Academic libraries in Saudi Arabia: A comparative study of the performance of their information services and support facilities

Abstract

The main purpose of this study was to measure the performance of academic library information service points and physical support facilities at seven universities in Saudi Arabia. These measurements provide the means to critically analyze the library program and its operations and make specific recommendations for changes or improvements. The study applied three measures developed by Van House et al. (1990): Facilities Use Rate, Services Points Use, and Reference Transactions. The study investigated if any significant differences existed in the use rates of services points and supportive facilities among the seven Saudi university libraries and between two designated groups---large versus small universities. The study used different individual methods to collect the data: (1) interviews with librarians and department heads, (2) review of the literature and the related library documents and reports, and (3) masurement of the information services points and facilities. Based on the performance measurement data obtained, the average percentage use rate of facilities at the Saudi universities ranges from 17% to 72%. For the service points use rate, the average rate of users per employee for the service points' desks ranges from 0.45 to 2.05. For the reference transactions rate, the average rate of transactions per employee for the service points' desks ranges from 0.77 to 7.90. The study found that at least one of the seven libraries has a significantly different average use rate of facilities, a significantly different average user rate per employee of the service points' desks, and a significantly different average transaction rate per employee of the reference points' desks at Saudi university libraries. The study found that large and small Saudi university libraries have significantly different average usage rates of the facilities except copy machines, a significantly different average user rate per employee of the service points' desks, and a significantly different average transaction rate per employee of the reference points' desks at Saudi university libraries.