Collection development is one of the
most important aspects of the LIS profession. Being aware of and
responding to the needs of your patrons is what keeps a library
relevant to a community. How does the amazing growth in popularity
of e-books affect a library's collection?
A bit of anecdotal information to get
us started: the public library where I work will sometimes purchase
four copies of a title by our most popular authors: a traditional
print copy, a large print edition, an audio version, and now an
e-book. This model seems to be working as we have large segments of
our population that only use large print or audio materials, and a
growing portion that only accesses materials from our downloadable
catalog.
This balance works now, but as the
popularity of e-readers continues to grow (I think it's a pretty safe
bet the trend will continue over the near future), will it work in
the future? And, it's a model that works with popular adult fiction.
What about nonfiction? Or juvenile materials? These are collections
that don't often see multiple copies purchased, so the decision may
have to be made: a physical or e-version? The same question will be
asked of those popular titles during the weeding process: does a
library need both a physical and e-version?
These questions are new in this
context, but library professionals in charge of reference collections
have been asking them for years. With the increase in number of home
computers and the amount of information readily and freely available
online, there has been a sharp decline in the use of physical
reference materials. Technology has changed the way we research. We
don't have to go to the library and sort through old volumes until we
find the answer; we can search specialized databases from home and
print off full-text articles. The money that was spent on reference
materials is now split between the physical books and subscriptions
to online databases and search engines. So, while the amount of
information hasn't decreased (maybe it has even increased), the
amount of space in the library given to the reference collection has
shrunk.
Are we at a similar point with the
general collection? Now, for most libraries, the amount spent on
purchasing e-books is a small fraction of the total book-purchasing
budget, but that is likely to change as the popularity of e-books and
e-readers continues to increase. And has that happens, LIS
professionals will have to adapt the way they view collection
development and respond appropriately to the desires of their
patrons.
References:
Braun, L. W. (2011). Now is the time:
E-books, teens, and libraries. Young Adult Library Services, 9(4), 27-30.
Farkas,
M. (2011). Let's not borrow trouble. American Libraries,
42(3/4), 24.
I think that in general, with the growth of the e-book users population will come a decrease in the general collection users population. Like you mentioned, the budget spent on e-books now is not substantial compared to some of the other parts of the budget, yet it seems to be growing at a steady rate. I don't think libraries can keep up with users needs without increasing their budget for the in demand methods of consuming (aka e-readers).
ReplyDeleteThat's a good point. This is an interesting time for libraries. This new technology is bringing in patrons who may have never been to the library before, but their new e-reader gives them a reason to come in now. On the other hand, the funds being diverted to building the e-collection means fewer copies of print materials, which leads to longer waiting lists and more headaches for patrons who don't use e-readers.
ReplyDeleteThe next few years will see a lot of growing pains for libraries as they try to strike the right balance between the funds spent on their print and e-collections.
I wonder if there is any data of e-reader users and the percent that use the library now but did not before their e-reader. This data would be interesting to view because it would show if we are attracting new users or just offering more convenient methods of check-out for long time patrons. If we are not widely attracting new users, then this shift in budget would not cause as many problems. Obviously, as librarians it would be ideal if we really were attracting new patrons however.
ReplyDeleteThat's an interesting question, Stephanie. From my own experience, I've had a handful of new patrons, or people returning to the library for the first time in years, ask specifically about our e-books. I assume there are more that are tech-savvy enough that they did not need to ask for assistance. But I have no way of knowing if e-books were the sole reason for their visit.
ReplyDeleteI've done some quick searching online, and there is a lot of information about the increase in e-book borrowing, more OverDrive users, and even greater numbers of library users, but nothing that specifically addresses the issue. Whether the new patrons are just accessing e-books, though, or they are also making use of print materials and other library services, the increase in numbers is good for libraries.
A press release from OverDrive that addresses many of these numbers:
http://overdrive.com/News/eBook-Growth-in-Public-Libraries-Powered-by-OverDrive-Results-in-Record-Checkouts-and-New-Users