriate response to price increases. One library in four with a price ceiling for nonreference books typically had a ceiling between $75.00 and $100.00. This fits well with Bowker's decision to produce separate U.S. book price statistics for books with a list price of less than $81.00. The response of public librarians to price increases seems reasonable. One could argue that the public might be better served with fewer rifles and more duplicate copies. The balance between a greater variety of useful items and immediate patron access to a core of high demand rifles is a difficult one. The decision to select fewer nonprint items may be quite rational or may reflect some sense that these formats are not as essential or as appropriate as the traditional print ones. The finding that collection developers are at least somewhat more likely to be price conscious with nonprint items is another indication of the same problem. Public librarians selecting for major U.S. libraries are concerned with the price of library materials and continuing price increases. They are taking steps to reduce the impact of these increases. And they continue to agree that price is always a consideration but not the most important one. Acknowledgements - - I am grateful to Lisa Marie Caldwell who helped with all phases of this research effort, including duplicating and mailing the questionnaire, and coding and entering the responses into a machine-readable file. Lisa Baker Hill provided helpful assistance with the literature search and securing needed items. The University of Tennessee Computing Center provided access to the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences and general computing support.
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REFERENCES 1. St. Lifer, Evan and Michael Rogers. " U ' s Third Annual Budget Report: PLs Struggle To Make Ends Meet," Library Journal, 118 (January t993), 16-36. 2. St. Lifer, Evan and Michael Rogers. "I_J Finds Pockets of Prosperity Amid Tight PL Budgets," Library Journal, 119 (January 1994), 14-29. 3. Selsky, Deborah. "Book Prices Continue to Rise Faster Than Inflation," Library Journal, 116 (February 1991), 42. 4. "Average Adult Book Prices Drop," School Library Journal, 40 (April 1994), 14. 5. Grannis, Chandler. "Output & Prices: Moving On Up," Publishers Weekly, 240 (March 1, 1993), 532-535; "American Book Prices Average Per Volume: 1991-1992 Final," Library Journal, 241 (January 24 1994), 13. 6. Lynden, Frederick C. "Library Materials Cost Studies," Library Resources and Technical Services, 27 (April/June 1983), 14-29. 7. Robinson, William C. "The Page Price of Popular Fiction and Nonfiction Books: an Exploratory Study," Library Resources and Technical Services, 37 (October 1993), 351-366. 8. Bohne, Harald. "Why Are Book Prices So HighT' Scholarly Publishing, 7 (January 1976), 135-143; Daniel J. Levant, "What Is a Book Worth.'?"Scholarly Publishing, 5 (July 1974), 319-329. 9. Boissonnas, Christian M. "When We Buy Books, We Know What We Pay For - - Or Do WeT' Library Acquisitions: Practice & Theory, 13 (1989), 78-101; Audrey B. Eaglen, "Short Discount Shuffles - - What It's All About," School Library Journal, 25 (May 1979), 30-33. 10. Wall, C. Edward. "Inflationary Book Prices and Consumer Gouging - - a Diagnosis," Catholic Library World, 47 (November 1975), 170-172. 11. Scilken, Marvin H. '~l'ruly Astonished," School Library Journal, 34 (May 1988), 6; "Library Book Reviews: More Information Needed, The U*N*A*B*A*S*H*E*D Librarian, 73 (1989), 10; "PLBs and Prices," School Library Journal, 38 (April 1992), 16. 12. "CA Task Force Tries to Solve $ Woes," Library Journal, 119 (June 15, 1994), 15. 13. St. Lifer and Rogers, 'Whird Annual Budget Report," 24, 36. 14. St. Lifer and Rogers, "Pockets of Prosperity," 14. 15. "U.S. Cities Over 25,000 Population," Information Please Almanac, Atlas and Yearbook. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1993, 811-820. 16. "CD-ROM Price Inventory 1990: 1992: Average Costs by Classification and Material Type (Serials and Monographs)." The Bowker Annual of Library & Book Trade Information. New York: R. R. Bowker, 1993, 491. 17. Truck, Loma. "Media Prices," [email protected] (February 22, 1994)
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APPENDIX
Questionnaire
The Role of Price in Public Library Selection Decisions Your participation is important for the success of this study. Each response will be treated anonymously. The study is designed to secure information from the chief collection development librarian at larger public libraries. 1.
Below are seven factors often considered in making a selection decision. Please rank the importance of these factors from 1 to 7 where 1 is the highest and 7 is the lowest: price __ likely community demand __ author reputation __ publisher, producer, distributor reputation review attention/recommendation __ subject format other When faced with price increases for library materials, I typically respond by selecting [check as many as apply]
Format
Cloth books Cloth duplicate titles Trade paper books Mass market paper books Rental/lease books Periodicals Periodical duplicate titles Annual publications Annual duplicate titles Videotapes Audiotapes CD musical recordings CD-ROM software Micro formats Binding
Less
A b o u t the same
More
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3.
Have you, within the past six months, rejected an otherwise suitable item because you fek that the price was unreasonable?
Format
Yes
No
Number of t/mes if
Cloth books Cloth duplicate titles Trade paper books Mass market paper books Rental/lease books Periodicals Periodical duplicate titles Annual publications Annual duplicate titles Videotapes Audiotapes CD musical recordings CD-ROM software Micro formats Binding
4.
Are you more likely to be more price conscious when selecting non-book items? [Please circle the most appropriate response] No Slightly more Somewhat more Substantially more
5.
Has your library adopted, either formally or informally, a general price ceiling-a price point that removes an item from selection consideration or requires unusual justification for selection? YES NO
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If the answer to question 5 is yes, which formats have such ceilings and what is your price ceiling amount? Format
7.
3! 1
Price Ceilin(, Amount
Please indicate what you would consider to be a reasonable price ceiling for these cloth book categories. [In whole dollars] Adult fiction general Mystery and espionage fiction Science fiction Philosophy and psychology Religion Social sciences Science Technology Health and medicine Plants and gardening Cookery Arts Recreation and sports Literature Poetry Geography and travel History Professional reading Reference Which of the above cloth book categories is most likely to involve price consideration or price resistance?
9.
Please indicate what you would consider to be a reasonable price threshold for these media categories. [In whole dollars] Videotape Audiotape CD musical recordings Micro formats Periodicals CD-ROM software
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Books
10.
Selecting items from which of the above categories is most likely to involve price consideration or price resistance?
11.
Please comment below on the role that price plays in the development of collections in your public library.
12.
What is the annual collection development budget for your library system (all materials plus binding)?
13.
How many librarians are involved with collection development and management on a fulltime basis?
14.
For how many years have you been substantially involved in collection development and management?
Thank you for your help. Please return the questionnaire in the stamped, self-addressed envelope to Graduate School of Library & Information Science, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 379964330. Queries or comments to Bill Robinson (615-974-2148, fax 615-974-4967 or [email protected]).